He that hath no rule over his own spirit is like a city that is broken down, and without walls – Proverbs 25:28
“I finally understand 2 Samuel, chapters 2 and 3 about Joab,” Junior exclaimed, closing the Bible. “I now just need a personal example of my behaving like him.” “And I have one for you,” Grammy announced. “It’s during a dinner engagement, when you snubbed the boy who had bullied you and your friend at school. You had allowed the need for revenge to overshadow the importance of that evening, which wasn’t just about the reconciliation of two classmates; your father was being evaluated for a promotion.” “You’re right, Grammy, I did allow my emotions to get the upper hand. I’m just glad that everything turned out in my dad’s favor.”
An idol does not have to be a tangible, physical object. It can also be an intangible emotion that consumes you until you become a servant to it. This was the key takeaway from my pastor’s recent sermon on altars—how they are built and how they impede our relationship with God by becoming our primary focus. These altars, created subtly over time, will dominate our minds and become a fixation that ultimately turns into an idol.
“Untamed,” for this discussion, describes behaviors that resist what is acceptable and appropriate and are instead governed by intense emotions like anger and revenge—which ultimately became Joab’s downfall.