Genesis 11
Theme: Our theme for this week is the “Tower of Babel”. Since the “Garden” we’ve seen a pattern begin to unfold of God’s grace & man’s rebellion. The tower of Babel continues this theme of showing us that in our rebellion we will never be able to obtain righteousness on our own: we need a savior!
Major Points:
(V. 1-9) Man’s sin in chapter 11 mirrors the sinful desires we still experience today. They wanted a city to settle in for security & comfort when God clearly told them to spread out and subdue the earth.They wanted a great name for themselves so they might find their identity in achievement and legacy. Finally they wanted a tower to build toward the heavens so God would come down and dwell there, resulting in the people receiving blessings and being praised. The picture of sin develops in Genesis 11 in this way, humanity no longer even recognizes their rebellion against God but attempts to declare their own greatness and provide their own way to heaven. We try to attain salvation by reaching out to God with a declaration of our greatness, but it is only when we realize our neediness that we can see God reaching down for us. In this story we see four warning signs that we may be walking in the same rebellion toward God: Pride, Selfishness, Disobedience, Confusion
God’s response to this rebellion was to confuse their language and scatter them across the earth. God’s confusion of language comes full circle in Acts 2. The writer of Acts specifically mentions that there are people in attendance from every region of the scattering in Genesis. As the apostles share the gospel, God un-confuses the languages to show people that through Jesus our sin can be healed, and that he has “come down” again, but this time to dwell with his people as they are sent out not to scatter them in judgment. Just as God walked with man in the garden the Holy Spirit now walks with us. Just as both Adam and the descendants of Noah were sent out to multiply and subdue the Earth Jesus sends us out to multiply disciples and spread the Gospel. God always pushes his people to look outward, to multiply, toward sending. Sinful man always looks inward, toward building for his security and his glory.
Question Bank:
How has your week been spiritually? / What is God teaching you?
What sins are you struggling with that you need to confess?
What does it look like for someone to try to take the place of God in their own life?
Have you ever noticed yourself trying to replace God in your life? How?
Do you see any of the four warning signs of walking in rebellion in your life? Explain
How do we fight the warning signs of rebellion in our life?
How does God extend grace in this story? How has he extended grace in your rebellion?