The Weekly Perspective
by TJ Draper, Deacon
Today we remember, celebrate, and rejoice in Pentecost, on which we wear red to represent the coming of the Holy Spirit.
Acts 2 (one of our Lectionary readings today) tells us that when the Spirit appeared on God’s people as tongues of fire, that they spoke with other tongues in the presence of men from every nation. What should this remind us of ? Babel, of course!
Genesis 11 tells us, “But Yahweh came down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men had built. And Yahweh said, ‘Indeed the people are one and they all have one language, and this is what they begin to do; now nothing that they propose to do will be withheld from them. Come, let Us go down and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech.’” The people were of “one lip,” one confession. And that confession was not honoring to Yahweh, but was wicked and perverse. God confounded their evil intent by inhibiting their ability to have “one lip.”
And then in Acts 2, by the working of the Spirit, every man present hears the proclamation of the gospel in his own language. And so it is once again possible for everyone have “one lip,” one confession, despite the judgement of Babel. And this confession is of Christ and His work.
This is Jesus’ great commission in action, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations.” The Holy Spirit is what makes this commission possible by the reversal of the judgement at Babel.
As you look around you at the fiery red today, remember the reversal of Babel. Remember that our confession is possible because of the work of the Holy Spirit giving us “one lip” to confess the risen and reigning Christ!