1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:10,140 Hello and welcome to this week's episode of Trinity Sermons. 2 00:00:10,140 --> 00:00:14,080 This week we are continuing our sermon series on the heroes of faith. 3 00:00:14,080 --> 00:00:17,720 And we're looking at a guy that you probably have never heard of. 4 00:00:17,720 --> 00:00:22,480 His name is Enoch and there's about four verses in the Bible that tell us about him. 5 00:00:22,480 --> 00:00:27,900 What we know of Enoch is that he walked with God and then he disappeared. 6 00:00:27,900 --> 00:00:33,000 So tune in as Rob takes us through this mysterious story and talks with us more about what it 7 00:00:33,000 --> 00:00:38,000 means to walk with God. 8 00:00:38,000 --> 00:00:46,120 Our first reading is from Genesis chapter 5 verses 21 to 24. 9 00:00:46,120 --> 00:00:53,600 When Enoch had lived 65 years, he became the father of Methuselah. 10 00:00:53,600 --> 00:01:02,000 After he became the father of Methuselah, Enoch walked faithfully with God for 300 years 11 00:01:02,000 --> 00:01:05,400 and had other sons and daughters. 12 00:01:05,400 --> 00:01:10,920 Altogether Enoch lived a total of 365 years. 13 00:01:10,920 --> 00:01:20,080 Enoch walked faithfully with God, then he was no more because God took him away. 14 00:01:20,080 --> 00:01:27,480 Our second reading is from Hebrews chapter 11 verses 5 and 6. 15 00:01:27,480 --> 00:01:34,560 By faith Enoch was taken from this life so that he did not experience death. 16 00:01:34,560 --> 00:01:39,640 He could not be found because God had taken him away. 17 00:01:39,640 --> 00:01:45,680 For before he was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God. 18 00:01:45,680 --> 00:01:52,880 And without faith it is impossible to please God because anyone who comes to him must believe 19 00:01:52,880 --> 00:01:59,460 that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. 20 00:01:59,460 --> 00:02:01,200 This is the word of the Lord. 21 00:02:01,200 --> 00:02:06,040 Well, just about every single superhero has some kind of superpower. 22 00:02:06,040 --> 00:02:09,760 It might not be 100% true, but just about everyone does. 23 00:02:09,760 --> 00:02:11,800 Take for example, here's Superman. 24 00:02:11,800 --> 00:02:16,800 Superman wants to go somewhere, he doesn't walk, he doesn't take an Uber, he doesn't 25 00:02:16,800 --> 00:02:19,000 take the bus, he can fly, right? 26 00:02:19,000 --> 00:02:23,640 He can soar over cities, he can fly over top of mountaintops. 27 00:02:23,640 --> 00:02:28,640 His superpower, one of his superpowers is flying. 28 00:02:28,640 --> 00:02:31,280 Or how about the Flash, right? 29 00:02:31,280 --> 00:02:33,920 His superpower is speed, right? 30 00:02:33,920 --> 00:02:40,240 The Flash could run a marathon, clean his old house, binge watch a Netflix series. 31 00:02:40,240 --> 00:02:43,420 All before you finish tying your shoelaces. 32 00:02:43,420 --> 00:02:46,560 His superpower is speed. 33 00:02:46,560 --> 00:02:51,160 And then of course, what about the Incredible Hulk? 34 00:02:51,160 --> 00:02:53,840 Superpower obviously has got to be strength. 35 00:02:53,840 --> 00:03:00,060 He could lift a car, he could lift a tank, he could lift this whole building if he wanted. 36 00:03:00,060 --> 00:03:02,640 That's his superpower, strength, right? 37 00:03:02,640 --> 00:03:03,720 Lifting. 38 00:03:03,720 --> 00:03:07,840 There's all sorts of different superpowers in the comic book universe, in the Marvel 39 00:03:07,840 --> 00:03:08,840 universe. 40 00:03:08,840 --> 00:03:12,880 There's one in the comic class, one that might be a little more obscure, but this is Squirrel 41 00:03:12,880 --> 00:03:13,880 Girl. 42 00:03:13,880 --> 00:03:14,880 Squirrel Girl. 43 00:03:14,880 --> 00:03:17,600 And believe it or not, she has a superpower. 44 00:03:17,600 --> 00:03:21,160 And her superpower is summoning squirrels. 45 00:03:21,160 --> 00:03:25,680 So she just does this and then squirrels come running to her. 46 00:03:25,680 --> 00:03:29,640 She has the ability to talk to squirrels, speak to squirrels, and actually she has a 47 00:03:29,640 --> 00:03:34,000 utility belt that she wears that contains little pouches that she puts nuts and stuff 48 00:03:34,000 --> 00:03:36,680 in there to feed her squirrel friends. 