Transcription
Verse 24. Enoch walked with God and he was not for God took him. I want to label the message tonight simply walking with God. Walking with God.
You begin a new Bible reading plan and you start at the beginning with the book of Genesis. Yeah. In chapter one, you read about how God created the heavens and the earth, speaking the world into existence. Yes, sir. In chapter 2, you read about how God created Adam and Eve and gave them to one another and placed them to have dominion over the Garden of Eden. Uh-huh. In chapter 3, you read about the fall when Adam and Eve committed treason against the government of God and ate of the forbidden tree. In chapter 4, you read about Earth's first siblings, Cain and Abel, and how Cain rose up in anger to slay his brother Abel.
But after you breeze through those remarkable historical narratives, you hit a speed bump at the genealogy of Seth in Genesis chapter 5. Your temptation is to skip over this biblical ancestry.com record and get on to chapter 6 that records the story of Noah. But to do so would be a mistake. 2 Timothy 3:16 says, "All scripture, all scripture is breathed out by God and is profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness." Amen. I commend to you tonight that there are profitable words for us here in Genesis chapter 5. Yes, sir.
You see, after Cain killed Abel, Eve gave birth to another son whom they named Seth. And it would be through Seth that God would continue to carry out his redemptive plans in the world. This transitional chapter, Genesis 5, records for us the genealogy, the family line, the lineage of Seth. It begins in chapter one with Adam. It ends rather in verse one with Adam. It ends in verse 32 with Noah. And as you read through this genealogy, you will be introduced to 10 men. And the chapter basically tells us three things about these 10 men. They lived. [Applause] They had children and they died.
The fact that each of them died is significant. In Genesis 3:2 and 3, Eve said to the serpent, "We may eat of all of the trees of the garden, but not of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil." God said that we must not eat of it. We must not even touch it, lest we die. The story would go on to tell us that Adam and Eve, in rebellion against God's command, ate of that forbidden tree. And when they did, they were immediately separated from God, which is spiritual death. That's right. That's right. But Adam and Eve did not die physically that day. In fact, they lived for centuries. That's right. That's right. In fact, church, they lived so long that you would almost think that the words of the serpent in Genesis 3:4, you would almost think his lie was true, when he told Eve, "You shall not die." But Genesis chapter 5 wants to make it clear: God always has the last word. Here we see that the descendants of Adam and Eve, though they lived for centuries, each and every one of them, they all died. Mercy.
Reading Genesis chapter 5 is like walking through a cemetery reading the tombstones. But there's one glaring exception in this chapter. It is the man named Enoch. [Applause] W.R. Bowie said that this astonishing paragraph shines like a single brilliant star above the earthly record of this text. Here in Genesis, we are introduced to a man named Enoch. He is mentioned here in chapter 5, 21-24. He's also mentioned in Hebrews 11:5 and 6 and in Jude 14 and 15. These three passages don't give us much biographical information about Enoch. And in fact, those New Testament texts don't really tell us anything more important about Enoch than what we learn in this first mention of him in Genesis chapter 5. There are two big facts about Enoch that we learn in this text.
Number one, while the others in his family line lived, Enoch did not just live. Enoch walked with God. All right. Secondly, while the other people in Enoch's family tree died, sir, Enoch didn't die. He was not, for God took him.
Genesis chapter 6, verse 9 says, "These are the generations of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his generation. Noah walked with God." But in the real sense, all of Genesis chapter 6 through 8 proves that statement that Noah walked with God. We're not given all of those biographical details about Enoch. The text just tells us Enoch walked with God and he was not, for God took him. And the truth I want to lean on you about tonight, saints, is that there is a real difference between living and walking with God. [Applause] In fact, the take-home truth that I want you to get tonight is that walking with God is the only way to live. So, I'm going to talk to you tonight a little while about Enoch. But while I'm talking about Enoch, I'm talking to you, friend. Are you walking with God tonight? Micah 6:8 says, "He has shown you, O man, what is good and what does he command? but to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God." Are you walking with God tonight?
