Whose Job is It?

How many of you have ever had your DNA done? You know, you see those advertisements, especially at Christmas time where you can give the gift of having your DNA analyzed and you send a little suave.

Anybody had that done? I see a few people around the congregation. Mine, mine should come up on the screen behind me and I want you to see where I am from. You know, we, Anna and I have a dog and somebody will say, what kind of dog do you have? And I say a Heinz 57 because it's made up of 57 different ingredients, you know.

And if you look at my DNA, you'll see that I'm a Heinz 57, all right. I've got 45 percent from Scotland, England and northwest Europe, 24 percent. Sweden and Denmark is 9 percent.

So maybe that means I'm a Viking somewhere along the way, I don't know. Norway, 6 percent. Wales, 4.

Dramatic, Europe, 2. And then, then I dropped down into Africa with 1 percent. So Heinz 57, that's what I am. So whenever I got my DNA, it was one evening and I remember I thought, hey, 45 percent Scottish, let me send Dr. Monroe a text, okay. So I sent him a text and said, pastor, I just got my DNA done and I am 45 percent Scottish. I think we're cousins. And I hit the send button and then just a few minutes later, I got a response from him and he said, I'm sure that your people were kicked off the island for kicked off the island for stealing sheep.

Now, I thought that was a little bit harsh coming from our pastor, didn't you? Later he sent me a text back and said, what part of Scotland are you from? And so I was, I was able to go back and tell him the towns and those type things and he said, yeah, I've been to those places in northern Scotland and, but I think he kind of doubts that we could be cousins there. So where did the nations come from? How did we get so many different languages and people groups in the world? Turn, if you would, in your Bibles to Genesis chapter 11 and we're going to spend just a few minutes there, Genesis chapter 11. But before we get to our text for today, let me kind of review what has taken place a little bit in Genesis. First, we've got Genesis one, that's the creation that is for where man is created, Genesis one, Genesis two, and where we are told by God to be fruitful and to multiply and to fill the earth. And then we move to Genesis chapter two and that's where the first marriage takes place and man and woman is to leave their father and mother and they're to hold fast to one another and become one flesh, Genesis two. Then Genesis three comes about and that is the fall, that's where sin first takes place and sin is because of Adam and Eve's pride.

They want to become like God and a righteous God will not allow sinfulness into his presence. So there in Genesis three, we have the righteous God pushing man out of the Garden of Eden, but Genesis three is the first time we read the promise of a Messiah. Genesis three verse 15 says, I will put enmity between you and the woman and between your offspring and her offspring. He shall bruise your head and you shall bruise his heel, referring to the Savior.

The Savior. Genesis four, the story of Cain and Abel, again the sin of pride comes in and we have the first murder. Now we're working our way up to Genesis chapter 11. Genesis six through nine is the story of Noah and the flood. Sin is so great in the world that the righteous God decides to punish the unrighteous, which is everyone except Noah and his family. Judgment takes place, the ark is built, the rains come, the flood takes place and then finally Moses and his family are placed on dry land and they are told, Genesis nine verse one, and God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, and this is again comes back from earlier in Genesis, be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth. You would think that man would have learned his lesson with the flood. His assignment from God was to be fruitful, which our way to fruitfulness as believers, our way to fruitfulness is to love God and to obey God. You think that his assignment from God to be fruitful and to multiply, and we know what that means, to fill the ends of the earth, that we would readily do that since we have seen the flood and judgment come upon humanity.

But that did not take place. You're in Genesis 11 verses one through nine and let's read there. Now the world had one language and the same words, and as people migrated from the east, they found a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there. And they said to one another, come let us make bricks and burn them thoroughly.

And they had brick for stone and bitumen for mortar. And they said to one another, come let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top to the heaven and let us make a name for ourselves lest we be dispersed over the face of the earth. Now what did God want them to do? He wanted them to go forth, right?

But they wanted to stay together. Verse five, and the Lord came down to see the city and the tower which the children of man had built. And the Lord said, behold, they are one people and they have all one language and this is only the beginning of what they will do.

And nothing that they propose to do will be impossible for them. Come let us go down and there confuse their language so that they may not understand one another's speech. So the Lord dispersed them from all over the face of the earth and they left off building the city. Therefore its name is called Babel because there the Lord confused the language of all the earth and from there the Lord dispersed them over the face of all the earth. Now let's go back and look at these verses a little bit verse by verse.

