Barriers Are Blessings
"Hear the conclusion of the matter: Fear God, and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.” Ecclesiastes 12:13
I can still remember, as a kid, some big-time trouble I got into one day. Some of my buddies and I were outside playing during recess when we noticed a strawberry patch right next to the playground. Those strawberries looked so good! They were red, ripe, and ready. There was only one problem – Mr. Robinson, who owned that strawberry patch, had put a barbed wire fence around it.
We saw that fence as an obstacle keeping us from a good time. We weren’t about to let that fence keep us from what we wanted.
A couple of us held up the bottom of the fence while two other guys slid under and grabbed several handfuls of strawberries for the rest of us knuckleheads! But what we didn’t know was Mr. Robinson was watching us! Yikes! Sure enough, our sin found us out!
Just like Mr. Robinson’s barbed wire fence, many times we look at God’s word as a restraint keeping us from a good time. But in reality, His word protects us from sin's scrapes, sores and scars that are sure to come our way when we ignore it.
G.K. Chesterton wisely said, “Do not remove a fence until you know why it was put up in the first place.”
I think the lesson is simple – what already exists likely serves a purpose that may not be immediately obvious. Fences don’t appear by accident. They are built by people who planned them and had a reason to believe they would benefit someone. Before we take an ax to a fence, we should first understand the reason it's there.
When we ignore the warnings and commands in the Bible, we risk unleashing unintended consequences that spread like ripples on a pond.
I’ve learned God’s love for us is beyond comprehension and His Word is more trustworthy than the words of a friend.
The Bible is filled with commands from our Lord. But we shouldn’t look at them like they're a bunch of do’s and don’ts! Too many think of His commands as, “I can’t do this!” Or “I have to do this if I’m going to be a Christian!” That’s when the Christian life becomes a dull religion instead of a vibrant relationship with the Lord. Most believers need to have a change of mindset.
Psalm 119:105 “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.”
His Word is spoken from a heart of love that guides us safely through this dark and difficult world. When God informs you to not do a particular thing, He’s actually saying, “Don’t do that because I love you! That will bring scars on your life!” And when He commands you to do a certain thing, He’s actually saying, “Help yourself to My blessings!”
Let's view God commands not as something we have to do, but something we get to do! Our mindset each day should be to approach God’s Word with this attitude, “Lord, show me the best way to be blessed!” Or “Lord, show me something I need to avoid in life that will bring harm to me!” When He said, “If you love Me, keep My commandments” He's saying to us, “Don’t break My heart! Allow My Word to guide you to a blessed life!”
We should never entertain the thought of God’s commands like a barbed wire fence. Be assured that God’s intent is never to restrain us, but to protect us from unwanted hardships that are just on the other side of that fence.
He loves you! His Word is truth!
God bless you!
Pastor Paul
I can still remember, as a kid, some big-time trouble I got into one day. Some of my buddies and I were outside playing during recess when we noticed a strawberry patch right next to the playground. Those strawberries looked so good! They were red, ripe, and ready. There was only one problem – Mr. Robinson, who owned that strawberry patch, had put a barbed wire fence around it.
We saw that fence as an obstacle keeping us from a good time. We weren’t about to let that fence keep us from what we wanted.
A couple of us held up the bottom of the fence while two other guys slid under and grabbed several handfuls of strawberries for the rest of us knuckleheads! But what we didn’t know was Mr. Robinson was watching us! Yikes! Sure enough, our sin found us out!
Just like Mr. Robinson’s barbed wire fence, many times we look at God’s word as a restraint keeping us from a good time. But in reality, His word protects us from sin's scrapes, sores and scars that are sure to come our way when we ignore it.
G.K. Chesterton wisely said, “Do not remove a fence until you know why it was put up in the first place.”
I think the lesson is simple – what already exists likely serves a purpose that may not be immediately obvious. Fences don’t appear by accident. They are built by people who planned them and had a reason to believe they would benefit someone. Before we take an ax to a fence, we should first understand the reason it's there.
When we ignore the warnings and commands in the Bible, we risk unleashing unintended consequences that spread like ripples on a pond.
I’ve learned God’s love for us is beyond comprehension and His Word is more trustworthy than the words of a friend.
The Bible is filled with commands from our Lord. But we shouldn’t look at them like they're a bunch of do’s and don’ts! Too many think of His commands as, “I can’t do this!” Or “I have to do this if I’m going to be a Christian!” That’s when the Christian life becomes a dull religion instead of a vibrant relationship with the Lord. Most believers need to have a change of mindset.
Psalm 119:105 “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.”
His Word is spoken from a heart of love that guides us safely through this dark and difficult world. When God informs you to not do a particular thing, He’s actually saying, “Don’t do that because I love you! That will bring scars on your life!” And when He commands you to do a certain thing, He’s actually saying, “Help yourself to My blessings!”
Let's view God commands not as something we have to do, but something we get to do! Our mindset each day should be to approach God’s Word with this attitude, “Lord, show me the best way to be blessed!” Or “Lord, show me something I need to avoid in life that will bring harm to me!” When He said, “If you love Me, keep My commandments” He's saying to us, “Don’t break My heart! Allow My Word to guide you to a blessed life!”
We should never entertain the thought of God’s commands like a barbed wire fence. Be assured that God’s intent is never to restrain us, but to protect us from unwanted hardships that are just on the other side of that fence.
He loves you! His Word is truth!
God bless you!
Pastor Paul
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