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Then they said, “Come let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be dispersed over the face of the whole earth.” (Genesis 11:4)
We hear strange things from America. Our eastern neighbour is seeking to expand by force. The new Silk Road will soon extend its tentacles to every corner of the world. This is a worldly quest for greatness by individuals and nations alike. What is the source of this desire for power and admiration? Is there a true and real greatness, a name?
It is human nature to want to be noticed and appreciated. We want to be people who are respected and whose achievements are praised. We may deny this inner desire, but the reality is that we all have this desire inside of us. There is nothing wrong with this in itself, but our fallen nature makes this originally genuine and good thing a harmful and increasingly corrupting negative force. On top of that, if this same mentality becomes the goal of a larger group, then the fallen man and even an entire group of people are elevated to their very own harmful spheres. This is nothing new, it has happened repeatedly throughout history, from the building of the Tower of Babel to our own day, and nothing good has come of it.
The phrase “let us make a name for ourselves” emphasises the self-centred ambitions of fallen man and his depraved nature. When such ambition and action rears its head, there are serious consequences, and everyone suffers. It is a ‘deficiency disease’ of fallen man’s status and identity, which he seeks to fill through his own actions and achievements. This is an attempt at self-redemption that is doomed to fail. Self-exaltation is idolatry in its most unpleasant form. Such perverted self-love aggravates man and makes him even more terrible, emphasizing and exalting his fallen nature.
Dictators and power-hungry individuals arise from this same root of self-aggrandisement. The spirit of rebellion has been with us since the Garden of Eden and will remain with us until the end of the world. Paul mentions how in the last days there will arise a very special man of the fall, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God (2 Thessalonians 2:4).
This last dictator is therefore the Antichrist himself, the culmination of the chaos and rebellion of Babel, who wants to be worshipped and adored by all.
All this effort to elevate the human self is an effort to fill the gap of the Fall—the great deficit within us. But it is not filled by man’s own efforts or endeavours. God has provided a better way, which takes us in a completely different direction.
The way up is down
God does want to make man great, but in a completely different way than we think. Man was created in the image of God, and that purpose is still valid. However, the image of God was broken as a result of the Fall. Therefore, we are not in the state of humanity for which we were originally intended. Our inner selves are in need of a major overhaul. It is not our do-it-yourself programmes (attempts like Babel) that will help with this renovation, but an external, perfect person who is able to restore man to his original state.
God’s appointed way up is first down (Philippians 2:3–11). For this to happen, the Son of God humbled himself for our sake, becoming human and enabling our human nature to be corrected and raised to its proper status and state of mind. No human being can make this correction on his or her own, but it is made possible through the humiliation, redemptive work, and exaltation of the Son of God as we receive the regenerating power of this gospel into our own lives. Only Jesus can fill the inner vacuum of fallen man. He came down that he might lift you up!
What makes me great?
You have given me the shield of your salvation, and your right hand supported me, and your gentleness made me great. (Psalm 18:35).
Whose humiliation makes us great? God himself! But how can the humility of anyone outside make us great? We do need to change, to get rid of our sinful nature that opposes God’s will and the change he intends for our lives. However, the true and genuine lifting up of one’s name and becoming great—spiritual growth—does not happen by man’s own efforts or strength (the Hebrew word רָבָה not only means great but also growth, increase). We can try to change our external behaviour by our own willpower, but for change to occur according to God’s will, much greater resources are needed. This problem of the Fall, the need for change, may be sought in many different places. But while they may bring temporary relief, they do not solve the root problem of man, which is our sinful nature corrupted by the Fall.
Only God himself can fix us, to make us great in the right way. He is the Outsider who, for our sake, humbled himself, became human, and experienced the sufferings of broken humanity, putting death to death by his own substitutionary death, and thus undoing the curse of the Fall. Therefore, only Christ’s humiliation can make man great, restoring him to a right relationship with his Creator, and dealing with his fallen nature by taking it to the Cross.
How, then, is it possible to live this out in everyday life?
Daily experience
“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-30).
One of the greatest secrets of the Christian life is that we become partakers of Christ’s nature, his gentleness (humility) and rest. He is all that is lacking in our inner being and humanity. The invitation has been extended to us, and each of us is responsible to consciously turn to Christ. As we take on his yoke, learning more and more about him and sharing in the transforming work of Christ himself in us, we get a taste of his gentleness. In so doing, we grow in our understanding and experience of the greatness and true authentic humanity that God intends.
So, we are called to become partakers of his character, his meekness, his humility (fruit of the Holy Spirit). Paul also speaks of this problem within us and gives an antidote prepared by God in Galatians:
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against these there is no law. Those who are Christ Jesus’ own have crucified their flesh with its lusts and desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not seek vain glory, irritating and envying one another (5:22–26).
Here too, this desire of our fallen human nature to exalt ourselves in a wrong and harmful way is revealed: seeking glory, the thirst for fame, seeking attention, etc. The only antidote is found and received through knowing Christ! This work of the Holy Spirit in me and you leads us to the daily mortification of our fallen nature on the cross, a conscious turning to Christ’s triumphant victory, and experiencing in practice how he works in us to will and enact the change we need (Phil. 2:13). All this is received by grace as a gift, not by our own merit or religious efforts.
Interestingly, the human exaltation and rebellion of Babel led to the scattering of all humanity, while the redemptive work of Christ enables the restoration of humanity to a unity where all tribes, peoples, and languages are harmoniously united. In this age, this is reflected, albeit imperfectly, through the community that God has created, which is the Church. In this new humanity united by God, only one name is exalted, that of Jesus Christ. He makes man and humanity truly great, as it was meant to be! Only his humility and love will make you truly great.
A sequel (part 2) is coming: Who are you? True fame and a name known even in heaven.