What does it mean to walk with God? All right. Help us. Help us. Let me consider that from three aspects tonight. First, would you consider with me how walking with God begins? Verses 21 and 22 says that when Enoch had lived 65 years, he fathered Methuselah. And then verse 22 says, "Enoch walked with God after he fathered Methuselah 300 years and had other sons and daughters." Woo, what a thought. Think about that. This man lived for 65 years. He lived for 65 years and at what we call the age of retirement, Enoch and Mrs. Enoch decided to start a family and they had a son. They named him Methuselah. I imagine, as it was 25 years ago when my son was born, it had to have been for him a life-changing event, becoming a father. But something else happened that was even more dramatic than him becoming a father, because that 22nd verse says that Enoch walked with God after he fathered Methuselah for 300 years. He didn't just live. [Applause] There was a, can I use this term? There was a conversion in his life. Something changed. This old man had a new beginning. And at some point, he went from just living to walking with God.
How does that happen? How does walking with God begin? It begins with faith in God and fellowship with God. On one hand, it begins with faith in God. Hebrews chapter 11, verse 5, that roll call of faith says, "By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death." And he was not found, because God had taken him. Now, before he was taken, he was commended as having pleased God. I commend to you tonight that Genesis and Hebrews are talking about the same thing in different terminologies. Genesis calls it walking with God. Hebrews calls it pleasing God. [Applause] Enoch pleased God. And church, I don't care what the world tells you. In fact, I don't care what some pulpits will tell you. God doesn't walk with anybody whose life is not pleasing to him. First John chapter 1, 6 and 7, it says that if we say that we walk with God, have fellowship with God, but walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his son cleanses us from all our sins. All right. To walk with God is to live a life that pleases God. All right.
But how do you please God? Glad you asked. Hebrews 11:6 says, "Without faith, it is impossible to please God." I'm glad y'all are here tonight. But going to church doesn't please God. Giving money doesn't please God. Serving in ministry doesn't please God. Getting baptized doesn't please God. You cannot please God without faith. Romans chapter 14, 23 says that whatever is not of faith is sin. Whatever you do for God, if it is not rooted in trust in God, it's an offense to God. Preach. [Applause] If you don't believe in God, you're a fool. Psalm 14:1, Psalm 53:1, both say the same thing: "The fool has said in his heart that there is no God." With all due respect tonight, friend, if you got a PhD but don't believe in God, you're just an educated fool. Worse than that, you are worse off than demons. James chapter 2, verse 19 says, "The demons know God is real, and it makes them shake and shudder." To please God, you must believe in God. And you must believe two things. Says the Bible, Hebrews 11, it says you must believe that he is, that he exists, that he's real, and you must believe that he is a rewarder of those that diligently seek him. Somebody in this room, you came to church tonight, but your life is in trouble because you have been seeking things that cannot save, cannot strengthen, and cannot satisfy. But I'm glad to report tonight that God still allows you turns. And if you seek the Lord, you will be rewarded. That's the good news. That's the good news of the gospel. In fact, that good news, at the same time, is bad news, worst news, good news, and best news. The bad news tonight is that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. The worst news is that there is nothing we can do to fix what our sin has broken. The good news is God sent his son named Jesus, who lived a righteous life, died at the cross for our sins, and rose from the dead. And that ain't even the best news. The best news is it doesn't matter what you've been doing, how long you've been doing it. Tonight, if you turn from your sin and trust in Jesus, you can have free forgiveness, new life, and eternal hope. Holy Ghost.
