God's Judgment In The Day Of Noah

Gen. 6:3) "And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years." These words were spoken by God to the men of Noah's day, after He saw first-hand their wickedness. This verse speaks volumes about how God looks at sin and how He judges men for sin. 1) God's judgment was prophesied . "And the Lord said." God's Word always warns men of judgment before he judges. In this case, he told man that he had 120yrs. to repent. 2) God's judgment was provoked. "for that he also is flesh." God knows that man is given to his flesh, but He also knows that man can also resist sin. Sin is a choice of our will, for we all know full well before we sin that there are consequences for disobeying God. That's why God places a judgment on sin, hoping to cause us to fear sin's consequences enough to reject it. 3) God's judgment was preached. "My spirit shall not always strive with man." God chooses the foolishness of preaching to save the lost in every generation. Noah preached for 120yrs., unfortunately the men of Noah's day like many in our day refuse to repent after hearing His Spirit's voice. During those days God demonstrated His longsuffering, but unfortunately for the ungodly His lonsuffering had a time limit. These things are written to teach us that we also have but little time repent.

The Principle of the Forgiveness of Sin

The story of Cain and Abel in (Gen. 4) teaches us much about the way God views forgiveness. The Lord God is very clear in His Word that "without the shedding of blood there is no remission," (or forgiveness) of sin, but thank God that He has provided us a way. Cain refused to obey God, but Abel did and "obtained witness that he was a righteous man" (Heb. 11:4). 1) Abel sought God reverently. There is a difference between men that just respect God, and those that truly reverence Him. A reverent man obeys God's every command, and word. 2) Abel had a repentant heart. A repentant man does not get mad at or argue with a Holy God. He humbles himself under His every command and submits. 3) Abel found restoration. Through Abel's obedience, and by his offering, his sin was covered & his transgression forgiven. Today in Jesus, we too can be forgiven for all our sin, if we by faith trust in Jesus' blood offering for our sins

Sin Brings Forth Death

(Jas 1:15) "Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death." In the above verse the warning is the same regardless of our sin, "sin bringeth forth death." In the Garden of Eden, Satan planted into the mind of Eve the temptation of lust, but it was Eve that decided to bring sin into her life. 1) Sin begins in the mind. When we give ear or sight to any temptation, we reason with the idea of disobeying God. Eve chose disobedience, therefore she brought upon herself the judgment that God warned her about. 2) The result of sin is always destructive. Both Adam and Eve immediately hid themselves from God and His "voice," both lost their fellowship with God, both began to cover up sin, and both lost their joyful relationship with each other and God. 3) Sin is damning. The serpent lost its beauty and ability to walk upright, the woman gained multiplied sorrow, Adam hard labor and toil, the whole creation became cursed, and both Adam and Eve received a death sentence. When sin is finished it brings forth nothing but sorrow, and pain, and death, but worst of all it caused our beloved Savior Jesus Christ Jesus to have to die. Yes, sin destroys, but thank God Jesus Saves!

Adam & Eve Fell Into Sin Differently

(1Ti 2:14)"And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression." As we continue to look at the origin of sin, it's important to see that Adam and Eve fell into sin differently. 1) Eve was deceived. Satan deceived Eve, meaning that he tricked her into responding contrary to the commandment of the Lordthrough deception. Satan is a master at deception. He possessed the body of the serpent, disguising himself as something good rather than evil. He also got Eve to doubt God's Word through the use of semantics. Satan loves to twist scripture, or to leave out parts of it, or he will even take it out of context. Eve was tricked and fell after believing Satan's deception. 2) Adam fell by simply following Eve. Another way that we fall into the trap of sin is by simply following others that are wrong. People do it all the time today. For example, take salvation. Many follow blindly religion, or what's popular, or charismatic men, not really studying for themselves what the truth really is. The Bible says that there is only one way to be saved, through Jesus Christ. Following others blindly will only lead to the judgment of sin and death, which is exactly what happened to Adam .

He is God!!

Was the earth created in six literal days, and if it was does God really need our help to explain this simple truth to mankind when it's specifically stated in His Word? I think not! (Genesis 2:1-2) "Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made." It's amazing to me, how many Christians think that somehow God hid between certain scripture verses some type of secret that only the intelligent mind can understand. As if we without their help cannot fully understand God's simple words, "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth." Or even the words, "and the evening and the morning were the first day, or 2nd,3rd,4th,5th, and 6th." God created the earth just as He stated in His Word, in six literal 24 hour days. Why, because He is God, and with God all things are possible. It ought not to be a shock to anyone that with just His spoken word, God created the earth!

Strength For Our Journey

(Numb. 13:28) "Nevertheless the people be strong that dwell in the land, and the cities are walled, and very great:" These were the last words that God wanted to hear after leading the nation Israel out of Egypt and to the edge of the Promised Land. The problem with Israel was that they looked on the impossibility of God's will, instead of on the capability of God to keep His Word. Unbelief is a terrible sin. It removes all the possibilities that faith can achieve, and replaces them with the certainty of fear and failure. Trials and tests are God's ways of strengthening us for our journey in life. Life is one battle after another, and unless we learn that our true strength is not found in our own abilities but rather in God, we will never see the many blessings and victories that God can give to us. This first generation of Israel wanted God, His blessings, and His help, but they missed it because they couldn't quite believe God for the impossible. It's not enough to just read about God's promises, by faith we must learn to trust them. The difference between the Israel of failure, and the Israel of victory 40 years later, was in their faith. The later Israel was strengthened by experience, and by learning that their strength came from God, and not themselves. Faith can only be matured as we obey and trust in trials

Why A Generation Forgets God

As we come to another memorial day it is important once again to remember those that have fought and died to ensure our freedom here in America, lest we forget and lose our respect as did Israel of old. In Judges (1:10) God said, "… and there arose another generation after them, which knew not the LORD, nor yet the works which he had done for Israel." This statement was made after Joshua and the elders died that that fought to win the promised land. You might ask, why did the next generation fall away? 1) The Godly men died. If Godly men fail to pass on their godliness and their heritage, then it will die with them. 2) Freedom comes with a price. Things that are not earned are not always appreciated by those that inherit them. The elders fought the wars, and were witnesses of God's power and faithfulness, but their children failed to honor God and remember the victories of the past. That's why God is big on memorials, and days of honor and remembrance. God forgive us when our battlefields become just playgrounds and shopping malls, and the graves of our brave are allowed to be grown over & forgotten. 3) Israel forgot that God was her strength. Let us never forget our true strength. "The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God."