And if you're keeping an outline, outline number one, point number one is the sin of pride. And I know that Dr. Monroe preached on that several weeks ago, but I want to show it to you as it exists in this passage. So verse one, now the whole earth had one language and the same words. God created man to have fellowship with him.

There was one language that all of humanity spoke and it was the language that God gave to man to communicate with him and to one another. Turn back to Genesis 3 verse 8 and through verse 13 and we'll see this unique relationship that God desired to have with us. So Genesis 3 verse 8, and they heard the sound of God walking in the garden in the cool of the day. And the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. But the Lord called out to man and said to him, wouldn't it be great to be able to walk and hear God's voice?

Same language communicating together. God said to him, where are you? And Adam and he said, I heard the sound of you in the garden.

I was afraid because I was naked and I hid myself. And he said, God said, who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree which I commanded that you do not eat? And man said, the woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me the fruit of the tree and I ate. Then the Lord said to the woman, what is this that you have done? And the woman said, the serpent deceived me and I ate it.

Everybody's kind of passing blame. Here's where we see that God gave man and woman one language so that they could communicate with one another and so that they could communicate with him. Now back to chapter 11 verse 2. And as the people migrated from the east, they found a plane in the plane in the land of Shinar and settled there. So here we have all the people, even though God said go forth and multiply for Noah and the ark, we have all the people migrating from the east to the land of Shinar. And this was not God's desire for his people. Genesis 9 one, then God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, be fruitful and increase in number and fill the earth.

It's not a flat earth, okay? Noah and his children were supposed to go around the earth and populate was what God's desire was for him to do. It was God's desire that man move from Mount Ararat where the ark settled and populate the earth. God created the entire earth for man to enjoy. And we were to populate the entire earth but instead we moved from Mount Ararat in northern Turkey and we moved to the land of Shinar which is in present-day Iraq. Man thought he knew better than God.

God said dispersed and man said I don't think so. I know better what's for me. That's pride, isn't it? It's pride whenever we know what God tells us to do when we know the word of God and we say God I don't think so.

I'm going to do what I want to do. The land of Shinar is significant. It's referenced several times in scripture.

It's a biblical place as I mentioned in Iraq and it's a future place where God will gather the remnant of Israel in the end times as referenced in Isaiah chapter 11. In this case as in other cases of scripture the land of Shinar is in the land of Babylon and it means temptation. It means choosing God's the world's way over God's way and it represents man's pride in telling God what to do. So here we have the people going away from God's plan for them and the sin of pride is coming into play. Verse 3, and they said to one another come let us make bricks and burn them thoroughly and they had brick for stone and bitumen for mortar. Verse 4, and they said come let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top to the heavens and let us make a name for ourselves lest we be dispersed over the whole the face of the whole earth. God's plan dispersed.

Man's plan stay together. Isn't it amazing how many times let us and ourselves is used in this section of scripture again showing the pride that pride is the source of sin. Dr. Monroe has preached on the pride of sin just recently but let me read you a couple of passages or one passage here. Proverbs 16 18 said pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall.

And we're about to see this in Babylon. Pride is a sin and as blind as we are to it that pride of sin comes because we make a religion ourselves. A self-made religion when man came together and made bricks and made mortar that was symbolic of him making his own religion and that's what we do.

Pride causes us to do that. Man had built a ziggurat which is kind of like a pyramid in in the the Shinar and it was built to built to man's glory not to God's glory and throughout history we have people building monuments to themselves whether it is in Shinar whether it is the Babylonians or the Chinese or whether it is the Aztecs they've always built these ziggurats up and that was their places of worship a man-made worship. What about you? Have you built towers in your life? Do you have man-made buildings that have taken the place of your worship of God? Are there things in your life that are more important than what God's word tells you to do? If so you and I just like the people here in Shinar have built a tower of babel. Jesus said I am the way the truth and the life no one comes to the father except through me.

