Foolish Walls

“Later the older daughter said to the younger, ‘Our father is old, and there is no man in the country to sleep with us, the way everyone does. Come, let’s make our father drunk with wine so we can go to bed with him and preserve our family line through our father.’” –Genesis 19:31-32, NET

“Sin makes us stupid!” (Tom Nelson).

Lot had long surrounded his family with a worldly focus (v.31) and resurrection-less mindset that had “corrupted good morals” and infected them all with the stupor of sin (1Co 15:32-34). Thus, his attempt to use cave walls to isolate and protect from the pain and evil presence in Zoar failed. The defiling sin of Sodom comes from within (Mat 7:15).

A wall is often a symbol of protection (ex: 1Sa 25:16), often a prideful one that God brings down (ex: Isa 25:11-12; Jos 6:1-5), especially those that protect only in the imagination (Pro 18:11).

“Day and night they walk around on its walls, while wickedness and destruction are within it.” –Psalm 55:10

See that these girls believed that there was “no man on earth” (v.31, ESV). They lived just as was taught by their father: by physical sight (Gen 13:10-11). If we “shelter” our children in a cave instead of under the protective hand of God, we do not insulate them from evil; we cut them off from the truth. If we teach our children law instead of faith, we set them up to take whatever practical fruit of false teaching is offered by Satan, quick to bite into the lie that God is withholding good things from them (Gen 3:4-6)? Without wisdom (fear of the Lord), we believe “God’s Word is not life to us, but law,” (John Bevere, “The Bait of Satan”).

What kind of foolish cave walls have we placed around us?

Have we not believed we kept our children safe from outside dangers by bringing them into the safety of our homes, only to hand them a virtual portal into godless worlds? Have we not placed fences around our playgrounds to protect our children from perpetrators, foolishly thinking we’ve confined innocence within the gates? Or consider our financial portfolios and 401(k)s that are fueled by unpredictable markets. We assemble agencies for our protection and fill them with prideful and selfish men, surprised when some turn criminal. We believe we can filter out evil, but not if sinful hearts lie on both sides.

What kind of foolish walls have you propped up?

“[The angel] brought me to the entrance of the court, and as I watched, I noticed a hole in the wall. He said to me, ‘Son of man, dig into the wall.’ So I dug into the wall and discovered a doorway. He said to me, ‘Go in and see the evil abominations they are practicing here.’ So I went in and looked. I noticed every figure of creeping thing and beast—detestable images—and every idol of the house of Israel, engraved on the wall all around.” –Ezekiel 8:7-10, NET

“Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” –Psalm 139:23-24, NIV