June 22, 2026:

GOD’S WORD FOR TODAY:

“The Lord said, ‘If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other.’” (Genesis 11.6-7)

TODAY’S REFLECTION ON GOD’S WORD:

Presenting the “one language” as not simply a same vocabulary but a singular intent, allows us to see the purpose of God, and His council, to intervene in what they were doing. Verse 6 gives us an understanding of the danger of their work: “…then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them.” Notice God does not comment that what they are doing is can’t be done. The voice used here speaks to the purpose and intent of what they are doing which leads to a consequence that is not aligned with a good will. Just because you CAN do a thing doesn’t mean you SHOULD do a thing. Accomplishments serve as springboards to a next step work or at least an attempt. The more that such things are practiced the more valid and acceptable they will seem to be. It is developing the habit in both muscle memory and mental availability. God wasn’t attempting to prevent them from building anything. God was intervening in a practice and a decision for the people to do something that would ultimately prove to be dangerous and harmful to themselves and others.

Of course, many people read these two verses and decide it was a nice story to explain the variety of languages which exist among the people of the earth. The formation of language is an interesting study. There are many aspects and influencers which play a part in how languages develop from simple sounds and symbols to more complex combinations of sounds and messages. The bottom line is clear communication. That is needed to accomplish most everything we say and do. This is why we have the Bible as the recorded Word of God. Yes, we have it in many languages and reflecting many cultures and climates. Yet, it is the same Word. As the Apostle John was putting together his gospel concerning Jesus as the Christ, he made sure that it was clearly understood that Jesus was the perfect Word of God for all people. He was a living translation of the very language of God for all His people. John said, “In the beginning was the Word, the Word was with God and the Word was God.” Regardless of the translation and interpretation of the “words,” what became most important were the actions which those “words” represented. Jesus’ actions were never misinterpreted. Everyone understood what Jesus was doing. Some did not like what He did because it countered the very interpretation and understanding of the same “word” which was written scripture. For this Jesus would offer a re-teach. He was not rewriting or editing the Word of God but returning the people back to the original word. He was bringing it back to the mind, heart and spirit of the people. And why not? Jesus was there when the Word of God was spoken. He was a part of the original source. He heard and saw God’s plan and intention. No one would know better than Jesus what God was saying and doing. Of course, this would be a place in which doubters and naysayers would argue. They would seek to deny the very heritage and genealogy of Jesus. To show that He could not have been of God would thus invalidate His witness, testimony and teaching. It is interesting that John bypasses the birth narrative as found in Matthew and Luke and goes straight to the heart of the matter. In the beginning, Jesus was! It should be no surprise then that John would scribe the Revelation of Jesus for the Church and thus the world. In the end, Jesus still was! He was and is the same yesterday, today and forever. When we seek to validate our own purposes with our own works, it will lead to confusion. Jesus came to validate God’s purposes with works of God. In Christ there is no confusion nor dispersion. In Christ there is unity and harmony. Let’s speak God’s Word with the mind, voice and life of Jesus in doing God’s work as we have been made and called to be and to do.

TODAY’S PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING:

Father, in these days we are finding the need to believe even more than ever before. We all have known trouble, some in greater ways than others, but You are offering us the assurance that we will not be consumed by it forever. Regardless of the “time” we are in and the “time” we have been given, we ask for Your Holy Spirit which Jesus asked You to share with us, to lead and guide and direct us in the paths we should go. Teach us what we still need to learn. Empower us to put that learning into action. Bless our actions not as a works righteousness but as righteous works of faith, hope and love in Jesus’ name. AMEN.