And we are continuing a
Sermon series
through the book of Genesis, and today, we
come to Genesis chapter 5.
After today, we're gonna take a break from
Genesis until after the All church retreat, the
weekend of August eleventh.
And as you
turn to Genesis chapter 5, you may see
why we may need a break.
As you quickly look at the text And...
But I will say this. I feel pretty
confident in saying this will easily be 1
of the top 5 sermon you've ever heard
on Genesis 5.
Okay. Not not because I think it's gonna
be a great sermon just because
it may be the only sermon you have
ever heard a will here on this text.
Because it is just 1 long gene.
And I totally I totally understand whenever pastors
you'll skip
gene ideologies whenever they're planning out sermon series.
In fact, I get it. I get it
whenever, you know, you are going through your
daily bible reading plan, and you see, oh,
okay. It's a gene.
Alright. This is gonna be quick. You know,
And you and you
skim through it. I I get that.
Personally,
I've never been overly fascinated with gene ideologies.
And and that is until 1 of our
church members
decided that she was going to do some
research on me and my gene ideology.
And, you know, And it was it was
fascinating. I mean, I clicked on the link
that... Or the the document that she had
sent me. And, you know, before that, before
looking at it, I thought, okay, the the
the the the most interesting thing about my
gene is that You know, my name's
Richard, Richard Harris. My grandfather's name is Richard
harris, his father's name was Richard harris. So,
that's really cool.
I click on this this document and
lo and behold, you know, I've got 3
ancestors who fought in the revolutionary war.
Right? Which is really cool. And now, and
all my ancestors go back to Georgia until
the, till 1800.
Which probably also means that
we were debtors and prisoners. But with that
said, it was it was way cooler than
than what I thought it was. There was
more there than what I thought I was
going to find. And if you have not
spent much time in Genesis 5, which most
of you probably have not,
I think you're going to see that there
is... There's a lot more to this gene
than perhaps what you have assumed or
skimmed through. Now before I read all of
Genesis 5 to us, there are a few
preliminary topics I wanna mention, I think, because
I think this is helpful to to orient
us to this chapter.
Okay? Because once I begin reading it, this
a gene ideology.
And I know you're you're gonna be... You
know, you're gonna be serious. You wanna try
to focus in. But unless you know kind
of somewhat to look for it's going to
be hard to keep from kind drifting off.
Okay? So
few things often,
Ideologies in the bible are given to us
because they are of particular
historical and theological
significance.
And that's certainly the case which genesis is
5. There's rich theological significance here. We're gonna
see this. That this gene
records
the line of the promised seed, the promised
offspring of the woman, the godly line
from Adam
through Seth,
down to Noah
and his sons,
the the line from whom Ultimately,
the the promised
savior messiah, Jesus Christ
will come
through Noah son, Shi.
Saved from the great flood in the ark.
Stands in contrast with the the gene that
we see at the end of Genesis 4
of wicked canes,
you know, wicked line.
Now it's also common for gene ideologies in
the bible to include 7 generations or 10
generations or a multiple of 7 or 10.
You last week, we saw the the Genesis
4
of Kain, and it included 7 generations.
Today, Genesis 5 includes 10 generations from Adam
to noah.
In just this 11, there'll be another gene
that includes 10 generations from Noah to April.
A year ago, we or last year we
studied the book of ruth.
And in chapter 4 towards the end of
ruth, there is a gene.
Gene of King David. It includes 10 generations.
Perhaps the most famous gene and the bible
is Jesus gene in Matthew 1.
It doesn't have 7 or 10 generations, but
it has 3 sets of 14
generations.
Again, a multiple of 7.
Jesus gene in Luke 3 has 21
generations from Adam to Abraham,
14
generations from Abraham to David 21
generations from David to the exile 21
generations from the exile to Jesus. Again, a
multiple of 7.
Other thing to remember about gene ideologies
is that they're often not exhaustive
or closed.