49 00:03:36,680 --> 00:03:38,720 It's true, you should look her up. 50 00:03:38,720 --> 00:03:39,720 Squirrel Girl. 51 00:03:39,720 --> 00:03:42,040 So you've got all of these different superpowers. 52 00:03:42,040 --> 00:03:48,680 You've got flying, you've got running, you've got lifting, you've got summoning squirrels. 53 00:03:48,680 --> 00:03:51,280 And then of course, we come to Enoch. 54 00:03:51,280 --> 00:03:52,280 Enoch. 55 00:03:52,280 --> 00:03:55,160 Enoch is the hero that we are looking at today. 56 00:03:55,160 --> 00:03:58,280 And what is Enoch's superpower? 57 00:03:58,280 --> 00:04:01,120 Well, wait for it. 58 00:04:01,120 --> 00:04:04,600 It is walking. 59 00:04:04,600 --> 00:04:09,960 Enoch's superpower, the thing that he is known for is walking, not flying, not jumping, not 60 00:04:09,960 --> 00:04:13,880 lifting, but walking with God. 61 00:04:13,880 --> 00:04:18,760 And while that may sound kind of like, that doesn't sound very much like a power or doesn't 62 00:04:18,760 --> 00:04:23,200 make him into a hero, we're going to find out that actually walking with God is one 63 00:04:23,200 --> 00:04:27,920 of the most transformative and powerful things that a person can do. 64 00:04:27,920 --> 00:04:33,360 In fact, it may just be the greatest superpower of them all. 65 00:04:33,360 --> 00:04:38,840 So this January, we began a brand new teaching series, which we called Heroes of Faith. 66 00:04:38,840 --> 00:04:43,520 And really all we're doing in this series is we're just looking at one chapter of one 67 00:04:43,520 --> 00:04:44,640 book in the Bible. 68 00:04:44,640 --> 00:04:50,160 The chapter is chapter 11 of the Book of Hebrews. 69 00:04:50,160 --> 00:04:54,480 And in chapter 11 of the Book of Hebrews, the author, and we actually don't even know 70 00:04:54,480 --> 00:05:00,800 who the author is, the author makes a case that the real heroes in our world, the real 71 00:05:00,800 --> 00:05:06,440 heroes are those who live their lives by faith. 72 00:05:06,440 --> 00:05:13,320 And so you've got people like Moses and his amazing leadership by faith. 73 00:05:13,320 --> 00:05:17,760 You've got people like Noah and his amazing obedience by faith. 74 00:05:17,760 --> 00:05:23,520 You've got people like Rahab and her amazing courage exercised by faith. 75 00:05:23,520 --> 00:05:24,760 He tells all these stories. 76 00:05:24,760 --> 00:05:32,560 And then you've got, of course, the story of Enoch and his amazing ability to walk. 77 00:05:32,560 --> 00:05:34,200 Walk, right? 78 00:05:34,200 --> 00:05:40,120 Enoch is a strange candidate for sure to have on this list. 79 00:05:40,120 --> 00:05:47,880 Enoch's whole life is really just described in 48 words found in Genesis chapter five. 80 00:05:47,880 --> 00:05:49,680 Here's a few things we know about Enoch. 81 00:05:49,680 --> 00:05:53,880 Enoch was the seventh in line after Adam. 82 00:05:53,880 --> 00:05:59,200 Enoch was the great grandfather of Noah. 83 00:05:59,200 --> 00:06:05,640 And Enoch was the first person of whom it was said in the Bible that they walked with 84 00:06:05,640 --> 00:06:08,000 God, walked with God. 85 00:06:08,000 --> 00:06:09,800 It doesn't sound like much, but we're going to find out. 86 00:06:09,800 --> 00:06:12,360 It's actually, there's a lot packed in there. 87 00:06:12,360 --> 00:06:14,760 And so today we are going to look at three things. 88 00:06:14,760 --> 00:06:21,240 We're going to look at the life Enoch lived, the legacy that he left, and the lessons we 89 00:06:21,240 --> 00:06:22,280 can learn. 90 00:06:22,280 --> 00:06:25,360 So I encourage you, as always, you can follow along here. 91 00:06:25,360 --> 00:06:28,920 We have little sermon notes to make sure that everybody gets the most out of our teaching 92 00:06:28,920 --> 00:06:30,920 time here at Trinity. 93 00:06:30,920 --> 00:06:34,080 Let's begin with the life that he lived. 