Genesis 6
1 When human beings began to increase in number on the earth and daughters were born to them,
2 the sons of God saw that the daughters of humans were beautiful, and they married any of them they chose
3 Then the Lord said, “My Spirit will not contend with humans forever, for they are mortal; their days will be a hundred and twenty years.”
4 The Nephilim were on the earth in those days—and also afterward—when the sons of God went to the daughters of humans and had children by them. They were the heroes of old, men of renown.
5 The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time. 6 The Lord regretted that he had made human beings on the earth, and his heart was deeply troubled. 7 So the Lord said, “I will wipe from the face of the earth the human race I have created—and with them the animals, the birds and the creatures that move along the ground—for I regret that I have made them.” 8 But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord.
Noah and the Flood
9 This is the account of Noah and his family.
Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked faithfully with God. 10 Noah had three sons: Shem, Ham and Japheth.
11 Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight and was full of violence. 12 God saw how corrupt the earth had become, for all the people on earth had corrupted their ways. 13 So God said to Noah, “I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. I am surely going to destroy both them and the earth. 14 So make yourself an ark of cypress wood; make rooms in it and coat it with pitch inside and out.
15 This is how you are to build it: The ark is to be three hundred cubits long, fifty cubits wide and thirty cubits high. 16 Make a roof for it, leaving below the roof an opening one cubit high all around. Put a door in the side of the ark and make lower, middle and upper decks.
17 I am going to bring floodwaters on the earth to destroy all life under the heavens, every creature that has the breath of life in it. Everything on earth will perish. 18 But I will establish my covenant with you, and you will enter the ark—you and your sons and your wife and your sons’ wives with you.
19 You are to bring into the ark two of all living creatures, male and female, to keep them alive with you. 20 Two of every kind of bird, of every kind of animal and of every kind of creature that moves along the ground will come to you to be kept alive. 21 You are to take every kind of food that is to be eaten and store it away as food for you and for them.”
22 Noah did everything just as God commanded him.
Genesis 6 (NIV)
This chapter shows us God’s attitude towards sin (He absolutely hates it) and how He favours and protects the righteous.
God saw the wickedness and sin in the world and was so grieved that He decided to eradicate the entire human race. However, in the midst of all the horrors going on, there was a righteous man called Noah (father of Shem, Ham and Japheth), who was blameless in God’s eyes and faithful to God. Because God is merciful and fair, He decided to spare Noah and his family from destruction… but there was a condition, Noah had to be obedient and do something out of the ordinary – build an ark.
Noah’s commitment to obey God was an act of faith. I can only imagine how long and how much (effort, resources, time etc.) it took to build something of that magnitude (about 450 feet long, 75 feet wide and 45 feet high or about 135 meters long, 23 meters wide and 14 meters high), especially in those days and with the limited man power. People probably made fun of Noah for the work he was doing, but that didn’t stop him still, he did everything just as God commanded.
Lessons from Genesis 6
- The wages of sin is death: “Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.” James 1:15 (NKJV). God’s plan for mankind from day 1 was life, but by sinning, man opened gates for the devil who only comes to steal, kill and destroy.
- Average life expectancy is 120 years: God said so Himself in Genesis 6:3. If you want to live a long, full, happy life, stay away from sin and confess the word of God daily. Say “I am strong, I am healthy, I will live a long happy life free from pain and disease”. These are not baseless statements, they have foundations in the Word of God!
- God despises sin: in the days of Noah, people had become very wicked and their hearts were full of evil. Seeing all this grieved God’s heart so much that He decided to wipe out the human race. God is holy and anyone who loves Him must despise sin and stay away from it.
- It is possible to be righteous in a sinful world: “everyone else is doing it” is not a valid excuse to sin. Just because something has become the norm, doesn’t mean it’s okay to do. Even in the midst of sinful people, Noah was a righteous man and stayed faithful to God. It may not always be easy to do right when everyone else is stealing, lying, killing, etc., but it is possible. God commends such behaviour.
- If you pay attention to God, He will talk to you and warn you of things to come.
- Walking with God requires obedience: what do you think would have happened if Noah had lazed around and refused to build the ark as God commanded? Many Christians adopt a “what will be will be, whatever is mine will come to me” attitude but that’s simply not accurate. When God tells you something (e.g. evacuate this place for trouble is coming) if you refuse to obey and wait for Him to magically airlift you, be prepared for the consequences of your decision. The Bible says “the heavens, are the LORD’s: But the earth hath he given to the children of men.” this means, earth is OUR jurisdiction, over here, WE make decisions on how things go. Sure, we can invite God to take control of situations but that doesn’t mean He’ll do all the heavy lifting. Walking with God requires attentiveness and obedience… even when it doesn’t make sense to you.
- When God gives you instructions, follow them exactly without trying to find loopholes: have you ever encountered one of those people who can’t cook but always try to get “creative” with recipes? Putting their own spin on things and substituting ingredients willy-nilly? The outcome is usually atrocious and barely edible. Same thing happens when you decide to put your own spin on God’s word.
Reflection
- How can you live sin-free in a sinful world?
- How can you effect change in your life and the life of people around you today?
- How can you make God a bigger priority in your life and pay more attention to Him?
Further Reading
- James 1:15 [ Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.]
- John 10:10 [ The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.]
- John 11:25-26 [25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; 26 and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?”]
Prayer
Father, forgive me for the times I have sinned against you. Today, I renounce the devil and all his works. Today, I make the decision to pay more attention to you, to spend more time studying your word and in fellowship with you. Thank you for the transformative power of your word and for the grace to live a life that’s pleasing to you. In Jesus name I pray. Amen.
Community
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God bless you!
