Pursuing Peace and Breaking Down Walls

Subject: Praying Circles Around Walls that Need to Fall

by Rick Welborne

Ephesians 2:10-14 (NKJV)
¹⁰  For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
¹¹  Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh--who are called Uncircumcision by what is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by hands--
¹²  that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.
¹³  But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
¹⁴  For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation, 

Hebrews 12:14-15 (NKJV)
¹⁴  Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord:
¹⁵  looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled;

1. Pursuing peace becomes a reality when we understand some important things about it.

--All of us, at some personal deep level, long for the reality of peace.

--The absence of war and conflict does not constitute the presence of peace.

--Real peace is an internal phenomenon.

--Real peace enables you to sleep when the wind is howling.

--Real peace assures you of the right even when standing in the presence of wrong.

--Real peace lets you see yourself standing when all around you are falling.

--Everyone longs for this kind of peace but sometimes it seems so allusive. 

--Paul, in our text, could see that there was the absence of real, genuine, authentic, abiding peace. There were, as you know, divisions in the church.

--There were divisions between the Jews and Gentiles. Jews were the upper crust and the Gentiles were the intruders. The Jews were the circumcised and the Gentiles were the uncircumcised.

--The Jews had been there a long time and the Gentiles had just gained entrance. The Jews understood the impact and importance of ceremonial law. Gentiles were new to all this.

--Because of these differences there seemed to be a spirit of strife and a lack of peace.

2. Where there is a lack of peace…there is the presence of walls.

--You do remember that the temple in Jerusalem was a temple divided. There were the men…a wall…the women…a wall and then the Gentiles. All behind a wall.

--The wall created division, the wall created strife, the wall meant separation, the wall divided husbands from wives, men from women, Jews from Gentiles…therefore there was no peace.

 --We all know walls are important in Scripture. In Isaiah we read about the watchman on the wall. In Nehemiah we read about him rebuilding the walls and gates that were destroyed.

--In Ezra we read how Zerubbabel and how he had the assignment of rebuilding the wall.

H. Beecher Hicks, Jr. - “Walls are funny things.  Walls not only invade our lives physically, but also affect our lives emotionally. They influence our lives mentally. Walls bother our lives psychologically. Are you aware of the walls in your life? Are you aware of the walls that lurks in your own mind?

3. Let’s see what a wall is or what it does.

Defense Mechanism - designed to shut out. It protects me from you. A wall defends me from being known for what I am. If there is no wall, you can see my weaknesses and I can see your weaknesses, so to protect and defend myself, I build a wall.

Prevents Communication - as long as a wall exists I can possibly know that you are talking but I cannot understand what you are saying.  As long as I don’t understand what you are saying, there is no communication, therefore, there can be no peace.

Prevents Sight - I do not have x-ray vision like superman. I can’t see you and you can’t see me if there are walls - when I cannot see you, I cannot sense you, or understand you. I cannot appreciate you. Therefore, there is no peace.

As long as there is a wall there:

--I cannot see the smile on your face and therefore share your joy.

--I cannot see the frown on your face and therefore participate in your pain.

--I cannot see the tear that flows down your cheek and therefore, I am insulated from your hurt.

--I have a defense mechanism. I cannot hear you. I cannot see you, there is no communication, and therefore, because our relationship is incomplete, because our relationship is not full, because I have not really sought to share with you and you have not sought to share legitimately with me, therefore, there is no peace.

4. Let’s look at the dangers of allowing these walls (this lack of peace in our lives).

Compartmentalization - We compartmentalize our homes, our churches, and our Christianity.

--The enemy’s strategy for our homes and churches is divide and conquer.

--You do your thing and I will do mine. We live and worship under the same roof but have no peace.

--Jesus prayer for us was that we would be one (unified, together, with one mind, with peace).

--As long as we are comfortable with our compartments there will be no peace.

5. There are two kinds of walls. A bearing wall and an interior (middle) wall.  

--To simplify: the bearing wall is designed to bear the weight of a structure and is connected

to the foundation. No wall is a bearing wall unless it is connected - foundation.

1 Corinthians 3:11 (NKJV)
¹¹  For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.

--This is so important: The middle wall can be removed without any danger to the structure.

Ephesians 2:14 (NKJV)
¹⁴  For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation, 

--Tonight would be a good time to confess the walls we have in our lives and get free. To find peace.