Hello, family, we are going to have a Bible study today. As I was studying the book of Genesis 11: 1 – 9, a very powerful message came to my heart that I will like to share with us. I believe a lot of us are holding on to some relationships and friendships that we need to let go, so we can begin to live in God’s intended purpose for our lives.
Genesis 11: 1 – 9, is quite a familiar story in the Bible that we all might know whether you read it yourself in the Bible or you heard a sermon on it. It talks about the Tower of Babel and how God stopped the construction of the building by confusing the languages of the people.
So, Let’s read it together. Genesis 11: 1 – 9 (AMP) says,
“Now the whole earth spoke one language and used the same words (vocabulary). 2 And as people journeyed eastward, they found a plain in the land of Shinar, and they settled there. “Come, let us make bricks and fire them thoroughly [in a kiln, to harden and strengthen them].” So they used brick for stone [as building material], and they used tar (bitumen, asphalt) for mortar. 4 They said, “Come, let us build a city for ourselves, and a tower whose top will reach into the heavens, and let us make a [famous] name for ourselves, so that we will not be scattered [into separate groups] and be dispersed over the surface of the entire earth [as the Lord instructed].” 5 Now the Lord came down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men had built. 6 And the Lord said, “Behold, they are one [unified] people, and they all have the same language. This is only the beginning of what they will do [in rebellion against Me], and now no evil thing they imagine they can do will be impossible for them. 7 Come, let Us (Father, Son, Holy Spirit) go down and there confuse and mix up their language, so that they will not understand one another’s speech.” 8 So the Lord scattered them abroad from there over the surface of the entire earth; and they stopped building the city. 9 Therefore the name of the city was Babel—because there the Lord confused the language of the entire earth, and from that place the Lord scattered and dispersed them over the surface of all the earth.
From that passage we just read, we can obviously see the rebellion of this people. God commanded about four (4) times (Genesis 1:22, 28; 9:1, 7) in previous chapters before the building of the Tower of Babel (Chapter 11) that we should be fruitful, multiply and fill the earth, but these people had joined to blatantly disobeyed God. They said in verse 4, “Come, let’s build a great city for ourselves with a tower that reaches into the sky. This will make us famous and keep us from being scattered all over the world.”
But God’s intended purpose was for man to be fruitful and fill the whole earth, not gather at one place. They were not just going to build a tower so they could stay together, but they wanted to make a name for themselves, be famous and rebel against God. They were using very strong materials for the construction. They used bricks instead of stones and tar instead of mortar. They had it all planned out.
The sad part is, this behavior and act have seeped into our generation again. We find people with common evil and wicked goals, and we come together and sin against God. We intentionally go against his commands. Verse 6 said, “And the Lord said, “Behold, they are one [unified] people, and they all have the same language. ” UNITY is a very powerful force. As the saying goes, “Together we stand, divided we fall.” But, Unity is ONLY a powerful force, when it brings glory to God NOT when it rebels against God. A rebellious unity needs a division for it will end up in destruction. These people of Babel were very well united; they understood each other well, they were thinking alike, had the same perspective, same goal, same language and no misunderstanding what so ever and they progressed towards their goal of building the tower. God said, if they are left alone, this is ONLY the beginning of what they will do to rebel against God. However, if they no longer share the same goal and they just couldn’t understand one another anymore, this alliance and construction project will be broken. So, God confused their languages, and because they could not understand one another anymore, they scattered and spread out as God had originally intended.
As I mentioned earlier, this act of joint rebellion and defiance against God has seeped into our generation, and we need a division orchestrated by God to separate us from many of the bad companies and friends we keep. We are still able to understand one another because many of us are still speaking and interacting with one another using the “World’s language.” Thus, we continue in our sin and rebellion.
Just as Jesus said in Luke 12: 51 – 53, “Do you suppose that I came to grant peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division [between believers and unbelievers]; for from now on five in one household will be divided [over Me], three against two and two against three. They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”
The division that Jesus was talking about here is not one of chaos, but one that is needed and purposeful. It’s a division that must happen for real peace to come. If we continue to live in “peace and unity” with one another while dwelling in sin and rebellion against God, what good is such unity? But a division that comes with revelation knowledge and enables us to see that we have been living in sin and removes the veil from our eyes is way better. For, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death – Proverbs 14: 12. Some relationships and friendships seem good and perfect, but all they do is lead us to hell and destruction. So, a God orchestrated division is very well needed for us to break off of those relationships that do not profit or benefit us in a godly way. Our worldly languages have to be destroyed and replaced with the language of God’s word.
So, we get to a point where we begin to look like fools to our friends for “The unbeliever does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him. And he cannot understand them because they are spiritually discerned – 1 Corinthians 2:14 NET”. They begin to call you names because you are now separated from them, and they just can’t see things the way you see them now that you are in Christ. You see them in the world, going down the path of destruction but they see you and think you are the stupid and foolish one. This is because God has separated, divided and set you apart from them. Thus, our interest has to change. We who are now new in Christ, no longer have the appetite for the things we used to enjoy with our past friends in Babylon (world) any longer. We now yearn for God and his word and no longer the world. Our interest, yearn and passion changes. A purposeful Division occurs. So, a division orchestrated by God yields good fruits and sets us in God’s intended purpose and peace. Just as the division between the people in Babel, made sure that they spread throughout the earth as God intended. A separation from our worldly friends will ensure that we leave them and spread out into the world, teaching God’s word, growing in his word, enjoying fellowship with fellow believers and serving him with all we’ve got which is what he intends for us all. That is our purpose on earth, not to get involved in some tower building of gossip, jealousy, hatred, worldly fame, worldly ambitions, and foolishness. God will do whatever it takes for you to stop building that tower and obey his commands even if it means bringing a well-orchestrated division between you and friends or family that seem to be holding you back. It is PURPOSEFUL DIVISION to take you into God’s intended purpose and peace for you.
However, a division does not necessarily mean divorce or never talking with someone ever again. We still have the duty to reach out to others and help them get saved too. In fact, God might have separated you from them, so you go later go back, preach to them, show them the light and door (Jesus) and help them get saved too. Even though the people of Babel ended up with different languages and found it hard to understand one another just as we have today, we still find a way to understand one another. Because when it does come to the word of God and talking about his kingdom and Christianity as a whole, we only need one language and that which God has commanded us to have, LOVE. Love is our universal language as a family of God.
So, what is that relationship you are in that God has placed in your heart to let go of? Is it with family, friends (childhood or not), colleagues, etc. If the unity between that relationship does not glorify God but rebels against him and defiles or disobeys his commands, then, let it go and separate from it. And you will realize that it is a division that brings TRUE PURPOSE and PEACE in the end. Because our God is NOT one of confusion but of PEACE – 1 Corinthians 14:33
Lots of Love❤️
God bless
Esther Ademiju.
Growing God's Eternal Family 
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