Unacceptable marriage choices, the grief of the Lord, and the grace of God

The Favor of the Lord

(Genesis 6:1-8, Preaching: Pastor Stephen Magee, July 27, 2014)

[6:1] When man began to multiply on the face of the land and daughters were born to them, [2] the sons of God saw that the daughters of man were attractive. And they took as their wives any they chose. [3] Then the LORD said, “My Spirit shall not abide in man forever, for he is flesh: his days shall be 120 years.” [4] The Nephilim were on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of man and they bore children to them. These were the mighty men who were of old, the men of renown.

The end of Genesis 5 brought us to Noah and his three sons. It would be through Noah and his sons that the world would be repopulated after the flood. But why did God bring a massive flood upon the earth? Something very evil was taking over the world that once was. Those who were called “the sons of God” and were associated here with the word “Nephilim”and the phrases “the mighty men of old” and “men of renown” were having children with the “daughters of man.” There are at least three theories concerning who these evil beings were: 1. men from the degraded line of Seth taking women of Cain, 2. men from the line of Cain taking women of Seth, and 3. fallen angels taking women and producing a frightful evil race. What is clear is that God considered what was being done as very wicked. He placed an outer limit on the lifespan of man of 120 years. He also made plans to begin anew upon the earth with Noah and his descendants.

[5] The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. [6] And the LORD regretted that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart. [7] So the LORD said, “I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, man and animals and creeping things and birds of the heavens, for I am sorry that I have made them.” [8] But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD.

How wicked was mankind? The Lord our creator would be the best judge of that. The Lord is able to see even the intentions of the thoughts of every heart. “Only evil continually.” What a devastating indictment! Not only that, the Lord explained His own grief concerning the evil of mankind in words that we might understand. “The Lord regretted that he had made man.”

God had a settled plan of resurrection life even before the creation of the world, so He went about the steps that He had predetermined to accomplish toward that end. He would blot out mankind. But one man would find grace or “favor” in His sight—Noah. Amazing!

Evil among men and angels is real. It is an overwhelming problem that spreads so easily until everything is touched by its devastating consequences. How can anyone be spared? If the Lord did not have a plan to show His favor among the sons of men there would be no hope for any of us and no reason for life after the sin of Adam. But the Lord is determined to show not only His wrath against sin but also the depths of His love toward His children. Because God has a plan to lavish His favor upon some, the great events of salvation have come into the world. What a privilege we have in publishing the good news of the favor of God through Jesus Christ!

Put the Word to Work: Evil grieves the Lord, but He does not weep forever. He has found a way to show favor to His beloved children. The church is a guardian of that truth in every age.

Memory Verse from the Songs of Ascents—Psalm 121:7 – The LORD will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life.

Gospel Reading—Matthew 13:31-33 – The mustard seed and the leaven

We live in a world of death-- but we can walk with God.

He Lived … Years, and He Died.

(Genesis 5:1-32, Preaching: Pastor Stephen Magee, July 20, 2014)

[5:1] This is the book of the generations of Adam. When God created man, he made him in the likeness of God. [2] Male and female he created them, and he blessed them and named them Man when they were created. [3] When Adam had lived 130 years, he fathered a son in his own likeness, after his image, and named him Seth. [4] The days of Adam after he fathered Seth were 800 years; and he had other sons and daughters. [5] Thus all the days that Adam lived were 930 years, and he died.

We are amazed by the lifespans of the generations of the men listed here. We should be struck by the sad fact of death among those who were made in the likeness of God. (Gen 6:3, Ps 90:10)

[6] When Seth had lived 105 years, he fathered Enosh. [7] Seth lived after he fathered Enosh 807 years and had other sons and daughters. [8] Thus all the days of Seth were 912 years, and he died.… 905 years, and he died.... 910 years, and he died.... 895 years, and he died.... 962 years, and he died.... 969 years, and he died.... Lamech … fathered … Noah … this one shall bring us relief … 777 years, and he died.

