May 27, 2026

Today's Reading: Genesis 11:1-9

Daily Lectionary: Numbers 23:4-28; Luke 22:47-71

“Therefore its name was called Babel, because there the LORD confused the language of all the earth. And from there the LORD dispersed them over the face of all the earth.” (Genesis 11:9)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

When Noah and his family left the ark, God sent them forth with the blessing He had first given to Adam and Eve; “And you, be fruitful and multiply, increase greatly on the earth and multiply in it,” (Genesis 9:7). Maybe it was just sinful pride or perhaps it was out of fear that God would go back on His promise and send another flood upon the earth, Noah’s descendants willfully disobeyed God’s directions. Instead of multiplying on the earth, 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).

In response to this sinfulness, God came down and confused their language, and He dispersed them across the earth. This event not only explains the origins of the different races and languages on the earth, it also teaches us an important lesson about the nature of sin. Sin always causes division. Sin divides us from God, and it divides us from one another.

Whether in sinful pride or because we fail to trust God as we should, every sin we commit is a crime against God or our neighbors, or both. We hurt ourselves and we hurt others. Our relationship with God is strained, and our earthly relationships are also hampered. Many of you have probably seen that sin has the power to destroy even the strongest bonds.

Thankfully, on Pentecost, the Holy Spirit shows us that there is something even stronger than sin, with the power to heal broken relationships and bring us back together. That, of course, is the blood of Jesus, which covers all our sins. When the Holy Spirit descended on the Apostles that day, He gave them the ability to preach the Gospel in different languages, so that each person might hear “in our own tongues the mighty works of God” (Acts 2:11). With that, the curse of Babel began to unravel.

Today, as the Holy Spirit comes to us through God’s Means Of Grace, He cleanses us in the blood of Jesus and reconciles us to God. That means that our relationship with God has been restored. God no longer regards us as enemies, but as His own beloved children (Romans 5:10, Ephesians 2:12-13).

And with that, God also begins to reconcile us to each other. In forgiving our sins, the Holy Spirit is both teaching and empowering us to forgive others as we have been forgiven by God (Matthew 6:12, Colossians 3:13), so that we might live as God’s children, united and at peace with those around us.

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

O God, through Your Son, Jesus Christ, You reconciled the world to Yourself and have given to Your Church the ministry of reconciliation. Strengthened by Your forgiveness, grant that Your whole Church may live in the unity of the Spirit and the bond of peace; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord. Amen.

Rev. Aric Fenske, Executive Director of Lutherans for Life.