Genesis 6, 1 John 5

Monday, Dec 3, 2007 – Brandon Hatmaker (Genesis 6, 1 John 5)

(Genesis 6)

Noah lived during corrupt times. Genesis 6 does a pretty good job of painting that picture. There was some crazy stuff going on, enough that God couldn’t stand it anymore and planned a “purging”, if you will. In the middle of all of it all, scripture says, “But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD.” It says that, “Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked with God.” So he had a great reputation, people liked him, and even greater, he walked with God. Could you imagine the moment he started building the ark and people starting wondering what the heck he was doing? I wonder how often Noah struggled as well.

Chapter 6 doesn’t paint a picture of how Noah felt about that task. I would imagine, because he’s human, that he went through a range of emotions. But I’m struck by the detail in which God led Him. He was very deliberate in his instructions from the coating of the interior of the ark, to how close the ceilings should come to the roof, to how many levels the ark would have. I wonder if Noah could have built an ark and figured out the details himself once God told him what the task was without knowing the details? He probably could have. I wonder if God gave Him all the details to give him confirmation of His intentionality. That He was truly in it, with each detail. That it was, indeed, a divine task. How could God be so deliberate and he miss it? He didn’t. He got the message. Whether Noah struggled with the task or not, the final verse from this chapter says it all: Vs. 22, “Noah did everything just as God commanded him.”

Father, whatever our task in life, may we follow you. God, I don’t believe you are a God of incidental ways. I believe you have a divine plan. Teach us God to find our place. Give us comfort when we point our ship into the fog when we know you told us to go that direction. May we celebrate you God when the fog clears and your plan is revealed. May we stay true to your ways with our families, in our friendships, in our profession, and with you dear God as we claim Jesus as our banner.


(1 John 5)

Verse 3 says, ”This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome.”

So, let’s be honest, why do they feel like a burden at times? Scripture CLEARLY says it’s not because of God or His commands. In fact, Jesus said a NEW command he gives, to love as he has loved. How can that be a burden? Jesus said that his yolk is easy and his burden is light. I believe with all my heart that it becomes a burden only when we are either doing the wrong things, or with the wrong intention. If each of us were to think about it, there have been moments in our faith journey in which we can unmistakenly say, “that just felt right”. We have to be careful, I’m not talking about emotion and feelings, I’m talking about something that truly nourishes your soul and resonates with the Spirit that lives inside of you as a believer. There’s a huge difference, and it’s obvious. We need to press into those things. We need to chase after them as a priority. We need to cast off the things that do not result in freedom, joy, peace, and love. Deep inside, we know the difference. It’s built into each of our being and is testified by the Spirit.

God, help us to claim today your truth that, “The Joy of the Lord is my Strength”. Help us to chase after the things that resonate with our spirit more than our tradition. May we find peace, joy, and fulfillment in you during our journey.