Speaking Of Life 3034 | Walls of Hostility
Heber Ticas
You have heard the adage, “Good fences make good neighbors.”
But hindsight says, “Bad neighbors, make good fences.”
Ever since Adam and Eve turned hostile against God, fences and walls have outlined the history of conflict between neighbors. Stories about Jericho and Jerusalem or Babylon and Berlin are not complete without the rise and fall of their walls.
Attempts at peace are often pursued but usually through this cycle of erecting and tearing down walls. Wars and walls go hand in hand. Some believe better walls will bring peace while others believe peace can only be achieved by their removal.
But the problem is not with the walls. It’s with the people on both sides of the walls. The walls of hostility are not built from earthen stone but from stony hearts. This is the true wall of hostility that needs to be torn down. And the Good News of Jesus Christ is that he has done just that. We no longer have to argue over which side of the wall to stand on. Jesus has created a new ground of peace in himself where all can stand as one. He breaks down the walls of separation that are so prevalent in our world. Everyone is invited to live in him.
The Apostle Paul was accused of crossing a cultural wall of hostility in his day and it landed him behind the walls of a prison. Yet, barricaded behind those walls he was free and at peace to write this about Jesus:
“For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by setting aside in his flesh the law with its commands and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility.”
Ephesians 2:14-16
Thanks to our Triune God of Grace, there are no walls of hostility between us and God. The Father has made us his children in Jesus and therefore, brothers and sisters to one another. If you have grown weary of building and tearing down walls of hostility, Jesus calls you to himself to belong to a new family that lives without walls and in peace.
Mi nombre es Heber Ticas, Hablando de Vida.
