City Life Starter

Written by Stefan Johnsson

The Word

Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul.

1 Peter 2:11

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.

Romans 12:1

It has been well said that the body is, to the soul and spirit dwelling and acting within it, like the walls of the city. Through them the enemy enters in. In time of war, everything yields to the defence of the walls. It is often because the believer does not know the importance of keeping the walls defended, keeping the body sanctified, that he fails in having the soul and spirit preserved blameless.

Andrew Murray, Holy in Christ

Reflection

Andrew Murray puts it in a good way for us to understand. Our body is like a wall that envelopes a city. Once the enemy breaks through this wall, the city will crumble and fall. Thus, all resources and defense of the city relies on manning the wall and keeping it secure from the enemy’s attacks. And so it is with us. If we are to keep ourselves holy, we must do our utmost to defend the walls of our city, which is our body, so that the enemy will not corrupt us.

Nehemiah, when he came back to Jerusalem, quickly set up the task to rebuild it. The most important part on rebuilding the city was to fix the broken walls and city gates. Once the walls and gates were rebuilt, the tasks for completing the rest of the work inside, such as building the temple, could begin. If the walls had been left unfinished, the enemy would’ve easily infiltrated and destroyed all the work that they had done.

This is why we need to build up a strong wall to defend against the enemy. But we do not do this alone. It is through the help of the Holy Spirit that we can build up a strong defensive wall for our lives and to live a more holy life.

Application

How are your walls looking today? Are you letting your guard down and letting Satan take advantage of the cracks that are there? It is time to build up a better wall and to seek God’s help in protecting yourself from the attacks of Satan. It is your responsibility to defend the walls, but we are not alone in doing so, thanks to our church family and to the Holy Spirit Himself.

Prayer

Father in heaven, help me to protect myself from the arrows of the enemy. I need to build strong walls that protect me from the sins and desires in this world that can easily take me away from Your presence and goodness. Help me to be set apart and holy in Your presence. In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.