Rather they're often selective or as comment refer
to them as being open,
not to say that they're wrong, or inaccurate.
But rather they are
intentionally selective in the names that are included
to allow us to see and to focus
in on the theological important part of the
gene.
Okay. So, Genesis 5 like the rest of
the book of Genesis is true history.
This is an accurate gene.
Is it selective? Yes. I I believe it
is selective, and I don't think that the
gene tries to hide that from us.
For example, we're gonna be told
among
this about a number of men in the
gene, but we're told about Adam in just
5 verse 4 that he had other sons
and daughters, but size seth,
but their names are not listed.
But it still is an accurate and true
historical narrative like the rest of Genesis.
However, this most certainly means
that we are not intended
to add up all the ages of the
men listed in Genesis 5
to then figure out how old the earth
is.
Okay?
Now,
so I know that offend some of us
perhaps, well, to offend the other half of
us.
I still also don't think that adds up
to billions and billions of years either. Okay?
So now we've offended everybody as we think
about how old the earth is. Okay. But
God has given us this true and accurate
gene
here for more significant in theological and
historical reasons
than guessing at the the age of the
earth.
You see, you're going also notice
that the men in This Genesis 5 geology,
they live extraordinarily long lives.
So there's a question. Right? Why? Why do
people live so much longer
before the flood than after the flood.
Okay? We can't we can't know for certain,
but we know that the flood was
such a huge and cataclysmic
event that it forever changed
and altered the earth and life on the
earth.
That it stands to reason that is that
the flood changed the the the atmosphere and
the clot the climate
and what life was like on the earth,
To the point that
spans soon became much shorter after the flood.
It also stands to reason,
and the long life spans before the great
flood was purposeful in god's sovereign plan, as
men were able to faithfully tell generation after
generation after generation, the story of creation and
fall and god's promise of redemption through the
offspring of the woman who was yet to
come.
But who would come.
And through his own suffering, he would crush
the serpent head and defeat Satan.
And so this was 1 of the ways
that God preserved the truth and the reliability
of his word among his people.
Okay. That's a lot.
Often, the gene ideologies in the bible are
given to us
because they are of some particular
theological,
and red dent historical significance and that is
certainly the case here.
As it records and traces the line of
the promise offspring of the woman
from Adam through Seth, to noah and to
his sons.
A line that will eventually find its climax
and fulfillment in Christ
the promise savior and messiah. So with all
that said, here, god's holy inspired and inherent
and infallible life giving word,
I'll begin reading in Genesis chapter 5 verse
1.
This is the book of the generations of
Adam.
When God created man, he made him in
the likeness of God.
Male and female, he created them and he
blessed them and named the man when they
were created.
When Adam had lived 130
years, he father a son and his own
likeness
after his image and named seth.
The days of Adam, after he father... Earth
were 800 years, and he had other sons
and daughters.
Thus, all the days that Adam lived were
930
years, and he died.
When Seth had lived 105 years, he followed
E enoch.
Seth lived after he followed E enoch 807
years and had other sons and daughters.
Thus all the days of seth were 912
years, and he died.
When Enoch should lived 90 years, he followed
Keen.
E enoch lived after he followed king in
815
years and had other sons and daughters.
Thus all the days of En enoch were
905
years, and he died.
When Keen had lived 70 years, he father
Mahal,
Keen lived after he father Mahal, 840
years and had other sons and daughters.
Thus all the days of Keen were 910
years, and he died. When Mahal mahal had
lived 65 years, he followed Jared.
Mahal mahal lived after he father Jared at
830
years and had other sons and daughters.
Thus, all the days of Mahal were 895
and he died.
When Jared had lived 162
years, he followed Enoch.
Jared lived after he followed Enoch 800 years
who had other sons and daughters
Thus all the days of Jared were 962
years and he died.
When En enoch had lived 65 years, he
father Math.
Enoch walked with God after he followed Meth
300 years and had other sons and daughters.
Thus all the days of Enoch were 365
years
E enoch walked with God, and he was
not for God took him.
