Marta Minujin created an 82-foot tall sculpture of the Tower of Babel in the Plaza San Martin in Buenos Aires. The artist made it using over 30,000 donated books written in nearly every world language. Inside the turret, visitors could hear a recording of Minujin’s voice pronouncing the word book in various languages. She said her mission was to “unite all people.”
Different languages emerged as a result of the original Tower of Babel. After the flood, some of Noah’s descendants found a nice, wide-open patch of earth in Babylonia. They settled there and planned to “build a great city . . . with a tower that reach[ed] into the sky” (Genesis 11:4). They hoped this super-structure would make them famous and keep them united. But their ambition for greatness was self-centered, prideful, and godless.
God came down, inspected their building site (Genesis 11:5), and decided to put the kibosh on the construction. He did this by creating multiple languages among them. Communication that had been effortless became impossible. The gobbledygook they heard from each other sent them running—they scattered throughout the world (Genesis 11:8).
The issue of ambition can be tricky. Although it isn’t wrong to want success, we’ve got to remember that God enables every achievement to take place (Deuteronomy 8:18). Also, our efforts to succeed should reflect godly virtues such as humility, honesty, and hard work. These qualities can point others to Jesus regardless of the outcome of our endeavors.
Christian researcher and writer David Kinnaman put it this way: “Gaining credibility for its own sake is vanity; gaining credibility to participate in God’s work to redeem the world is a mission.”
NLT 365-day reading plan passage for today: 1 Samuel 8:1-5
More:
Read Isaiah 14:12-15 to see the danger of godless ambition. Read Romans 15:20-22 for a peek at Paul’s ambition.
Next:
Why are you at risk of forgetting about God when you experience success? What might indicate that success has become an idol in your life?
Gary Shultz on March 21, 2014 at 6:34 am
A twentieth century philosopher and scientist said something I like….”Try not to become a man of success, but rather become a man of value.”
Gene on March 21, 2014 at 7:31 am
Think of success as a way of reaching the world for Christ, pointing to the sky and giving God the glory. Romans 12:3 also comes to mind: “think of yourself with sober judgment.”
Tom Felten on March 21, 2014 at 8:28 am
Jen, I so appreciate the contrasting words you use in this article: “self-centered, prideful, and godless” versus “humility, honesty, and hard work.” When I choose the first set I stray from the heart of Jesus and His example of being a servant leader. But when I live out the second set I’m truly following His example (Philippians 2:3-5).
lyndygayle on March 21, 2014 at 11:24 am
Everything Good comes from God! That includes success. How can we become puffed up when we know we are only successful as God grants? It’s not our ability but the ability given to us by God. When I keep this in mind, I am always humbled by God’s blessing in enabling me to have success. I know where the true glory belongs.
Mike Wittmer on March 22, 2014 at 9:04 pm
The tower of Babel reminds me that unity for its own sake isn’t necessarily a good thing. It depends what we are united for. Romans 15:6 says we should be united so that with one heart we “may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Winn Collier on March 30, 2014 at 8:15 pm
I think ambition is one of the most dangerous temptations we humans face.