Genesis 6:7–8 — The LORD said, “I will wipe from the face of the earth the human beings I have created, along with the animals, creeping creatures and birds of the sky, for I regret that I made them.” But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.
Good morning, brother or sister in the faith. My prayer is that you will be blessed in Christ, enjoy a good day and live for the glory of God.
In this chapter of Genesis, we meet the Bible's first mention of grace. Through one man, Noah, God chooses to preserve a remnant from the approaching destruction brought about by humanity's wickedness, arrogance and refusal to repent.
Understanding grace
Grace is difficult for us to understand for several reasons. First, we live in a highly competitive world. Achievements, goals and rewards are usually measured by merit. Second, this way of thinking takes root in us from childhood: we learn to ask whether we deserve something. The idea of deserving is not foreign to Scripture, but it confronts us in the opposite way from what we might expect. If we have spent our lives sinning, we cannot claim God's blessing as something we have earned. Paul teaches that the law was not given to make us good enough to reach heaven. Rather, the law reveals our sin, our inability and our need for a Saviour. Have you considered that the law is like a mirror that reveals the dirt on your soul but cannot wash it away? Or like an X-ray that shows our spiritual condition but cannot heal us?
God's grace in Noah
In his human nature, Noah was not different from the rest of humanity. We see this in the fact that sin continued among human beings even after the great flood. The text describes Noah's godly life by saying that he walked with God, yet it was the Lord who supplied the grace that made him an instrument through whom humanity would be preserved and renewed. The wickedness of that time had become so overwhelming that God judged the inhabitants of the earth. Do you understand that, if you have heard God's voice, this is because of his grace at work in your life? What does grace mean to you? Grace is something we receive without deserving it. Therefore, show gratitude and extend grace to others. Treat people with love and unselfish service, rather than simply giving them what you believe they deserve. Our God is a God of grace.
The giants of ancient times
The giants mentioned in this chapter raise many questions and have prompted considerable debate. Let us focus on what may build us up, rather than simply feed our curiosity. The reflection understands them as people who claimed powers that were not theirs and took the daughters of men for themselves. It considers the possibility that they possessed unusual physical strength and used violence to dominate others. We cannot know much about this from the text, but the picture is one of wickedness reaching intolerable heights before God. How do you behave towards those who are weaker than you? How do you treat people in need? Do you exploit them, or seek their well-being? These questions matter, because strength and ability must never become instruments of oppression.
Theological reflection
We can distinguish common grace from special grace. Common grace is God's kindness that allows human beings to enjoy life. This is reflected in Noah's story. Scripture tells us that God makes the sun rise on the righteous and the unrighteous. Through Noah, God preserves humanity despite the sin and evil within us. Special grace concerns salvation that reaches beyond physical preservation to the salvation of the soul. Jesus asked, “What does it profit a person to gain the whole world and lose their soul?” He came to die for our sins, not merely to save us from a flood, but to preserve our souls from God's judgment against the wickedness and ungodliness of this world. Do you believe in Jesus? Will you come to him in faith?
May God preserve your life in Christ Jesus, prosper you, guide you and build you up in his love and truth.
Take a moment. Bring what you have read before God.