Moats, Drawbridges, and Royalty - Oh my! Knowing God as our Castle

God is bedrock under my feet, the castle in which I live, my rescuing knight …

~ Psalm 18:2, Message

Perhaps it’s a sign of my simple, fairy-tale loving nature, but I have always been entranced with castles.  The spires that reach wistfully to the sky, the majesty and magic that seem to surround them, the regal beauty hidden within them, the safety and mystery they simultaneously portray to a world of curiously ordinary people, the resplendent riches and luxuries they contain … There’s something about castles that has always intrigued my heart, and therefore, when I found this verse – I fell instantly in love with it.  I love that God is depicted as the “castle in which I live,” the castle of my soul; love that He is the richness and extravagance my soul luxuriates in – no matter what the circumstances look like; that He is my dwelling place, my place of security and strength.  But it’s amazing how much more this imagery suggests to us about the heart and nature of our relationship with God when we take the time to meditate on it.  Think about it.  

What do most castles have?

Moats

Surrounding most castles (of a fairy tale nature anyway) is a moat, a trench dug and filled with water to keep just anyone from coming in; it is designed to keep people from entering the castle by any way they please; there’s only one way in – the draw bridge.  Furthermore, the moat is often filled with alligators, dragons (in fairy tales, anyway :D), or other carnivorous creatures meant to deter people from attempting to swim the moat, climb the wall, and thus break into the castle. 

Now, you may be wondering where I’m going with this, wondering how in the world I could be comparing our wondrous God to some ancient edifice surrounded by a moat filled with rabid flesh-devouring creatures?  But I encourage you to be patient with me as I explain.  Our God is an unchanging place of fortitude and strength, the place where Kingly authority is exercised to better the lives of the people.  But there is a moat.  There is something that separates us all from the glorious throne of God, as Romans 3:23 reminds us, and it’s called sin.  And there is a dragon who inhabits and creates and encourages such sin, and his name is Satan, who is seeking whom he may devour (see 1 Peter 5:8).  Now, before you despair, keep in mind – there is a way in to every castle, and our God is no different!

Drawbridge

The drawbridge of any castle is the only way in.  It is rough hewn, dangerous (if one should get caught up in the gears as it opens or closes, for example), carefully guarded, and probably the least attractive part of the entire castle – but it is necessary.  It allows the King to go to the people and it allows the people to come to the King.  It is the one way of entering or exiting the castle.  And thus is Christ in our lives.  He is the only way to a relationship with God.  Good works will not get us into “the castle,” of luxuriant relationship with our God.  Eternal “niceness” will not get us in.  Saint Mary, Buddha, or any other religious figure throughout history – NONE of them can secure entrance for us into the presence of our God!  The enemy, that foul serpent, would love nothing better than to seduce us into believing we can reach God some other way, to watch us try to swim the moat of our own sinfulness, determined that our own “goodness” or sense of “morality” will somehow save us.  Why?  So he can devour us!  But we serve an awesome God of love who did not want to be separated from us, did not want us to be devoured.  So He sent His Son Jesus, a man described in Isaiah 53:2 as possessing “no beauty that we should desire him” – like the drawbridge mentioned above.  He sent Him to be the “Way, the Truth, and the Life, without [whom] no one can go to the Father.”  Did you catch that? Without a drawbridge, no one can go to the castle.  Without Jesus, no one can attain salvation, which Jesus defined as a relationship with God (see John 17:3); the Bible supports what I said earlier –we cannot swim the moat!  We cannot break into the castle of eternal life in any way.  The only way to God is through Jesus Christ, and it cost Him dearly to pave the way for us.  He laid down His own life to provide a way for us to reach the inner courts of God’s love for us. 

