by Diana Durrill
Flowing right along with our devotional from yesterday (Romans 3-4), in today's passage we get a clear glimpse at the history of sin and man's desperate need for grace. Sin entered the world through the disobedient decisions of Adam & Eve, and now we read of the first murder. Adam & Eve's son, Cain, murders his brother Abel in (what seems to us) a complete act of rage and jealousy. It doesn't take long before sin is running rampant upon the earth and as early as Genesis 6 we find ourselves reading through the account of Noah and the utter wickedness of his generation.
Noah's generation was extremely corrupt. And we know that because sin passed upon all men (or in other words, all men are born sinners - Romans 5:12), we know that Noah was also a sinner. But -- Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord. He found favor because he called on the name of the Lord. (Gen. 4:26b) He found favor because he lived by God's righteous standards, he was set apart from the wickedness of his peers, and he walked with God. (Gen. 5:9) In short, Noah had a relationship with God.
God's work of redemption throughout history gives a beautiful account of Who He is and what He has done for mankind out of love for us. He created us in His image and for His glory, and yet He gave us the freedom to choose sin over righteousness, disobedience over obedience, and self-glory over God's glory. Over and over again in the coming weeks and months we will read of countless men and women who are in need of God's redemptive work in their lives. Some (like Noah) will choose to surrender to His work, others (like Cain) will refuse. With some we will shake our heads and arrogantly say, "What a fool," while with others will be humbled and ashamed as their lives reflect so much of our own. But with each story that we read we have the opportunity to learn, to grow, to allow ourselves to be changed by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Through coming weeks as we immerse ourselves in this historical account chronicling man's need of God's saving grace, may we see ourselves more often than not. May we -- like Noah -- choose to turn to God in humility and then walk in His gift of grace. My prayer for myself is that I stand strong in my commitment to read through the Bible in 2013, choosing to open my mind and heart to the healing, redemptive work of God, knowing that in His time He will complete this work in me. (Philippians 1:6) I hope this is your prayer as well.
Noah's generation was extremely corrupt. And we know that because sin passed upon all men (or in other words, all men are born sinners - Romans 5:12), we know that Noah was also a sinner. But -- Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord. He found favor because he called on the name of the Lord. (Gen. 4:26b) He found favor because he lived by God's righteous standards, he was set apart from the wickedness of his peers, and he walked with God. (Gen. 5:9) In short, Noah had a relationship with God.
God's work of redemption throughout history gives a beautiful account of Who He is and what He has done for mankind out of love for us. He created us in His image and for His glory, and yet He gave us the freedom to choose sin over righteousness, disobedience over obedience, and self-glory over God's glory. Over and over again in the coming weeks and months we will read of countless men and women who are in need of God's redemptive work in their lives. Some (like Noah) will choose to surrender to His work, others (like Cain) will refuse. With some we will shake our heads and arrogantly say, "What a fool," while with others will be humbled and ashamed as their lives reflect so much of our own. But with each story that we read we have the opportunity to learn, to grow, to allow ourselves to be changed by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Through coming weeks as we immerse ourselves in this historical account chronicling man's need of God's saving grace, may we see ourselves more often than not. May we -- like Noah -- choose to turn to God in humility and then walk in His gift of grace. My prayer for myself is that I stand strong in my commitment to read through the Bible in 2013, choosing to open my mind and heart to the healing, redemptive work of God, knowing that in His time He will complete this work in me. (Philippians 1:6) I hope this is your prayer as well.
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