When Math had lived 187
years, he father lam.
Math lived after he father lam 782
years and had other sons and daughters. Thus
all the days of Meth were 969
years and he died. When Lam had lived
182
years, he followed a son and called his
name Noah, saying, out of the ground that
the Lord has cursed, This 1 shall bring
us relief from our work and from the
painful toil of our hands.
Lam lived at father Noah, 595
years, had other sons and daughters,
thus all the days of Fl were 777
years, and he died,
After Noah was 500 years old,
Noah father Shi, ham and Ja.
This is the word of the Lord.
And it's absolutely true it's given to us
in love and for our good.
So in this gene,
3 men stand out, and we're gonna make
other observations from other parts of the whole
gene, but we're gonna use these 3 names...
Stand out as the outline for today. K?
So we have Adam,
Enoch,
and Noah.
Adam, Enoch, and Noah. So first, Adam,
Look at verse 1.
This is the book of the generations of
Adam. When God created man, he made him
in the likeness of god.
So I hope that sounds familiar. That's a
deliberate echo of what we read in Genesis
chapter 1 that Adam was made in the
likeness of God as an image bearer of
God.
And guess what?
This is true
of every person in this sanctuary this morning.
This is true of every person you've ever
met.
This is true of every person you will
ever meet.
This is why Christians
are to see inherent worth and dignity in
all people.
Regardless of their ethnicity
or their native language
or their level of education
or their age,
and this is true for people who will
vote differently than you will vote in November.
This is true of people who think differently
about what happened at the political rally last
night.
See, this is true of your greatest enemy
This is true of the person who has
lied to you the most,
the person who has betrayed you. This is
true of the person who who hates you.
This is true of every person you've ever
met
and every person you will ever meet.
They are image bearer of god.
And show we, as followers of Christ should
seek to treat them
with value and dignity
deserving of an image bearer of God.
And this is true for all people,
male and female.
Look look at verse 2. Male and female
he created them, and he blessed them and
named them man when they were created.
So male and female, Adam and, they're both
named, man. They're both named Adam dom when
they were created. See Male and Ph equally.
Fully
mankind.
Right? And I believe that every 1 of
us in the sanctuary story this morning, we
agree that men and women are equal god.
I don't think anybody with that. Right? We
all believe that men and women have equal
value and standing and dignity
before God and they ought to be treated
that way.
However, the reason why we think that
is not because it's 20 24 and our
society has advanced. The reason we think that
is because of what we read in the
book of Genesis,
what we read in Genesis 1,
what we read in Genesis 5.
We think that way
we think that way
because of what Jesus taught.
We think that way because of the way
he treated,
women and children during his earthly ministry during
the this recorded in the gospel accounts.
That's what's lay the foundation for us thinking
the way that we think today about women
and children.
Anyone who thinks that the bible is reg
progressive on how women ought to be valued
and treated with dignity, respect and honor
has not read the bible very carefully
or even at all,
The bible is the reason that we all
agree that men and women
have equal value and dignity before God.
But it's also true here in Genesis, 1
in many other places.
It's also true in Genesis 1 as well
as Genesis 5 in many other places. That
the bible makes it clear that there are
differences
between men and women. There are differences between
boys and girls
I, in the the... The biblical text here
highlights that. And these differences are good things.
I mean, look again at verse 2, male
and female we created them. And he blessed
them and named the man when they were
created.
So you see?
You know, gender is is god's idea.
Right? If you're a boy or man, then
your mel
is intrinsic,
inherent and essential to who god designed you
to be.
If you're a girl or a woman then
your female
is intrinsic, inherent essential to who god designed
you to be.
So regardless of how
confusing and harmful the the the teaching on
these matters is on Tv, and
commercials and social media and schools and universities.
Their friends, we have to be committed
to to teaching and raising
little boys up to know that
being made a little boy means
that they're gonna grow up to be a
man.
And that's a good thing.
