Creekside Church, Sunday, Nov 24, 2024
Babel
Locations & Times
Creekside Church
660 Conservation Dr, Waterloo, ON N2J 3Z4, Canada
Sunday 9:00 AM
Sunday 10:30 AM
GENESIS 11:1-9 (NIV)
1Now the whole world had one language and a common speech. 2 As people moved eastward, they found a plain in Shinar and settled there.
3 They said to each other, “Come, let’s make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” They used brick instead of stone, and tar for mortar. 4 Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves; otherwise we will be scattered over the face of the whole earth.”
5 But the Lord came down to see the city and the tower the people were building. 6 The Lord said, “If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. 7 Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other.”
8 So the Lord scattered them from there over all the earth, and they stopped building the city. 9 That is why it was called Babel—because there the Lord confused the language of the whole world. From there the Lord scattered them over the face of the whole earth.
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NOTICE:
vs 2 - Shinar (where the guy named “we will rebel” built Babylon in Genesis 10)
vs 4 - Let us build for ourselves – make a name for ourselves
vs 4 - To avoid scattering – to avoid the mandate from Genesis 1 - fill the earth with the glory of God
vs 4 - Tower
Likely alluding to a Ziggurat which was a common feature in ancient Mesopotamian cities.
Ziggurat's had names like, "temple of the foundation of heaven and earth" and, "temple which links heaven and earth".
They were like a staircase – a welcoming feature for the gods.
The idea was to please and make convenient for the gods to come down and receive worship and then they'd bless the people.
So, what is this tower in Babel? It's a first attempt to control God. To turn God into an idol.
***Genesis begins with a God who is creating. He wants some image bearers for his creation. Now we have humans creating. And they need a God for their creation!
------------
Where do the humans get such audacity?
Technology
Bricks – imagine building with stone and making mortar vs. bricks and tar from a natural source. Speed and size would increase greatly.
Who’s the first builder in the bible? – God when he splits the man in Genesis 2 – "made a woman" – "built her" out of his side - the woman is the man's ezer (indispensable other, to rescue him)
Now humans are building.
The word city in Hebrew – ‘iyr – jot or tittle makes city into ‘ezer
Cities always given a female gender
Yahweh builds the first “ezer” – what humans then try to build for themselves is their own “ezer” – their own form of rescue
This tower is a picture of people trying to provide their own deliverance, their own rescue, their own creation – instead of trusting God
-----------
Humans have come together to attempt an escape through their unity.
“It seeks to construct a world free of the danger of the holy and immune from the terrors of God in history. It is a unity grounded in fear and characterized by coercion.” Walter Brueggemann
-----------
We're all building something. We've all got multiple projects going on.
What are you building?
Why?
For Who?
Examples - You’re building a marriage, family, friendships, resources, property, business, team
Are you building something that is all about you?
Are you building something that is looking to use God as a genie?
***You don’t begin with a vision that you invite God into.***
Following God is a complete surrender to his vision.
-----------
How could you ever get truer intentions in what you're building?
Not be afraid?
ACTS 2
What is this story?
The reversal of Babel
2:11 – “…we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!”
At the tower it was – come let us unite around making a name for ourselves
At Pentecost it becomes – come let us unite around the wonders of God – make a name for God.
When we surrender to the Spirit we got a shot at building something worthy with our lives.
---------
Reflection
Invitation to the Holy Spirit.
Come and inspect my towers.
Redeem and Destroy.
Surrender to the Spirit
1Now the whole world had one language and a common speech. 2 As people moved eastward, they found a plain in Shinar and settled there.
3 They said to each other, “Come, let’s make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” They used brick instead of stone, and tar for mortar. 4 Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves; otherwise we will be scattered over the face of the whole earth.”
5 But the Lord came down to see the city and the tower the people were building. 6 The Lord said, “If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. 7 Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other.”
8 So the Lord scattered them from there over all the earth, and they stopped building the city. 9 That is why it was called Babel—because there the Lord confused the language of the whole world. From there the Lord scattered them over the face of the whole earth.
-----------
NOTICE:
vs 2 - Shinar (where the guy named “we will rebel” built Babylon in Genesis 10)
vs 4 - Let us build for ourselves – make a name for ourselves
vs 4 - To avoid scattering – to avoid the mandate from Genesis 1 - fill the earth with the glory of God
vs 4 - Tower
Likely alluding to a Ziggurat which was a common feature in ancient Mesopotamian cities.
Ziggurat's had names like, "temple of the foundation of heaven and earth" and, "temple which links heaven and earth".
They were like a staircase – a welcoming feature for the gods.
The idea was to please and make convenient for the gods to come down and receive worship and then they'd bless the people.
So, what is this tower in Babel? It's a first attempt to control God. To turn God into an idol.
***Genesis begins with a God who is creating. He wants some image bearers for his creation. Now we have humans creating. And they need a God for their creation!
------------
Where do the humans get such audacity?
Technology
Bricks – imagine building with stone and making mortar vs. bricks and tar from a natural source. Speed and size would increase greatly.
Who’s the first builder in the bible? – God when he splits the man in Genesis 2 – "made a woman" – "built her" out of his side - the woman is the man's ezer (indispensable other, to rescue him)
Now humans are building.
The word city in Hebrew – ‘iyr – jot or tittle makes city into ‘ezer
Cities always given a female gender
Yahweh builds the first “ezer” – what humans then try to build for themselves is their own “ezer” – their own form of rescue
This tower is a picture of people trying to provide their own deliverance, their own rescue, their own creation – instead of trusting God
-----------
Humans have come together to attempt an escape through their unity.
“It seeks to construct a world free of the danger of the holy and immune from the terrors of God in history. It is a unity grounded in fear and characterized by coercion.” Walter Brueggemann
-----------
We're all building something. We've all got multiple projects going on.
What are you building?
Why?
For Who?
Examples - You’re building a marriage, family, friendships, resources, property, business, team
Are you building something that is all about you?
Are you building something that is looking to use God as a genie?
***You don’t begin with a vision that you invite God into.***
Following God is a complete surrender to his vision.
-----------
How could you ever get truer intentions in what you're building?
Not be afraid?
ACTS 2
What is this story?
The reversal of Babel
2:11 – “…we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!”
At the tower it was – come let us unite around making a name for ourselves
At Pentecost it becomes – come let us unite around the wonders of God – make a name for God.
When we surrender to the Spirit we got a shot at building something worthy with our lives.
---------
Reflection
Invitation to the Holy Spirit.
Come and inspect my towers.
Redeem and Destroy.
Surrender to the Spirit