M2SEA

Seeing the correlation between the Tower of Babble and what occurred at Pentecost.

Genesis 11:1-9 NKJV 11 “Now the whole earth had one language and one speech.

2 And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar, and they dwelt there.

3 Then they said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” They had brick for stone, and they had asphalt for mortar.

4 And they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top is in the heavens; let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth.”

5 But the LORD came down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men had built.

6 And the LORD 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.

7 Come, let Us go down and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech.”

8 So the LORD scattered them abroad from there over the face of all the earth, and they ceased building the city.

9 Therefore its name is called Babel, because there the LORD confused the language of all the earth; and from there the LORD scattered them abroad over the face of all the earth.”

In Genesis, we see the people were of one accord. It was one accord to make a name for themselves, not for God. Proverbs 16: 8 NKJV says “Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before a fall.”

We know that God wants us to be in unity or one accord. Ephesians 4:5-6 NKJV says “one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6 one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.” This shows us God’s desire to be one with him, even as Jesus also said in John 17:21 “that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.” There is a great chasm in the church today, but we will discuss that later.

It was at the Tower of Babble that God confused their language because of their pride and deliberate separation from God. We now fast-forward to the day of Pentecost. We see prophesy being fulfilled from Joel 2:28-30: 28 “And it shall come to pass afterward That I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, Your old men shall dream dreams, Your young men shall see visions. 29 And also on My menservants and on My maidservants. I will pour out My Spirit in those days. 30 “And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth: Blood and fire and pillars of smoke.”

And for the first time since the Tower of Babble, men from all nations speaking different languages, would hear one another speaking in their own language. We see this in Acts 2:1-6 NKJV “When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.

2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.

3 Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them.

4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

5 And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven.

6 And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together, and were confused, because everyone heard them speak in his own language.”

Once again, the people were all together and they were all in one accord.

Yet, this time, they were not there to make a name for themselves, but to proclaim the name of Jesus; King of Kings; Lord of Lords.

This is the foundation for the church then; we will delve much deeper into the church now and more about the church then in the next part of the series.

Until next time,

Mountains to the Sea Ministries Inc.

The Church Then and Now 

Part 2 

Then and Now 

We stated in part one that there is a great chasm in the “church” today. First let’s look at Acts 2:38 NKJV: Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” 

The ideal of Repent or Repentance is mentioned over 70 times in the New Testament. But the concept, however, is taught throughout the scriptures (Old & New Testaments). To repent is a verb. A verb is an action. It means to turn from and change one’s mind or behavior. When we “turn from” a thought process or behavior, we leave it forever and do not return to it. 

As a Christian, we are called to be Holy or set-aside. 2 Cor 7:10 NKJV tells us “For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death.” Godly sorrow is a deep heart-felt regret for our sinful nature. It motivates a person to turn away from their sinful nature and to turn to God. There can be an earthly sorrow for the consequences of our actions. Earthly sorrow lacks the conviction to turn to God which can lead to anger, bitterness, and sin leading us even further away from God. 

The great chasm appears in the church through extremism. We find legalism on one side where we are no longer serving out of love, but rather legalistic demands and laws. On the other end of the spectrum we hear “grace, grace, grace” where there is no true expectation of repentance. This side reveals not serving the Lord from love but more of serving our own fleshly desires. 

Most western theology has the hot (spirit) and the cold (earthly desires) creating a lukewarm version of the early church. The then church was becoming part of the family of God. The now church is becoming part of a club or organisation that has an appearance of Godliness but denies the Power thereof. “Church” today, in most cases, has become a place of performers on the stages. The flock is no longer composed of congregants; now they are audiences. Our gatherings have gone from

“church” to entertainment with the best bands, best coffee, best donuts, smoke screens, fancy sound equipment and the softest seats. Do not misunderstand, there is a group of believers still out there - the “Remnant”. Those who not only love the Lord Jesus Christ, but are willing to offer their lives up for His namesake. Many have been caught up in these false teachings, practices, and religiosity. 

This is not a hypothesis, this is a literal prophetic word spoken of in the book of Revelations. We can learn from the seven churches. Starting in chapter 2 of Revelation. Rev 2:4-5 paraphrased: To the church in Ephesus (the loveless church) - you have left your first love. Remember where you have fallen. Repent and do the first works. 

To the church in Smyrna (the persecuted church) - He has nothing against this remnant, but does tell them they will be tested; they will have tribulation, but to be faithful. 

To the church at Pergamos (the compromising church) - He speaks of them holding to false doctrines; He discusses idols; sexual immorality; and He says again in verse 10 repent. 

To the church at Thyatira (The corrupt church) - He sees their love, service, faith , and patience; He calls out sexual immorality; idol sacrifice; but in 2:24-25 He says there are those who are not following that doctrine and to hold fast until he comes. 

This shows us there are some in the churches - the “Remnant”. Revelation chapter 3 takes us to the church at Sardis (the dead church) - He says in verse 3, you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead. He tells them to hold fast and repent. In verse 4: “You have a few names, even in Sardis who have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white for they are worthy.” 

Again - the "Remnant". 

The church in Philadelphia (The faithful church) - in verse 10 says they have kept My commands to persevere. In verse 11, He says to hold fast to what you have that no one should take your crown. 

“Remnant”. 

To the church of Laodiceans (the lukewarm church) - He says that he knows that they are neither hot nor cold. They say they are rich and need nothing and don’t even realize that they are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked. He says “as many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent.” 

We see that He is talking to the Church, not to the world. That we know that there is a remnant in the church who loves him and is serving Him. He is calling the “church” to repent. The time is getting short. With the internet, television, and radio, the enemy is sending out propaganda throughout the airwaves. Those who say they are in unity or “in one accord” are being led by a false doctrine that is lukewarm in most cases. 2 Timothy 4:3-4 NKJV “3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; 4 and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.“ 

We have done a brief overview of the church then and now. We see that there is a remnant and that God is calling for the church to repent. We will discuss more later about the future, the end days, and the Remnant. 

Revelation 3:22 NKJV, “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” 

Until next time, 

Mountains to the Sea Ministries Inc.