09/12/2026
Weekly Devotionals - September 14-18 - Weekly Devotionals - September 14-18
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Monday: God Never Takes a Step Backward
Jane Christian smiled as she watched John teach from the pulpit. This had not been the plan for Sunday morning. Their pastor had become sick and, with very little notice, had asked John to fill in for him. As one of the church’s teaching elders, John was accustomed to teaching God’s Word, but Jane knew how nervous he had been about stepping in with so little time to prepare. She could hardly see that nervousness now. As John explained the Scripture, his voice grew stronger and his hands began to move more. Jane knew that look. John had forgotten to be nervous. “God Never Takes a Step Backward!” John said again, and Jane smiled. He was definitely enjoying himself now.
John reminded the church of a familiar saying: “One step forward, two steps backward.” Everyone understood the frustration of working hard at something only to feel further behind than when they started. “But that has never happened to God,” John explained. Nothing has ever set God or His plans back. John reminded them of the Bible Storyline they had been learning together. The Bible’s Storyline is God’s Unstoppable Plan to overcome evil, restore creation, and establish His Kingdom on earth. Unstoppable means more than God will eventually win after suffering setbacks along the way. God has never suffered a setback. Satan has never forced God to retreat, regroup, or change His purpose.
John turned to Isaiah 46 and read God’s declaration: “My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure.” Then he emphasized the end of verse 11: “I have purposed it, I will also do it.” Jane thought about everything the church had already studied in the Bible Storyline. Satan rebelled against God. Adam and Eve sinned. Cain murdered Abel. The earth became filled with wickedness and violence before the Flood. Each event could appear to be another victory for Satan’s kingdom, but none of them moved God backward. God continued moving His plan forward. Jane looked toward Beth and Ben as they listened closely. She hoped they understood what their dad was so passionately teaching. Satan has never gained enough ground to make God take even one step backward.
What Scripture Says
Isaiah 46:10–11 says, “My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure.… yea, I have spoken it, I will also bring it to pass; I have purposed it, I will also do it.” God has a purpose that He will accomplish. No act of Satan, decision of mankind, nation, ruler, or event in history can prevent God from fulfilling His plan. Satan may rebel and people may resist, but God keeps moving His unstoppable plan forward. God Never Takes a Step Backward!
Tuesday: The Rebellion at Babel
Beth Christian always enjoyed hearing her dad teach, but she especially enjoyed watching him when he became passionate about what he was teaching. By the time John reached Genesis 11, any nervousness he had felt about filling in for Pastor was long gone. Beth had heard the story of the Tower of Babel many times, but her dad was connecting it to everything their church had been learning in the Bible Storyline. After the Flood, God commanded Noah and his sons to “Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth.” John reminded the church that replenish means to fill, make full, or occupy the whole. God was continuing His purpose for mankind to fill the earth with His image. Then John read Genesis 11:4. The people said, “Let us build us a city and a tower... lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.” Beth immediately saw the problem. God had commanded mankind to fill the earth, but these people had decided to stay together in one place. John explained that Babel was another organized rebellion against God. The people believed their unity and strength in numbers would enable them to resist what God had commanded. Together they would build their city, establish their own way of life, and prevent themselves from being scattered across the earth. Then John stopped and looked across the congregation. Beth knew what was coming. “Time out!” he said. She smiled because her dad had reached one of those places where he could hardly believe what he was reading. “Did these people learn nothing from history?” John asked. Satan had rebelled against God and failed. Satan had deceived Adam and Eve, but God immediately promised that the seed of the woman would crush the serpent. The earth had become filled with sin and violence, but God sent the Flood, preserved Noah’s family, and continued His plan. Now the people at Babel seemed to believe that if they worked together, they could succeed where every previous rebellion had failed.
What Scripture Says
Genesis 11:4 says, “Let us build us a city and a tower... lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.” The people at Babel deliberately resisted God’s command to fill the earth. Humanly speaking, they were united, determined, and confident. Yet their rebellion never threatened God’s purpose.
Wednesday: Make Us A Name
Ben was still smiling about Beth’s comment when John returned to Genesis 11:4. This time he emphasized another part of the people’s plan: “Let us make us a name.” Ben had always thought the Tower of Babel was mainly about people building a tower that was too tall, but his dad was showing him that the real problem was much deeper. The people wanted to resist God’s command to scatter across the earth, and they wanted to build something so impressive that their own name would be remembered. John explained that they wanted fame, honor, and a reputation that would continue long after they were gone. Ben thought about how different that was from God’s purpose for mankind. God created people in His image and commanded them to fill the earth. Mankind was supposed to spread God’s image and glory throughout His creation. Instead, the people at Babel wanted to spread their own glory. They were essentially saying, “Look at what we can build. Look at what we can accomplish. Remember us.” Ben had never connected the desire to “make us a name” with being created in God’s image before. The people were using what God had given them to make themselves great instead of using their lives to make God known. John smiled as he pointed out the irony. “They wanted to make a name that would be remembered for generations, and they certainly did!” A few people in the congregation laughed. “But they are not remembered for the reason they wanted to be remembered.” Their great city became a monument to their great failure. Ben leaned toward Beth and whispered, “I’m pretty sure that wasn’t the legacy they were going for.” Beth tried not to laugh while John continued teaching. Ben’s smile faded as he realized how easily the same desire could appear in his own life. A person did not have to build a tower to live for their own name. People still wanted others to notice what they accomplished, admire what they possessed, and remember how important they were. Babel showed where that desire leads. God created people to reflect His image and live for His glory, and no accomplishment could be greater than fulfilling the purpose of the One who created them.
