Comments on: Day 2: Genesis 11 http://rtbt.bostonvineyard.org/2009/03/03/day-2-genesis-11/ A Community of People Discussing the Bible Sat, 11 Feb 2012 11:02:07 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.7 hourly 1 By: kim http://rtbt.bostonvineyard.org/2009/03/03/day-2-genesis-11/comment-page-1/#comment-217 kim Tue, 10 Mar 2009 19:39:56 +0000 http://rtbt.bostonvineyard.org/?p=1515#comment-217 Great question, Brian! My first thought is because God is REAL! He is intimate, meaty, juicy and alive! He is so strong that He can love us deeply, even at the risk of being hurt when we wander away from Him. He is invested! I love that we have a jealous God! It makes me feel he isn't some distant God; rather, he is deeply engaged and invested in our relationship. If I don't turn to Him, He is upset. I'm so relieved and encouraged by this. I love that His heart is so deeply affected by how present and obedient I am. I love how emotional He is. I remember one morning I woke up after my sister and I had an argument. Upon waking, God let me feel how His heart aches when His children don't get along. This is a gift I'll never forget. I got why He is so into reconciliation. I love how he aches for us and wants to be involved in every part of our life. I love how God shows us how to be authentic by revealing His heart to us. I love that God takes the risk to love us so deeply, especially when He seems to feel so much. I think this is what makes Him so awesome. I love that our God is courageous, bold, loving, tender, alive and complex. It's so comforting knowing He is big enough to handle anything...particularly, deep love, and everything that goes along with that. Great question, Brian!

My first thought is because God is REAL! He is intimate, meaty, juicy and alive! He is so strong that He can love us deeply, even at the risk of being hurt when we wander away from Him. He is invested!

I love that we have a jealous God! It makes me feel he isn’t some distant God; rather, he is deeply engaged and invested in our relationship. If I don’t turn to Him, He is upset. I’m so relieved and encouraged by this. I love that His heart is so deeply affected by how present and obedient I am. I love how emotional He is.

I remember one morning I woke up after my sister and I had an argument. Upon waking, God let me feel how His heart aches when His children don’t get along. This is a gift I’ll never forget. I got why He is so into reconciliation. I love how he aches for us and wants to be involved in every part of our life. I love how God shows us how to be authentic by revealing His heart to us. I love that God takes the risk to love us so deeply, especially when He seems to feel so much. I think this is what makes Him so awesome. I love that our God is courageous, bold, loving, tender, alive and complex. It’s so comforting knowing He is big enough to handle anything…particularly, deep love, and everything that goes along with that.

]]> By: brian http://rtbt.bostonvineyard.org/2009/03/03/day-2-genesis-11/comment-page-1/#comment-208 brian Sat, 07 Mar 2009 14:06:45 +0000 http://rtbt.bostonvineyard.org/?p=1515#comment-208 I think we're talking about two different kinds of jealousy here. I was referring to God being jealous of their achievements--maybe envy would have been a better word. Even in the very human-like portrayal of God here, it doesn't seem in the end like he is afraid that the Babylonians will out-do him. He's impressed, but obviously still secure and in control. I believe the jealousy you're referring to, Ryan, is jealousy for their worship. That's something he explicitly says in other places, and it does seem to be going on here too. Any thoughts, even from what we've read thus far, about why such a powerful and in control God would display that jealousy? I think we’re talking about two different kinds of jealousy here. I was referring to God being jealous of their achievements–maybe envy would have been a better word. Even in the very human-like portrayal of God here, it doesn’t seem in the end like he is afraid that the Babylonians will out-do him. He’s impressed, but obviously still secure and in control. I believe the jealousy you’re referring to, Ryan, is jealousy for their worship. That’s something he explicitly says in other places, and it does seem to be going on here too.
Any thoughts, even from what we’ve read thus far, about why such a powerful and in control God would display that jealousy?

]]> By: Ryan.Leach http://rtbt.bostonvineyard.org/2009/03/03/day-2-genesis-11/comment-page-1/#comment-205 Ryan.Leach Fri, 06 Mar 2009 12:47:00 +0000 http://rtbt.bostonvineyard.org/?p=1515#comment-205 God, IS a jealous God. Said so himself, right? If the Babylonians are essentially trying to snub God and set themselves and their achievements in God's place, then God is having none of the idolatry. I agree that the nature of their creative drive, their motivation to separate themselves from God and essentially the rest of creation, is maybe what's really at issue here? I also wonder at God's willingness to be portrayed that way. What is it God is trying to show us through displaying his "jealousy"? I would call it anthropomorphizing God, but since we are created in God's image? God, IS a jealous God. Said so himself, right? If the Babylonians are essentially trying to snub God and set themselves and their achievements in God’s place, then God is having none of the idolatry. I agree that the nature of their creative drive, their motivation to separate themselves from God and essentially the rest of creation, is maybe what’s really at issue here? I also wonder at God’s willingness to be portrayed that way. What is it God is trying to show us through displaying his “jealousy”? I would call it anthropomorphizing God, but since we are created in God’s image?

