Complaints And Grumbling

Exodus 16:2-15

Grumble and complain.  Whine and moan.  We all know some people like that, and they sure are not pleasant to be around.  If we’re not careful, we can fall into that type of behavior.  One complaining person is unpleasant.  Two or three in a group is miserable.  How about multiple thousands of whining, grumbling people?  That is what Moses had to deal with, and today’s Scripture is one such occurrence, along with his and the Lord’s response.

When our Scripture passage from the Book of Exodus opens, the people of Israel had just recently been led out of Egypt and crossed the parted waters of the Red Sea.  Biblical scholars believe that there were about 600,000 adult men.  Add about equal number of women and you have 1,200,000, and then even more when you include all of the children.  That is a lot of people complaining, as it says the whole congregation complained against Moses (vs. 2) !

What were they complaining about?  The Lord had just led them out of Egypt, out of centuries of slavery there.  They had witnessed all of the ten plagues, which God had spared them from, and He had parted the waters for them to easily cross and escape the armies of Egypt.  They were complaining about not having enough to eat.  They moaned and grumbled to Moses saying that they had pots of meat and bread to the full back as slaves in Egypt.  I think that was a big exaggeration, as I am not thinking that as slaves they had “pots of meat” to eat every day! (vs. 3).

What characterized the people as a whole was an attitude of negativism.  They quickly forgot all of God’s miracles.  Difficult situations often lead to stress, and the cause of stress is often a lack of trust in God to take care of us.  God had protected them from experiencing any of the plagues that He brought on Egypt.  He had led them out of slavery, and yet they did not trust that He would provide them with food.  The people kept looking to the past, saying that things were better then.  Were they really better?  Is slavery better than freedom?  They had no trust!  Only complaints and whining!  If we focus on the past, it won’t be long before complaints start oozing from our lips.

Their complaining about not having enough to eat, their short-term memory loss would be short-lived, because these whining people would witness not just God’s provision for them, but also remind them Who had brought them out of Egypt (vs 4-6).  When they complained to Moses, they were really complaining against God.  He hears and sees everything in our lives, including our grumblings.  When we complain about our circumstances, we are really complaining against God, who has complete control over those circumstances.

So, what was the food that the Lord provided the people of Israel?  In the evening of that day, the Lord provided them with quail, enough quail for well over a million people!  Then every morning for the next forty years while they were in the wilderness, He provided them with manna (vs. 13-15).  Manna was a gift from God.  It came every day, and was just what they needed.  It satisfied a temporary physical need.  In John 6:48-51, Jesus compared Himself to manna.  Jesus is our daily bread, who satisfies our eternal spiritual need.  Manna prefigured the descent of the True Bread - Jesus, that if a man eats of it he shall live forever.

“Manna” is a Hebrew word which means “what is it?”  It was remarkable for its size, shape, color, taste, and variety of uses.  Also for its daily appearance at dawn, its tremendous abundance, that it bred worms at the end of each day except on the 6th day, and that it disappeared permanently as soon as the people of Israel entered Canaan.

The provision of manna every day shows us that we can trust the Lord to provide for our needs every day.  We can and need to look to Him to provide for us each day.  The fact that the manna, if stored up for the next day, became moldy and filled with worms, teaches us that yesterday’s blessing will not do for today, nor today’s for tomorrow.  We must feed on Jesus and His Word daily, as He reveals Himself in the Scriptures.

Are we doing nothing but complaining day and night?  The Lord knows our heart, and whether we need an attitude adjustment or not!  For forty years He put up with the Hebrew people’s whining and murmuring, and was not pleased.  He is not pleased if we show an ungrateful heart, either.  Are you trusting in the Lord each day to provide for you?  Do you look to Him for both your physical and spiritual needs?  Jesus is the true Bread from Heaven, which came down to earth.  Turn to Him for salvation today!

Jesus Sees Us

Mark 6:45-52

You do what you were asked to do, and now you find yourself in deep trouble.  On top of it, the one who initially asked you to follow their wishes is now nowhere to be found.  You feel abandoned, and the situation is getting much worse, even perilous.  What do you do?  This was the situation that the disciples found themselves in our Gospel passage for today.

