- [Narrator] Is long age the only attribute
that Methuselah had?
A secret fact about Methuselah demonstrates God's grace
that most people are unaware of.
It is stated that Methuselah's father, Enoch,
was a prophet,
and Jude recorded one statement that he had spoken.
Jude 14-15.
"Enoch, the seventh from Adam,
prophesied about them:
'See, the Lord is coming with thousands upon thousands
of his holy ones to judge everyone,
and to convict all of them
of all the ungodly acts they have committed
in their ungodliness,
and of all the defiant words ungodly sinners have spoken
against him.'"
This prophecy was unwritten,
as it is absent from the Bible.
Now, there is a significant fact about Enoch
that concerns us in this brief discussion.
The message was that God would soon come to judge,
and that He would take action against all forms
of ungodliness.
And Enoch, when he was 65 years old,
had a kid, a boy,
and God gave him a name for the boy,
which was to be called when he dies, it will happen.
What a unique and impressive name for a young man.
Can you picture a teacher at a school asking,
"What is your name, young man?"
"When he dies, it will happen."
Or the teacher may ask,
"Have you done your homework,
when he dies, it will happen?"
It is important to keep in mind
that his name, when he dies, it will happen,
was not in English.
Rather, it was written in the Semitic language.
Are you familiar with what it means in the Semitic language?
It is Methuselah.
And Enoch knew that when his son dies,
God will judge the world.
Because God is so patient,
Methuselah lived longer
than any other person ever recorded because of this fact.
Isn't that simply incredible?
After 969 years,
Methuselah passed away.
And the day after he passed,
it started to rain heavily
and the floods began.
And Enoch's great-grandson, Methuselah's grandson,
was called Noah.
When the ages of the patriarchs are compared,
the year of the flood is found to be the same year
that Methuselah passed away.
It is a common misconception
that Methuselah perished in the flood.
However, this is not the case.
Methuselah was brought up by a holy parent, Enoch,
who walked with God and pleased God
to the point that God whisked him away from the world
without allowing him to die.
And he and his three sons spent 12 months,
probably 120 years,
building a huge covered raft
according to God's specifications.
You know the story.
So, Noah had heard Enoch's sermon on the coming judgment
and realized that Methuselah's name implied
that the judgment would come soon
after that patriarch's death.
Enoch is a breath of fresh air
in an era when most of his colleagues simply had the record
of their birth and their offspring.
Enoch was introduced in history books with others,
but even though he did not live as long
as some of the other individuals,
his testimony is compelling.
Despite living his ordinary human life,
the Bible emphasizes that he walks with God.
We must also remember this.
Noah's faith came through the preaching of these older men.
Preaching is the main way God speaks to us today.
The Apostle Paul stated,
Romans 10:17,
"Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message,
and the message is heard through the word about Christ."
"And how shall they hear without a preacher?"
Romans 10:14.
Then, Noah also saw the world's horrible sin in his day.
The Bible says,
"God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth,
and that every imagination of the thoughts
of his heart was only evil continually."
Genesis 6:5.
"And God said unto Noah,
'The end of all flesh has come before me,
for the earth is filled with violence through them,
and behold, I will destroy them with the earth.'"
Genesis 6:13.
Whatever else it signifies,
it demonstrates that the Holy Spirit was active
in those days.
God used Enoch and Methuselah's preaching.
God used the preaching of Enoch and Methuselah.
He used Noah's own observation of a world resonant in sin,
and He sent the Holy Spirit to speak
to Noah's heart and enlighten him.
With the demise of Methuselah
and the recent passing of Lamech,
we pause to realize
that there were not many righteous people left
on the planet.
Finally, the day came when dark clouds began to gather.
"And God said to Noah,
'Come into the ark,
you and all your household,
because I have seen that you are righteous before me
in this generation.'"
Genesis 7:1.
And so Noah and his family
and the creatures entered the ark,
and the door was shut behind them.
Rain began to fall, softly at first,
but then with increasing intensity
until it was a torrential downpour.
For 40 days and 40 nights,
the heavens opened,
and water covered the Earth,
lifting the ark upon its waves.
The world outside was no more,
but inside the ark, life persisted.
Afloat on a boundless sea kept safe by a promise,
a covenant between God and man
that even in the darkest times,
hope and goodness can survive.
So Noah and his family waited for the water to go down,
ever faithful that the covenant God had made
with them would hold true.
A promise of a new beginning for humanity
and all living creatures on Earth.
Understanding life before the flood.
Understanding life before the flood is crucial
for several reasons.
Firstly, it sets the stage
for the dramatic story of Noah and the ark,
a narrative that serves as an eternal metaphor
for salvation and a new beginning.
The conditions leading up to the flood provide us
with moral and ethical lessons
that have been contemplated
and discussed for thousands of years.
Secondly, life before the flood
helps us appreciate the biblical theme of transformation.
The world before was notably different,
whether in terms of human behavior,
divine interactions, or natural environment.
By studying this period,
we can better understand the scope and significance
of the change that came after the waters receded.
Finally, knowing about life
before the flood deepens our understanding
of the human condition.
It offers a looking glass into the struggles,
choices, and even spiritual realities
that have shaped humanity
since the beginning of time.