And we have to not be afraid to
raise boys to grow to be men.
Who gonna be good, strong, tough, tender men
who will service as servant leaders in their
home in the church out in the world.
Likewise, we have teach little girls. That's a
good thing, that God made them female.
And that means they're gonna grow to be
women.
And we have to not be afraid to
raise girls to grow to be women God
women who'll be eager to serve and their
god given roles in the home in the
church in the world to the fullest
to the fullest of their ability.
To the glory of God.
Now in in listen, parents, grandparents. If you're
not sure how to do that.
Listen, that's okay Let us know, talk to
our pastors, our elders, our dea, we would
love to help you. We'd love to come
alongside you.
Now, look at verses 3 and 4.
When Adam had lived a hundred and 30
years,
he father a son in his own likeness.
After his image,
named seth.
The days of adam a Mat father's Seth
were 800 years,
and he had other sons and daughters.
Okay. Now think about these 2 verses.
For a moment? Don't don't just run by
them because
my guess is in Genesis 5 versus 1
and. Okay Those are verses that say a
little... Give me a little bit of content.
I'm focusing on those But we get the
verse 3, and we begin to add in
numbers.
All of a sudden go, okay, Richard. I
didn't sign up for math and numbers and
and we began this where began to skim
and read through things quickly, but we shouldn't
do that.
See this is
the summary that we're given,
of Adam's life.
Okay. Adam's kind of an important guy.
I mean, think about all that he did
named the animals.
Married the first woman,
committed the first sin,
Think about Adam. Think about his life.
Do you see what Genesis 5
list as Adam's legacy?
The the the the the sum of his
life
in this godly gene. You remember, Genesis 5
is the godly gene.
Leading to the the promised
offspring of the woman. What's the summary of
his life?
It's not a trick question. It's.
He lived he had children,
including Seth,
and Adam passed down to his children, faith
in the 1 true God.
Even remember what we saw last week at
the end of Genesis 4,
and Adam knew his wife again and she
bore a son and called his name seth.
For she said, God has appointed for me
another offspring instead of able for Cain killed
him
to Seth, also a son was born, and
he called his name En enoch. At that
time, people began to call upon the name
of the Lord. And so Adam passed on,
Faith in the 1 true God
to Seth, who passed it on to his
son, En enoch and gathered corporate worship,
comes down through Adam's children in the line
of seth.
Okay. So what does that mean? If you
think about the summary of Adam's legacy in
Genesis 5. That every 1 of us
in this.
We have done, we're gonna do really cool
things,
some very noteworthy things
some really valuable things throughout our lives,
but ultimately
our legacy
is the people to whom we passed on
faith in Christ.
It's the people who we encouraged
who we spurred on to followed Christ more
wholeheartedly
You know, whether that be the covenant children
who got entrusted to us in our homes
for us to pray for and evan and
disciple and bring to worship and to live
a godly example before or whether that be
that the children in teenagers, the Esl students
and the other men and women, and the
the prisoners who we volunteered
to serve and to teach and to pray
for and to invest in and to encourage
through the various ministries of the church.
Or whether that be the friends and the
family members and the neighbors and the c
and the classmates that we never ever ever
gave up praying for that we never ever
stop sharing with and be f and reaching
out to and inviting for them to know
and to investigate and to follow Christ.
See, this is the legacy
that we have of adam.
Okay. Look look at verse 5.
Thus all the days that Adam lived for
930
years.
And he died. Now, again, that number of
930
years, that may be what jumps off the
page at you from verse 5. Wow. That's
a long life.
I could tell you, that's not what God
intends for you to notice in Genesis 5.
It's not how long they lived.
But
And I know this because the refrain that
is repeated over and over and over and
over and over and over again throughout Genesis
5 is the last phrase of that sentence,
and he died.
8 times
It's like a solemn funeral bill that just
keeps on ringing
all throughout. There's 10 generations in 8 times
we read and he died.
Okay. So think this through Adam Lived 930
years. That's a long time.