As our Scripture begins, Jesus had just performed a miracle by feeding over 5,000 people with five loaves and two fish along the shores of the Sea of Galilee.  He then instructed His disciples to get into the boat and cross to the other side while He would say good-bye to the crowds and send them home.  Afterwards, Jesus went off, up the hillside to have some quiet time and pray (vs. 45-46).

Meanwhile, the twelve disciples had set off in the large fishing boat to cross to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, to Bethsaida which was the hometown of Peter and his brother Andrew, along with Philip.  While traveling, a storm came up upon the lake, sending waves crashing, and tossing the boat around.  Several of the disciples were seasoned fishermen, including Peter, Andrew, James, and John, having worked in that job all of their lives.  They had undoubtedly been in many storms.  No matter how hard they rowed, seeking to get to shore, any shore, the winds were against them (vs. 47).

What was going through their minds at this time?  If I had been in the boat then I might have been thinking that we did what the Lord had instructed, so why are problems now occurring?  I’d be wondering why Jesus wasn’t with us when we needed Him.  He usually was, but not this time, right when a big storm came up.  I might be feeling abandoned.  Where is Jesus when I really need Him?

As we continue reading, we see that Jesus was high on a mountain in prayer to the Father.  While there, He looked out onto the Sea of Galilee below, and saw the disciples struggling with the boat as the wind tossed them around (vs. 48).  Jesus was watching them.  They were not out of His sight, nor out of His mind.  Jesus saw them and He cared about them in their need, just as He cares about us in our time of need.

Jesus came down from His prayers and came walking on the water to His disciples and friends.  The Savior didn’t just walk on water at this time.  This was a wild and potentially deadly storm, yet Jesus walked freely on the water.  He was trampling on chaos!

When Jesus got to them, He reassured them not to be afraid.  He got into the boat with them, and the storm then ceased (vs. 48-51).  Sometimes when life gets messy, it can feel like Jesus has gone missing.  Even when our storms cause us to lose sight of hope, Jesus never loses sight of us. He doesn’t run from our messes.  He climbs in to be right there with us.  With His presence comes peace.

We may feel alone and abandoned when God sends us into some period of our life, where the future looks dark and we can’t sense God’s presence.  Dark times are harder then.  Jesus will come to us just as He did to the disciples.  He promised He would not leave them as orphans.  He would come to them (John 14:18).  He loves us.  Jesus walked through death and resurrection for us.  Jesus will not desert us now.  He is watching over us, and will come to us in our hour of need.

Walk Worthy Of The Calling

Ephesians 4:1-6

Do you know anyone who has had a family member that was a black sheep, who didn’t keep to the family’s standards, lifestyle, or morals.  Perhaps you have had someone like that in your own family.  They have brought shame to the family, as they are not walking worthy of the family name and honor.  This not only holds true for our natural families, but also for our spiritual family, as well.  The Apostle Paul spoke along this line several times in his various epistles, and we see this in our Scripture for today.

As our Scripture opens, Paul told the Ephesian believers that their behavior and lifestyle needed to match up with that of the Lord Jesus and His Word, their walk needed to match their calling (vs. 1).  This is something that still very much holds true today.  As we look around us, though, can we tell if there are any Christians in our neighborhood or office by their behavior?  Our living should match our position in Jesus.  As someone once said, if Biblical Christianity were suddenly to become illegal where you live, would there be enough evidence to convict you as being a believer and follower of Jesus?

The Scriptures exhort us to live in a manner that honors and pleases Jesus.  We might feel that this is too difficult to attain in our daily life.  However, the Holy Spirit will teach us to walk worthy of the calling we were called to.  He will keep us pure, and help us abstain from immorality if we call upon Him.

We read in verses 2 and 3 where Paul spelled out what constitutes a worthy walk.  Some of the behaviors that he told the Ephesians to follow were lowliness (humility), gentleness, longsuffering (patience), keeping unity with fellow believers, and peace.   Gentleness is directly tied with God’s kindness.  Because He is kind, He is gentle.  Gentleness suggests a kind and gracious soul.  It is a willingness to accept limitations and ailments without taking out our aggravation on others.  It shows gratitude for everything, and a forgiveness to others who make mistakes.  It speaks softly, and is calm and unruffled.

In times of conflict, believers are called to show patience.  We can do this if we stay quiet when verbally attacked, listen without being the one to immediately respond, praying for whoever attacks us, controlling our thoughts and emotions, speaking encouraging words, and being ready to forgive.