Even though life a long time ago
before the flood was very different
from how we live now,
the people back then were asking the same big questions
we ask today.
They wondered about what makes something right or wrong,
why they were here,
and how they should connect with God.
In simple terms, think of life before the flood
as the first act in a play.
It introduces the characters
and sets the stage for what's to come.
By understanding it,
we can better appreciate the whole story,
find wisdom for today,
and anticipate the acts that are yet to unfold.
The fall, Genesis 3.
In the Bible,
specifically in the book of Genesis 3,
we come across a story that's often referred to as the fall.
It describes the events leading
to the first sin committed by Adam and Eve,
the first human beings.
One of the key players in this story is the serpent.
The consequences of disobedience.
The act of disobedience changes everything.
Disobedience introduces sin and death into the world,
affecting not only Adam and Eve
but all of their descendants.
That is all of humanity.
The story of the fall in Genesis 3
is a narrative rich in themes of temptation,
free will, and the consequences of disobedience.
It serves as a sobering reminder
of the impact of our choices
and the limitations of human judgment
when swayed by external influences.
When we think about the world
before the big flood in the Bible,
we can see it's a lot like our own world in some ways.
The story isn't just something
that happened a long time ago,
it's a warning about what can go wrong
when people stop being good
and doing the right thing.
Just like Noah was a good man
even when everyone around him were corrupt before God,
we also live in a world where it's hard to know what's right
and what's wrong sometimes.
But just like Noah listened to God and did the right thing,
we can also try to be good people.
Noah's story shows us that even when things are really bad,
we can still choose to be good
and make a safe space for ourselves and our loved ones,
filled with faith and love.
God's covenant with Noah symbolized by the rainbow
assures us that hope and grace remain.
"Even after the stormiest of trials,
I have set my rainbow in the clouds,
and it will be a sign of the covenant
between me and the earth."
Genesis 9:13.
This promise from God isn't just for Noah,
it's for everyone forever.
It means we can always start over and make things right.
Understanding life before the flood
is like looking into a mirror
that reflects both the shortcomings
and the potential of humanity.
It offers us a choice to either repeat history
or to learn from it.
As we go through tough and confusing times,
let's try to be like Noah,
staying strong in what we believe
and working toward a better future
that makes us all proud to be human,
just like God wants for us.
According to the words of the Apostle Paul,
"Whatever is true, whatever is noble,
whatever is right, whatever is pure,
whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable,
if anything is excellent or praiseworthy,
think about such things."
Philippians 4:8.
The tale of the world before the flood serves as a reminder
not just for how far we can fall
but how high we can rise.
We can see resemblances in Enoch's story
with the story of Revelation, yet to come.
In a hostile world,
we are called to be righteous
and to walk in faith with God.
Although many of us will experience death,
both Christians who have previously died
and those still alive will participate
in this event together.
1 Thessalonians 4:13-18,
Amplified Bible.
"Now we do not want you to be uninformed, believers,
about those who are asleep in death,
so that you will not grieve for them
as the others do who have no hope beyond this present life.
For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again,
as in fact He did,
even so God in this same way,
by raising them from the dead,
will bring with Him those believers
who have fallen asleep in Jesus.
For we say this to you by the Lord's own word,
that we who are still alive
and remain until the coming of the Lord
will in no way precede into His presence
those believers who have fallen asleep in death.
For the Lord Himself will come down from heaven
with a shout of command,
with the voice of the archangel
and with the blast of the trumpet of God,
and the dead in Christ will rise first.
Then we who are alive and remain on the earth
will simultaneously be caught up, raptured,
together with them, the resurrected ones,
in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air,
and so we will always be with the Lord!
Therefore comfort and encourage one another
with these words concerning our reunion
with believers who have died."
The fantastic thing is that the Bible's still used
in the time of Enoch, Methuselah, and Noah
as a warning for us today.
Even with someone
who was only mentioned seven times in scripture,
in genealogies, no less,
digging a little can enhance our understanding
with some nuggets of truth.
Prayer.
Heavenly Father, as we gather here today,
we are reminded of the stories
from ancient days of life before the flood.
A world filled with both innocence and imperfection,
existing in the delicate balance of Your divine design.
Lord, we too live in a world of beauty and chaos,
potential and pitfalls.
We ask for Your guidance to navigate the waters
that are both calm and turbulent,
just as the people before the flood must have yearned
for Your presence.
Help us, Father,
to appreciate the simple joys
and love that abound in our lives.
The laughter of a child,
the beauty of a sunrise,
the comfort of a warm embrace.
Knowing that these moments are glimpses
of Your eternal love for us.
In this time before our own floods,
whatever they may be,
trials, changes, or transformations,
equip us with the faith of Noah,
who entrusted in Your promises in the midst of disbelief
and scorn of the world.
As the flood waters of life rise around us,
may we find our ark in You,
may our hearts remain steadfast and our spirit strong,
holding fast to the belief
that after every storm
there exists the promise of a rainbow,
a covenant of Your unending love and faithfulness.
After the flood, however, evil continued.
We see this in the story of Nimrod.
To watch the video, click here.