“Babel, and How Faith Works”

“Babel and How to Have Faith” (Genesis 10-11)

This section of Genesis finishes the first division of Genesis. Here’s an outline of Genesis:

I. The Beginning of the Human Race: Primeval History (Gen.1 – 11)

1.     Creation, chas.1-2

2.     Curse, chas. 3-5,  The Fall

3.     Catastrophe, chas. 6-9, The Flood

4.     Coalition, chas. 10-11, Babel, the confusion of languages

II. The Beginnings of the Hebrew Race: Patriarchal History (Gen.12 – 50)

1.     Abraham  (21:1 – 25:18)

2.     Isaac  (25:19 – 27:46)

3.     Jacob  (chas. 28 – 35)

4.     Joseph  (chas. 36 – 50)  

Babel was the name of the tower being built in the city of Babylon. It is an appropriate name because this is where human tongues began to babel, which means a confusion of sounds and voices. If you’ve ever wondered where different languages came from, this is the beginning of them, and it was begun by God Himself as a judgment upon mankind’s unity in turning away from the one true God. Confusion of tongues makes it extremely difficult to communicate with others of different cultures.

I lived in Nepal for a year and I tell you it is hard to explain something to others who do not understand your language, or understand what they are trying to say to you. My friend Amit was telling me about what he called, “Veckel.” I had no idea what he was talking about. He just didn’t understand my confusion because “It English word!” Come to find out it was the word vehicle that he was mispronouncing.

The three sons of Noah began to do as the Lord had said and scatter everywhere, naming where they settled after themselves. But some did not want to do that. They liked the plain of Shinar (in modern day Iraq), so they determined not to leave the city that the famous Nimrod (first great hunter and ruler) had built. In that city they began to build a tower that would reach heaven. Verse four indicates they did this all for themselves: “Let us make a name for ourselves.” All that, “lest we be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth.” This first great kingdom was much like the last one to come, called Babylon, and the future one will fall just like the past one. Read Rev.17-18.      

Close your eyes and imagine many people in the middle of a huge construction job and suddenly nobody can understand a word anyone else is saying. Construction comes to a screeching halt. “The Lord confused the language of all the earth; consequently the Lord scattered them abroad over the face of all the earth.”

God reversed the curse in Acts chapter two when they all understood God’s message spoken in different languages. The New Covenant answers all curses with God’s blessings.

So ends the beginnings of the human race. After this the Old Testament is completely taken up with Abraham and His descendants, the Hebrew race. In the last part of Gen.11 we have the genealogy of Shem as it narrows down to Abraham. We leave this section with Abram in Haran, before he, Sarai and Lot depart for Canaan.

We have in this part of the story the confusing of languages, the scattering of the people, the forming of nations, and the departure from God to form pantheons of gods all over the world.

What we have in Genesis 11 is a pure expression and example of unbelief. Genesis 11 is unbelief run amuck. And in it we see how unbelief works. Belief and unbelief work the same way, but in the opposite direction. Unbelief goes away from God and faith goes toward God.

To show this I want to use the word imagination found in 11:6 (and in 6:5).  Translators use different words but one meaning is imagination: “Now nothing they propose/imagine to do will be withheld from them.” In other words, anything they can imagine they can accomplish. That’s what God said. Such is the power of unity and imagination. If we can imagine it, we can accomplish it. Imagine means “to form a mental image of something not present.” Let me show you how this works in the realm of faith.

People think and say they prayed for something and they really had faith that God would answer their prayer; like for healing, provision, friendship, etc. But they did not get what they prayed for and so they give up praying and just supposed it was not God’s will. The problem with this whole scenario is that they do not know a lot of things. Let’s learn these things about faith.

This is how faith works. This is the way we get our prayers answered.

1.     Information – Received from what we see, hear, think, and read. This is necessary but insufficient. This is where so many stop and think they have faith. We’ll… they do of a sorts. They have faith in certain facts, faith in their head.; much like believing George Washington was the first president of the U.S. But faith that obtains the promises of God is a matter of the heart. Believe in your heart and you will be saved, or healed, or obtain any promise of God. This is why many do not have their prayers answered. And it is why they will be deceived at the final judgment and hear the Lord say, “I never knew you.” Faith in facts, even the facts of the gospel, will accomplish nothing.

2.     Meditation – means to think about something continually. Joshua 1:8-9 says, “In this word you shall meditate day and night and so shall you make your way prosperous.” Psalm one tells us who is blessed by God; it is the one who meditates on the word of God day and night. This is the missing ingredient in most people’s lives. They don’t take the time and trouble to meditate on God’s promises. I had heard the gospel many times before I heard it in June 15, 1969. But for the next week I thought of nothing else. June 22 is when I believed to the saving of my soul. I had meditated on the fact until it became the truth in my heart.

3.     Imagination –What you see on the inside of you; this produces hope. You see an image of what you are wanting from God and asking Him for. You fix the eyes of your heart upon it. Someone has a vision for a building and so an architect draws up a blueprint of what he sees. The builders follow that blueprint to get the end product of that building. Walt Disney died before Disneyworld was completed. At the grand opening parade a friend leaned over to his widow and said, “I sure wish Walt could have seen this!” She replied, “O he saw it alright. That’s why you’re seeing it now.” Disney saw it in his imagination before anyone else saw it in reality.

This is what it means to have vision, and “Without a vision the people perish.” What kind of vision do you have… in your heart. Meditation produces vision by our imagination. That produces faith, when “We look at things that cannot be seen.” (2Cor.4:18) We do this with our imagination.

4.     Revelation – This is when you KNOW you have it. By your spirit’s intuition you just know, without any proof. You are fully assured of it.

5.     [Cooperation] – Mt.18:19 says, “I (Jesus) say to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by My Father in heaven.” You share with other believers what God has revealed to your heart and they believe God with you. Agreement prayers are powerful.

6.     [Proclamation] – Speaking it as though you already have it. All God’s works are voice-activated. Abram (whose name meant Exalted Father) told his hundreds of servants that God had changed his name to Abraham (Father of Many Nations). This was when he had no children. In the end his children were as the stars of the sky. Faith speaks. If you can’t say it before it happens you don’t have faith.

7.     Manifestation – Reality. You have it. Enjoy…

[Cooperation and Proclamation] are tremendous helps in reaching the Manifestation.

See it, say it, have it. That’s how faith works. You have to ask yourself, have you ever prayed in faith? If not, don’t delay. Start doing these things and you will have what you ask for. Jesus said so. (1Jn.5:14-15).

Stay Connected with Grace Church!

Dive deeper into sermon notes and see how Christ is moving in our community by visiting our website: https://sites.google.com/view/gracehouseclinton/sermons

If you feel led to support our ministry, you can give securely here: https://give.tithe.ly/?formId=674824c2-5d42-11ee-90fc-1260ab546d11

Thank you for being part of our ministry! #GraceChurch #FaithInAction #terrysimpson #terry #simpson #clintonar #sermons #pastor #ministry #discipleship