The Lord also wishes us to show a bond of unity with other fellow believers.  Bible-believing Christians should agree on all essential elements of faith and morality - the fundamentals of the faith.  These would be the inerrancy of the Scriptures (the Bible); God as Trinity - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; the deity of the Lord Jesus Christ; Jesus’ virgin birth; Jesus’ substitutionary atonement; and Jesus’ physical resurrection and future bodily return.  There is only one way for believers to be truly united, and that is by being whole-heartedly obedient to the Lord.

The Church is the Body of Christ, and it is composed of every believer since the Day of Pentecost (vs. 4).  Within this body of believers, we have one hope, and that is the pledge and promise of an eternal inheritance given to each believer, and which is sealed to each believer by the Holy Spirit.

Believers should follow one Lord, which is Jesus Christ, not the latest favorite preacher, author, or singer we hear on Christian radio (vs. 5).  We should be following one faith, the body of doctrine revealed in the Bible, and which I stated above as the fundamentals of the faith.  And we have one baptism, where believers publicly confess their faith in Jesus Christ as Savior.  Christians acknowledge one God and Father of all (vs. 6).  He has absolute rule, control, and authority over the universe and everything in it.

As we close this brief Scripture passage, can we look at our lives and say with some degree of assurance that we are striving to the best of our ability to walk worthy of the calling with which we have been called?  Our identity will shape our behavior.  If we identify more with the world and its beliefs, with the world system, its lifestyle and philosophies, and which is guided by Satan, then that is how our behavior will be.  If, though, we identify with the Lord Jesus Christ, He and His Word, the Bible, will shape our walk and behavior.  Let’s remember who we belong to!

The Folly Of Rebellion

Psalm 2

A little child play-boxes with his father, a championship boxer, and we smile as we know that this little preschooler is no match against a grown man, no matter how much the child may think that he can knock daddy down.  It’s no laughing matter if some poor, deluded fool thinks they can stand in front of a hurricane or tornado and command them to stop, or if they think that their words and bravado can challenge an oncoming, speeding train.  One lone person against a mighty army is no match, no matter how brave or courageous we may think they are.  They are only fools.  In our psalm for this week we will read of some other fools, ones who want to challenge the might and authority of God.

The author of Psalm 2 is not given in the Book of Psalms, however the Apostles, in Acts 4:24-26, attribute the psalm to King David.  As our psalm opens, David asks a question, one he finds very surprising, almost incredulous, and that is why do the nations of the world, and the peoples of those nations, think that they can come against almighty God? (vs. 1-3).  They think that they can plot and fight against God, cast off His Word and His rule, and make their own plans.

As we read and ponder the opening verses of this psalm, we see where sin has led mankind, that they feel they can devise, conspire, and scheme against the Lord God.  As David says, though, all of this plotting is vain, it is futile, just as futile as trying to stop a tornado by standing in front of it and hollering for it to stop!

David saw the various nations of his day rebel against Yahweh, and we see the same today.  Nations and people led by their rulers, direct their hostility towards Jesus.  They do not want His rule over them.  They do not want to follow His Word, and instead, they cast it off.  They decree to get God and the Bible out of any government, get it out of the schools, out of TV shows, no religious displays anywhere, including on holidays like Christmas.  And whenever the Lord Jesus or Christianity is mentioned, it is done with great mockery and disdain.  It is pride and power that cause these nations and leaders to rebel against God.  However, God laughs, because any power they have comes from Him, and He can take it from them in a snap (vs. 4).

One complaint that they have against Jesus is that they feel His rule is too restricting.  They want the “freedom” to do whatever they want, whenever they want, and however they want.  They do not want the Bible or any man or woman of God telling them what they can or cannot do.  They look at God’s rule as if they are in bondage, tied up in cords.  However, a fish is not free when it leaves the water, nor is a tree when it leaves the soil.  In fact, both will die soon.  Both of them may have wished to be able to run free wherever they wanted, but it only brings death.  We are not free when we leave the Lord.  We can find that the one sure route to freedom is by wholeheartedly serving the Lord Jesus.

Though the nations conspire against the Lord God, He just laughs.  They are no threat to Him!  Their puny challenge is answered by God’s powerful pronouncement (vs. 5-6).  He warns them that their best course of action is to serve His Son, the Lord Jesus, with fear and trembling, and to pay Him homage or else face His judgment.