It doesn't come through anything that is man-made. So we see the pride of man and the second point in our outline is God's response as we look here in Genesis 11. Verse 5 and the Lord came down. Now usually when I think about the Lord coming down I think of God coming down and the incarnation in Jesus and that's a good thing but this God coming down the Lord coming down it's not a good sign for the people of Babylon. The Lord came down to see the city and the tower which the children of man had built. Why did God come down? God is all-present and all-knowing.

He knew exactly what was taking place. Why did he come down? He could have passed his judgment from heaven but God came down to remind his people who he is. He is the almighty God who in a word created the heavens and the earth.

He could have stopped man but he had a lesson that he wanted us to learn. I love Isaiah 40 verse 21 through 23 that tells us about the greatness of God. Verse 21 says, do you not know?

Do you not hear? Has it not been told to you from the beginning? Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth? It is he who sits above the circle of the earth and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers. Who stretches out the heavens like a curtain and spreads them like a a tent to dwell in.

Who brings princes to nothing and makes rulers of the earth as emptiness. God came down to remind man that we are to be obedient to him. That he is the almighty God and the creator of all things. What did God call man to do?

He said fill the earth that was his command. Verse 6 and the Lord said behold they are one people and they all have one language and this is only the beginning of what they will do and nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them. Now in this verse there is an affirmation. God has created us in his image and he says that we have great potential. There's nothing that we can't put can't do that we we put our minds to do. Follow God and he will empower us to be more than conquerors.

We have great potential when we do what God commands us to do and there's nothing that can stop us. But to teach a lesson God came down in judgment. Verse 7, come let us go down and there confuse their language so that they may not understand one another's speech. The word babel means confusion and isn't it just like God to come down and to save the people from their sins. You know that's what judgment is that's kind of what God's punishment is. God comes and he punishes us for our sin the consequences of our sins to correct us and redirect us in the path that we should go. Here God corrected them to remind them that he is the one to be honored not a tower that he is the one to be glorified not man.

So here where we had one language we now have many languages. Verse 8, so God dispersed them from all over the face of the earth and they left off building the city. I love this passage God dispersed them. How in the world did God disperse them all over the face of the earth? I'm not sure you know I kind of when I first read this I remember long ago I had visions of like Star Trek where they you know they beamed you from one place to another. I'm not sure how God did this but we know that we have the almighty God who created the heavens and the earth and he and the earth and he moved people from the hills of of Iraq to North America to South America to Central America to all over the face of the earth and they all spoke different languages.

Isn't that amazing? The hand of God did this. Verse 9 is a summary. Therefore its name was called babel or confusion because there the Lord confused the language of all the earth and there the Lord dispersed them over the face of the earth.

Now I want to transition to point three in today's message and point three is the need and John 14 6 is a reference that we'll refer to in just a few minutes. There are over 7,400 different language groups in the world today. Over 7,400 different language groups today. Of those 7,400 language groups 3,900 do not have the entire scriptures in their language to read. Some have portions but 3,900 do not have the scriptures to read.

Let me share some additional Let me share some additional information to kind of point out the great need here. If you divide the world into thirds, one third of the world has the scripture in their language and they have stated that they have accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior of their lives. One third of the world. They make this profession of faith in Christ and have the scripture. There's one third of the world who has the scripture. They have access to the Bible and they choose not to believe. They read, they hear the good news and they do not believe. Some believe in other religions like Islam that we ran into in Central Asia.

Like Buddhism again, another religion that we ran into in Central Asia. They reject the gospel and those people have chosen for themselves a different path than the gospel. Their eternity is going to be cast into the great lake of fire.

Great lake of fire. That's what scripture tells us. One third of the world's population has already made that decision. We kind of like to ignore that sometimes, don't we? We ignore that there are people who do not choose to follow Christ. John 14 6, I am the way, Jesus said, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

Then there's the final third of the world's population. They do not have the scriptures in their language. They have not read, they have not heard that Jesus came to save them from their unrighteousness. They realize there's a God. I mean Romans 1 verses 18 through 23 tells us that they know that there's a God. You can look at the heavens, you can tell that there's a God, but the revelation of God that they see, they reject. They know that there's a God as the scripture states, but they reject his revelation that he has provided for them and they reject God. And like those one third that have the scripture in their language and reject Christ, those who have never heard are cast into the great lake of fire. I know there's some of you that are saying, wait a minute.

