The Story of Babel: Why did God Scatter Them?
The descendants of Noah began to move out into the new world. When they found a good land, they decided to settle there. Having one language, they came to an agreement to build a city where they will live and a tower to make themselves great. Then God saw what they were doing and said that in their unity they are able to do this, then nothing will be impossible for them. So He confused their languages and they scattered all over the world.
For the longest time this story troubled me. Why did God confuse the people when they were on the verge of doing something great? Was God insecure? Was God being a bossy lord where He is forcing people to follow Him or else? The people were not hurting anyone! They were just making life easier for themselves; is that sinful? The key is in what they built and what they built it for.
The tower is like a huge pyramid and is meant to be their stairway to heaven.
Ziggurat of Ur photo from http://www.ancientworlds.net/aw/Article/759360
But this is not a stairway to reach God. No, this stairway was for something else entirely. The best description for their motive of building the tower can be found in Isaiah 14:13–14. This motivation to reach heaven is born out of the root of the very first sin (Genesis 3:5). They were not trying to reach God; they were trying to become God. They want to have dominion over the earth by means of this tower. They want to rule over the earth apart from God. And if they succeed in building this tower, God saw that whatever they plan to do they can accomplish. And since every inclination of their hearts is evil, even after the flood (Genesis 8:21), the “great things” that they are able to accomplish will also be corrupt. And by these accomplishments, they may very well destroy themselves and the rest of the world with them. And God, in His goodness, will not allow that to happen.
Modern-day Towers of Babel
Yet Man still continues to build his tower that reaches up to heaven, even to this very day. We see nations united in their production of oil which gives them control over such resources. Oil production brings fuels to power our generators and fuel our vehicles, but also pollute our air to the point of creating global warming, disrupting our weather patterns and bringing about floods and droughts in various parts of the world. Scientists united to create energy by splitting atoms and thus nuclear power is generated. From there, electricity is produced in many developed countries, but at the same time provided the material for weapons that could destroy the world many times over. Academics and philosophers united to push the idea that there is no God and there is no absolute moral truth, and thus we see our world steadily sliding into chaos. Government officials united to create a culture of corruption in government designed to enrich those in power, but plunged the nation into widespread poverty and social injustice. This is what happens when people are united in their pursuit to become gods themselves.
But what of we who profess to know the Truth? We ourselves have built our own cities and erected our own towers. Just like those people who, by staying in one place, went against God’s purpose for people to fill the earth, we too have become comfortable in our own “saved” place and will not move from where we sit. Just like Peter who, upon seeing Christ in all His glory wanted to stay where he was to enjoy that glory for himself (Matthew 17:4), we are content to keep our Christianity within the walls of our churches instead of incarnating Christ to the unbelieving world. We are only Christians among Christians in church, but outside we are no different from everybody else. We who are meant to be the salt of the earth would rather stay inside the saltshaker. Even in our prayers, more often than not we seek to make God conform to our will instead of seeking His will and asking for whatever we need to fulfill that will. And often, we mistakenly claim His promise that “For where two or three come together in my name, there I am with them.” (Matthew 18:20) without first seeking His will and thus be truly coming together in His name. Otherwise, in coming together with our own agendas, we are building our own spiritual tower reaching up to heaven with the express purpose of bending God’s will to conform to ours. Even if we are united in our fellowship and in our prayers, it is still God’s will that will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Challenge: The Example of Christ
Christ, who could have just stayed in heaven, came to earth and became like us in every way except sin. He showed us how it is to be like God by walking with God. And He who was without sin died on the cross so that we who sin could have life where we need not sin anymore. We need not build towers to reach the heavens because heaven came down when Christ was lifted up on that cross, suspended between heaven and earth. If Christ is truly in us, we need not build cities for us to be united, for Christ Himself is our unity. And wherever we go we will never be alone for Christ is ever with us (Matthew 28:20). And wherever there are fellow believers, we can find a home. Let us then stop building towers that reach up to heaven, but instead build our houses upon the Rock who is Christ, and be united that we might be a temple where dwells the Living God.
(Message given at Jesus Christ Our Hope and Redeemer Church, San Mateo, Rizal, 3 April 2011)
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