Have you ever witnessed the implosion of a skyscraper? The event is quite spectacular. A building that is tens of stories tall is brought to a pile a rubble so that a new, better building may be built in the same place. There are several things that makes this demolition awesome. To begin with, engineers who are experts in architecture and explosives are hired to evaluate the project. Next, a tremendous amount of planning must be done to insure that nothing else is destroyed in the razing of the mammoth structure. The placing of the explosives within the building is critical. After the planning, the work begins under carefully supervision of the expert that is in charge of the entire operation. Support structures are cut, holes are drilled for the explosive charges, and barriers are built to help protect the surrounding buildings from flying debris. Finally, the day arrives when the huge structure that took years to build is reduced to nothing more than a mound of twisted steel and concrete dust in a matter of seconds. The destruction is designed so that as the building falls, it folds in on itself. Explosives are used so that the destruction occurs rapidly and thoroughly. Timing the explosions is imperative in order that damage is minimal to the surrounding environment.

The destruction of a huge skyscraper can be compared to what a lost man experiences before he gets saved. Think about why skyscrapers are torn down. It is because the owner of the property and building wants to put something else on that very location where the existing building stands. If any man is saved, he is saved because God purchased the right to tear down the old man and create a new man in the same body. We read in 2 Corinthians 5:17, "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." What happens to the "old things"? Romans 6:6 reads, "Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin." Jesus said in Matthew 16:25, "For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it." In words that fit with the skyscraper illustration, "your building must come down." The expert engineer is the Holy Spirit. He knows exactly how you are put together and the most thorough and efficient way to destroy everything about you that sets you against God. The Holy Spirit uses men, namely, preachers to assist him in his work. Notice what Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 1:21, "For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe." Another thing that the Holy Spirit uses in his work is the scriptures. In Hebrews 4:12 we read, "For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerned of the thoughts and intents of the heart." In other words, God knows just exactly how to set you up for your own destruction.

Be not dismayed though, remember, the old man must die and be removed so that the new man may have life eternal as a child of God. The work of the Holy Spirit is like unto the precise skill of a surgeon. He knows how not to destroy too much. For example, hope is not destroyed. A man can be lost yet have hope that God will save him. It is a wise and discerning preacher who while counseling a lost sinner follows the leading of the Holy Spirit. The preacher may confront the lost one about his depravity yet encourage him that God loves him and desires to make him one of His own. The question one may have is, "How long does this take?" The answer has two parts. Remember, much preparation goes into the razing of a skyscraper. Just getting ready to bring the structure down takes time relative to the size and complexity of the job. The same is true with the spiritual parallel. Some people need less work done on them by God than others do. Romans 10:17 reads, "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God."

It quite often takes a miracle of God just to get a person in a place where he can hear the truth of God so he can believe. However, when all the preparatory work has been done and everything is ready, the actual crumbling of the structure takes very little time. In fact, the bible refers to it as "quickened". We read in 1 Peter 3:18, "For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit." The word means to be "made alive" and it occurs quickly! The disciples once became troubled over the issue of salvation and even asked Jesus in Mark 10:26, "Who then can be saved?" Jesus answered in verse 27, "With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible." Only an expert can bring down a skyscraper and do it in a controlled, carefully monitored way as to not destroy an entire city block. Only God knows how to bring someone to the end of himself so that he can be saved a given a new life in Christ. Bringing down a giant skyscraper is a big event. It always draws a crowd and is news worthy. People admire the work and it is very thought provoking for all who witness it. One of the most popular reactions is, "I don't see how they do that!" This is because it is beyond most of us to even understand how such a feat can be accomplished. But, it is an infinitely more amazing work that a lost man would come to a place of repentance towards God and faith in the Lord Jesus. It truly is more than most can comprehend.