Gift of Languages

Genesis 11:1-9

Pastor Ntambue J. Kazadi

 

Our text this morning is telling us about God's gift of language, and about a group of people who used the gift of language irresponsibly.

 

This is the time after the Great Flood, when Noah took his family and the animals on the ark and were spared from God's wrath.

 

After the story of the flood, the Bible says that the children of Noah had children and their children had children and they grew to become a great nation of people.

 

At this time, all of them spoke one language.  And as these descendents of Noah settled in one place, they decided to build a great tower to heaven.  I think, they did want to build a tower into heaven not in order to glorify God, but to make a name for themselves.

 

It can be said that these people did not trust God to take care of them.  They did not rely on their faith and seek the will of God.  No, they thought that they had to save themselves.  They did not rely on God to save them.  They thought they had to make a name for themselves in order to be saved.

 

These people took a great and wonderful gift that God had given them-the gift of language, the ability to communicate, to express themselves-and they used that gift against the will of God.  So the Lord comes down from heaven and confuses their language.  Suddenly, they no longer speak the same language, they speak many different languages, and they cannot understand each other.

 

Interesting!  These people took the gift of ONE LANGUAGE that God had given them.  But they did not use this gift responsibly. They did not use this gift to glorify God.  They used this gift of one language to glorify themselves, and to make a name for themselves.  And what happened?

 

Their worst fear came true.  The one thing they did not want-to be scattered over the face of the earth-that one thing came true.

 

This is what usually happens when we take the gifts from God and use them against the will of God.  We think that we, by ourselves-can use those gifts and make great things.  But when we use the Gifts of God to disobey God, the wonderful things do not happen.  What happens is the opposite of what we want.

 

All of us must remember that when God gives us gifts, he also puts responsibility on our heads and our hearts.  I know some people in Africa who have been given a great gift for teaching, but they choose to teach things that are against the will of God.  I know some people who have been given the gift of music, but they do not use their gifts to glorify God.  I know some preachers who have been given the great gift of preaching, but they do not use their gifts to glorify God.  Instead they use their gifts to do things against the will of God.

 

The people who built the tower of Babel wanted to stay together, speaking their one language.  I believe, they could have stayed together speaking their one language if they had used the gift of language to glorify God and to do his will.  But when they stopped glorifying God and started to glorify themselves, they lost the gift of ONE language and they separated from one another.

 

So the Bible says, these people who built the Tower of Babel.they are the reason that we have so many languages in the world today.  On the continent of Africa more than 1,000 different languages are spoken.  Then there are thousands more in Europe, America and in Asia. 

 

If those people in our text this morning had used the gift of God responsibly, maybe, maybe we would all speak the same language.  But they did not.  And so we have these many, many languages in the world today.

 

But even when God disciplines his people-as he did in our text from Genesis-he never ceases to love his people.  And the greatest gift that God gave us is the gift of Jesus Christ our Lord.

 

Jesus was born into a world where many different languages were spoken.  Jesus himself spoke at least three languages.  Jesus understood that God the Father divided people into many different languages.  But he also knew that God the Father had the ability to put them back together, even when they spoke different languages.

 

When we read the Book of Acts, we read about the church growing in number and in strength, even in places where people speak different languages.

 

We discover that when Christians come together, even if the speak different languages, God provides a way for them to understand each other and to love one another.

 

When we understand that we are all brothers and sisters in Christ-regardless of what language we speak, regardless of the color of our skin, when we come together here in this place today-God will provide us with a way to share his love and his faith, even if we do not speak the same language.

 

I hope and pray that we remember the most important part of this lesson.

 

Language is a great gift from God.  When we love one another and we come together to glorify God, He will give us ways to communicate with each other.  He will help us to become one people, regardless of our language, or the color of our skin.

 

But we also have a responsibility-no matter what language we do speak.  We should use our language to spread God's love.  Whatever we say, no matter what language we speak, it should be said to glorify God and to share his love with all our brothers and sisters in the world.

 

If we use our language to glorify God, to serve Him, to share his love, then we will be blessed greatly.

 

If we use the gift of language to hurt others, or to glorify ourselves, then we will not be blessed.

 

I pray for all of us, that when we open our mouth and speak the words of our language, those words will glorify God, , they share God's love, they will bring hope into lives of everyone we speak to.

 

In the name of Jesus.  Amen.