David gives those who are considering rebelling against Yahweh a solution to avoid the strong and sure judgment that will come if they continue in their foolish plans, and that is to declare their allegiance to God and His Son, Jesus Christ (vs. 10-12).  If they don’t, they shall be broken and dashed into pieces (vs. 9).  Many people do not like the idea of any sort of absolute truth, such as what we see in the Bible.  They feel truth is subjective, with their personal experiences, preferences, and opinions declaring what is true for them, not God’s Word.  However, they are in for a sad shock when they find that the Bible is the truth, that Jesus is the only way, truth, and life, (John 14:6), and that those who reject Him will perish!

When we approach the Lord’s throne, do we remember Who we are addressing?  He is the mighty, eternal King of all creation, against whom no ruler or army can stand (vs. 11).  God is merciful, though.  Instead of judging these rebel nations, leaders, and their people immediately He provides everyone with an opportunity to repent.  When someone surrenders fully to the Lord, and calls upon Jesus as their Savior, they will be blessed.  Turn to Him today!

A Double Portion

II Kings 2:1-15

If you had a benefactor, one who had unlimited resources, and who promised to meet the needs that you had, no matter how big they were, would you be hesitant to come to him when you had a request?  Or if you did come to him in a time of certain necessity, would you be reluctant to ask for your needs to be met, and instead, only asking for a small, token amount?  In our Scripture for today we see where someone, when given the opportunity to ask big, doesn’t just ask for a small, token amount, but does indeed, ask big.  Let’s see what this is.

In the Book of I Kings, we read a lot about the ministry of the great prophet Elijah.  Now here, in the beginning of the Book of II Kings, Elijah’s ministry is coming to a close.  During the last few years of his ministry, Elijah was training an assistant, Elisha, who would take over the ministry when his time was up.  Now, as our Scripture passage begins, Elijah knew that his time was nearly over, so he and Elisha began to head to where the Lord was sending him.

The two men started out in Gilgal, where there was one school of prophets located.  Elijah told his companion Elisha to remain there as he was going to journey on to Bethel, but the latter refused, insisting on going on with him (vs. 1-2).  So they journeyed on to Bethel, where there was another school of prophets.  Here, some of the members of the school told Elisha that they knew that the Lord was going to take Elijah home with Him that day.  And again, Elisha refused to remain when he was asked (vs. 3-4).

Once more they journeyed on to Jericho, the location of another school of prophets.  Elijah was probably wanting to pay these schools each a visit to bring encouragement to the men there.  Again at Jericho, the sons of the prophets there told Elisha that his mentor was going to be taken that day.  Leaving there they headed towards the Jordan River.  Following them were some of the sons of the prophets.  The Lord had revealed to them that Elijah would be taken up, and they wished to witness this (vs. 5-7).

At the Jordan River, Elijah takes his mantle and strikes the water with it, and the water divided so they could cross, as the Lord had instructed him to be on the other side (vs. 8).  On the other side Elijah asks Elisha what he might wish as a last request before the prophet is taken up.  It is here that we see that Elisha is not hesitant to make a bold request of the Lord (vs. 9-10).  He had been with Elijah for several years, and he had known the prophet to be a mighty man of God, and had witnessed the Lord’s amazing power through him.  He wanted more of the Holy Spirit in him, more of God working through him.  No small, token blessing for Elisha!  He wanted a double portion so he could do more work for the Lord!  Elijah said that his prayer would be granted if he saw the Lord take him up.

As they were talking, the Lord sent a chariot of fire, with horses of fire and a whirlwind to take Elijah up bodily into heaven (vs. 11).  Elisha was granted the privilege of witnessing this, and also retrieving Elijah’s mantle which had fallen (vs. 12-13).  Only Elijah and Enoch (Genesis 5:24) were taken up to heaven without dying, until the Rapture occurs.

Elisha, now with the mantle of the great Elijah, returned to the river, and he also was able to part the waters (vs. 14-15).  The Lord showed him that He was with him just as He had been with Elijah.  The Lord had granted Elisha’s request because his motives were pure. Elisha's main goal was not to be better or more powerful than Elijah for greedy reasons or to brag, but instead to accomplish more for God.  If our motives are pure we don’t have to be afraid to ask great things from God.