What Scripture Says
Genesis 11:4 says, “Let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.” The people at Babel wanted their own greatness remembered, but God created mankind to bear His image and bring glory to Him. Our lives should make God known rather than make ourselves great. The greatest name is not ours. Philippians 2:9 says that God has given Jesus “a name which is above every name.”
Thursday: God Never Lost Control
John’s mother sat quietly listening as her son continued teaching. She had known him long before he was a teaching elder standing behind a pulpit. She remembered him as a boy learning Bible stories in Sunday School, and the Tower of Babel had certainly been one of them. Now she was listening as John connected that familiar story to the entire Bible Storyline. He read Genesis 11:7, where God said, “Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech.” Then John pointed out how easily God ended the rebellion. The people had gathered together, made their plans, begun their city, and believed their combined strength could keep them from being scattered. God simply changed their languages.
John’s mother smiled as he became even more animated. God did not struggle with Babel. He did not have to gather an army or develop a new plan. By confounding their language, God brought their project to an immediate stop. People could no longer communicate with everyone around them, so they gathered with those they could understand and began spreading across the earth. The very thing they had tried to prevent was exactly what happened. Their rebellion did not move God backward. God used their rebellion as part of moving His plan forward. Then John carried the congregation to the other end of the Bible. Revelation 19 describes the kings and armies of the earth gathering together against Jesus when He returns. Once again, mankind will unite in rebellion against God. John explained that the outcome will be no different. The armies do not slow Jesus down for a single second. He defeats them, establishes His Kingdom, and Satan is bound. Even after Satan is released at the end of the thousand years, Revelation 20 says he will deceive the nations and gather another enormous army against God. Fire comes down from God and destroys them, and Satan is cast into the lake of fire forever. John’s mother thought about the little boy who had once learned these stories one at a time. Now he was showing the church how they all fit together. From Babel to the final rebellion, Satan’s kingdom keeps resisting God, but God’s plan keeps moving forward.
What Scripture Says
Isaiah 14:27 asks, “For the LORD of hosts hath purposed, and who shall disannul it?” Babel could not stop God, and the final armies gathered against Christ will not stop Him. Satan has never forced God to retreat or change His plan. What God has purposed, He will accomplish. God Never Takes a Step Backward!
Friday: The End of the Story
Near the back of the auditorium sat a man who had taught John in Sunday School when John was a boy. He remembered teaching John many of the same Bible stories John had mentioned that morning, but now John was carrying the congregation from Genesis all the way to Revelation. “Some people never learn,” John said with a smile. Babel was not the last time Satan’s kingdom would unite people in an attempt to resist God. Revelation 19 describes the kings and armies of the earth gathering against Jesus when He returns. Humanly speaking, it sounds like an enormous show of strength. Yet their combined armies cannot slow God’s plan for a single second. King Jesus defeats them, Satan is bound, and Jesus reigns on earth for one thousand years. Then John turned to Revelation 20. After the thousand years, Satan will be released and immediately return to what he has always done. He deceives the nations and gathers an enormous army for one final rebellion against God. John’s former teacher smiled when John paused and asked, “Does this sound familiar?” Once again, Satan believes that enough people united together can resist God. The army surrounds God’s people and the beloved city, but there is no great struggle. Fire comes down from God and destroys them. Satan is cast into the lake of fire forever. Evil is finally defeated, creation is restored, and God establishes His eternal Kingdom on earth. The Bible’s Storyline is complete. John closed by asking the church to make three commitments. “Because God never takes a step backward, I will never fear, worry, or fret over world events.” The news may be frightening, nations may rage, and wickedness may appear powerful, but nothing happening in the world can derail God’s plan. “Because God never takes a step backward, I will dedicate myself to the Kingdom of God and reject the kingdom of Satan.” Satan’s kingdom has already lost, so God’s people should give themselves completely to their King. Finally, “Because God never takes a step backward, I will fulfill the Great Commission to make disciples of every people group and nation.” God scattered the nations at Babel, and now His church carries the gospel to those nations. John’s old teacher smiled. Years ago, he had taught these truths to a boy. Now that boy was challenging another generation to build their lives upon them.
What Scripture Says
Satan’s final rebellion will fail just as surely as every rebellion before it. Because we know where the Bible Storyline ends, we can live without fear, give ourselves completely to God’s Kingdom, and faithfully carry the gospel to the nations. God Never Takes a Step Backward! Learn More Here:
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