]]> By: brian http://rtbt.bostonvineyard.org/2009/03/03/day-2-genesis-11/comment-page-1/#comment-198 brian Wed, 04 Mar 2009 13:50:00 +0000 http://rtbt.bostonvineyard.org/?p=1515#comment-198 I was also a bit surprised by God's apparent fear or jealousy. Then I noticed that God had to come DOWN to get a closer look at this allegedly heaven-high tower. I think God's not afraid of them, but afraid for them. I was also a bit surprised by God’s apparent fear or jealousy. Then I noticed that God had to come DOWN to get a closer look at this allegedly heaven-high tower. I think God’s not afraid of them, but afraid for them.

]]> By: Jeff http://rtbt.bostonvineyard.org/2009/03/03/day-2-genesis-11/comment-page-1/#comment-194 Jeff Tue, 03 Mar 2009 22:02:03 +0000 http://rtbt.bostonvineyard.org/?p=1515#comment-194 There seemed to a humanist ideal placed in building a tower to reach the heavens. When God deliberately stops their progress, at first it seems to me that God is jealous, but, on further inspection, it seems that God has the people's best interest at heart. Could it be that the way to live a great life is to not follow my own pursuits but to align my path to a greater purpose by following Jesus? I think motivation matters a great deal. There seemed to a humanist ideal placed in building a tower to reach the heavens. When God deliberately stops their progress, at first it seems to me that God is jealous, but, on further inspection, it seems that God has the people’s best interest at heart. Could it be that the way to live a great life is to not follow my own pursuits but to align my path to a greater purpose by following Jesus? I think motivation matters a great deal.

]]> By: brian http://rtbt.bostonvineyard.org/2009/03/03/day-2-genesis-11/comment-page-1/#comment-192 brian Tue, 03 Mar 2009 18:21:10 +0000 http://rtbt.bostonvineyard.org/?p=1515#comment-192 I don't believe God's original intention for humanity was confusion and conflict, of course. I do think that God's original intention was that humanity spread as a variety of cultures all over the earth. The Babylonians' particular expression of unity seems to have been particularly designed to resist that call to spread out and fill the earth. There's certainly a great power to unity, a power that God wants us to experience--as long as we're unified around the right things. And, apparently, at least so far, staying in one place and doing exactly the same thing isn't an expression of unity God can endorse. I'd argue that, instead, he wants human beings to be united around the mission of spreading out and filling the earth with his image. I think we'll probably get a more nuanced version of that as we go, but we're only in Genesis so far. I don’t believe God’s original intention for humanity was confusion and conflict, of course. I do think that God’s original intention was that humanity spread as a variety of cultures all over the earth. The Babylonians’ particular expression of unity seems to have been particularly designed to resist that call to spread out and fill the earth.
There’s certainly a great power to unity, a power that God wants us to experience–as long as we’re unified around the right things. And, apparently, at least so far, staying in one place and doing exactly the same thing isn’t an expression of unity God can endorse. I’d argue that, instead, he wants human beings to be united around the mission of spreading out and filling the earth with his image.
I think we’ll probably get a more nuanced version of that as we go, but we’re only in Genesis so far.

]]> By: Tim Thomas http://rtbt.bostonvineyard.org/2009/03/03/day-2-genesis-11/comment-page-1/#comment-191 Tim Thomas Tue, 03 Mar 2009 13:00:06 +0000 http://rtbt.bostonvineyard.org/?p=1515#comment-191 Brian, you say: "in a way, God is merely setting things back on course". Do you mean that God originally (even before the fall) intended for there to be lack of unity among men, His prize creation? Of course, the Babylonians were setting themselves up against God, and He had to deal with that... not only but also for their own good. But could it be that God in these days (and actually since Jesus lived on earth) is restoring His original plan, i.e. unity among His chosen? I think of Jesus' prayer in John 17:21 where He prays that His disciples would be one, even as He and the Father are one. Furthermore, there are several times in the NT that Jesus commends agreeing and being one with each other, e.g. Matthew 18:19ff. Wasn"t God"s original plan to have harmony and unity on earth? Brian, you say: “in a way, God is merely setting things back on course”. Do you mean that God originally (even before the fall) intended for there to be lack of unity among men, His prize creation? Of course, the Babylonians were setting themselves up against God, and He had to deal with that… not only but also for their own good. But could it be that God in these days (and actually since Jesus lived on earth) is restoring His original plan, i.e. unity among His chosen? I think of Jesus’ prayer in John 17:21 where He prays that His disciples would be one, even as He and the Father are one. Furthermore, there are several times in the NT that Jesus commends agreeing and being one with each other, e.g. Matthew 18:19ff. Wasn”t God”s original plan to have harmony and unity on earth?

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