There was a place, as Paul refers to it Ephesians, as the dividing wall; and, at the passageway between the courts where this wall stood was an inscription that warned trespassers of the death penalty for encroachment beyond the wall. I’ve heard that pilots warn their passengers upon landing in Singapore, that if they are carrying drugs or firearms, the penalty is death upon entering the terminal with such articles. Two teams take the field, the only goal is victory, and there are winners and losers. There are no morale victories at the gate, which separated the court of the Gentiles, the scoreboard on Saturday or possessing the wrong items in Singapore. We are engrained to divide what is mine and what the others are left with.
Paul said, “He is our peace, who made both groups into one, and broke down the barrier of the dividing wall”.
It is a very difficult process to have faith, to understand grace and fervently hope for good things to come. We must compete; victory is paramount, yet we seek a resolution of peace within. Prayers are answered at a snails pace, we earn what we get by the sweat of our brow and the milk-bone underwear of the 21st century seems to be a delicacy for the dogs in the market place. There is grace for the losers once they’ve lost and show no signs of mounting a drive; and trust, well, trust left town on the Enron trailer pulled by Freddie sitting on his Fannie in a Mac truck.
But, where there is darkness the light reveals its perfect work because a profound truth is always followed by yet another profound truth. We need the darkness to reveal the light. It is as much to say that no man can have a real perspective on life, unless he can admit, he’s had his ass thoroughly kicked by life. If it were not so dark one could find his way, but one only needs a ray of light to dimly lay hold of the path, even if that light would be a single star in the night.
When the path is finally lit we see that prayers are answered perfectly in just the right timing. That only those things of great value come by persistent effort and consistent work. Grace is everywhere around us, just consider that you are standing on the right side of the grass; and trust, well, we trust that in a few days we will see the child’s face who tore down the wall, encourages us to excel and trusts us to choose Him and live like the warriors he intended us to be. He is our peace. Ain’t it so?