Wait just a minute. How can a loving God do that? How can a loving God take those that have never heard and cast them away for eternity? Does it trouble you that two thirds of the world's population, if they were to pass into eternity today or if Jesus were to come back, they would enter into eternity and go to hell?

One third of those because they've never heard. I know that some of you are asking, how could God allow this to happen? And he doesn't. He's got a plan. And step four in this outline is our call and it's found in Matthew 28 verses 19 through 20.

Excuse me. God's plan. Christ says this not just to the disciples but to each and every one of us is found in Matthew 28 verses 19 and 20. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you and behold, I am with you always until the ends of the earth. God has provided a way for the nations, for this two thirds of the world to know Christ as their Savior.

He sends me and He sends you. His call is for each of us to be engaged in sharing the Word of God and the wonderful message that Jesus saves. So what will it take? What will it take to complete translating the Bible into all the languages of the world? It will take each and every one of us realizing that we are called to be missionaries. Some in this room today are called to be career missionaries. Some are called to be short-term missionaries. Some are called to use the skills that God has presented them even in this place to serve as missionaries and help with Bible translation so that all the world can know Christ as their Savior.

Let me share with you some ways that you can be involved. Where's Bo Abbott? Bo, come on up. Bo serves in our student ministry and Bo is going to help me with an illustration. Bo looks like he'd be a capable missionary, doesn't he? Right?

He's doing a great job. You shouldn't shake my hand, I'm sick. But back up just a little bit, okay?

I'd sanitize that when you finish that hand, okay? But let's suppose that Bo responds to the call of mission service, all right? And Bo has decided that he's going to help with the translation work of the Scripture. So Bo is going to live with a tribe and he begins to do the work of Bible translation. Now the first step in Bible translation for Bo is to learn the culture, hold that so everybody can see it, of the tribe.

Because in order to make a clear translation of the Scripture, you've got to be able to apply it to their culture. Now Bo is living with a people group where they have a tribal language that is one of those that has not gotten the Bible translated yet. So Bo?

Okay, you're doing pretty good so far balancing all those things. Now not only does Bo need to know the tribal language, know the culture, but he also needs to know linguistics. How in the world do you have the right words that communicate the right truth from Hebrew, Greek, into the language of the tribe? Well that's where linguistics come in and as a good missionary, Bo needs to be able to do that work too. Bo, you're starting to fall short a little bit. Now this illustration is to show you that if a missionary has too many tasks, it slows down the work of Bible translation.

It takes each and every one of us to be engaged in Bible translation so that we can begin to accelerate, accelerate Bible translation so that all the world knows. Now Bo lives with a tribe that they don't have any written language. The one thing that Bo is having to do as a tribal to develop the tribal language and linguistics is he's having to write an alphabet for them and write vocabulary for them and then he's got to teach them the language. Okay, Bo, we can't see the others.

Okay, let me, let me ask. Okay, Bo has helped recruit some people to help him with this Bible translation work. There should be about 20 people that are coming up now. If y'all will come to help Bo, uh-uh, you still got to show those. Okay.

They're slow to come. Step right up. Okay, here comes one. This young lady is going to help Bo because she's going to teach the people their own language so that they can, can read the Bible. Okay, he's got to teach them their language.

This person in, uh, literacy here, not only do you have to teach them their language, but you've got to teach them how to read and how to, how to comprehend their language. Now, Bo is a missionary. Let me give some of these to some other people. You need some help?

Thank you, young man. Oh, you're passing down. Okay, Bo and his family live in, uh, Papua New Guinea, a place where he is dropped off by helicopter to learn the language of the tribe. His family is there with them, but they have medical needs. I mean, who provides medical assistance for them?

This young lady right here is going to provide medical. How do they get into the jungle? How do you get supplies? Who wants to be a pilot? You look like a pilot. Okay, so a pilot is one who carries it in, carries supplies in, and most of the pilots have to know how to maintain their own planes at this time as well.

Okay, although there needs to be a separate mechanic because a lot of times these planes have to be completely overhauled to be able to keep them on the mission field. Where, where does Bo live? He lives in a hut for a little while because he's learning the culture and that's the best way to learn it, but there's got to be other people to come along beside him and help build a house, a place where he and his family can live. Many times there's a school that is built to help teach literacy and to teach tribal languages and those type things. There are people that have to come and maintain the buildings that are built. There's administration. You know, it takes people who are going to be there to help provide assistance for groups like ours to go in and assist with the group, with the work, and just to help communication, newsletters, and etc.

