Walls

The Everlasting Light

/ Tim A. / Leave a comment

For brass I will bring gold, and for iron I will bring silver, and for wood brass, and for stones iron: I will also make thy officers peace, and thine exactors righteousness.  Violence shall no more be heard in thy land, wasting nor destruction within thy borders; but thou shalt call thy walls Salvation, and thy gates Praise.  The sun shall be no more thy light by day; neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee: but the LORD shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory.  Thy sun shall no more go down; neither shall thy moon withdraw itself: for the LORD shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended.  Thy people also shall be all righteous: they shall inherit the land for ever, the branch of My planting, the work of My hands, that I may be glorified.  A little one shall become a thousand, and a small one a strong nation: I the LORD will hasten it in his time.

Isaiah 60:17-22

Broken Down Walls

/ Tim A. / Leave a comment

There has been talk of tearing down walls; too many walls; high walls; low walls; brick walls; rock walls; all kinds of walls.  Maybe there are some walls which need to be torn down, but not the walls of protection.  Not the walls that are there to keep us from the enemy, those who would destroy us; those who desire to see us cease to exist.

It was when the nation of Israel had sinned against God, broken His law; His sabbaths, and committed lewd acts against the Most High, that He sent the enemy to destroy their walls.  The wall was destroyed and for seventy years in captivity the walls lay in ruin, trampled by wild donkeys, and wild beasts of all sorts.

There was a man by the name of Nehemiah who had a burden for Jerusalem after he had received report of the city’s condition.  His heart was broken, and the king gave him leave to go and lead in the rebuilding of those walls.  Here is what Nehemiah has written,

“Then said I unto them, Ye see the distress that we are in, how Jerusalem lieth waste, and the gates thereof are burned with fire: come, and let us build up the wall of Jerusalem, that we be no more a reproach.  Then I told them of the hand of my God which was good upon me; as also the king’s words that he had spoken unto me. And they said, Let us rise up and build. So they strengthened their hands for this good work.”  Nehemiah 2:17-18 (KJV)

As Christian men and women; let’s keep the walls that protect us, and restore some of those walls that have been broken down. And like Nehemiah let’s lead our family, our churches, communities, and nation in building those walls that call us back to God – correct doctrine, right worship, pointing people to Jesus Christ the Son of the Living God; and living by the Word of God.

The wall of God’s protection is quickly coming down.  We can pray, read and study God’s Word; and then apply it to daily living to strengthen those walls.

-Tim A. Blankenship

Stripped Defenses

/ Tim A. / Leave a comment

A nation, an individual, a family that has been greatly blessed by God is truly blessed, strong, safe, protected and having the hand of God upon them.  When these have grown to a place where they begin to trust their own strength, and wander from the trust and worship of the One who has given them these things, then, there is need for warning.

A man or woman who has lived by faith, because of the faith given them by God, who begins believing they are great because of their own efforts, pride, and strength will draw away from the Lord.  They see only that God’s blessing is on them, and that will always be the same.  What happens, however, when the blessing stops?  What happens when this individual begins trusting the blessing rather than the Blesser?

The nation of Judah, to whom Jeremiah addresses had been  in such a state.  Greatly blessed over the years, but they would never hear of the decease of God’s blessing.  Any prophet who warned them that God was going to send a sinful nation to avenge Him was considered a false prophet.  That was Jeremiah’s case.

The nation of Israel was likened unto a vineyard by Isaiah the prophet (Isaiah 5), and  that picture is given to Jeremiah as well;

“Go ye up upon her walls, and destroy; but make not a full end: take away her battlements; for they are not the LORD’S. For the house of Israel and the house of Judah have dealt very treacherously against me, saith the LORD. They have belied the LORD, and said, It is not he; neither shall evil come upon us; neither shall we see sword nor famine: And the prophets shall become wind, and the word is not in them: thus shall it be done unto them.” Jeremiah 5:10-13 (KJV)

Though vineyard is not mentioned in the KJV that is the idea of the “walls”.  Vineyards did have walls around them, and these “battlements” are speaking of the “branches”  of the vineyard that are to be taken away. 

The NKJV reads,

“Go up on her walls and destroy, but do not make a complete end.  Take away her branches for they are not the LORD’s.”

The walls was the means of protection for the vineyard.  It kept the livestock from getting into it, the wildlife from doing too much damage.  To destroy the wall was to make the vineyard open to ruin. 

Notice in these words that God gives hope to His people, “…but make not a full end” .  The defense of God’s people is the LORD, not a our nation, not our president, not the military, etc.  It is the LORD alone.  When we turn our backs on God in favor of wicked leaders, and military defenses, politics or business; including Wall Street, then we will have our defenses stripped.

People no longer listen to the truth.  We want to feel good and the truth doesn’t leave us feeling too well.  The nation of Judah turned its back on God infavor of the lies of the false prophets.  They rejected the word of God, and trusted lies.  Judah and Israel said that “If there is a coming judgment, it is not of God”.  They would not believe that God could do such a thing.  After all, they thought, “We have the temple of God”.  They may have had the temple of God, but God was not in His temple.

There may be destruction from God, but it is to call His people back to Himself.  Christian of 2009 wake up and see and hear the truth of God’s word.  Trust only in Him, and be at peace.  God has our best in His heart.  Repent, return and believe.  Do this through faith in God’s Son Jesus Christ.  He died on the cross for your sins, was buried carrying your guilt, shame and condemnation away, and He bodily arose from the grave, and gives us eternal life.  One day soon He is coming again.

-Tim A. Blankenship