Bible study #1 on "Strong Tower" by Newsboys  [song lyrics]

• originally released by newsboys.com 2004/2005
• authors: Jim Laffoon and Peter Furler

	From the album "Devotion" (2004) Read the song lyrics...

STRONG TOWER

Strong and mighty
Strong to save us
Like a fortress
Never failing
When the winds blow strong against us
You are steadfast you are true
When the ground beneath us trembles
Your foundation never moves
When the enemy surrounds us
Closing in as darkness falls
Though his armies rage against us
They can never scale these walls

The lyrics above capture perfectly my own experience as a Christian, and the experiences of many other believers I know. Whether it was standing with my wife as she faced cancer, or my own battles with a debilitating case of hepatitis, God has always proven to be a strong tower for my family and me. Even when I faced the death of my twenty four year old brother, who was never healed, my heavenly Father fortified my emotions and filled me with the joy of His Spirit. Time and time again when I have faced the vicious assaults of the enemy, God's word and promises have risen like a mighty bulwark around my battered soul.

Yet, despite the fact that God has never failed to be my personal refuge, this has not been the case in the life of every believer I that I have known. How many times have I wept, as I watched the life of someone I have loved and even served with in the ministry blown off course by the violent winds of deception or illicit passion? Why, I have ask myself, are the lives of some Christians ransacked by the hordes of hell; but other believers stand strong against every foe they meet? Is God fickle? Is He unfair? Obliviously not! It is impossible for our perfect God to be fickle or unfair.

Why then are the lives of some Christians shattered? The answer is simple yet profound. The promise of God to be our fortress and strong tower, like many other promises in scripture, is conditional. Simply stated, it is the clear testimony of scripture, that God is a fortress and a high tower to those who take refuge in Him.

"As for God is way is perfect, the word of the Lord is flawless. He is a shield to all who take refuge in Him." (Psalms 18:30)

"He who fears the Lord has a secure fortress" (Proverbs 14:26)

"The name of the Lord is a high tower, the righteous run in to it and is safe." (Proverbs 10)

In my own life, I have found that there are at least four doors through which I can experience the reality of God as my fortress and high tower: the promises of God, the people of God, the purity of God and the person of Christ. As for the promises of God, it is clear from 2Peter 1:4a that they are the doorway through which you and I can experience the divine nature of Christ. In my own experience, I have found that no matter what I am facing, there is a promise that corresponds to that need. Whether it is healing, protection, strength, joy or deliverance, all of them can be appropriated as I place my faith in the promises of God.

When it comes to the people of God, it is clear from scriptures like Hebrews 3:13 and James 5:16 that the people of God play a critical role in our lives. I cannot count the times that the fulfillment of God's promise to be my fortress and tower has come in the form of another Christian. Over and over again, when it has seemed that the walls of my life were about to implode, the men I walk with have rushed into the fray and filled the breach. In my own life, I have voluntarily chosen to make my life transparent and accountable to the men that God has placed in my life. In many cases, because they know me so well, I don't even have a chance to initiate the conversation. Before I can even say a thing, they are already praying for me, leaving me encouraging messages on the phone and asking me what is wrong. Never forget, whether it is your pastor, a leader in your church or ministry, or another mature Christian of the same gender, God wants to bring you into the joys and protection of transparency and accountability.

As for the purity of God, it is vital that you and I never forget that Jesus came to be both our Savior and our Lord. As Lord, he demands that every area of our lives be brought under His authority. Although this does not mean that you and I will achieve some state of sinless perfection before we see Christ, it does mean than we must actively cooperate with the Holy Spirit's plan to change us. If we willingly live in habitual sin, it will create breaches in the walls of protection that surround our lives. I never forget, that even though Judas had Jesus Christ as his pastor and was in the world's greatest cell group- the twelve apostles, his life was destroyed, because he refused to bring an area of financial uncleanness into the light and deal with it. (John 12:6) His habitual thievery was the very door Satan walked through when he tempted him to sell Jesus for thirty pieces of silver.

Lastly, you and I must never forget the power of the person and work of Christ. According to John 10:7, Jesus is the door. Over and over again in my own life, I have discovered that even in those moments when my faith his weak and I seem to be losing my battle against sin, I can run into the high tower of God's protection because of the person and work of His precious Son. Through His work on Calvary, I have access to every promise of God's provision and protection. (2 Corinthians 1:20)

Do you see it now? Our God is strong and mighty. He will save us; but we must run into the fortress that His person and promises have built. No matter what you and I are facing today, this invincible fortress, stands like a strong tower against the raging hordes of hell, and shines like a beacon in the midst of a seething sea of darkness.