94 00:06:34,080 --> 00:06:38,600 You know, at the end of all of our lives, people are going to stand up and they're going 95 00:06:38,600 --> 00:06:41,160 to say a few words about you after you're gone. 96 00:06:41,160 --> 00:06:44,240 It might be an obituary in the newspaper. 97 00:06:44,240 --> 00:06:48,560 It might be a eulogy right here in Trinity. 98 00:06:48,560 --> 00:06:52,340 And they're going to get up and they're going to say a few, just a few words about your 99 00:06:52,340 --> 00:06:53,340 life. 100 00:06:53,340 --> 00:06:54,520 Right? 101 00:06:54,520 --> 00:07:01,200 And what do we read as the kind of the eulogy, the obituary, the summary of Enoch's life? 102 00:07:01,200 --> 00:07:04,160 What would be the epitaph on his headstone? 103 00:07:04,160 --> 00:07:07,600 Although as we'll find out, he didn't actually have a headstone. 104 00:07:07,600 --> 00:07:08,600 What would it say? 105 00:07:08,600 --> 00:07:09,800 Well, it would say something like this. 106 00:07:09,800 --> 00:07:13,040 Enoch became the father of Methuselah. 107 00:07:13,040 --> 00:07:18,400 And after he became the father of Methuselah, Enoch walked faithfully with God 300 years. 108 00:07:18,400 --> 00:07:21,720 Because Enoch walked faithfully with God. 109 00:07:21,720 --> 00:07:27,360 And then he was no more because God took him away. 110 00:07:27,360 --> 00:07:32,560 Now, I just want to acknowledge something that probably everyone thinks about when they 111 00:07:32,560 --> 00:07:33,560 read this part of the Bible. 112 00:07:33,560 --> 00:07:36,800 And that is what is with the super long lifespans, right? 113 00:07:36,800 --> 00:07:41,960 You got people living 300, 400, 500, 800 years long. 114 00:07:41,960 --> 00:07:42,960 And what's up with that? 115 00:07:42,960 --> 00:07:46,400 Now, I just want to say, don't, I wouldn't, don't get hung up on that. 116 00:07:46,400 --> 00:07:51,120 Some people might believe that, oh yeah, in the pre-flood world, people just lived longer. 117 00:07:51,120 --> 00:07:53,440 And if that's what you want to believe, that's, that's fine. 118 00:07:53,440 --> 00:07:55,740 I think scholars have a couple other theories. 119 00:07:55,740 --> 00:08:01,080 One is that those numbers actually have a numerological significance. 120 00:08:01,080 --> 00:08:05,640 There's a code, there was a meaning, there was a lot of symbolism in numbers in the ancient 121 00:08:05,640 --> 00:08:06,640 world. 122 00:08:06,640 --> 00:08:11,040 And so maybe there was some symbolism that we don't know what it means anymore. 123 00:08:11,040 --> 00:08:15,560 But to the original audience, they knew exactly what that age and what those numbers meant. 124 00:08:15,560 --> 00:08:20,000 The other is that in actually a lot of ancient genealogies, not just the Bible, but in a 125 00:08:20,000 --> 00:08:25,480 lot of ancient genealogies, people were given these, these, these huge lifespans, but it 126 00:08:25,480 --> 00:08:32,320 was mostly as a way just to, to honor them and to signify that these were really, really 127 00:08:32,320 --> 00:08:34,160 great ancestors. 128 00:08:34,160 --> 00:08:38,320 And we want to signify that by giving this, them this enormous lifespan. 129 00:08:38,320 --> 00:08:42,540 Hey, what, whatever you think, I would encourage you to actually this week at your life group, 130 00:08:42,540 --> 00:08:45,800 walk it through what's up with those long lifespans. 131 00:08:45,800 --> 00:08:47,960 But let's kind of move past that. 132 00:08:47,960 --> 00:08:52,320 And let's just notice the simplicity here of Enoch's testimony. 133 00:08:52,320 --> 00:08:56,160 He walked with God. 134 00:08:56,160 --> 00:08:58,840 Sometimes the church is guilty of doing this sometimes. 135 00:08:58,840 --> 00:09:03,360 Sometimes we put a lot of emphasis on people who have great, amazing testimonies. 136 00:09:03,360 --> 00:09:07,000 They did wonderful, wonderful things and, and came to God. 137 00:09:07,000 --> 00:09:11,200 You know, I was a, I was a, I was in prison and I had an awakening and came to God. 138 00:09:11,200 --> 00:09:14,720 You know, I was a billionaire, but my life was going nowhere. 