God Scatters the Nations

September 29, 2013 Background Scripture: Genesis 11:1 – 9 Lesson Passage: Genesis 11:1 – 9 I guess it’s true that we can sometimes talk too much; especially if the conversation is all wrong from the beginning. And here is another twist of irony; we now have biblical proof that shows that relationships don’t last when communications break down! On the flip side, I have always been in awe of the biblical statement that if that generation had been allowed to continue to communicate and work together then there was no limit to what they would attempt to do. You have to let that soak in for a while. Without the Spirit of God to guide us, our evil works would continue to grow worse and worse over time. When you couple evil works with the synergy that occurs from cooperation, then we would surely corrupt ourselves—and if it were possible, perhaps even beyond the reach of grace. It’s good to know that everything that God does is for the good of humanity whether we recognize it and accept it or not. God is constantly saving us from ourselves. In fact, when we are honest with ourselves, we admit that we have gotten ourselves into some situations that we had absolutely no idea how we were going to get out of them. Humanity is blessed because God is not indifferent to our plight as so many believe. God loves us too much to allow us to destroy ourselves. We can take something that is good and corrupt it to the point that it becomes an instrument of evil. Communications is good. As stated earlier, relationships don’t last long without it. But even communications can be corrupted. I recall reading our lesson passage many years ago and struggling to understand why the actions of the people were considered so evil by God. It seemed obvious to me at that time that there was no way they could successfully build a tower that reached all the way to the very throne room of God. So what was wrong with their attempt to do so? Well, I have since learned a lot in the ensuing years about human actions that take place independent of any consideration of God. First, human nature is not to be trusted. You only have to disappoint yourself once or twice to come to that conclusion. If our selfish nature can disappoint us, then surely it presents a danger to others who run in our circles. Again, when this evil is coupled with the synergy of cooperation, then we have a recipe for disaster that can quickly escalate into world wars. Secondly, of all the things people can build, why would they attempt to build a tower to heaven? I believe the answer is obvious. With such a tower, then people can go to God on their own terms without having to worry if He is going to come to them when they call. How is that for audacity? We should all thank God that He doesn’t let us get too carried away with our own foolishness. Without bringing injury to anyone, God simply confused their language so they could not understand each other. After communications broke down, then relationships dissolved and people moved away from each other. Their evil works were subdued because God scattered the nations. Robert C. Hudson September 17, 2013