Genesis Eight - Pleasing Aroma

"Then Noah built an altar to the LORD and took some of 
every clean animal and some of every clean bird and offered burnt offerings on the altar. And when the LORD smelled the pleasing aroma, the LORD said in his heart, “I will never again curse the ground because of man, for the intention of man's heart is evil from his youth. Neither will I ever again strike down every living creature as I have done. While the earth remains, seed time and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease.”"

Genesis 8:20-22

The Lord, graciously gave this declaration after the flood subsided. It pleased Him despite Him knowing what other sinful acts that would occur even in the lineage of Noah. The intention of man's heart is evil from his youth- and is that not true; the children cry and whine of situations out of their own desires and their own controls. We are all born with selfish intent- the desire to be gods ourselves only to be shown we are worthless without the Creator who sustains the very breath we breathe.

What is to be a pleasing aroma to the Lord? Just from the view of someone from the 21st century looking in on history of God's redeeming power, I see Noah was a righteous man in His sight. What is a righteous man? Knowing good and evil and choosing to do good- what is good? What God decreed to do; you do, what God decreed not to do; you don't do. It is so simple yet in our sinful flesh we are incapable of doing what pleases God. I was listening to a few people speak on this issue of 'what can we do to be saved?' and the answer is a resounding, biblical and hopeless "nothing" because we are incapable of saving ourselves from the mire we dove into on our own volition. Only God can save, only He is mighty to save and everything we do is just burnt offerings to the One saying He desires mercy and not sacrifice.

May my heart beat for the Lord, may my heart break for what breaks His, and may all that I do be of desiring mercy and not to give burnt offerings.. May I be child-like to run to Him for truth and may He receive all the glory.

Genesis Seven - Sanctuary

"Then the Lord said to Noah, 

“Go into the ark, you and all your household, 

for I have seen that you are righteous before me 

in this generation."

Genesis 7:1

Noah and his family was granted sanctuary from the judgement that had befallen the world. It says in the new testament "For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man." (Matthew 24:37-39). There is a horrifying reality that there will be another flood-like judgement and only few will find this ark for the righteous. And for the few who find it, it isn't necessarily found by them but it is brought to them by God himself. Is it indeed open for all those who seek shelter from the pouring rain of destruction? In this wicked generation that I am a part of (for I am also a wretched sinner deserving of destruction) there are so many things going awry from public bathroom policies to presidential candidates becoming as selfish children.. My mind is so full of the thoughts of what is in front of me- yet I do know that there is far more that I do need to focus on. I am unsure of even where I stand at this point of whether or not I am indeed loved by God the Creator I cannot say for sure. I do however can say for certain that God is good and that He brings to fruition what He has promised when it comes to the judgement and salvation of men.

Genesis Six - The Wickedness of Man

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.

Genesis 6:5-8

Our God is perfect. He is the definition of perfection. There is only one that is perfect and that is God. If logically there is only one who is perfect-complete then rest are imperfect in comparison. We fall short. Not only do we fall short to perfection but we cannot even begin to go into the realms of perfection. And to even our own disbelief- we so choose to be even more imperfect! Fallen away from even the desire to be perfect. Now He who is perfect is in Heaven, He then who is in Heaven is so holy and perfect, we as mere sinful creatures dare not step into even the shadow of His goodness lest we melt away like ice in a desert. What hope is there then for those who are hopeless? It grieves our Creator's heart when we continue to seek evil, when we continue to reject Him.. When we continue to reject the one He sent us; that is Jesus. May I not be blotted out but be made perfect in Christ, to be found in the Lord's eyes as favored..

Genesis Five - God Took Him

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.

Genesis 5:12-24

He walked with God. What a legacy to be granted, to be aligned with what the Lord desired. So sinful yet so perfectly he walked with the Almighty Creator. Yet as I read this more carefully I saw something that I had no before. It says that when Enoch had lived 65 years, he fathered Methuselah. Enoch walked with God, after he fathered Methuselah, for 300 years... Clearly there is some sort of before-state and after-state to Enoch's walk with God. It shows it was after he fathered Methuselah at the age of 65 he then walked with the Lord for 300 years afterwards. What makes a man change his ways, especially after 65 years? And then you see the legacy go forward even in Methuselah's life for he lived pretty much up to being the oldest man in the world (age 969). I honestly want to know more of this man's life. This man whom God walked with. The Almighty one who defines love and honor and glory in His being. I want to be so loved as that man was by God so I may be the epitome of the one who lives most purposefully in the Lord. Oh to be granted that heart and soul, what an honor that would be...