The Power of Unity

Spirit Powered – The Power of Unity

The Bible begins with God creating all things climaxing with the creation of humans who are given the image of God. In some way they were like God. We are told that this gave them the power and responsibility to oversee the care of all that God had made.

In Chapter 2 and 3 we have a different framing of the story. In this story “God likeness” is not something they are given, but something they are tempted with. The serpent says that if they eat the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil they will not die but become like Gods. So they grasp for the fruit and grasp for God likeness. Thus begins the story of human kind seeking to take over God’s place in creation. Their rebellion leads to shame for Adam and Eve, death for Abel, weeds for the garden, flood for the earth and destruction for everyone except Noah and his family. Finally in Chapter 11 we are told the story of the tower of Babel.

The power of humanity is in their unity of language and purpose. The treat against this power is that they might be scattered, destroying their unity and their power. So they wanted to build a tower which would unify heaven and earth under their control. They wanted to establish their “name” on earth and in the heavens. They are grasping to be like God. God comes down, sees the threat, agrees that such unity is capable of great power, confuses their languages and scatters them. Thus their unity is destroyed and their challenge to God is neutralised.

The disciples experience at Pentecost is something of a reversal of Babel. While God dispersed them by destroying their ability to communicate, at Pentecost, in the power of the Holy Spirit, (God likeness), the apostles were enabled to communicate with every nationality, and were given the great power that unity represents.

The great gift of Pentecost is God’s presence with us and the power to bring people into unity under God’s will and thus have the power to change the world. Now the followers of Jesus are offered what humans were given in the beginning; God likeness in the power of the Holy Spirit.

BABEL AND PENTECOST

Before Babel we see people in unified self-interest
Wanting to be great in the heavens,
Wanting to make a name for themselves,
Wanting to compete with God himself.

Before Pentecost we see a man in unified selflessness
Revealing unity with God his father,
Revealing God’s greatness in love,
Revealing human potential in unity with God.

At Babel we see people in unified self-interest
Building their own empire of power,
Building a road to the heavens,
Building a throne in God’s heaven.

At Pentecost we see people in unified selflessness
Waiting for their Lord to build his empire,
Waiting for God to build his Kingdom,
Waiting for Jesus to build his community.

At Babel the Sovereign God came down
Saw unified strength and gave weakness,
Saw unified purpose and gave dispersion,
Saw unified messages and gave confusion.

At Pentecost God the Father came down
Saw weakness and gave unified strength,
Saw divisions and gave unified purpose,
Saw confusion and gave a unified message.

Today, Lord God come down and break our self-interest
Heal our weakness by renewing our strength,
Heal our divisions in unified purpose,
Heal our confusion with your unifying love.