We follow the line of Adam from his son, Seth, down to Noah (meaning “rest”). We read only of a single son who is named for each father until we come to the sons of Noah. Each time we are told that there were other sons and daughters, and we know that the world that once was—the world before the flood—was being populated with all the children that were born. The singular son is mentioned in each case because he is the one through whom the genealogy leads to some other figure. In the case of Genesis 5, that figure is Noah, the father of Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

[21] When Enoch had lived 65 years, he fathered Methuselah. [22] Enoch walked with God after he fathered Methuselah 300 years and had other sons and daughters. [23] Thus all the days of Enoch were 365 years. [24] Enoch walked with God, and he was not, for God took him.

There is one other man in this list that we need to consider more carefully—Enoch. His life was unusual. “Enoch walked with God.” Also his life was very short. His 365 years sounds like such a long time to us, but people of his day must have been shocked that Enoch was gone so soon. But how did he go? We notice that the word “died” does not appear in his story. Instead we read “and he was not.” Interesting. “God took him.” Not in a bad way, but good.

He walked with God. What does it mean to “walk with God?” The language, by condescension, is that of equals, yet God is the superior, and the one who walks with Him is the inferior. Enoch was the apprentice and God the Master. Enoch was the son and God the Father. For any man to walk with God he must obey God's Word, worship Him with reverence, love Him, and serve Him (Deuteronomy 10:12-13).

Put the Word to Work: Jesus walked with God perfectly. Long before He came to die for Enoch's sins, Enoch had the benefit of close fellowship with the God of the universe. We have that same privilege. (Hebrews 10:39, 11:5-6, 11:39-40) We live in a world that is greatly trouble by death, but we can walk with God, and one day He will receive us into glory. Our bodies may suddenly fail, but the Lord is our strength and our portion forever. (Psalm 84)

Memory Verse from the Songs of Ascents—Psalm 121:5-6 – The LORD is your keeper; the LORD is your shade on your right hand. The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night.

Gospel Reading—Matthew 13:24-30 – The parable of the weeds

God’s Enduring Mercy and the Tragedy of Cain

(Genesis 4, Preaching: Pastor Nathan Snyder, July 13, 2014)

In the midst of God’s pronouncement of judgment upon sin in Genesis 3, he promised to bring redemption through Eve’s offspring.  Now at the beginning of Genesis 4, Eve bears a son with the help of the Lord.  His name is Cain.  Will redemption come through Cain?  Eve then bore another son, Abel.  His name in Hebrew means “vapor” or “breath.”  The word is used throughout the book of Ecclesiastes and is often translated “vanity.”  It proved to be an appropriate name, for Abel’s life was cut short.  Redemption had not come yet.  Only the growth of evil in the world.  God accepted Abel’s offering, but rejected Cain’s.  No clear explanation is given as to why, but we quickly see that Cain’s heart was not right before God.  Burning with jealousy, he murdered his own brother.  Since Genesis 3, the world has been a place in which we, the very image bearers of God, ignore his Word, envy one another, covet, and kill even our own family members.  This is a world in which life is a vapor, and those who desire to serve God are often oppressed by those who do not.

The real tragic figure in this account, however, is not Abel but Cain.  God repeatedly shows mercy to Cain.  He warns Cain and instructs him to conquer the sin in his heart.  Yet Cain does not listen.  God invites Cain to acknowledge his sin when he has murdered his brother.  Yet Cain pretends to have no knowledge of his brother’s death, as if he could fool God.  God does not give Cain the death penalty but makes him a wanderer upon the earth.  When Cain complains that this seems too harsh, God mercifully marks Cain so that nobody will kill him.  This is what God is like.  Slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and mercy.  His kindness is meant to lead us to repentance (Rom. 2:4-5).  Yet Cain never repented.  Abel trusted God and now has an eternal inheritance in the presence of the Lord (Heb. 11:4).  Cain left the presence of the Lord in verse 16, and though he seems to have had a measure of success in this world, nothing is said of his returning to the Lord.  Furthermore, he passed on his waywardness to his descendents, as we see in Lamech.  Lamech violated God’s design for marriage, taking two wives rather than one wife.  Then he murdered a young man, taking personal vengeance, and he composed a poem defiantly claiming to be the master and protector of his own life.  Cain at least recognized he needed God’s protection.  Lamech believed he needed nobody but himself.

