The day is Yours, the night also is Yours; You have prepared the light and the sun. You have set all the borders of the earth; You have made summer and winter. (Psalm 74:16-17)
In the very beginning of Creation, the Almighty set distinctions between things like day and night, light and darkness. As it is written: “And God divided the light from the darkness. God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night” (Genesis 1:4-5). He followed this action by establishing the firmament in the heavens to separate the waters above from the waters below. There are other such distinctions recorded throughout the Creation which reveal to us how God instilled order in the universe — and by extension, how He brings order to our lives. In short, He established borders and boundaries.
This principle is repeated throughout the Scripture. For instance, according to Solomon the Creator “assigned to the sea its limit, so that the waters would not transgress His command, when He marked out the foundations of the earth” (Proverbs 8:29). Can you imagine the chaos that would ensue if God had not established a boundary for the sea? That being true, we must conclude that every other border and boundary He has assigned functions in the same way. Were it not for the boundaries He has ordained that define right and wrong and clean and unclean, chaos and lawlessness would be free to run rampant and eventually ruin the world beyond repair. The corruption that led to the Flood of Noah is a stark example of exactly what happens when mankind ignores these boundaries.
The point is whether it is the border that reminds the sea, “Here your proud waves must stop!” (Job 38:11) or the boundary that restricts a man’s carnal inclination, they are there for our benefit. Just as surely as He set the sun in the heavens to give light and life to the earth and its inhabitants, so too are the borders and boundaries intended to secure abundant life for those wise enough to recognize and respect those boundaries. As Messiah said, there is only one way that leads to life; it’s narrow and troublesome because it is defined for us by borders. Our flesh may not appreciate the discipline these borders provoke, but our soul and spirit will thrive if we learn to stay out of the ditch and live between the lines.
Blessings and Shalom,
Bill
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