Some years ago, we brought in a consultant who said, “Every church is known for something.” If I might expand his idea, I suppose all of us and each of us are known for something. What are you known for? Where do you find your identity? In your family, what part do you uniquely play? Are you the smart one, the kind one, the sick one, the athletic one, the godly one?
Ham was the black sheep of his family. His one great mistake was recorded for all time in the book of Genesis. Like his brother Japheth, Ham’s descendants also loaned their names to geographic areas. Cush and Egypt are in Africa. Canaan inhabited the land which the Lord would give to Abram and his descendants.
One of his descendants, Nimrod became famous for his hunting ability. He became a mighty warrior on the earth and a mighty hunter before the Lord. Not only was he a hunter, but he was a builder of civilizations. So NImrod established Babylon and Assyria. In the latter, he built Nineveh, the city to which the Lord would one day send Jonah. Nimrod’s descendants destroyed the Northern kingdom of Israel in 722-721 BC. In sum, he possessed the power to destroy and to build.
Whatever we have been known for in our family, each of us possesses the ability to destroy or to build. How will we use our time today? Will we tear down or build up? Choose wisely. In this day of electronics, whatever we do will likely become known by someone. As Jesus said, “By their fruits they will be known.”
