Genesis_6

Scripture  Genesis 6:9 This is the account of Noah and his family. Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked faithfully with God. Observation The world was in a bad place. Around 2000 years after Yahweh created Mankind, the Nephilim(sons of God as the Bible calls them) came down and hooked up with the daughters of humans. And everything started to get really bad, “every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time.” (Gen. 6:5) But...there was one man that caught Yahweh’s attention.  Noah. Understanding  Noah means rest and comfort. Righteous means Purity of heart and rectitude of life; conformity of heart and life to the divine instructions. Obedience is compliance with an order, request, law or submission to another's authority. In the midst of a shaky world, surroundings with conflict, disregard for each other, perverseness, and evil, we can find rest.  Obedience to Yahweh, creates righteousness, which leads to rest. He will lift you up out of the darkness and turmoil around you, He will keep you safe in His Ark,He will carry you to fulfill His will,He will give you rest. Genesis 6:22 Noah did everything just as God commanded him. Life Application  Just say, “Yes LORD.” One yes after another. One step toward Him. One step after another, and you will have “walked faithfully with God.” 

Abba Father, you are Holy and righteous! You sit in the highest heaven and still choose to condescend with man, with little old me. How do I dare to disobey your commands?How do I let my surrounding discomfort and evils in the world deceive me into disobedience? Holy Spirit come, open my eyes to see you that I may walk in your footsteps, open my ears to hear you that I may obey exactly as you have said, open my heart to receive your word and instructions. Holy Spirit fall on us so that we would be “strong and courageous” knowing that You are with us and that You lead us on “paths of righteousness” to find rest. In the name of your son and my savior, Yeshua, Amen!

 

-Deborah Lee

 Please take a few minutes to listen with the captions on and meditate on His word. Enjoy! https://youtu.be/RWM8gSSnz_8

Genesis 5

Scripture

‭‭Genesis‬ ‭5:23-24‬ ‬‬

“Enoch lived 365 years, walking in close fellowship with God. Then one day he disappeared, because God took him.”

 

Observation-What does it say?

This chapter gives you an account of all the descendants of Adam and Eve. It tells you their names, how old they were when they had kids, their kids names, and how old they were when they died. But in Enoch’s case, he did not die. God simply took him.

 

Understanding-What does it mean?

 

Enoch was the first example of what will happen during the rapture.

 

It’s an event that is spoken about in the Bible. It’s an event that we Christians look forward to. I’m talking about The Rapture. It’s when the dead in Christ and the ones still living on earth who put their faith in Jesus, almost instantly and simultaneously are caught up and are brought into the presence of God.

 

“For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, the believers who have died will rise from their graves. Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever.”-‭‭1 Thessalonians‬ ‭4:16-17‬ ‬‬

 

It’s the next prophetic event to take place on The Church’s calendar. It signifies the End Times and the beginning of the 7 years of Tribulation that the book of Revelation speaks of. It’s when Jesus comes for His people, and rescues them from the upcoming calamities and judgment He will be placing upon the earth for their sinfulness and their rejection of the gospel message.

 

Now the only thing we know about Enoch is what the Bible tells us here in Genesis. He was a man who walked in close fellowship with God. He was one of two people in the Bible who did not experience death (the prophet Elijah being the other one). He was ultimately taken into the presence of the Lord, not having to deal with an upcoming calamity God was going to send in a form of flooding the entire earth. Why did God choose Enoch and Elijah as the only ones to not experience death? Only God knows. All that I can tell you is what will happen to those who choose Christ, and those who reject Him.

 

Life Application

 

Walk in close fellowship with God and encourage others to do so too.

 

Oh how I would love to be like Enoch and Elijah and live a life and not have to experience death. But that is not for me to determine. All I can do is follow their example and live a life in close fellowship with God. How does that look like today? By spending time with Him daily (PB & J-Prayer, Bible Reading, & Journaling), loving those around me, and encouraging them to live a life trusting God and obeying His ways. We who read God’s Word know how it ends. We know what happens to those who choose Jesus, and for those who reject Him. And if we truly have that close fellowship with God like Enoch did, shouldn’t we also have the same heart as God for those lost souls in the world? Shouldn’t we want all to come and know Jesus? Shouldn’t we want to save them from the upcoming calamities and instead be raptured/taken into the presence of God forever and ever? I pray we all are on mission this week. Let us be prepared for Jesus’ coming.

 

-Moses Gaddi

 

1 Corinthians 13

Scripture 1 Corinthians 13: 1-7 If I speak in the tongues[a] of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 3 If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast,[b] but do not have love, I gain nothing.4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Observation-What does it say? The Apostle Paul is writing to the Corinthian church and in the previous chapter, chapter 12, he was describing all the spiritual gifts. However, this chapter is basically Paul saying that out of ALL the spiritual gifts, LOVE is the most excellent way! Understanding-What does it mean?Love is absolutely necessary!What were the first 2 commandments that God gave in the Old Testament? (Hint: You can find them in Exodus 20:2-17 and Deuteronomy 5:6-21.)In the New Testament, how did Jesus say He would sum up the commandments? (Hint: Matthew 22: 36-40) Life ApplicationWithout love, we’re just wasting our time. They will know we are Christians by our love, NOT our works. As I’m writing this, my husband are celebrating 13 years of being married! Today is a celebration of our love commitment, vows and becoming one as husband and wife. This chapter in Scripture was used in our wedding and is very popular for Christian weddings! We made a commitment in front of a total of 200 family, friends, Pastors, ministry leaders, and most importantly God, through better or worse, sickness and health, for richer or poorer and ’til death do us part! Staying faithful to a love commitment like that is only possible through the Holy Spirit and our daily choice to put the Lord and each other first, lots of forgiveness, laughter, serving one another, and continued investment in each other! Now, let’s parallel this to church ministry and mission. It doesn’t matter what degree we have, what knowledge of God’s Word we have, what gifts or talents we’ve been blessed with, or what kind of sacrifices we make for the Kingdom like fasting, keeping the Sabbath, giving money to the poor, etc. Without deep love for the people we are trying to minister to, they won’t listen to us and we may actually turn people away from Jesus instead of towards Him.Let’s continue to be on mission for Jesus, but not forget that the most important ministry to the people is to love them in action and deed, the same way Jesus loves us, His church/bride. What are some ways you can do that? If you need help, I recommend that you watch/rewatch Justin's message from last Sunday. Here's the link:Mission Possible | Desert Streams Church-Michelle Gaddi