As the days get shorter, the nights get longer, temperatures begin to drop, and leaves turn and fall, I find myself thinking back to those days of summer. Specifically, I think about the vacation we kind of fell into.
We were looking for a beach vacation, maybe Key West. I had never been, and I wanted an all-inclusive resort just so we wouldn’t have to decide where to eat! Well, long story short, we ended up on a cruise ship headed for Nassau, Bahamas.
It had been a while since our first cruise, but I remembered the wonderful buffets, the island music, and the afternoon ice cream! All-inclusive. What I had forgotten, but really enjoyed, was the incredible diversity of the crew members. They came from all over the world. I especially appreciated that, along with their names, their name tags included the countries they were from: the Philippines, Indonesia, Italy, Canada, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, just to name a few. And then there were the many languages being spoken at the tables around us as we sat down to eat.
Our ship, Freedom of the Seas, had 1,300 crew members from 68 countries. These were men and women who, for the most part, had never known one another before working on the ship. They lived together in tight quarters, ate together behind closed doors, and worked together day and night for weeks at a time. Now, I’m sure life below deck wasn’t always rainbows and butterflies. But on deck, there was smiling, laughing, dancing, and singing. And it got me thinking.
Ever since the Tower of Babel in Genesis 11, the world has been divided by languages, cultures, ideologies, and worldviews. Too often, those differences have led to wars, racism, hatred, and, at the very least, a lack of understanding of people who are different from us.
But that wasn’t God’s original design.
Pride, ego, and sin led people to think too highly of themselves and to desire to be like God. So God confused their language (the name Babel is associated with this confusion) and scattered them across the earth.
But then I’m reminded that we serve a God who redeems, heals, and restores.
In Revelation 7, John writes:
“After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb.”
What a picture! People from every nation, tribe, people, and language—people who have placed their faith in Jesus—gathered before the throne, worshiping the Lamb.
The people scattered in Genesis 11 are represented among the people gathered in Revelation 7. The languages once confused, the nations once scattered, and the divisions that have marked humanity will not have the final word. God’s redemptive plan will.
Revelation 7 gives us a glimpse of where the story is headed. What was scattered will be gathered. What was divided will stand together in worship. And people from every corner of the world will declare the glory of the same Savior.
Sometimes I think my world is too small.
I’m thankful to be part of a church and a denomination that takes seriously our call to carry the gospel to the ends of the earth. Genesis 11 reveals a problem; Revelation 7 gives us a glimpse of God’s ultimate answer. And in between, we find our calling.
We are an Acts 1:8 family of churches that believes in All of Jesus for All the World.
But here’s something else to consider: Did you know that right here in Boone County, Indiana, more than 60 languages are spoken?
God is calling us to reach the nations, and He is bringing the nations to us.
That means our mission isn’t limited to traveling across an ocean or going to a faraway country. Sometimes, it means getting below deck and going where people are. It means stepping outside our comfort zones, crossing the street, introducing ourselves to a neighbor, or starting a conversation with someone whose background, language, or culture is different from our own.
It won’t always be rainbows and butterflies. It will require intentionality, patience, humility, and a willingness to love people who may see the world differently than we do.
My world may be too small, but my God is so big! And His heart is for the whole world.
May we be a people willing to go wherever He sends us, while keeping our eyes open to the people He has already brought to us.
Ted Harris
Associate Pastor