When Elijah, a prophet of power, was gone, Eisha, a prophet of double-power, was ready to be used by God.  When a man or woman of God dies, nothing of God does.  When even a mighty servant is gone, God still has 7,000 who have not bowed the knee to Baal (I Kings 19:18). He has them ready, waiting in the wings.

As believers, understanding we are serving a great God, we should stake a great claim.  Do we wish to see the miracle-working power of God in our lives and the lives of other Christians around us?  Then pray and ask that you will be empowered to do great things for Him, to the praise and glory of His Name.

Who Will Care For My Needs?

Mark 6:30-44

Some animals are solitary, and do very well on their own.  Others, though, don’t do well on their own, and need a lot of care.  Sheep are one animal that needs someone looking after them, and thus we have the job of a shepherd.  Sheep and some other animals aren’t the only ones that need special care, protection, and guidance.  People also need proper guidance and care, and often don’t get that.  In our Scripture today from the Gospel of St. Mark, we see a group of people who needed just such care.

Shortly before our Scripture began, Jesus had been rejected in His hometown of Nazareth, the disciples had been sent out on brief mission trips to preach Jesus’ message of salvation, and John the Baptist had been executed.  Now when the disciples returned to Jesus, and reported to Him all that had happened, the crowds started to gather around Him again, making any rest for them impossible (vs. 30-33).   What might a lot of people do in such circumstances?  They might be likely to send the crowds away, telling them to go home and let them get some rest.

However, we do not see this with the Savior.  As the Lord Jesus looked out at the crowd, He didn’t see them as annoying, selfish, and demanding.  Instead, Jesus saw them as being like sheep without a shepherd, and had compassion on them (vs. 34).  A sheep left on its own can be in danger.  They are prone to wander off on their own, away from the flock, and put themselves in danger from predatory animals.  They can injure themselves, and away from the safe fields they can eat dangerous plants that make them sick.

Just like sheep that might be left on their own, the people were helpless and hungry.  They needed someone to care for them, both physically and spiritually.  These crowds were lacking in spiritual guidance and protection, leaving them exposed to the perils of sin and spiritual destruction.  Sheep are easily scattered without a shepherd, and will be in grave danger.  When the shepherd arrives, though, they will be safe.  Jesus is the Shepherd who could teach them what they needed to know, and keep them from straying from God.

After spending the day in preaching and ministering to the crowds' spiritual needs, it was getting late, and the disciples told Jesus that He needed to send the people away so that they could get some food in the villages and start heading home (vs. 35-36).  Again the compassionate Jesus cared for them, and didn’t want the people to have to leave and travel home while hungry, so He told the disciples to give them some food.  What?!  This was a crowd of around 5,000 men, not counting women and children, so it could easily be three to four times that amount.  How many of us could afford to feed that many hungry people?  None of the disciples were wealthy men, and they told the Lord that just to get bread for this crowd would cost a fortune (vs. 37).  It would take over 200 denarii to just get them enough for a bite.  One denarii was equal to the wage of a working man for one day.

Jesus wanted to show the disciples, the crowd, and us today as well, that if we trust Him, He can provide for all of our needs, including our everyday provisions such as food for our daily meals.  Jesus asked for them to bring them what they had, and all they could come up with was five small dinner rolls and two fish, maybe enough for two people to have a small meal (vs. 38).  However, once Jesus got a hold of that meager meal there was no limit to what He could do with it!

The disciples went through the crowd, dividing them up into smaller groups.  Then the Lord Jesus took the food, and gave thanks to God for the meal the people were about to receive (vs. 39-41).  How many times do we just sit ourselves down and start eating, neglecting to thank the One who provided the meal for us?  Jesus consciously and openly gave thanks to God for the provision of food.  As believers, we need to follow our Lord’s example so clearly given here.

The disciples then took the food, and passed it out to the people, and everyone in the crowd was completely satisfied (vs. 42).  They didn’t just get one or two small bites, just enough to prevent light-headedness or a hunger headache.  Instead, each man, woman, and child there were filled.  Jesus does not do things in half-measure.  He is not a skimpy God!

