The Towers We Build—Freedom in Christ
Have you ever felt trapped by something you worked so hard to build? Maybe it was a career, a relationship, or even just a sense of accomplishment. At some point, what started as a dream to create security or meaning ended up feeling like a prison. Peter Gabriel’s "The Tower That Ate People" captures this reality so vividly. The relentless "brick by brick" construction in the song speaks to the ways we try to fortify ourselves against life’s uncertainties—only to discover that the very towers we build to protect us end up consuming us.
I know this struggle well. For years, I worked hard to create a life that looked like it had everything together. My self-made towers were built from ambition, pride, and even good intentions. But those towers only led to exhaustion and a deep sense of dissatisfaction. It wasn’t until I discovered the exchanged life that I learned how to let go of my bricks and trust in Christ as my refuge.
Let’s explore what it means to tear down the towers we’ve built and embrace the freedom and rest found in the exchanged life.
The Danger of Self-Made Towers
Gabriel’s song begins with haunting imagery: "There's a bump in the basement... There's a guard in the garden locking up the door."
It’s a picture of fear and isolation. The tower, meant to protect, becomes a trap: "The more we are protected, the more we're trapped within."
Doesn’t that hit close to home? Whether it’s striving to achieve success, control outcomes, or win approval, we often find ourselves enslaved by the very things we thought would set us free. It’s reminiscent of the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11:1-9), where humanity’s ambition to "make a name for themselves" resulted in confusion and collapse.
The truth is, towers built on self-reliance will always crumble. They were never meant to sustain us. But there is hope—a way to step out of the trap and into freedom.
Breaking Free from the Tower: The Exchanged Life
Romans 6:1-14 offers us a roadmap for tearing down our towers and stepping into the freedom of the exchanged life. Through knowing, reckoning, yielding, and walking, we stop striving in our own strength and begin living in the sufficiency of Christ.
1. Know: Remember What God Has Done
Paul begins with this truth:
"Do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death?" (Romans 6:3).
Before anything else, we need to know what’s true: our old self, with all its striving and tower-building, died with Christ. When He died, our sin, shame, and self-reliance died too. This isn’t just a theological idea—it’s reality. We are no longer defined by the towers we built in our old life.
For years, I didn’t know this. I thought I had to keep trying harder to fix myself or prove myself worthy. When I finally understood that my old self was crucified with Christ, it was like the tower I had built started to crumble. I didn’t have to climb it anymore—I was already free in Him.
2. Reckon: Believe It’s True
Paul continues:
"Reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 6:11).
To reckon means to count something as true—to fully believe it. This is where faith comes in. Knowing that my old self died with Christ is one thing, but reckoning it as true means trusting that I don’t have to rely on myself anymore. It means I can stop building towers and start resting in Christ’s sufficiency.
3. Yield: Let Go of Control
"Present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead" (Romans 6:13).
Here’s where the rubber meets the road: surrender. Yielding means handing over the bricks of my tower and trusting God to build something far better. It’s not about trying harder or being better—it’s about letting Christ live His life through me.
This was hard for me. I wanted to hold on to control, to keep “building” in my own way. But when I finally yielded, I experienced the freedom of letting Christ work in and through me. It’s not about my effort—it’s about His life.
4. Walk: Live in Newness of Life
Finally, Paul calls us to walk in newness of life:
"Just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life"(Romans 6:4).
Walking in newness of life means living moment by moment in the reality of Christ’s life in us. It’s not about striving or building anymore. It’s about abiding—letting Him lead, trusting His sufficiency, and finding rest in His presence.
Living in Freedom
When I look back at the towers I built, I see how exhausting and futile they were. But when I embraced the exchanged life—when I stopped striving and started resting in Christ—I found the peace and freedom I had been searching for all along. It’s like Paul says in Galatians 2:20:
"I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me."
What towers are you still trying to build? Maybe it’s time to lay down the bricks and trust in the One who is your refuge, your strength, and your life.
Closing Thought
The towers we build—of ambition, pride, or self-reliance—will never sustain us. But the exchanged life invites us to tear them down and trust in Christ as our all in all. Let’s stop striving and start resting in the One who is our true refuge.