139 00:09:14,720 --> 00:09:20,080 And then I found God and followed Jesus or I was sick or I was dying or I died. 140 00:09:20,080 --> 00:09:23,820 I actually died and I met God and I came back to life. 141 00:09:23,820 --> 00:09:27,520 And now I live my life for God and for Jesus. 142 00:09:27,520 --> 00:09:31,880 You know, when we give the microphone to those people, those stories are amazing and we love 143 00:09:31,880 --> 00:09:32,880 to hear them. 144 00:09:32,880 --> 00:09:37,360 But when we give the microphone to Enoch, his story is basically, yeah, I'm Enoch and 145 00:09:37,360 --> 00:09:38,880 I walked with God. 146 00:09:38,880 --> 00:09:41,120 Oh, tell us a little more. 147 00:09:41,120 --> 00:09:42,120 Enoch? 148 00:09:42,120 --> 00:09:43,320 No, that's just about it. 149 00:09:43,320 --> 00:09:46,080 I just, I walked with God. 150 00:09:46,080 --> 00:09:47,080 Hi everybody. 151 00:09:47,080 --> 00:09:48,080 Well, let's hear it for Enoch. 152 00:09:48,080 --> 00:09:49,080 Yay. 153 00:09:49,080 --> 00:09:50,080 Yay. 154 00:09:50,080 --> 00:09:51,080 Right. 155 00:09:51,080 --> 00:09:56,320 But it doesn't sound very impressive of a testimony, but let's be honest, right? 156 00:09:56,320 --> 00:10:02,320 Some of us have a hard time walking with God for a full day. 157 00:10:02,320 --> 00:10:06,520 Some of us have a hard time walking with God for a week, much less. 158 00:10:06,520 --> 00:10:07,520 Look at Enoch. 159 00:10:07,520 --> 00:10:12,600 Enoch is remembered as someone who walked with God for 300 years. 160 00:10:12,600 --> 00:10:14,280 Wow. 161 00:10:14,280 --> 00:10:17,360 So what does it even mean to walk with God? 162 00:10:17,360 --> 00:10:18,960 That's a good question to ask at this point. 163 00:10:18,960 --> 00:10:22,860 We talked about this at our staff meeting earlier this week and actually the staff had 164 00:10:22,860 --> 00:10:23,860 some good thoughts. 165 00:10:23,860 --> 00:10:26,720 They thought, well, listen, whenever you're walking with someone, it means that you're 166 00:10:26,720 --> 00:10:28,080 on the same path. 167 00:10:28,080 --> 00:10:29,080 Okay. 168 00:10:29,080 --> 00:10:30,080 That's true. 169 00:10:30,080 --> 00:10:33,120 And whenever you're walking with someone, it means you're heading in the same direction. 170 00:10:33,120 --> 00:10:34,120 Right? 171 00:10:34,120 --> 00:10:35,120 That's true. 172 00:10:35,120 --> 00:10:38,080 And when you're walking with someone usually means that you're going along at the same 173 00:10:38,080 --> 00:10:39,080 pace. 174 00:10:39,080 --> 00:10:41,120 You're going along at the same speed. 175 00:10:41,120 --> 00:10:42,240 Yeah. 176 00:10:42,240 --> 00:10:45,480 And that you're ultimately headed to the same destination. 177 00:10:45,480 --> 00:10:51,620 Like all those things we can discern from this idea of walking with God. 178 00:10:51,620 --> 00:10:53,600 There's a few more things we might want to notice. 179 00:10:53,600 --> 00:10:59,640 And that walking with God implies there's some movement happening here in one's relationship 180 00:10:59,640 --> 00:11:00,640 with God. 181 00:11:00,640 --> 00:11:03,080 Faith is this dynamic thing, right? 182 00:11:03,080 --> 00:11:04,080 It's not static. 183 00:11:04,080 --> 00:11:06,440 You're continually growing in your faith. 184 00:11:06,440 --> 00:11:07,520 You're continually changing. 185 00:11:07,520 --> 00:11:10,760 You're continually being transformed. 186 00:11:10,760 --> 00:11:14,680 Faith also requires some effort on our part, as does walking. 187 00:11:14,680 --> 00:11:16,400 It's not always easy. 188 00:11:16,400 --> 00:11:18,200 Walking and faith is a discipline. 189 00:11:18,200 --> 00:11:23,520 You go through some difficult times, some tough stretches in your walk with God. 190 00:11:23,520 --> 00:11:28,720 Walking is also relational because when you walk with someone, you're usually talking 191 00:11:28,720 --> 00:11:29,720 with someone. 192 00:11:29,720 --> 00:11:30,880 You're talking with them. 193 00:11:30,880 --> 00:11:32,120 You're in close proximity. 194 00:11:32,120 --> 00:11:36,720 It's an intimate thing to go walking with someone. 195 00:11:36,720 --> 00:11:38,860 Walking is also forward looking. 