Are you faced with some pressing need?  Maybe your finances and daily provisions just aren’t enough for your needs.  When we put what little we have into Jesus’ hands, and trust in Him, He can multiply that to more than will meet the need at hand.  Do you feel like a sheep that is just wandering all alone, with no one to watch out for you?  Come to the Lord Jesus, as He, and He alone, is the Good Shepherd, and He has compassion on the sheep of His flock.

The Wall Is Torn Down

Ephesians 2:11-22

We build walls in order to keep people, and sometimes animals out, or to keep them in.  Neighbors put up a wall or a fence in order to mark off their property and to keep their neighbors, and especially their neighbor’s children, from just randomly walking into their yard.  The wall or fence around a yard also keeps our children safe when playing outside, and keeps the dog within the property.  We put walls around prison property to keep the prisoners in and the local population safe.  Countries put walls along the border in order to regulate who comes in, and also to keep their country safe.  At one time God had a figurative wall that blocked access to Himself.  Let’s look into the Scripture and see what that is about.

In the Old Testament days, access to the Lord and to the Holy of Holies, where the Lord Yahweh dwelt, was strictly regulated.  In the Tabernacle, and later in the Temple, certain areas were cordoned off, restricting who was allowed where.  Gentiles were allowed only in the very outer perimeters.  Women were allowed a bit further, but not much.  There were areas where only the Levites could enter, and some only the priests.  Then there was the Holy of Holies, the place where the Ark of the Covenant was kept.  Here only the High Priest could enter, and no one else.  There was even a thick, heavy curtain hanging to block access.  Ordinary folks could not just go anywhere.  Neither could they offer their own sacrifices for the forgiveness of their sins, or even in thanksgiving.  There were even figurative walls built between the Jewish people and Gentiles, who they felt were unclean, and many felt could never, ever have a part with Yahweh.  There were walls, barriers to prohibit people from coming any further.

However, all this changed when the Lord Jesus, the only-begotten Son of God, came and paid the penalty for our sins with the shedding of His sinless Blood.  At the moment that Jesus died, the curtain, or veil in the Temple, was miraculously torn in two (Matthew 27:51).  It is through the Precious Blood of Jesus that all who accept Him as Savior now have access to God (vs 11-13).  There is now no longer a need for some other intermediary.  This includes any Gentiles (non-Jews), who accept Jesus as Savior, those who were formerly prohibited access to God unless they had been circumcised.  Jesus tore down the wall that separated mankind and God.  He opened the way for Gentiles to come to God, and now both Jew and Gentile have been brought near, and can enjoy fellowship with Him.

Not only was the vertical separation between mankind and God overcome by the Blood of Jesus, but also the horizontal one between Jews and Gentiles (vs. 14-18).  Both of these barriers were overcome through the Blood of Jesus.  The ground is level at the foot of the Cross.  Both Jews and Gentiles are equal, not one being first class and the other second class, but as equal members of the family of God, made one in Christ.

In Jesus, the Law was fulfilled, and our sin was forgiven.  All who believe have been forgiven.  We also have peace through Him (vs. 17).  Jesus is the Prince of Peace, in Hebrew Sar Shalom.  He will sustain us through every trial and through every battle we face. When we are troubled on every side, distressed, and cast down, those who are believers in Jesus are able to rest in the peace of God.  The Lord Jesus will be our peace, and He will bring us through to victory.

Access to God is open to all who believe and accept Jesus as Savior (vs. 18-19).  Through the Holy Spirit we have the right to talk to God directly without a human intermediary..  When we were saved, we went from being foreigners and aliens to being children of God.  He is now our Father.  He hears our prayers because we have been made family through redemption of His Son, Jesus Christ.  The presence of the Holy Spirit proves we are one of His own.  Believers have direct and immediate access to God.  Princes are admitted to royalty when common people must stand far off.  The child of God has free access to the inner courts of heaven.

The Berlin Wall was erected in 1961 to surround the City of West Berlin, in order to keep all East Berliners and other people in East Germany from fleeing into freedom in West Berlin.  On June 12, 1987, U.S. President Ronald Reagan gave a speech at the Wall, and challenged the Soviet Union’s Premier Mikhail Gorbachev, “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this Wall!”  About 2 ½ years later, on the night of November 9, 1989, crowds started to tear down the wall.  The destruction of that wall brought the people on both sides together once again.  This is what the Lord Jesus did for us, tearing down the wall that separated us from God.