You perhaps he and eve and maybe others
started to think. Okay? You know what? Maybe
God didn't really mean that that death was
that death death, like dying death was the
punishment for my. I mean, is what God
said, but maybe that's not what God meant.
I mean I mean, that's what Satan told
us, saying sam, you know, hey, there's no
consequences for sin.
Right? You're not... You will not surely die.
Right God's lying to you.
He's he's directing you. He's misleading you.
But we know. Right? God never lies. His
word is always true and it's given to
us in love.
And so Adam did die. He would die
is as Romans chapter 5 verse 12 puts
it. Therefore, just as sin came into the
world through 1 man. Adam.
And death through sin,
and so death spread to all men
because all sinned.
And guess what? That's genesis is 5.
That's what we find all throughout this chapter.
Right in verse 5, thus all the days
of Adam, any he died.
Verse 8, thus all the days of seth
and he died. Verse 11, thus all the
days of E enoch and he died. Verse
14.
The solid days of Keen and he died.
Verse 17, the solid days of Mahal mahal
and he died. Verse 20, the solid days
of Jared and he died. And then we're
gonna skip past Enoch will come back to
him verse 27.
Thus all the days of,
and he died. Verse 31. Thus all the
days of Lam. And he died.
You see the wages of sin is death,
and so death spread to all men
beginning after Adam's sin.
And so Genesis 5
is a reminder.
So no matter how long we live on
this earth,
we will all die.
You we may think that we will live
forever, but we won't, we will all die
in remembering that reality
that 1 day, our life here on this
earth will come to an end
is critical for living this life well.
It really really is. That's why the bible
tells us this over and over again in
a number of ways giving us different
images and analog, the metaphors for how to
think about life.
In Job 7, verse 7, we read, remember
that my life is a breath.
Psalm 39 verse 5 be hold you have
made my days a few hand breaths, and
my lifetime is as nothing before you, surely
all mankind stands as a mere breath.
Psalm 01:02 For my days, pass away like
smoke
later in Psalm 01:02. My days or like
an evening shadow.
I with her away like grass.
In the new testament, James 4 verse 14
as, what is your life?
For you are a mist
that appears for a little time and then
vanish us.
You see, there's so much in our world
that wants us to believe that wants to
communicate that you to you that you can
be,
you can be buffer
you can be insulated.
You can be secure
that you can live here forever as the
stars of your own show so you all
to just, you know, make your plans.
Do what you wanna do,
acquire all your possessions, work to build up
your portfolio
without any meaningful
consideration of god
and of eternity
and of heaven and hell of his word
of the millions of lost people literally all
around us in the city of Houston.
But what genesis is 5 in the the
totality of scripture says over and over again
is don't do that.
And don't live like you're gonna be here
forever.
Instead live, plan work like your life is
short.
And like, you don't wanna waste it on
worldly things.
You know, live like, you wanna make your
midst of a life count for the glory
of God. I mean, remember, life is short.
Eternity is near.
That ought impact the way that we live.
You'll psalm 90 verse 12 says, so teach
us to number our days.
That we may get a heart of wisdom.
Okay. Every time I read psalm 90, I
can't help, but break out my phone, type
in you know, average life expectancy
in the Us. And so currently, what they're
saying is a lot... The average life expectancy
in the Us is 78...
78 years. It's like 77.5
years. We'll round up 78.
So what that means
If you're 30 years old,
and you're going live to be 78,
you have 17520
more days.
You're 40 years old,
you're literally to be 78, you have 13870
more days.
If you're 50 years old,
10220
more days.
60 years old, 6570
more days, and now looking around the room.
No 1 looks even close to 60. So
we'll just stop there. But the the point
being that
it is, we gain a heart of wisdom,
we gain a heart of wisdom.
When we remember,
that ultimately our life here on this earth.
It's a mist.
We're here today we're gone tomorrow. Listen.
