Tearing down our proud spires, and learning to obey

Before we delve into today’s passage about the Tower of Babel, I would like to draw your attention back to Genesis 1:28: “And God blessed them. And God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.’” This passage documents the very first commandment that God gives to humans: to be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth. And God does not command this only once; in fact, he states his desire for humans to “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth” multiple times (Genesis 9:1, 7)! God wanted humans to flourish and spread out over the earth and be able to enjoy everything that God had given them.

Now read Genesis 11:1-9

Upon initial reading, you might think that there’s nothing wrong with what humans did. After all, they simply wanted to feel safe and be acknowledged for their hard work right? The catch is that there is far more to the story than those two innocent motivations. In fact, the people that appear in this story do not have pure intentions at all. You see, people wanted to “build ourselves a city” and “make a name for ourselves.” They wanted to find security in the things they built and be praised for the things they did. Notice the self-sufficiency that is implied by their words. Not once do they mention God or His will for humans (which was to multiply and fill the earth, not to remain all clumped together). So God comes down, because his created beings (already) aren’t doing what they were created to do, and confuses their language so that they all speak different languages now and must disperse because they can’t communicate with one another anymore. Problem solved right? Now humans will fill the earth and do God’s will and—nope, humans just never learn. If you look throughout the history of our world, you will see numerous examples of people trying to exalt themselves and burrow in their own fortresses that they erect to feel safe. Just look at all the Chinese emperors, or the Roman Caesars, or the European kings. All these fellows ever wanted to do was to conquer, add to their land, make a name for themselves so they’d be remembered for all they had done, and essentially construct a reputation for themselves so that everyone else would look to them as the prime example of perfection.
When I think of everything that humans do to try and make themselves feel secure and put themselves on a pedestal, I can’t help but laugh at the ridiculousness of their efforts. I am not saying this to criticize because I myself am not, by any stretch of the imagination, a naturally humble person. Not even close. In fact, pride and finding security in my own achievements is something that I struggle with mightily every single day. The difference between me and all those Chinese emperors though is that I am continually reminded by God that He is the ultimate security and that He ultimately deserves all the glory. That means none for me or you,
‘cause it all belongs to God. Not that I don’t still struggle with pride and following God’s will for my life. In fact, I continually need to pray that God will remind me to be humble enough so that I can do His work effectively.
Reflect on how you have been proud, seeking glory for yourself, and still trying to find security in the things of this world. How is God telling you to change? What are some tangible things that you can do to show your trust in God? That He is your ultimate security? That our pride gets in the way of His plan?
Because I believe that if we all learn to put down our thoroughly burned bricks and our bitumen mortar, stop constructing our own spires and fortresses exalting ourselves, and begin to humbly follow God’s plan for us…He will honor that change in our hearts and allow us to take an even bigger part in the change He desires to bring upon our lost world. God, our God, our amazing, loving God has a plan for our world. And, similar to how the ending of the movie “To Save a Life” so eloquently put it, that He allows us to have a part in His master plan…that’s truly amazing.