Walking with God is about faith in God, but it's also about fellowship with God. Our culture has lost the art of walking. We live in an Uber society. We can effortlessly get wherever we want to go conveniently. And so, outside of some exercise, we view walking as tiresome and taxing, tedious and time-consuming. But not so in the world of the scriptures. Typically, in the Bible, that was the only means of transportation. Wherever one went, whatever one did, they had to walk. In fact, outside of the triumphal entry, there was no other record in the Gospels of Jesus riding anywhere. He walked from place to place. Walking was so tied to the daily activities of life in the biblical world, so much so that in the Old and New Testament, walking became a metaphorical synonym for life. One's walk is about one's lifestyle, one's consistent conduct, one's habitual behavior. And that's what the text means when it says Enoch walked with God. It is talking about how Enoch lived. Enoch, the text is saying, lived in fellowship with God. Y'all not hearing me tonight? Just execute the white spaces and consider what the text doesn't say. The text doesn't say that Enoch walked behind God. Lord, help me tonight. The text doesn't say Enoch walked ahead of God. The text doesn't say Enoch walked away from God. Yeah. It says Enoch walked with God in close, personal, intimate fellowship with Almighty God.
There's not a lot of biographical material in the Bible about Enoch, but I can tell you three things about Enoch. I contend tonight that Enoch was a humble man. Enoch was a holy man. Enoch was a happy man. How you know, HB? Because Enoch walked with God. Y'all not listening tonight? Y'all not listening tonight? Hold on to your seats, 'cause I'm about to blow your mind tonight. If Enoch walked with God, it means God graciously condescended to walk with Enoch. Are you hearing me? If you're a parent of a little child, parents don't walk with children. You're one stride down the road. Yes, sir. And so really, the parent is more waiting on the child than walking with the child. [Music] Did you ever consider that the only way you walk with God is that God's been waiting on you? That's not HB. That's the Bible. Isaiah 30:18 says, "The Lord waits that he might be gracious to you, and he exalts himself that he might be merciful to you. For the Lord is a God of justice, and blessed are all who wait on him." If you walk with him, it doesn't mean you're perfect. It doesn't mean you get everything right. But it means that you've got a good God that'll wait on you when you miss the mark, so that you can... I got to move on. Just let me testify so I can move on. "I come to the garden alone, while the dew is still on the roses, and the voice I hear falling on my ear, the Son of Man discloses. He speaks, and the sound of his voice is so sweet that the birds hush their singing. And the melody that he gave to me in my heart is ringing. He walks with me, he talks with me, and he tells me that I am his own. And the joy we share as we tarry there, none other has ever known." That's how walking with God begins.
But can I secondly say a word about how walking with God progresses? When I'm at home, my exercise whenever I can, I go for a walk. That's my preferred exercise. My wife a couple of years ago bought me a real nice treadmill. That thing is nice. And I got all kind of books stacked up on it. My prayer life. I prefer to go walk outside. It's not just physical exercise, but the fresh air is spiritually refreshing. It's different being on that treadmill. On the treadmill, you can get exercise and burn calories. I even learned how to multitask on that treadmill. There are benefits of that treadmill, but I just can't get over the strange feeling that even after you walk for miles on the treadmill, [Applause] you're still in the exact same place where you started. [Applause] It's like sitting in a rocking chair. There's motion, but no progress. Yes. And I want to say to you tonight, you can't walk with God on a treadmill. If you're going to walk with God, that initial step of faith needs to become an ongoing walk. [Applause]
