The story of the tower of Babel shows pride in human projects. God had told Noah and his family to multiply and spread across the earth. Instead, people found Babylonia to be to their liking and stayed.
Genesis 11:1At one time all the people of the world spoke the same language and used the same words. 2 As the people migrated to the east, they found a plain in the land of Babylonia and settled there.
3 They began saying to each other, “Let’s make bricks and harden them with fire.” (In this region bricks were used instead of stone, and tar was used for mortar.) 4 Then they said, “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.”[1]
Desire for Reputation
The people building the tower were rebelling against God as they disobeyed His instructions. Finding significance is a natural human instinct. The people of Babylonia were looking for significance apart from God. The area had no natural stone with which to build, but they used what was at hand, which was clay. They were proud to use their technology of fired bricks to build a tall tower. More than likely, this tower was used for false worship.
They desired to be famous and have a positive reputation among other people. The tower showcased their creative abilities and demonstrated that they no longer had to listen to God. They were proud, independent, and built to glorify themselves, and wanted to be known worldwide. They did build a reputation, but it wasn’t the one they wanted. We still know of them today, but for negative reasons.
Self-Effort Versus God Given
We still seek significance today. Some try to be good enough for God through rituals and works. While formal worship and projects to help society are virtuous things, they won’t win our salvation. We must be careful to glorify God and not ourselves in our projects. It is easy to try to build our kingdom so people think well of us. It is more important to build God’s kingdom.
We can’t earn our salvation, but we must humble ourselves to receive it as a gift from Jesus. Ephesians 2: 8 God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. 9 Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. 10 For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.[2]
We don’t want pride in human projects to distract us from our faith journey. God has plans for each of us, but they include His will for us. We will find our significance and reputation in Him as we look to Him for guidance.
To learn more, listen here:
https://podpoint.com/light-of-christ-church-podcast/human-ambition-humbled
[1-2] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation. Tyndale House Publishers.