Now, to some of you, I’m sure it seems unfair to offer only one way in to the castle.  However, this way is available to all who come sincerely.  No good and just King will keep his people from approaching with their needs, from approaching to see his face.  And God is no different.  In fact, 2 Peter 3:9 tells us that, “The Lord is longsuffering to us, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance,” and that’s why He hasn’t returned yet.  He’s giving more people the opportunity to find the drawbridge, to be led to it, dragged to it – whatever.  He wants all to come to Him, and thus He sent His Son on our behalf, to provide a way in for us.  How glorious is that Old Rugged Cross, stretching across the mire of our sin, triumphing over the dragon that lies in wait for us, and serves to usher us, sanctified in Christ, into the fullness of the presence of God!

What’s the point of even coming to the castle, you might ask?  It’s simple - because the Prince lives there.

The Prince

Prince charming whirls around the dance floor with his charming Cinderella, lost in a world all His own.  His Father, the King, sits joyously surveying (and maintaining order, as Kings, in their authority and responsibility to the welfare of their people are wont to do), and somehow the world is transformed with magic, or so it would seem … that’s the beauty that lies within the Castle.  Within the castle of relationship with God, we are transformed, much like Cinderella, into the glorious Bride of Christ.  Psalm 149:4, after all, in the King James Version, does say that the Lord will “beautify the meek with salvation.”  Furthermore, Isaiah 62:2, in the Contemporary English Version says, “You will be a glorious crown, a royal headband, for the Lord your God.”  You see, like Cinderella transformed from rags to riches for the ball that night, our very nature is transformed in the presence of the King from the spiritual beggars we have always been, to the sparkling and resplendent Princess or Prince you would expect to find in a castle, sons and daughters of the King, the Bride of the Bridegroom.  2 Corinthians 5:17, after all, tells us that we are new creations in Christ.  Must we transform, you ask?  Well ... no.  I don't suppose you have to.  Romans 12:1-2 says we can be conformed into the image of this world, but it's a dangerous choice.  I mean, in Matthew 22:1-14, Jesus tells a parable about a "wedding guest" who did not change, did not transform, did not put on the new nature God prepared for him, and was thrown into Hell.  So I caution you, if you are stubbornly trying to enter the castle without allowing the Word to transform and renew your mind ... You are treading on dangerous ground, and you are stifling God's best for you.  God's best for us is that we be new creations, recreated in His image, designed to bring Him glory, resplendent and sparkling, fierce and devoted to the welfare of His Kingdom, and fully assured of all the riches and glory He promises His people (Ephesians 1:18, Ephesians 3:16).  

Oh, and in His Presence, there is much cause for celebration, for He is a good King, a just King, as Isaiah 11:3-5 reminds us.  It says the Prince we serve, “will not judge by appearance, false evidence, or hearsay, but will defend the poor and the exploited.  He will rule against the wicked who oppress them.  For he will be clothed with fairness and with truth.”  Who wouldn’t want to be in the presence of such a Prince?  Who wouldn’t want to sit at the feet of the King who created the Heavens and the Earth, who is robed in light, riding in chariots made of clouds, with flashes of lightning as servants (see Psalm 104)?  And as if the King Himself wasn't enough - the castle holds even more!

 Treasure

We mustn't forget!  All castles house a treasure - chests filled to overflowing with gems of all kinds, rubies and diamonds and pearls, ornately decorated furniture and antiques - the best of the best! Suits of armor that are a testament to battles long since won and lost!  If an earthly castle holds such wondrous things, don't you think your Heavenly Father can do better?  And 1 Samuel 25:29, in the New Living Translation (the older edition), assures us that, "Even when you are chased by those who seek your life, you are safe in teh care of the Lord your God, secure in his treasure pouch!"  God carries us among His treasures!  He draws us to Him and allows us to wander in awe of the rich treasures He has in store for us who love Him, treasures far beyond mere monetary trinkets.  Like a child gazing up at a castle illuminated against the night sky, with fireworks exploding behind it - this is how we are to know our God, to be entranced by Him, to be in awe of the treasures He surrounds our lives with … And the most entrancing part of all, is that they can only be found in Him ... What an amazing Castle we have to explore ... :)