Genesis 11:1-9 – When the World Comes Together – Bible study

Genesis 11:1-9 When the World Comes Together The text that we are reading today is one of the oldest in the Bible. It speaks of a place that still exists today, Babylon, here called Babel. As far as I can discern, Babylon is the oldest city on the fact of the earth. Its founding is described in \#Gen 10:8-11\. It was built by Noahs grandson, Nimrod. The text goes on to describe that Nimrod built several other cities across modern day Iraq and Iran. The city Babylon as four major time periods and three of them are described in the Bible. 1. Ancient Babel or Babylon – We are reading about that time period now. Babylon is the oldest civilization in the world. Ancient Babylon is important because it tells us where different languages came from. 2. Old Babylon – This is the Babylon of Daniel, Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel. Babylon became the greatest world power (greatest in power, beauty, and riches) – even conquering Israel. 3. Present day Babylon – Saddam Hussein brought Babylon back into the forefront of the worlds attention by harboring weapons of mass destruction and the terrorists that wanted to use them. After the attack on the World Trade Centers, a coalition of nations attacked Babylon under the United States. Hussein was eventually captured and hanged by the people he had abused/ 4. Future Babylon – Rev 14-18 – Babylon will be the world center of religious, political, and economic power. It will be a part of the anti-Christs world system and will end only when God Himself destroys it. This morning, we want to concentrate primarily on Ancient Babylon. Why is Babel important? I. Babel testifies of early things. A. Babel testifies how our world was divided into different people groups. 1. Even evolutionist believe that all the races had a common ancestors. Give them credit. They are right on that one, but they have no explanation as to how the world came to speak such diverse languages. 2. If the evolution were true, all the nations should have a similar root language. We dont. Why? Because God divided the nations with unique languages for the express purpose of keeping them apart! Acts 17:26 And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation; 3. All nations are from one blood. There is no Biblical reason that any race of people should think they are superior. 4. God has appointed their times – times of existence and power. 5. God has appointed their boundaries. Man tries to remove the boundaries but God set them up. 6. The Bible makes it clear that God has divided the nations and gives them their place and time to exist. 7. The multitude of languages we speak testify that it is so. B. Babel testifies to the abilities of early man. \#4\ 1. I dont think these people were literally trying to build a tower to God. Neither do I think they trying to build some thing that would reach as high as they could. 2. If either of these were true, they would not have started the structure in the plain of Shinar but on one of the mountains. That would have given them a head start of a few thousand feet! 3. I do think they were trying to build a high structure, probably like the great pyramids of Egypt or the Sphinx which these peoples descendents will build later on. 4. The phrase "whose top may reach unto heaven" is an idiom meaning, "Lets build something exceedingly high, with its head in the sky." 5. To build some thing that tall would require a lot of brick, mortar, man power, and great engineering abilities. 6. \#6\ But God said they would do it! Do they sound like prehistoric cave men to you? 7. If you want to know where the cave men came from, I will tell you for certain that God did not make man in that condition. That is what mankind sunk to after sin entered the world! Ge 19:30 And Lot went up out of Zoar, and dwelt in the mountain, and his two daughters with him; for he feared to dwell in Zoar: and he dwelt in a cave, he and his two daughters. C. Babel testifies of mans early wicked nature. 1. It was not the building that was of itself bad. a. God allowed others to build similar structures. b. The evil was in the buildings purpose. 2. Symbol a. \#Ge 9:1\ God told man to fill the earth. b. \#4\ These people werent going to go! c. This tower was to be the symbol that man was his own boss, he could go where he wanted, when he wanted, if he wanted. d. God says, "You think so?" e. Man has been trying to put the world back together ever since God divided it. (1) Whenever Man unites, he attempts to overthrow God. Proverbs 11:21 Though hand join in hand, the wicked shall not be unpunished: but the seed of the righteous shall be delivered. Psalm 2:1 Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing? 2 The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed, saying, 3 Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us. 4 He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision. (2) Has the United Nations taken us closer to God or pulled us further from God? Have the multitude of international treaties signed bolstered the cause of Christ or threatened it? Since our military has been united with coalitions of the world, have our service personals religious freedoms been enlarged or reduced? (3) Practical experience – Smaller is usually better! The more people there are, the faster sin spreads. (a) Peer pressure usually works for evil. (b) Larger crowds tend to reduce individual accountability. (c) Larger crowds tend to rely on their ability not Gods. II. Babel teaches us some things. A. Mans greatest sins are often by design and with ingenuity. 1. These men, although sinners, were brilliant. 