Day 3 – September 6, 2023: Genesis 4-7, John 4-5
September 6, 2023As I make my way through this challenge I once again realize that I cannot cover everything that is mentioned in all of the readings that we have. It is tempting to address that which is most common and what maybe you want me to cover. For this reading it might be Noah and the ark, or it could be Cain murdering Abel and the resulting banishment of one of Adam’s sons. The question of whether there were other people around the earth constantly comes up, and the answer in my mind is yes, of course. The Bible gives us the story of God among His people, it isn’t meant to be exhaustive of every little thing that had taken place on the face of the earth. While Adam and Eve were the first people that God created, it doesn’t mean that God stopped creating. Actually, quite the opposite is true. God is still creating today, putting life back into the earth in a way that is redeeming and inspiring.
Let’s focus on John 5:24 which is very easily a verse that you may have just read over on your way to the end of the chapter. In this verse we see a difference between believing “in” God and believing God. We can believe in God, and we would do well to believe (James 2:19) in God. But when we believe God, then it means that we believe that God is able. It means that we take on Jesus Christ as Lord and not merely a God who exists. When someone is Lord in our life than it means that they have ownership and have the power and the ability to dictate our steps in our life.
I say this not in a budensome way, but rather in a way that frees us. How are we to know the path of our life and how to live our life? We do know it, it is through the direction of Scripture and the power of the Holy Spirit. We are not to be wandering pilgrims on the face of this earth, but rather we are to be people of God who live according to the desires of our Lord. When we hear God’s Word, which we are doing now in this challenge, we are then called to believe God and His promises. When that happens we receive eternal life. This eternal life is meant for all of us and it is meant to be a transformative element in nature and in society. I pray that this time together leads us to not a mere belief in God, but rather a conviction, a belief that Christ is able and is Lord.
These two sections of scripture have an interesting dichotomy. In Genesis, we see God issuing consequences towards Cain and to the people of Noah’s time, all of whom strayed from God’s commandments. In John, Jesus meets the adulterous woman and the lame man on the mat (both people who were on the outs of society for different reasons), and while He doesn’t pat them on the head and validate all they have done, He sends them so that their actions will improve their lives and the lives of those around them. The woman at the well goes back to Sychar to proclaim the coming of the Messiah. The lame man picks up his mat and walks, causing a stir on the Sabbath and reminding everyone that God’s power is not limited by our religious doctrines and customs. In another sense, this group of scriptures sees God sending four different people for His purposes, the aforementioned woman and lame man, Noah, and (I would argue) Seth, who God sends to pick up where Abel left off, as I understand it. God calls people to missions, but nowhere does he ask any of these people to be passive in their faith. Maybe that’s why people refer to their faith as their walk?