The Key to World Peace (Gen. 11:1-9)
Introduction
One of the most famous dreams of the 20th century was that of Martin Luther King. ‘I have a dream,’ he said to a civil rights march in 1963. ‘That one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood...’ King’s was a longing to see people from different ethnic and social backgrounds able to come together united in equality. It has become the rallying cry for all that have since dreamt of racial harmony. In every generation, it seems, there is the expectation that humanity is always just on the verge of fulfilling the dream. In the international arena, the desire is represented by the United Nations. For many, there is not only the desire but also the technological apparatus. The global village gets ever smaller; the races more intertwined as never before. We have the incentive and the means, if only we could get our act together. The vision is enduring and seems universally attractive. But is it realistic? Whether on a national political level (as at the time of King), or on the international scene, it seems impossible to unite different peoples. Racist attacks continue to appear in the local news of every city. The manifest size of the UN, in itself surely an indication of progress, actually seems to count against it. The more countries that join, the more points of view there seem to be jostling in an unending search for a conclusion. As Europe marches ever closer toward political unity, ethnic tension within European countries is as strong as ever, with borders and the names of nations continuing to change. Closer to home, Britain is also embarking on political devolution. And so it goes on. Cynics argue that racism has become so ingrained in our human nature, whatever our background, that any hope of world peace is a false hope. King’s dream, after all, eventually cost him his life. Our experiences of expectation and frustration originate in Genesis 11. Here we find that humanity will only ever be united when it is rebelling against God. That the disunity we encounter so often is a built-in mechanism placed for our own protection from our united selves. And we discover that there is only one message that leads to ultimate peace amongst the nations.
Human unity leads to mutiny
Read Genesis 11:1-4
(1) What were the motivations to build? (2) How would the tower achieve these aims? (3) How do these priorities compare to God’s? (See Gen 1:28& 9:1, and Matt 6:9) (4) In what ways are we tempted to echo these motivations?
God has divided us to prevent unity
Read Genesis 11:5-8
(5) “Let us go down...” What does this tell us about God’s perspective of the tower? (6) How is God’s punishment a reversal of what the people were trying to achieve? (7) Look at verse 6. How is this punishment actually a protection? (8) This passage has many important lessons for us to draw. How should it inform our thinking about the following? - The true nature of combined human ambition: - Human attempts to achieve unity in the world:
God has made provision for ultimate unity
If we only ever had Genesis chapter 11 we could easily become pessimistic. It doesn’t rule out every instance of co-operation, nor forbid it on more local levels. But it does tell us that any human system attempting to unite humanity around the world is futile. It will all end in tears. But whilst our confidence in ultimate human success is shattered, we do see room for hope in a divine solution. The rest of the Bible gives us great promises of an eventual human unity, of a great city, of a name being made, and of the imposed language barrier being broken down. World peace is achievable, but through God’s means, not ours; and on his terms, not ours. Some clues to that unity are found in these passages: (9) - Acts 17:26-27 What is the only factor uniting all people? (10) - Hebrews 12:22, 13:14 Where will that unity take place? (11) - Acts 2:4-6 How does this event point to ultimate unity? (12) How can Christian missionaries, rather than diplomats, be the true agents of world peace? (13) What action are you taking to achieve this?
Sam Allberry, 2000