We are drawn to settle. From the beginning, God called His people to scatter throughout the earth. In Genesis 9, God reaffirms this call after the flood. He says, “Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth” (Genesis 9:1). The people started out fulfilling this command, but then they got distracted. Genesis 11:1-2 says, “At one time all the people of the world spoke the same language and used the same words. As the people migrated to the east, they found a plain in the land of Babylonia and settled there.”
Instead of filling the earth, they made plans to build a tower to the sky. They wanted to go up rather than out. In order to get His people back to scattering, God came down to earth. “In that way, the Lord scattered them all over the world, and they stopped building the city. That is why the city was called Babel, because that is where the Lord confused the people with different languages. In this way he scattered them all over the world” (Genesis 11:8-9). God’s plans are not thwarted. He told the people to fill the earth and He would do whatever it took to get them to scatter instead of settle.
I see this story repeated in Acts. Jesus tells his disciples, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere- in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). The disciples start off well, but they start to settle in Jerusalem. So in Acts 8:1, “A great wave of persecution began that day, sweeping over the church in Jerusalem; and all the believers except the apostles were scattered through the regions of Judea and Samaria.”
God’s intention is for His people to scatter. We are meant to fill the earth, telling people everywhere about Jesus. However, there is a strong draw to settle. Babylonia is beautiful and comfortable. Jerusalem is familiar. Orange County is where my family lives. As I prepare to depart for Thailand, I feel that draw to settle. I long to be near my family. I cling to what is familiar. However, I know my call is to scatter. I would rather scatter obediently, then be scattered by God’s discipline or persecution.
So I answer the call to fill the earth with God’s redemptive story. I prepare to go to Thailand. I prepare to scatter.
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