In my post yesterday, I mentioned something about ‘cutting it short’ for a change and that made me chuckle. I bet someone thought “you used that word...’short’...I don’t think that word means what you think it means”.

While I have little idea as to who or how many people read these devotional studies of mine that I post daily, one thing I do get feedback on repeatedly is how ‘long’ they are. I get it, and it does not offend me nor hurt my feelings. Early on when I started doing these, I found myself wanting to ‘apologize’ for the length of them and was quickly rebuked and compelled to stop doing that. It goes without saying that I provide plenty of scripture verses in these with the hopes that the reader will look them up and study them for themselves. I know without a doubt that God’s word is what does the work ‘in us’. (1 Thess. 2:13).

I only mention this again because the other morning, I was wondering if I should try to shorten them up some, and this thought was brought to my mind immediately, as if God was speaking to my heart. - I could almost hear Him saying....”I have never once, ever heard anyone complain about receiving too many chips they were served when dining out at a Mexican restaurant.” That made me laugh aloud.

Can we really indulge too much...on God’s word? I’ve always thought that when we set our children down, if not ourselves, to the dinner table and we don’t have much of an appetite, it is usually because we filled up on ‘junk food’ during the day. I guess it goes back to that verse about where our treasure is, there our heart will be also.

We were talking yesterday about ‘abiding’ and ‘walking’ in/with God, which seem to go hand in hand. And the question we really need to be addressing more than the question of who is ‘saved’ or not, is whether we are truly abiding in Christ. I gave a few passages that help us identify as to whether one is abiding in Christ and if we are honest, you have to admit they are not easy verses to embrace. Seriously.

If you did give serious consideration to those passages I listed, and you felt a twinge of remorse or conviction, maybe even coming to the conclusion that while you have had a sincere faith and long history of being a ‘faithful church member’ that just maybe this ‘abiding thing’ has eluded you; fret not.

We are supposed to come to the ‘mirror’ of God’s word on a regular basis and make adjustments accordingly, are we not? (James 1:22-25)

Let me also share with you here and now...when I get up early every morning, I don’t venture back to my office with the intent, or a compelling to crank out some devotion or study to share every day. I can honestly tell you that many mornings, when I awaken and go get the coffee started, that I feel like a ‘blank slate’ and quickly assume that I won’t be posting anything that day. Then, I sit down and open up the word to study and ‘feed myself’ and that is when the ‘overflow’ begins to happen. Everything just seems to ‘come alive’ and so many more ‘pieces come together’ for me as the Holy Spirit points out one verse after another. I don’t know that I’ve ever quite experienced this in such a way.

Yesterday morning, I could not get Enoch or Noah off my mind. It is recorded in scripture for all the world to see that both had this testimony: “They walked with God.” (Gen. 5:24 & 6:9)

It is this idea of ‘walking’ that easily feeds in to the idea of ‘abiding’ In Christ. And a number of the scriptures I shared in my post yesterday takes all the ‘guess work’ out of wondering if one is truly abiding in Him. Even though it is hard to ‘argue with scripture’, we still do so anyway and often. Much in part, at the egging on of that pesky ‘serpent’ who still to this day, raises up his rebellious head to ask “Has God really said?” (Gen. 3:1) Yes, God really did say and it’s right there in our bibles to read for ourselves.

Now for some background on Enoch and Noah. Oh, did you know that a ‘rapture’ occurred already? I know...imagine that. And we all missed it. The first one, at least. Actually, there were two recorded in the OT, the first one was with Enoch and the second one was with Elijah. Both were ‘caught up to be with the Lord in the sky’. (Gen. 5:24; 2 Kings 2:11).

We really don’t know much about Enoch other than what is told there in Genesis 5. The meaning of his name is “dedicated, trained, disciplined”. Enoch happened to be the father of Methuselah (of the ‘oldest man’ fame) and he had him (or his wife did) when he was 65 years old. We are then told that it was after Methuselah was born that Enoch ‘walked with God for 300 years’ before he was ‘no more, for God took him’. But twice, we read there how Enoch ‘walked with God’.