As Cain’s descendents grew further from the God who made them, the mercy of God continued.  Lamech’s children raised livestock and invented tools for work and instruments for music.  We see the image of God continuing in fallen man.  We also see Lamech crafting an eloquent poem to boast in himself.  By the mercy of God humanity has made many developments.  Yet the sin of man often uses them for evil.  Humanity is broken, foolishly trusting in ourselves.  But then God gives another son to Adam and Eve.  From Seth would come the Christ, who has won redemption for our fallen world.  We get a premonition of this in the closing words of the chapter.  During the days of Seth’s son Enosh, “people began to call upon the name of the LORD.”  Despite our sin and the sin around us, there is salvation in Christ.  As the apostle Paul would later write, speaking of the Lord Jesus, “everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved” (Rom. 10:13 quoting Joel 2:32).

Put the Word to Work:  God has shown every one of us kindness upon kindness, despite all our sin against him and against one another.  He has kept his promise and given us a Savior.  Receive his kindness, turn away from sin, and call upon his name.  We will find life and joy in his presence.

Memory Verse from the Psalms of Ascents: Psalm 121:3-4 – He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber.  Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.

Gospel Reading: Matthew 13:18-23 – The Parable of the Sower Explained

Tragic Failure and a Thousand Gifts

Grace on the Worst Day

(Genesis 3:1-24, Preaching: Pastor Stephen Magee, July 6, 2014)

[3:1] Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the LORD God had made.

He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” ... [6] So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.

Genesis 3 begins with the account of what we call the fall and ends with the expulsion of Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden. In between these sections the Lord questions Adam, then Eve; and confronts the serpent, then Eve, and then Adam. At the center of this highly structured account of what went wrong on the earth is Genesis 3:14-15, the Lord's announcement of the defeat of evil through the provision of a man who will be injured as part of his great victory.

[7] Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths.

[8] And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden. …

[14-15] … enmity … he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.” ...
[20] The man called his wife's name Eve, because she was the mother of all living. [21] And the LORD God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skins and clothed them....

After the woman listened to the serpent and ate of the forbidden fruit, and after man listened to his wife and did the same, the world changed. The first sign we have of that is in the shame of Adam and Eve who immediately sought to solve their angst with clothes of their own making. They did not trust God but did all that they could to hide from Him. After He questioned and addressed them, Adam showed that he believed the Word of the Lord by the name he chose for his wife, and the Lord clothed the first couple with skins that required the shedding of blood.

God questioned Adam first, and Adam blamed Eve. Then God questioned Eve, and she blamed the serpent. The Lord announced the coming of His judgment of futility upon creation. See Romans 8:20. A war against evil commenced. There would be pain in having children and struggles within marriage. The work of taking dominion over the earth would be full of toil.

Sin, misery, and death came into the world through the transgression of one man and through the judgment of the one God. But there is an even more important point that is revealed in Genesis 3. God will fix what man has broken, and He will do so through the suffering and victory of one man. Because of these good truths, there were faith, hope, and love on a day of tragic failure.

Put the Word to Work: See the first chapter of Ann Voskamp's A Thousand Gifts. Tragic failure. The worst day comes when our own failure yields dire troubles for ourselves and for others that we love. How can we survive a day like that? Remember Adam. The worst tragic failure of all time is described in Genesis 3. The Lord spoke of grace on that day, and His speech was fulfilled through the cross, when Jesus faced the tragic consequences of our failure.

Memory Verse from the Songs of Ascents—Psalm 121:1-2 – I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth.

Gospel Reading—Matthew 13:10-17 – The purpose of parables