196 00:11:38,860 --> 00:11:41,580 We don't usually walk like this. 197 00:11:41,580 --> 00:11:42,640 We walk like this. 198 00:11:42,640 --> 00:11:44,320 We're facing into the future. 199 00:11:44,320 --> 00:11:45,720 We're leaving the past behind. 200 00:11:45,720 --> 00:11:50,040 And in our faith, we do look forward to where God is leading us. 201 00:11:50,040 --> 00:11:53,180 And we know that the past is in the past. 202 00:11:53,180 --> 00:11:55,840 And finally, walking takes time, right? 203 00:11:55,840 --> 00:11:57,600 Enoch walked with God. 204 00:11:57,600 --> 00:11:59,560 He didn't run with God. 205 00:11:59,560 --> 00:12:01,760 He walked with God, which means that to walk with God. 206 00:12:01,760 --> 00:12:07,360 You've got to slow down your life enough to kind of walk in step with God. 207 00:12:07,360 --> 00:12:10,880 And that is something that our culture definitely struggles with a lot. 208 00:12:10,880 --> 00:12:14,740 So that is how Enoch would have walked with God, I presume. 209 00:12:14,740 --> 00:12:19,440 And that is also how we walk with God today. 210 00:12:19,440 --> 00:12:23,360 And now maybe you're beginning to see, oh, this doesn't actually sound so easy after 211 00:12:23,360 --> 00:12:24,360 all. 212 00:12:24,360 --> 00:12:25,360 Ha ha ha ha. 213 00:12:25,360 --> 00:12:27,640 Walking with God isn't so easy. 214 00:12:27,640 --> 00:12:30,420 It's not easy to walk with God. 215 00:12:30,420 --> 00:12:33,480 It was even harder for Enoch than for us. 216 00:12:33,480 --> 00:12:34,860 And here's why. 217 00:12:34,860 --> 00:12:39,960 Because we are told that in the culture that Enoch grew up in, the antediluvian pre-flood 218 00:12:39,960 --> 00:12:44,200 era, the world was a disaster. 219 00:12:44,200 --> 00:12:52,360 In fact, in Genesis chapter six, we read that in Enoch's day, every thought and every inclination 220 00:12:52,360 --> 00:12:59,000 of everyone's heart was only evil all the time. 221 00:12:59,000 --> 00:13:00,000 Things were bad. 222 00:13:00,000 --> 00:13:04,960 Things were so bad that God was going to flood the earth and start all over again. 223 00:13:04,960 --> 00:13:06,560 But here's the thing. 224 00:13:06,560 --> 00:13:14,920 While the whole world was headed in one direction, Enoch made a decision to walk a different 225 00:13:14,920 --> 00:13:16,260 way. 226 00:13:16,260 --> 00:13:23,000 To walk with God when nobody else was walking with God. 227 00:13:23,000 --> 00:13:30,520 You cannot walk with God if you are concerned with following the crowd. 228 00:13:30,520 --> 00:13:35,240 I mean, most times, if you're going to walk with God, you have to go against the flow. 229 00:13:35,240 --> 00:13:36,880 And that's what Enoch did. 230 00:13:36,880 --> 00:13:39,960 He was surrounded by this corrupt and evil generation. 231 00:13:39,960 --> 00:13:42,000 He decided, no, you know, now is the time. 232 00:13:42,000 --> 00:13:45,040 I'm going to take a stand and I'm going to live differently. 233 00:13:45,040 --> 00:13:47,560 I'm going to think differently. 234 00:13:47,560 --> 00:13:49,520 I'm going to walk differently. 235 00:13:49,520 --> 00:13:55,680 And I wonder if, let's be honest now, some of you are deeply aware you're in a crowd 236 00:13:55,680 --> 00:14:01,320 of people and they are going in one direction and you are just being sucked along with them. 237 00:14:01,320 --> 00:14:02,800 The world is going in one direction. 238 00:14:02,800 --> 00:14:06,120 You're just being sucked along with them 100%. 239 00:14:06,120 --> 00:14:11,580 And there is actually nothing noticeable about the way you live your life that would distinguish 240 00:14:11,580 --> 00:14:18,080 you from any other person in that crowd at this point in your life. 241 00:14:18,080 --> 00:14:24,480 And maybe now God is, you're aware God is saying to you, now's the time, right? 242 00:14:24,480 --> 00:14:26,320 Now is the time for you to take a stand. 243 00:14:26,320 --> 00:14:31,160 Now is the time for you to make a decision to walk with God, to follow Jesus, to live 244 00:14:31,160 --> 00:14:37,280 your life in a different way, even if that means that you stick out. 245 00:14:37,280 --> 00:14:45,360 Now don't worry because actually Enoch also, that was not the way I put it in there. 