2. The wonders of the ancient world testifies to the fact that men in Bible days were able to things that we can begin to comprehend. a. Do you know what man figures when he sees the work of ancient mankinds genius? That aliens did it. b. Include excerpts from "Six Ancient Things That Were Probably Built by Aliens." http://www.toplessrobot.com/2011/08/6_ancient_things_that_were_ probably_built_by_alien.php c. It wasnt aliens! It was man blessed by God with intellect and brilliance, but over the years man has continued to turn to sin and dumb himself down. It is happening in giant leaps in this country right now. 3. The shame of it is that these men with all of the ingenuity were only interested in using it for sinful purposes. a. \#4\God told them to go and they wanted to stay. b. Instead, they wanted to stay in one place and to make a name for themselves. c. \#3-4\ Notice their phrase "Go to." (1) The people used that phrase twice in disobedience to God. (2) Their thought was, "Lets join together and build some thing really big, some thing that would show God that we are own bosses." d. \#7\ But then notice that God used that phrase too. (1) What we have here is One member of the Godhead speaking to the Others. (2) But did God have to "go" any place to see this tower that man was building? (3) No! He is God and God sees all things. (4) What did God say this to the Godhead? (a) It was sarcasm. (b) God was demonstrating how foolish mans effort to disobey Him is. (c) By saying this, God was saying, "I cant quit make out what those people are building down there. It might be the biggest, tallest thing that man has ever built but it is so small that I think we will have to go down to look at it." 4. In this chapter, God will demonstrate to mankind just how smart mankind really is. B. Mans greatest sins are with false religions. 1. I have already mentioned that I do not think these people were literally building a temple to reach God of the heavens. a. \#4\ But the Bible says whose top may reach unto heaven b. What does that mean? 2. Notice that in the verse, the words "may reach" are in italics, meaning that they are not in the original language. a. The word that is used is a preposition meaning in, by, with, or on. b. So the thought may be that the tower had some kind of relationship to the heavens not that it literally was going to be a high rise to them (although I think the building was to be very tall). 3. What relationship could this structure have to the heavens? Most think that it was being built to worship the zodiacs. a. It is a know fact that astrology began in Babylon. b. Both the pyramids and the Sphinx which were build by the descendents of these very people have relationships to the stars and zodiacs. c. By the way, the worship of the celestial bodies is condemned by the Bible as devil worship. d. This whole event was likely another one of the devils attempt to get man to forsake God and to worship him! e. That is the purpose of every false and deceptive religion! 4. It is interesting to note that mankind falls for Satans parade of false religions over and over again. a. Islam seems to be his religion of choice right now! b. But Catholicism, Mormonism, Buddhism, Hinduism, atheism, voodoo, cannibalism, witchcraft, horoscopes, or the unfaithful, unbelieving, compromising Baptist are all headed down the same wrong roadthey are worshipping the devil! c. People like to condemn Christianity as being a violent, hateful religion that has caused more wars than any other single cause. (1) That is not true. (2) The perversion of Christianity may have done that but not Christianity. (3) Christianity has provided the martyrs for the perversion religions but it never the aggressor. (4) Force cant make a Christian out of anyone. They must be drawn of the Holy Spirit, convicted of their sins, and choose to follow Jesus. (5) Those that have the light know that. Those that dont have the light are in darkness and part of the devils crowd. 5. Yet, in the name of religion, wars are fought, Jihad is proclaimed, and innocents are burned alive in a cage! http://video.foxnews.com/v/4030583977001/warning-extremely-graphic- video-isis-burns-hostage-alive/#sp=show-clips C. Mans greatest sins are met by Gods judgments. 1. God did not stop man from completing this project. God only delayed man from completing it. a. Man used his best minds and strongest backs in an attempt to bring God down. b. With nothing more than a thought, God brought mankind down another notch and delayed his project by thousands of years. c. God pressed one hidden a button in mans brain and reset his speech and understanding abilities! (1) He could have sent another flood, of famine, or fire, or a dozen other judgments. (2) But God decided to put a wall between man that would be permanent and keep man apart for thousands of years! (3) It has only been in the last few years that the language barrier has been able to be commonly removed, but its virtual removal has put man back on tract to attempting to show God that man is his own boss again. 2. Today man is successfully breaking through the language barrier. Yet, this is not a good thing. a. Man has picked up the baton of those ancient ancestors. (1) As man moves closer and closer to bringing the world together, Satan is blinding their eyes into worshipping him and denying God. (2) That is what Satan has always wanted and as the world comes together, he will get it. (3) We have begun to build a work to tell God that we do not want Him! b. What will God do? At some point, God will remove His people from off the world and start pouring His wrath upon this planet. 3. You see, anytime man comes against God, God will thwart him. a. You cannot build a structure to reach into the heavens for God has already provided the means, Jesus! b. Any other work we might build is our merger attempt at casting God down and lifting man up. 4. Be wise. a. Turn to Jesus Christ today. b. Live for Him. Obey Him.