BUILD THE WALL!

Abundant life, in American culture, is defined as life without rules....life without limits...life without ever needing to say ‘No!’  But true freedom and the abundant life Christ promises His followers is freedom to refuse and life lived with godly guidelines. In today’s reading, the writer of Proverbs states, “Like a city that is broken into and without walls is a man who has no control over his spirit.” (25:28) A person who has no self-control is like a city without walls: vulnerable, insecure, weak, open to attack.

Walls provide strength and security.  We have heard much about walls in the recent news.  One truly comes to appreciate the benefit afforded by walls when standing at Masada.  Masada was constructed on the top of a plateau in the Judean wilderness. Its cliffs range from 400 meters to 90 meters in height.  These natural walls and the 13’ high casement walls Herod built around the entire city allowed those Jews living there to dwell in relative security for between 4 to 7 months prior to the Romans breaching the wall.  More popular Jewish wisdom holds that the siege lasted years.  Whatever the case, these cliffs and the constructed walls provided strong security for those living in this city.

Self-control and living life being filled with God’s Spirit is abundant life indeed.  Having the freedom to say, ‘No!’ to sinful impulses, being able to be strong in the face of desires that would harm, and not being vulnerable to evil is abundant life indeed.