246 00:14:45,360 --> 00:14:52,680 But anyways, Enoch also didn't walk with God his whole life. 247 00:14:52,680 --> 00:14:58,360 Actually if you read this, what you can see on there, you will see that there was a time 248 00:14:58,360 --> 00:15:01,960 that Enoch didn't walk with God and then something happened and he began to walk with God. 249 00:15:01,960 --> 00:15:02,960 What happened? 250 00:15:02,960 --> 00:15:08,240 Well we read, after he became the father of Methuselah, Enoch walked with God. 251 00:15:08,240 --> 00:15:09,240 There you got it. 252 00:15:09,240 --> 00:15:16,120 All parents know this, that when a kid comes along it changes everything, right? 253 00:15:16,120 --> 00:15:21,560 J. Vernon McGee, the old preacher and Bible teacher, he said this, there is, if the presence 254 00:15:21,560 --> 00:15:26,400 of a baby in your home won't change your life, nothing will. 255 00:15:26,400 --> 00:15:30,400 You know, having kids, it wakes you up. 256 00:15:30,400 --> 00:15:34,100 But it's not the only kind of life change that wakes you up, right? 257 00:15:34,100 --> 00:15:39,420 What about like you get married or you move into a new city or you start a new job or 258 00:15:39,420 --> 00:15:42,760 you lose someone, you lose someone to death. 259 00:15:42,760 --> 00:15:46,320 All of those things force you to kind of think about your life and to think about God in 260 00:15:46,320 --> 00:15:47,440 brand new ways. 261 00:15:47,440 --> 00:15:52,800 I bet there are some of you here today that you can relate to this. 262 00:15:52,800 --> 00:15:54,800 You were living your best life at some point. 263 00:15:54,800 --> 00:15:58,120 You were doing what you wanted to do and then the kids came along and you're like, oh my 264 00:15:58,120 --> 00:16:00,080 gosh, what do we do now? 265 00:16:00,080 --> 00:16:03,440 We've got to make sure they know about God's love. 266 00:16:03,440 --> 00:16:07,760 We got to make sure that they have some kind of moral compass to live by. 267 00:16:07,760 --> 00:16:09,600 We got to take them to church. 268 00:16:09,600 --> 00:16:12,520 Let's go to church. 269 00:16:12,520 --> 00:16:14,680 And maybe the same is for others of you. 270 00:16:14,680 --> 00:16:19,240 You started university and you're like, shoot, I am not ready for this. 271 00:16:19,240 --> 00:16:20,440 You started a new job. 272 00:16:20,440 --> 00:16:23,440 You're like, shoot, I was not prepared for this. 273 00:16:23,440 --> 00:16:29,600 You lost someone special and you were like, how am I going to get through this? 274 00:16:29,600 --> 00:16:32,960 And so you, like Enoch, you made some decision. 275 00:16:32,960 --> 00:16:36,440 You said, I need to walk with God now more than ever. 276 00:16:36,440 --> 00:16:38,120 I need a community of faith. 277 00:16:38,120 --> 00:16:45,280 And maybe that's how you ended up at Trinity is because something big changed in your life. 278 00:16:45,280 --> 00:16:50,360 Now of course, that's not the only thing that people know about Enoch's life that he walked 279 00:16:50,360 --> 00:16:51,360 with God. 280 00:16:51,360 --> 00:16:58,160 He of course is also very famous because according to the scriptures, he did not experience death. 281 00:16:58,160 --> 00:17:03,680 There's an incredible amount of mystery around this obviously, but Hebrews says by faith, 282 00:17:03,680 --> 00:17:07,680 Enoch was taken from his life so that he did not experience death. 283 00:17:07,680 --> 00:17:10,640 He could not be found because God had taken him away. 284 00:17:10,640 --> 00:17:14,920 And if you go back to the Genesis account, it says Enoch walked faithfully with God and 285 00:17:14,920 --> 00:17:18,800 then he was no more because God took him away. 286 00:17:18,800 --> 00:17:20,720 This is so interesting. 287 00:17:20,720 --> 00:17:26,920 You know, Genesis five is sometimes called the and he died chapter, right? 288 00:17:26,920 --> 00:17:31,760 Because it, you read through Genesis five, it says this was so and so he did this and 289 00:17:31,760 --> 00:17:32,880 then he died. 290 00:17:32,880 --> 00:17:34,160 Then so and so came along. 