From confusion to clarity “Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that
they may not understand one another’s speech. So the LORD scat
tered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and
they left off to build the city.” Genesis 11:7-8 (Read v. 1-9) “And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to
speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.And
there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men, out of every
nation under heaven. Now when this was noised abroad, the
multitude came together, and were confounded, because that
every man heard them speak in his own language.And they were
all amazed and marvelled, saying one to another, Behold, are not
all these which speak Galilæans? And how hear we every man in
our own tongue, wherein we were born? Parthians, and Medes,
and Elamites, and the dwellers in Mesopotamia, and in Judæa,
and Cappadocia, in Pontus, and Asia, Phrygia, and Pamphylia,
in Egypt, and in the parts of Libya about Cyrene, and strangers
of Rome, Jews and proselytes, Cretes and Arabians, we do hear
them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God.” Acts
2:4-11 (read v. 1-47) In the days following the Genesis Flood, everyone spoke the
same language, making it possible through communication to
share ideas and join together in great works. But the problem was
that men gathered to make a name for themselves and to disobey
the LORD God who had created them. God’s solution to the great
city and tower they were building for their own honor and glory
was simple. He confused their languages so that they no longer
understood each other.
On the day in which our Lord Jesus poured out His Holy Spirit
upon His disciples, people of every nation and language were
gathered to Jerusalem in observance of the Jewish feast of Pente
cost. On that day, the Holy Ghost worked a great miracle, for He
caused Jesus’ disciples - most of them from Galilee - to speak in
other tongues. These were not unknown languages but the native
languages of the people gathered to Jerusalem. Each heard the
apostles proclaiming in their own native tongue “the wonderful
works of God” in sending His own Son, Messiah Jesus, to redeem
lost and condemned sinners and give them forgiveness of sins and
life everlasting in the glories of heaven.
In Genesis 11, confusion came when men suddenly began to
speak in different languages - so much confusion that they gave
up on their wicked plans to build a huge city and tower and called
the name of the place Babel.
In Acts 2, what sounded like confusion and even drunkenness to
some resulted in clarity. By the mighty working of the Holy Spirit,
people from all over the world heard of Christ Jesus and what He
had done to redeem them and give them a part and place in God’s
eternal city in the heavens.
In our own day, we have through a wide variety of media the
ability to communicate and share ideas and plans with people of
all nations around the world. Through the Internet, the boundar
ies created by governments and language have to a great degree
been removed.
Like in ancient Babylon, men use these means of communica
tion for every sort of evil and wickedness. People from around the
world join together in sinful and rebellious endeavors.
But like never before, we have opportunity, with the help and
aid of God’s Holy Spirit, to bring clarity and truth to this fallen and
confused world. We can speak of the wonderful works of God to
people of all nations and tongues. We can spread the Word of the
Lord and make known the forgiveness and life He offers and gives
in the Son, Christ Jesus! And when we proclaim the Word of the
Lord, we can know and be sure that God’s Spirit will be at work,
as He was on the day of Pentecost spoken of in Acts 2, convicting
people everywhere of their own sinfulness and comforting them
with the good news of pardon and peace in Messiah Jesus.
O dearest Jesus, grant us Your Holy Spirit and faith which holds
fast to You for the forgiveness of all our sins and life everlasting.
Move us to speak of Your wonderful works to all people everywhere
that they too might repent and turn back to You for forgiveness and
life everlasting. Grant this to us for the sake of Your holy life and
innocent sufferings and death in our stead. Amen.
[Devotion by Randy Moll. Scripture Quotations are from the King James Version of the Bible.]
For The Record, Pages 4 on 05/26/2010