How do you then progress in your walk with God? Two ways. First of all, you got to go with God. Yes, sir. Amos 3:3 asks, "How can two walk together unless they be agreed?" Yes, sir. You got to make some agreements if you're going to walk together. If you're walking together without agreeing to walk together, that's not called walking. That's called stalking. To actually walk together, you got to make some agreements. You got to, to walk together, you got to agree on destination. If one is walking home and the other's walking to the store, you can't really walk together. Different destinations will inevitably separate you. And listen, friends, you can't walk with God unless you go into the same place. [Applause] Not only that, walking with God requires that you agree not only on destination but on mode of travel. Yeah. See, if one is riding and the other one is walking, you're not walking together. But that's why too many of us have been in church for years without evidence of spiritual progress, because we just want to ride and let God do the walking. Too many elevator Christians in the church. Boy, those elevators are convenient. You just push a button and it'll come to you. We get frustrated if it doesn't come quicker. "Where is this elevator at?" And you get in and you push a button and it takes you, if I could say it in church talk, it takes you to the next level. [Applause] And that's why a lot of church folk are making no progress. We come to church and give and sing a few songs and hear a sermon, and we think by just pushing a few buttons, we can get God to take us where we want to go. And it never grows. For your faith to grow, friend, you got to learn how to take the stairs with God. I wish I had somebody here that knows what it is to walk the stairs with God. It's hard sometimes. It's painful. Sometimes you feel like giving up. But as you walk the stairs with God, when you get to those quitting points, you're able to look back behind you and say, "I'm not where I ought to be, but thank God I'm not where I have..." I got a witness here. You got to agree on direction. If God's going north, you going south, you can't walk together. God's going east and you going west, you can't walk together. You got to be going in the same direction. That's why, friend, if the Lord wakes you up in the morning, don't get so busy for work that you don't have any time to pray and spend time in the Word before your day starts. You need to make sure you and God are going in the same direction.
Let me move on. You got to go with God. But not only do you go with God, you got to stay with God. The challenge of walking with God is what Vance Havner used to call the middle miles. The middle miles. Anybody can be excited at the beginning of the journey. You're fresh and full of energy and expectation. And anybody can be excited at the end of the journey. You're weary and worn out, but you're almost there. The end is in view. The prize is nearby. But it's those middle miles, where you're too far from where you began and too far in that you can't see the end, and you feel like quitting and giving up. There are these quitting points in life. And if you are going to walk with God, you can't just walk with God. You can't just go with God when the sun is shining. You got to learn how to stay with God when the rain is falling. I thought I'd have a witness there. I'm glad I brought my own, just in case. David says in Psalm 23:4, "He ain't just a good shepherd in green pastures by still waters and the path of righteousness. But even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, because you are with me. Your rod and your staff, they comfort me."
A little boy went to the second grade and before he started the second grade, he had a meeting with his mother and said, "Mom, I'm a big boy now and I want to walk to school by myself." She said, "No, son. You're not ready." He said, "Mama, I am. I'm not in the first grade anymore. I'm a second grader and I'm big enough to walk by myself." His explanations weren't working. So, he started negotiating and he said, "You pay that girl a quarter to walk me to and from school. If you let me walk by myself, I'll only charge you 15 cents. You can keep the dime for yourself." And he kept pressing her till she consented and he started walking to school without the little girl. And one day at a family get-together, he starts bragging about what a big boy he was walking to school by himself. But I guess he went too far. And Mama said, "Son, I don't mean to bust your bubble, but you need to know that you've never walked to school by yourself. Every morning when you leave the house, my mama waits for you to get a house or two down the road. And I'd follow you every step of the way till you made it safely to school." And at 3:00 when you come out the school every day, Mama was waiting across the street, and I followed you every step of the way to make sure you got home safely. Can I tell you how you in Lily Grove tonight? You're here because you ain't never walked by yourself. Now, no matter how it looked, no matter how it felt, no matter how it seemed, he's been with you every step of the way. I'm one with you. One with you.