I am I am the wisest
most humble,
the best pastor whenever I remember it there'll
be a day
whenever I will no longer pass through this
church or any church.
Because I'm a mist.
I am the the the the wisest
best
husband
and daddy whenever I
remember
that my days with my bride and my
children are not unlimited.
That they matter.
It matters how I invest them, how I
spend them.
You see the theme of death is prominent
in Genesis 5, So we're gonna come back
to it. Okay? But there are 2 men
in in all of the bible who who
never die.
1 of them is listed in Genesis 5,
but there's also Elijah in second kings to
was taken up to heaven by a whirlwind
But the 1 list of Joseph's 5 is
enoch. And so that's our second heading Enoch.
So look at versus 21 to 24.
When Enoch had lived 65 years, he father
Meth,
Enoch walked with God after he father Meth
300 years
and had other sons and daughters.
Thus all the days of Enoch were 365
years. E enoch walk with God and he
was not for God took him.
So that phrase walked with God, what does
it mean? Well, it means that he walks
by faith. It means that he walked in
a way that plagues the God, which you
can see at the in the footnote at
the bottom of your Esp Bible.
If you flip over the new testament, Hebrews
11 versus 5 and 6, say this. 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 committed as having
please God
and without faith, it's impossible to please him
for whoever withdraw near to god must believe
that he exists and that he rewards those
who seek him.
So Enoch walk with God and please God.
He walked by faith. Now, of course, it
doesn't mean that Enoch was without in. Right?
All of sin and fall short of the
glory of God, but Genesis 5 is telling
us that among this godly line
From Adam through Seth,
down to noah, enoch in particular, he stood
out.
As 1 who pleased God as he walked
with God by faith.
And that's what hebrews 11 makes clear.
Yet, last week, we saw that lam in
the line of cain was the seventh in
that line.
And Cain Islamic was a portrait of exceptional
in exceeding wicked
immoral morality, violence.
And he celebrated. He boasted
about it as he mocked God.
Here Enoch in the line of seth is
seventh in that line.
And this enoch is the portrait of a
faithful man who please God as he walked
with God by faith.
Okay. So what does that mean? What does
that mean for you and me today for
us to walk with God.
For us to please God as we walk
with him by faith.
Well, I think the old P bible comment,
Matthew Henry, was very helpful. He says, to
walk with God is to set god always
before us.
And to act as those who are always
under his eye.
It is to make God's word our rule
and his glory, our end and all our
actions
It is to make it our constant care
and endeavor in everything to please God and
in nothing to offend him.
Try to walk with him. See, that's... The
people of God have always been called to
walk with God
by faith.
You're gonna see in the next chapter in
Genesis 6,
verse 9 that noah was a righteous man
blame listen in this in his generation.
And says noah walked with God.
In the new testament, Christians are called to
walk with God. Paul writes in Galatians 5,
If we live by the spirit, let us
keep in step
walking with the spirit.
In 2. Therefore, as you receive Christ, Jesus,
the Lord, so walk in him. You'll walk
with him, rooted built up in him
in ephesians 4. Verse 1. I therefore, a
prisoner for the lord urge you to walk
in a manner worthy of the calling to
which you've been called. Right? The first 3
chapters of ephesians talk about what God has
done for us for our salvation in Christ.
We once we're dead in our tres passes
and sins, but we have been made alive
together with Christ.
Ephesians for then turns the corner and says,
you've received a new calling
and so now be who you are.
Walk in a manner worthy of that calling.
So all Christians are called to walk with
God.
Can you think about that? If you... I
know some of you maybe, you know, you
have a friend
whom you walk with or or who you
run with?
You think about that. What why do you
why do you walk or run with them?
I... Because they're your friend.
Right? Because you enjoy being with them
that you know them well, and and you
look forward to your time with them and
and for them to keep getting to know
you better and you keep getting to know
them better. Well, it's the same thing. You
see, to walk with God is is to
wanna be with them.
