- a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; -
The second half of the verse is more relatable. What are the areas in our life that need to be torn down?
Who doesn’t need to ask themselves that question?
Put it in the context of this chapter; there is a time for everything.
Now, ask yourself the dangerous question. Are you at the time in your life where you can tear down the stronghold ensnaring you?
We like sin. Worse, it’s our natural tendency to sin.
Pick your poison. Porn? Lying? Alcohol? Anger?
In what world does a fallen creature like yourself get to decide when you set your sin aside? What have you done to “earn” that ability?
Sometimes, we get lucky. God hands us the strength to set our sin down immediately. That’s good, but we can confuse that as a strength of our character.
It’s not.
In the process of breaking down our sin, God may need to teach us something for a future battle or to increase our faith by waiting.
Am I giving you license to sin? No. I’m teaching you to let go of pride.
You didn’t achieve the victory over sin. What hubris possesses you that you assume you can just command it to leave?
Perhaps, humility, in taking small, measurable steps away from the sinful act, is required in your life when a sin, especially one you like, holds tight.
Now, what’s this time to build up?
Have you ever noticed whenever you start to learn something new that the complexity of the topic appears overwhelming, regardless of how common it might be in your daily life?
I’ve worked in two very distinct industries, tech and construction. One of those is considered infinitely complex and the other is considered mundane.
Allow me to inform you, the preconception is ridiculous. Coding and plumbing? They’re the same level of difficulty to perform, we’ve just had one since the Romans.
What’s my point? Being good is at times considered rudimentary. That is a ridiculous notion.
Every day you wake with your laughable shortcomings and the need to become something with a moral backbone to face the sin of the world.
That’s a religious call; that is Christ’s call.
How can you eat that elephant? That’s right. You build it up, one block at a time.
We are fools. What makes us think we can flip switches and become paragons of virtue?
Didn’t that Apostle Paul say he did the things he hated? That’s Paul.
It’s crucial not to give sin an inch in your life. If it grows, who knows how many years of careful retraining you’ll need to remove it.
How should we build up and tear down? In the time given to do it in, with reliance and faith.
We should do so humbly, not expecting immediate victory. We should learn the next step in the territory of our morality and master it.
Then, and only then, might we be able to take the next step.
Yes, there is no end to next steps, for the journey in the desert is for the Promised Land, the Kingdom, perfection.
Get trudging and hold no hatred for your life regarding your inability to live righteously.
To do so is to hate Calvary.