Over and over again in the bible there are refernces to the building of houses, in fact Jesus Christ himself was a carpenter. We all know and have heard it many times some form of the phrase , "Let God be your foundation," meaning that you should all god to govern every decision that is made big or small; be grounded in God's will and word. Well a foundation is not enough. Now don't get me wrong God should always be the foundation for your life but you also need some walls.
I was reading Betty Miller's devotional today, as I do most days, and something hit me, kind of like a coconut falling from a tree and knocking you on the head. The scripture for today's Proverbs devotional was Proverbs 25:27-28 ," It is not good to eat much honey, nor is it to glory to search out one's own glory. Like a city that is broken into and without walls is a man who has no control over his spirit."(NASB)
I didn’t really get it at first and had no clue where she was going with it. She referenced Proverbs 16:18 right after that and we all know that one, , “Pride goeth before a fall….” (I know you can probably fill in the rest.) That’s what verse 27 of Proverbs 25 means. Do not be prideful or boastful. Let God's eternal light shine through you and show that you are approved, do not get your own shine on because it means nothing. But this isn't the part that really stuck with me, it was the latter talking aobut the walls of a city, Verse 28.
I was intrigued by this scripture, heck I didnt even know it was there until reading Betty Miller's Proverbs devotional. I have often heard people say that we need to tear down the walls that we have built up, but it seemed so cliche until now. We as Christians can not hold up our own walls. We can only build ourselves up for so long before we crumble. We need high defensive walls that can only be found in Jesus. Now don't get me wrong, I am not saying that all walls are good, in fact many of the man made walls that we build up are faulty, full of holes, and in need of repair; however God's walls stand the test of time and are sure to survive any storm.
Discovering Walls
I had to do a little research on this one, I needed to know from the construction perspective what the purpose of walls were. Of course they are meant to be connected to the foundation and divide spaces, but there had to be more. I mean when my husband is trying to put a nail in the wall to hang a picture, he uses a stud finder, and if its hollow we are on to the next one, so all wall's just couldn't be completely the same, I was right.
A wall by definition is solid and made for protection, but there are many different categories. There are building walls made to support, boundary walls, separation walls meant to divide populations of people, retaining walls to make barriers in the earth, shared walls which you find in many living spaces such as apartments, defensive walls are used for fortification and to defend, and countless others, I could go on and on telling you about walls but I konw you get the point. Though different they are still all walls and are made to keep something out or keep something in, simple.
Historical Walls
In history there are two wall that really come to mind, the Berlin Wall and the Great Wall of China. The Berlin Wall completely divided a country into two separate regions. This boundary wall divided a country for more than three decades until 1989, and caused death, hatred, and chaos. The Great Wall of China was built with a different agenda. Originally, it was built for fortification purposes and now functions as one of China's main tourist attractions. They both are walls but with two different purposes.
Why wall0s?
God should continusly be our foundation, and as we grow in our walk there will be more construction and He will be our walls. Check out 2 Samuel 22:1-4.
Question: Since God wants to be our foundation, don’t you think he wants the whole house?
Answer(What God is saying to me, maybe it ministers to you): A house will not survive without a firm foundation and a house is nothing with out walls. Wall support, separate, retain, and create shared space that is exactly what God wants to do. God wants to be your ultimate support system, separate us from the darkness of this world, retain us, and be all up in our space. Sometimes we need one type of wall more than the other, but He is forever our tower (2 Samuel 22:3). I(We) need him more than I(we) know. Salvation is nothing without him, our house can not stand, it will simply fall apart. God is our defense and mans our fortress at all time, it is my(our) obligation to open the door and let Him in. Walls built by myself (ourselves) will fall, but a wall upheld by Christ will stand the test of time.
My final thoughts
Build Him up so He won't tear you down. Be founding in God so He will uphold your walls. The only way for your walls to be built is to be cemented in God's word.
Don' forget to check out Betty Millers Daily Devotionals on Proverbs at
http://www.bible.com/daily-devotional.php
Peace and Love,
Najeema, Iman I AM Curly Locks
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