291 00:17:34,160 --> 00:17:37,880 He did this and then he died and then he died and then he died and then he died and then 292 00:17:37,880 --> 00:17:39,960 he died and he died and he died. 293 00:17:39,960 --> 00:17:43,680 Nine or 10 times it keeps us saying and he died and he died and he died. 294 00:17:43,680 --> 00:17:49,280 And of course it's true ever since Genesis chapter three, when sin entered the world, 295 00:17:49,280 --> 00:17:52,060 human beings life now has an end point. 296 00:17:52,060 --> 00:17:53,060 We all die. 297 00:17:53,060 --> 00:17:59,160 We all return to the dust except for some reason this guy, right? 298 00:17:59,160 --> 00:18:04,120 Enoch just disappeared and went straight to be with God. 299 00:18:04,120 --> 00:18:06,320 According to the Hebrews, you can see the Hebrews version. 300 00:18:06,320 --> 00:18:12,080 It says that, that he could not be found, which meant they must have sent out a search 301 00:18:12,080 --> 00:18:13,760 party or something looking for him. 302 00:18:13,760 --> 00:18:15,440 And they're like, where did he not go? 303 00:18:15,440 --> 00:18:18,160 I have no idea where he went. 304 00:18:18,160 --> 00:18:26,920 It appears that Enoch walked with God so closely that he just kept on walking right over death 305 00:18:26,920 --> 00:18:30,520 into God's presence. 306 00:18:30,520 --> 00:18:33,040 So as you can guess, this is a crazy part of the Bible. 307 00:18:33,040 --> 00:18:35,480 People have scratched their heads at this one for a long time. 308 00:18:35,480 --> 00:18:38,800 It actually gave rise to a whole bunch of legends about Enoch. 309 00:18:38,800 --> 00:18:45,080 In fact, centuries later, actually right in Jesus's time, there was a lot of interest 310 00:18:45,080 --> 00:18:46,080 in Enoch. 311 00:18:46,080 --> 00:18:47,240 Ooh, what about Enoch? 312 00:18:47,240 --> 00:18:48,240 Where did he go? 313 00:18:48,240 --> 00:18:53,400 And these legends began to develop about him, how he escaped death and that how he journeyed 314 00:18:53,400 --> 00:18:58,200 through the 10 heavens and that he had received visions from God's throne. 315 00:18:58,200 --> 00:19:04,360 And that one of the weirdest ones I came across is that Enoch later got transformed into an 316 00:19:04,360 --> 00:19:07,360 angel named Metatron. 317 00:19:07,360 --> 00:19:11,960 Metatron, you know, it sounds, you know, that's better than squirrel girl. 318 00:19:11,960 --> 00:19:13,400 I'm telling you, right? 319 00:19:13,400 --> 00:19:17,480 But Hebrews, Hebrews actually doesn't say any of that, right? 320 00:19:17,480 --> 00:19:19,200 It just says Enoch walked with God. 321 00:19:19,200 --> 00:19:23,920 He just kept on walking, kept on walking, kept on walking right into the presence of 322 00:19:23,920 --> 00:19:24,920 God. 323 00:19:24,920 --> 00:19:28,920 It made me think of this guy. 324 00:19:28,920 --> 00:19:30,240 Actually didn't look like that at all. 325 00:19:30,240 --> 00:19:34,600 That was the AI generated image of Dallas Willard. 326 00:19:34,600 --> 00:19:40,600 Dallas Willard was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2012. 327 00:19:40,600 --> 00:19:47,000 And he said, quote, I think when I die, it might be some time until I know it. 328 00:19:47,000 --> 00:19:53,640 Because, because Willard often taught that eternal life is not something that starts 329 00:19:53,640 --> 00:20:00,520 when you die, but it's already underway and the in the, in the present for those who are 330 00:20:00,520 --> 00:20:02,680 walking closely with God. 331 00:20:02,680 --> 00:20:07,000 And he believed therefore that if you walk closely with God, that the transition from 332 00:20:07,000 --> 00:20:10,840 this life to the next might not be jarring or abrupt or shocking. 333 00:20:10,840 --> 00:20:12,800 It may just feel seamless. 334 00:20:12,800 --> 00:20:18,760 And it might even take you a while to realize, oh wait, yeah, I'm dead now. 335 00:20:18,760 --> 00:20:20,000 Right? 336 00:20:20,000 --> 00:20:24,320 So that is the life that Enoch lived. 337 00:20:24,320 --> 00:20:25,480 It's a simple testimony. 