I got one more word. I've said a word about how walking with God begins. Uh-huh. I've said a word about how walking with God progresses. I can't sit down without telling you how walking with God climaxes. There are two people in the Bible, preacher, who did not die. Uh-huh. Yeah. And for the record, Jesus is not on that short list. [Applause] Jesus was the sinless Son of God. And yet he died like a criminal on a Roman cross for our sins, and God raised him from the dead on the third day. But there are two others who actually transitioned from earth to glory without tasting death. I don't have time to tell you about one of them, but you can look him up. His name is the prophet Elijah. And he was one day walking with his ministerial protégé, Elisha, and he says, "If you watch me, if your eyes are on me when I check out of here, you'll have a double portion of my spirit." And while they were walking and talking, 2 Kings chapter 2, verse 1 says, "Chariots of fire swooped down and raptured the prophet to glory." [Applause]
I think this story is even more dramatic. Verse 24 says, "Enoch walked with God." Come on, preacher. [Applause] "And he was not." He was not. Mercy. Come on, preacher. He was not. Doesn't mean he did not exist. He was alive and well. He was just supernaturally transported from earth to glory without tasting death. When the text says he was not, it means he was not found. [Applause] It's the greatest missing person's case in the Old Testament. When one day, Enoch just disappeared. His wife and children couldn't find him. Watch it. His brothers, his sisters couldn't find him. His friends and neighbors couldn't find him. And then the text tells us why they couldn't find him. Yeah. They couldn't find him because God took him. That line is one of the reasons why I believe the Bible is the word of God. If this was merely a purely man-made product, they would have filled in the blanks with a lot of details for us to see how miraculous and supernatural this transition was. But the Bible, being the word of God, speaks discreetly and without giving us details, it just says he was not, for God took him. Yeah. I don't know how to explain all of that, but I want to... I have to sit down, but I want you to know I believe it. I believe it. You couldn't make me. You couldn't pay me enough money to get me to stand up here and preach from a Bible that I don't believe. I believe every word of God is true. Yes, sir. I believe God just took him. Yes, sir. He had an undertaker. He had an uppertaker. He was just not, for God took him.
I have a thought about what happened. Come on. I'm sitting down with this. I can't prove it, but you can't disprove it. So, play along for just a minute. I imagine that God and Enoch were friends. And every day God would drive by Enoch's house for fellowship. And at the end of the day, when God got ready to leave, Enoch would walk him to the gate. And this was a daily routine. God would visit Enoch. [Applause] Enoch and God would fellowship. And when God got ready to leave, Enoch would walk him to the gate. But I imagine one day God and Enoch got to walking and talking, and the conversation got so good to Enoch that Enoch lost track of time. Can you picture that? I imagine that God started telling Enoch how he stood on the scaffold of his own being and broke the silence of a not-yet universe by just simply declaring, "Let there be light." And Enoch said, "That sounds pretty good." And they just kept on walking. Yeah. I believe that as they walked and talked, God told Enoch how he made the sun from the brilliance of his face and hung it like a golden medallion around the neck of the universe. God told Enoch how he flung the fleecy white clouds against the azure-colored canvas of the vaulted blue. God told Enoch how he sprayed out the stars like a million flaming skyrockets against the ebony dome of evening. And Enoch said, "That sounds pretty good." And he kept right on walking. Hallelujah. God told Enoch how he perfectly designed every room in this majestic creation. And yet there was not a king or queen to enjoy the beauty of his handiwork. And so God took a lump of clay, stamped his image on man's brow, put the quest for truth in man's heart, and breathed into man's nostrils the breath of life, and he became a living spirit. Enoch said, "That sounds good." And they kept on walking. God bless you, Lily Grove. I'm sitting down.
Enoch walked with God, but at some point, Enoch turned around and when he turned around, he couldn't see his house in the distance anymore. But he looked ahead of him, and he could see the top of the Lord's house. Hallelujah. And the Lord told Enoch, "Since you're closer to my house than your house, come on and go in with me." Is there anybody here that can say, "I'm walking with him, and every day gets sweeter, sweeter as the days go by. What a fellowship, what a joy divine, leading on to everlasting arms. Blessed assurance, blessed assurance, Jesus is mine. Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine. Every salvation purchased by God, born of his Spirit, washed in his blood. This is..." Anybody got a story tonight? This is my story. This is my song. I praise him. Thank you, Jesus. I praise him. Praise his name. Praise his name. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Applause]