Genesis 6

Genesis 4 ended with two different pictures of humanity.Lamech bragged about violence and revenge.But other people began calling on the name of the Lord.By Genesis 6, the violence has continued to grow.Genesis tells us that human wickedness had become great and that the thoughts of the human heart were continually turned toward evil.What began with eating fruit in the garden has spread into the entire human story.Adam and Eve distrusted God.Cain killed Abel.Lamech celebrated revenge.Now the earth is filled with violence.Sin never stays in one place.It moves from our hearts into our choices.From our choices into our relationships.From our relationships into families, communities, and entire cultures.Genesis 6 also tells us how God responds.God is grieved.That is important because we can sometimes imagine God looking down on human sin with nothing but anger.But Genesis describes something deeper.God sees the world He created for beauty, relationship, and life becoming filled with corruption and violence.And it breaks His heart.When Genesis says that God regretted making humanity, it does not mean that God suddenly realized He had made a mistake or that He did not know this could happen.It describes His grief over what humanity has done with the life and freedom He gave them.God cares about what is happening on the earth.He cares about violence.He cares about injustice.He cares about the ways people created in His image are hurting one another.Because God loves His creation, He refuses to pretend that evil does not matter.That means judgment is coming.But Genesis 6 does not end with judgment.It ends by telling us:“Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord.”Even when sin has spread throughout the world, God has not given up on the world.He begins looking for someone willing to trust Him.Someone through whom He can preserve life.Someone who will work with Him as He begins the story again.Humanity has become unfaithful.But God remains committed to what He created.Sin has filled the earth, but God is already making a way to rescue it.

Genesis describes Noah in a way we have not heard about anyone else so far:“Noah walked with God.”That does not mean Noah was perfect.Later in his story, Noah will fail too.But in a world filled with violence and corruption, Noah is willing to listen to God and live differently.God tells Noah that judgment is coming and commands him to build an enormous boat.Imagine how strange that must have sounded.There is no flood yet.There is no visible reason to build an ark.There is only God’s warning and God’s instruction.Noah has to decide whether he will trust what he sees or trust what God has said.That question should sound familiar.Adam and Eve stood in the garden and decided that their way would work better than God’s.Cain heard God’s warning about sin crouching at his door and ignored it.Now Noah hears God’s warning.And Noah obeys.Genesis says:“Noah did everything just as God commanded him.”God is looking for someone willing to work with Him on the earth.That does not mean God needs Noah as an equal or that Noah will rescue the world through his own strength.God provides the warning.God provides the instructions.God determines how rescue will happen.But God chooses to work through Noah’s trust and obedience.We often want God to show us the whole plan before we take the first step.How is this going to work?What will everyone think?What if I do what God says and nothing happens?Noah does not receive an answer to every possible question.He receives instructions for the next faithful step.So he begins building.Board by board.Day after day.Long before the rain starts.Walking with God usually looks less dramatic than we imagine. Most of the time, it means listening to what God has said and doing the next faithful thing, even when we cannot see where the story is going.God remains the One who rescues.But He invites Noah to take part in what He is doing.God works through people who are willing to trust Him before they can see how the story will turn out.