Then, much later on, we will find his name listed there in Hebrews 11:5 and how he never ‘saw death for God had taken him’ and...”he had this testimony- that he pleased God".

So there you have it: Enoch walked with God and he pleased God. Enoch was also the great-grandfather of Noah, a name you are probably more familiar with. It would seem that the trait Enoch had was passed down to Noah as we hear the same accolade regarding how “Noah walked with God” himself. We are also told that Noah was a just man, perfect in his generations’. (Gen. 6:9).

But it was Hebrews 11:5-7 that really caught my attention. Not only are both men commended with how they walked with God, but they are noted for their ‘faith’. Enoch had this testimony, that ‘he pleased God’ (Heb. 11:5) and that ‘without faith it is impossible to please Him.” (6)

Now it stands to reason that people whom we love, we also desire to please them, do we not? That’s pretty normal. And given the great commandment of how we are to ‘love God with ALL our heart’, it would seem that we’d want to please Him as well; more so than anyone else I would think.

Oh, can I just throw this verse into the mix here where Paul wrote that ‘those who are carnal and ‘in the flesh’ cannot please God.” (Rom. 8:8). So when Paul writes in Ephesians 5:10 – ‘find out what is pleasing to the Lord’, most of our investigative work is already done for us given what we have just read.

If we remain carnal minded and ‘in the flesh’ we cannot please Him. Nor can we please Him ‘without faith’. (Heb. 11:6). So what does ‘faith look like’? We know what ‘flesh’ looks like by the ‘evident’ deeds/fruit listed there in Gal. 5:19-21. Let’s read on...

“By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved... with godly fear, and...prepared- an ark for the ...saving...of his household...” (7)

Faith is not about just saying some words and making mental assent towards some tenet or doctrinal stand. Faith is something that is intended to ‘move us’ in a particular direction, hopefully in God’s direction. Noah was warned by God...and he took action and he prepared.  

God obviously gave Noah plenty of advance notice and given the plans for the ark he was instructed to build. And God has given us plenty of notice of his judgement being poured out on all those ‘trees that do not bear good fruit’. (Matt. 3:10; 7:19; Luke 13:6-9; John 5:14) Remember the parable of the tares and wheat? What is happening there in Matt. 13:36-43? This might be why Paul then writes saying: “Having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from ALL filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in...the fear of God.” (2 Cor. 7:1). As in: “Put on the Lord Jesus Christ and make NO provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.” (Rom. 13:14)

These verses were not given to us to memorize and analyze; they were given for us ‘to do’. (James 1:22)

As previously stated, we are wired in such a way that we want to please the ones we love. And for the most part, we will find ourselves pleasing one of three entities in this life. Before one comes wholeheartedly to Christ, we are usually bent on pleasing self and pleasing others. When God enters the mix, and we experience His saving grace, mercy and love, we cannot help but to want to love Him and please Him in all that we do. IF...we have been the recipient of that outpouring. And our hearts will be tested.

There were those who actually did believe in Jesus, but they would not confess Him because they loved the praises of men more than the praises of God. (John 12:42-43). Paul talks later about not holding back on preaching God’s word, so as not to be pleasing men, but God who tests our hearts. (1 Thess. 2:4). It does not take long in this life, and a few ‘fiery tests’ for us to see what is really in our hearts. And you will be tested. Repeatedly.

But when we surrender to Him fully and wholeheartedly, you begin to discover that His ‘yoke truly is easy and His burden is light’. (Matt. 11:30). And it is then, that when we truly come to Him with all our heart, that we find ourselves ‘in the ark’ of His presence. Which means we are abiding in Him. And everyone who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk as He walked. (1 John 2:6). And you know what Jesus said? - “I always do those things that please Him (God, the Father).]”.  (John 8:29)

Can someone pass the chips, please? ;-)