Genesis 11 offers us an intriguing look at human nature after God spared it from total destruction. With new opportunities to turn to God and serve Him, instead we decided to “make a name for ourselves.” The amazing thing is God acknowledged our capacity was unlimited. He said whatever we set our minds to do, we would accomplish–and that was without the power of the Holy Spirit. In God’s mercy, He confused the languages of the people, which caused them to abandon the building project and scatter over the earth. How ironic, God’s original intention was for us to be fruitful and multiply and rule over the whole earth with Him. That would have included covering the earth, but the difference would have been our travels would have fulfilled God’s purpose. Now, humanity scattered and divided, becoming distinct peoples who would ultimately war and strive against God and one another rather than working in unity.
Thankfully, that was not the end of the story. As we see in Genesis 12-13, God called Abram, and started establishing the fulfillment of His plan for humanity through him. Notice Abram was far from perfect. He told Sarai to lie about their relationship as husband and wife, when they went to Egypt to protect himself from harm, and at the potential cost of having her become someone else’s wife. God didn’t call Abram, because Abram was perfect. That’s good news for us: God calls us despite our sin and shortcomings, not because of how good we are! He starts with where we are and through the blood of Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit, transform us from he inside out.
As we go about the day, remember God’s purpose is to draw us together, not scatter us, and to redeem us from the sins and shortcomings of our lives, to be His sons and daughters. No wonder Jeremiah would one day proclaim God has plans for our good and to provide us a future and a hope! We see that future and hope embodied in the life of Jesus. In our reading from Mark 3, Jesus healed the sick and cast out demons to demonstrate the power of God’s future for us. Notice, though, the religious leaders and even Jesus’ own family members didn’t see what He was doing as from God. God’s ways are often misunderstood by those who haven’t yet experienced His saving touch. Take that to heart the next time you offer someone the truth and love of Jesus and they reject it, make fun of it, or ignore it.