It's to love him to want to know
him to to desire to read and to
know in the study and and to hear
his word priest and explain it's it's too
long to faithfully
obey his word.
And so we see in Genesis 5 verse
24,
e enoch walk with God,
and he was not
for God took him.
Or he was no longer found for God
took him. Okay. So what does that... What
does that look like? For God to take
Enoch?
I have no idea. And no 1 else
has any idea. Okay. So 1 day, Enoch
was a 365
year old man on this earth and suddenly,
he was no longer found.
For God took him.
Now, I think God has given us this
record of Enoch life in the true account
of Enoch not dying to make a very
significant theological point.
Okay. But the point is not
a formula.
The point is not, okay, Enoch was so
good that he earned his salvation by walking
with God. Therefore, if you are good enough,
Okay. If you're good enough, you try hard
enough,
it'd be obedient enough, you'd be faithful enough,
then you can, you can earn this
position this standing with God and that you
can perhaps 1 day achieve this level of
avoiding death and going straight up to heaven.
No friends, enoch like all sinful people had
to be saved by grace through faith in
the savior.
He was saved by faith in the savior
who was to come.
A promise offering offspring of the woman
who threw his suffering with Crushed Serpent head.
I mean, hebrews 11 highlights Enoch faith.
And the rest of the bible makes it
clear that that saving faith is a gift
from god.
Right salvation, a gift of god not by
work, so no 1 can boast.
He enoch did not earn his salvation by
being good enough or generous enough or kind
enough because no 1 can.
Listen to how professor Richard Be puts it.
Enoch example does not mean that everyone who
walks with God will avoid physical death.
But it does mean that everyone who walks
with God will experience the same kind of
life that Enoch experienced.
Both in this life and in the next
life.
You see, that's that's the key, I think
the enoch life
is a reminder to us that for the
Christian
Death is never the last word.
That for the Christian, death is never the
final answer that death is never
ultimately getting the final victory in the end.
You see what we we too often think
wrongly about death
We think of death being the end of
everything.
We we think of death being that we
we lose out on everything.
We see for the Christian, death is not
passing from the land of the living to
the land of the dead. No for the
Christian, death is passing from the land of
the dying.
To the land of the living, where we
will spend all eternity with our God and
his people.
You see, and this this is true for
your loved ones who have passed away in
Christ,
and this is true for you
that this is our hope,
and it's all because of Christ, and his
life death and resurrection.
Listen how Paul puts in Romans 5
for if because of 1 man's tres pass.
That's Adam.
Death reigned through that 1 man.
Much more will those who receive the abundance
of grace and the free gift of righteousness
reign in life
through the 1 man Jesus Christ.
Therefore,
As 1 Tres past led the condemnation for
all men, so 1 act of righteousness
leaves to
justification and life
for all men.
You see salvation in Christ is so much
more.
Than merely having your sins forgiven.
It is that, but when you come to
Christ, yes, your sins are washed away,
your sin debt is fully paid
is canceled.
That that that bill because of your sin
is torn up.
There is... Therefore no therefore now no
condemnation for you or that will ever be
for you why.
Because Christ was condemned in your place on
the cross.
There's no more for you,
but there's even more than that It's not
just that your sins are washed away, you're
also credited with Christ's perfect life of righteousness.
But even as wonderful as that is that
same
resurrection power that raised Jesus from the dead
on that first easter morning has raised you
to walk in newness of life to new
life in Christ.
That you only have your sins paid for,
not only are you credited with Christ righteousness
but you are now living a resurrected life
as Ephesians 2 says you are now currently
seated with Christ
in the heavenly places.
Given a new heart
made a new creation.
Or
bone,
Scottish preacher in 1800 says the first Adam
dies,
and we die in him. But the second
Adam, that's Christ dies, and we live in
him
The first Adam's grave pro claims only death,
the second Adam's grave announces life.
I am the resurrection and the life. Right?
That was our assurance of pardon and comfort
today earlier in the service.
This from John 11 versus 25,
and 26. Right before Jesus raises lazarus from
the dead. I'm the direction resurrection the life.
Whoever believes in me, though he die yet,
shall he live. And everyone who lives and
believes in me shall never die.
You see the same God who said no.
To death in taking Enoch up to heaven
is the same God who will 1 day
raise you up from your grave and take
you to be with him.
For all eternity if you are in Christ.
Now there's 1 more man who stands Alan
genesis 5, and this is gonna be quick.
This is Noah.
Okay. I'm not gonna say a lot about
Noah today.
I don't think this is a spoiler, but
we're gonna talk a lot about Noah. Okay.
The next 3 chapters. You know, he he
builds an arc. Lot of water comes. He's
kind of an important guy. We'll talk a
lot more about him. We're we're going just
touch on him. Okay? Versus 28 and 29.
When Lam had lived 182
years, he followed a son called his name
Noah saying, out of the ground that the
lord has cursed. To hear that? That's language
from the fall,
consequence from Adam's sin in the garden.
Out of the ground, the Lord has cursed
This 1 shall bring us relief from our
work
and from the painful toil of our hands.
So this let... There's a Islamic genesis 4
in wicked kings line and that Lame is
an evil man.
Guilty of great sin,
boasting about it. He is always looking for
revenge. Remember he's he's saying in his song.
I have killed a man for wounding me.
This lam in just 5 in the godly
line of Seth, he's not looking for revenge
rather he's longing for relief.
He's so grieve over the effects of sin
in the world
And in the hearts of mankind that he
named his son noah
because Noah sounds like the Hebrew word for
rest
for relief.
Islamic names his son in hope that deliverance
for god's faithful people will come. And isn't
that what comes?
Are we're gonna see in our study of
Genesis 6 to 9 that through noah laborers
in building the arc, he will make a
way for God's people to pass
unharmed through the waters of God's judgment and
deliver them
to provide relief and rest for them on
the other side.
Now we know that Noah is not the
promised offspring of the woman. He's not the
1 who's going crush the serpent head through
his own suffering.
But Noah is 1 whose life points forward
to the Christ who was to come.
Right? In fact, Jesus will eventually come through
the line of Noah
and his son shi, who was saved from
the flood on the ark.
Okay. So Genesis 5 is a list of
men.
All but 1 died,
but Genesis 5 is not ultimately about death
It's ultimately about life.
Real true, abundant,
eternal
resurrection life
because in Christ
death does not get the last word.
Death does not ultimately win the final victory.
So let me leave you with this.
First Corinthians chapter 15.
Behold, I tell you a mystery.
We shall not all sleep, but we shall
all be changed.
In a moment, and the twin of an
eye at the last Trumpet.
The Trumpet will sound and the dead will
be raised imp,
and we shall be changed.
For this perishable body must put on the
imp. And this mortal body must put on
immortality. When the perishable puts on the imp
and the mortal puts on mortality, then shall
come to pass the saying that is written.
Death is swallowed up in victory, O death
where is your victory, O death where he
is your sting.
The sting of death is sin.
The power of sin is the law, but
thanks be to god. Who gives us the
victory through our lord Jesus Christ.
Amen.
Amen, let's pray.
Father, we thank you for all of your
word in efforts and today, we thank you
especially for Genesis chapter 5 and this gene.
And what it teaches us
about ourselves
and about our span of years here on
this earth,
or may we think
rightly both about our days here on the
earth but also about eternity and Heaven and
hell.
And who were what we're trusting in
for our salvation.
And may we wrestle well with whether or
not we
We know
this Christ.
This son of god who took on human
flesh. You lived the perfect sin endless life.
Who died the at
sufficient sacrifice
on the cross
who rose from the grave 3 days later?
Do we know him
the resurrection and the life
do we love him?
Are we following him?
Genesis is 5. In fact, the whole of
the bible
calls us to put our faith and trust
in him,
while they help us to do that today.
We ask call this in Jesus name. Amen.