What about accounting? As Calvary Church, you give a lot to missions. Isn't it important that every dollar that is given goes to the Lord's work?

And that's what an accountant does. There are trainers who train other missionaries to come in. Every country has a government that missionaries have to deal with.

There are visas, passports, etc. So a government rep. I'm about to run out of people. There needs to be school teachers.

Here's a big one. Where do missionary kids go to school? Most of them are homeschooled. Do we have any homeschooled families in this group, in this congregation today?

Lots of them. Would you consider helping teach missionary children, maybe about Zoom, bring your kids together and teach? Man, what an opportunity. Guest house. Maybe once a year our missionaries have the opportunity to slip off to a guest house in a country that is more friendly and more non-third world, and there they get a chance to recharge their batteries a little bit. And the scripture is finally written, Rachel, and is ready to be printed. Somebody's got to put it in the form so that it reads as a book. Somebody's got to make sure that it's set up to be printed properly. Missionaries.

Did you know that Bo and his family twice a year get their groceries brought in by plane? And so somebody's got to be a supply buyer for all their needs. The biggest need in missions? IT technology. It's amazing how technology is starting to change Bible translation, because by using all the different tools of the internet, it's shortening the time.

If there were IT professionals who would give themselves to that. Then last, we need a mobilizer. What's a mobilizer? It's someone like me in a church that tries to encourage you to come and get engaged in mission service. Bible translation is something that is all of our responsibility.

Now stay with me guys just for one more minute. I know that there are some of you saying, well that'd be great. I can't give up everything I've got and go into mission service. Well, all of us can pray that maybe one of these young people or others will be called into mission service. But we can participate in missions.

There are some of you that are retired and you have a lot of tread left on the tire, if you know what I mean. You're a professional and can do a number of these different things and you don't have to really go to the other country. Maybe you do. Maybe God calls you for two years to go to another country to serve as an accountant for a missions team. Or maybe God calls you to be a home school teacher for missionary kids. Or maybe God is using you to learn how to be a supply buyer so that Bo doesn't have to do everything. You've got some time left that you can give into mission service.

You can go. There are others of you that can do it right here. Suppose that you've got a job as an IT professional and you've got your 40 hour work week but you can give two hours a day and continue to do IT work for a missions team that's doing Bible translation.

What a great opportunity for you to be engaged. No matter what stage of life you're in, God calls you in the great commission to be engaged in mission service. One third of the world does not know Christ because they do not have the scriptures in their language. And it's important that each and every one of us be engaged, be engaged in Bible translation. Now thank you for your help. Thank you for your help. Take your signs and go off. Okay.

Thank you very much. In closing, I can remember coming back from a mission trip once to Russia right when Russia first opened in the early 90s. And I've told this story before to some groups but I can remember I was tired. And a group of us were on a boat and we were going touring Amsterdam which is a town where everybody goes to find themselves kind of. And I remember a young lady behind us said, what have y'all been doing? And I was tired. I didn't really want to engage anybody anymore.

And I said, we've just been touring, you know, seeing the sights. And that was it. I left it. And I got back to my hotel room that night and it's like the Holy Spirit was just pressing on me. Here's someone that I presented to you to share the Gospel with and you didn't do it. She may not be in heaven because of your negligence.

I mean it was overwhelming. And the next day I'm leaving and as I'm going through the streets and all I'm just praying, God give me the opportunity to see this person again so that I can share Christ with them. Because I — it's my fault that I didn't share Christ with her that evening.

I didn't see her. I wish it was a good ending to this story. And I pray that one day when I get to heaven that she's going to be there, OK? A third of the world doesn't know Christ and it's our responsibility to be engaged.

I hope that the Holy Spirit presses upon you — presses upon you and makes you feel accountable for those people. Let's pray together. Father, we thank you for your presence in this room today. And where many people see a problem, Father, you show us an opportunity. Not only do you show us an opportunity to go and make disciples of the nations, but you promise to be with us, to empower us, to strengthen us, to equip us, Father, and to use us. And to use us. Speak to our hearts today, Father. For it's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen.