Faith of Enoch

Hebrews 11:5-6 (NIV) & Genesis 5:24 (NIV)

I'm sure all of us at some time or another have envied Enoch. This has got to be the way to go!! Both before and after Enoch, death was part of the normal life cycle. A person is born and then the end is death. Death has always been dreaded and feared. We don't even like to talk about death and dying. Enoch does not know what death is like! Scripture says "then he was no more, because God took him" Evidently, Enoch pleased God.

It is not an accident that Paul talked about Enoch before he talked about pleasing God. I need to be careful how I interpret the proximity of these thoughts. We could say that if you are pleasing God sufficiently, you will not have to die. I am not ready to suggest that.
But it is interesting, right?

We don't know that much about Enoch. There are only 6 (six) verses of Scripture talk about Enoch. We don't know his profession. Compared with others in Scripture, we know very little. We know a great deal about individuals like: David, Abraham, Moses, Jacob, I for one would like to know more.

Was he better than these individuals? Was he better than David? Did he please God more that David the man after God's heart, yet died? The only thing we know about Enoch is that he walked with God. Hebrews 11:5 ...he was commended as one who pleased God.

What does all of this mean?

Let me suggest 4 (four) things
1. He Obeyed God
2. He agreed with God
3. He and God had a mutual trust
4. He kept pace with God

HE OBEYED GOD
In all we do, we must obey God. You can't walk with God and be disobedient. When we walk with God, we do what He wants to do. You cannot rebel and walk with God. God requires obedience. This is BASIC in our walk with God. You must be moving in the same direction as God But there is more.

AGREE WITH GOD
You can obey God and not be happy about it. We can go through the motions but our hearts not be in it. We can go to Africa, but inside we are at home in the U. S. We can go to church and be wishing we were at watching something on TV. It is an Attitude thing. Most of us praise the "Sermon On The Mount" but we don't live by it. Often we say "God know best" Yet we complain at what He is doing in our lives. We must not only obey, we must AGREE. That is easy to say, but we still need to learn to agree with God and His ways in our life.

I will be the first to admit that I don't always like what He does in my life. I admit that there are times we obey, while we are not agreeing with His ways. I pray that I would be willingly agree that what God is doing is best. God, Please adjust my attitude! Our actions and our philosophy must agree with God! Enoch was agreeing with God as he obeyed Him.

MUTUAL TRUST
Do you trust God? That is a great question, but I have a better question. DOES GOD TRUST YOU? Enoch trusted God with the issues of life. He knew that God knows best. He obeyed God He was agreeing with God. He was pleased to walk with God. That is why they walked together! As they walked together they developed a mutual trust. Enoch trusted God with his life. That is why he could obey and agree with God. God, also, trusted Enoch. God's word says: (Psalm 25:14) "The secret of the lord is with them that fear Him"

God said this about Abraham: "Shall I hide from Abraham that which I do ... for I have known him" (Gen) I love a verse found in Psalm 103:7 (NIV) He made known his ways to Moses, his deeds to the people of Israel: God had a confidence in Moses that He did not have with Israel. Moses was privileged to know some of the "whys and wherefores"

GOD TRUSTED MOSES
He talked with Moses, He did not hide his purposes from Moses.

For 300 years Enoch and God: Moved together, Were in agreement, TRUSTED EACH OTHER

ENOCH KEPT PACE WITH GOD
He did not lag behind! He did not run ahead!
Illustration: Walking with children: They often want to go ahead or lag behind.

Often we get excited and our zeal outruns God and prudence. When we run ahead of God, we run into trouble. When we lag behind, we miss out on God's plan. This is all too often the case in our lives.

Peter is a good "BAD example" When they were in the garden prior to the arrest of Jesus and Peter got ahead of Jesus. In his excitement he drew his sword and cut the ear off of the servant. He jumped out ahead of his Lord. His motive was right, but his actions were wrong!!
Christ had to rebuke Peter and then he lagged behind.

This is not walking with God. We need to keep God's pace Not ahead and not behind!! "Enoch walked with God; then he was no more, because God took him away"

I like this story about and girl who had heard this story in Sunday School and related it to her mother: "Mom we learned about and wonderful man today. His name was Enoch. He and God use to go for walks together. One day they talked and walked and got farther and farther from home. Then God said ‘you're too far from your home, you had better come and stay with me.'"

Enoch walked with God; then he was no more, because God took him away

How is your walk with God?

Are you: Obedient? Agreeing with God? Trusting God? - Trustworthy? Keeping pace with God?

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