338 00:20:25,480 --> 00:20:27,800 He walked with God. 339 00:20:27,800 --> 00:20:31,280 So now let's talk a little bit about the legacy that he left. 340 00:20:31,280 --> 00:20:36,840 Well, for Enoch, it wasn't just that he walked with God, but we also learned that he pleased 341 00:20:36,840 --> 00:20:38,000 God. 342 00:20:38,000 --> 00:20:44,200 We read that before he was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God. 343 00:20:44,200 --> 00:20:49,400 I would love that to be on my headstone one day, or when, you know, people stand up and 344 00:20:49,400 --> 00:20:53,520 talk about my life to say, oh Rob, yeah, he pleased God. 345 00:20:53,520 --> 00:20:54,520 Wouldn't you love that too? 346 00:20:54,520 --> 00:21:02,520 Wouldn't that be a great, oh, this is a person who pleased God, but how do we please God? 347 00:21:02,520 --> 00:21:07,200 Well, the answer is we've already seen how to please God. 348 00:21:07,200 --> 00:21:11,440 We please God by walking with God. 349 00:21:11,440 --> 00:21:17,160 Sometime, I don't know, sometime around the first century, a bunch of Greek scholars got 350 00:21:17,160 --> 00:21:22,640 together and they said, we need to translate the Hebrew Old Testament into Greek. 351 00:21:22,640 --> 00:21:29,560 And so 70 of these scholars got together and they did the translation work to turn it into 352 00:21:29,560 --> 00:21:32,180 a Greek version of the Old Testament. 353 00:21:32,180 --> 00:21:40,520 That version of the Old Testament is nicknamed the Septuagint, because Septuaginta means 70, 354 00:21:40,520 --> 00:21:44,720 and there were 70 scholars or 72 scholars who worked on this thing. 355 00:21:44,720 --> 00:21:47,240 Anyways, they had to make all these interpretive decisions. 356 00:21:47,240 --> 00:21:53,960 And when they came across the story of Enoch's life, where it said that, you know, Enoch 357 00:21:53,960 --> 00:21:59,160 walked with God, that was the Hebrew version, in Greek, they said, well, let's just translate 358 00:21:59,160 --> 00:22:06,360 that into he pleased God, which means that for them, walking with God was actually the 359 00:22:06,360 --> 00:22:08,120 same thing as pleasing God. 360 00:22:08,120 --> 00:22:09,600 That's how you please God. 361 00:22:09,600 --> 00:22:12,440 You please God by walking with God. 362 00:22:12,440 --> 00:22:17,800 Now, other people were known as people who pleased God and walked with God, you know, 363 00:22:17,800 --> 00:22:24,040 after, for example, after Enoch, Noah was said to have walked with God. 364 00:22:24,040 --> 00:22:26,520 Abraham was said to have walked before God. 365 00:22:26,520 --> 00:22:31,720 But before Enoch, there was very few instances of the word walk. 366 00:22:31,720 --> 00:22:39,560 But the very first use of walking with God came in the Garden of Eden, right after Adam 367 00:22:39,560 --> 00:22:43,480 and Eve had sinned and they were hiding from God, right? 368 00:22:43,480 --> 00:22:45,020 We learned something amazing. 369 00:22:45,020 --> 00:22:53,280 We learned something amazing that apparently God would regularly go for walks with Adam 370 00:22:53,280 --> 00:22:55,320 and Eve in the garden. 371 00:22:55,320 --> 00:23:00,240 Some walks every evening when the cool breeze would come, there they are, right? 372 00:23:00,240 --> 00:23:04,480 Every evening, God would come along and say, hey, let's go take a walk. 373 00:23:04,480 --> 00:23:06,240 And they would go for a walk. 374 00:23:06,240 --> 00:23:09,760 And Adam and Eve would say what's on their heart and what's on their mind. 375 00:23:09,760 --> 00:23:13,760 And God would say, let me tell you what's on my heart and what I'm thinking about. 376 00:23:13,760 --> 00:23:17,480 Of course, Adam and Eve, they rebelled and that relationship got broken. 377 00:23:17,480 --> 00:23:22,560 And it is really hard to walk with someone when the relationship has been broken. 378 00:23:22,560 --> 00:23:24,560 Have you ever wronged someone? 379 00:23:24,560 --> 00:23:27,480 When you see them coming around the corner, usually run the other way. 380 00:23:27,480 --> 00:23:28,480 You try to hide. 381 00:23:28,480 --> 00:23:30,600 You don't want them to see you. 382 00:23:30,600 --> 00:23:35,320 And so when it was Adam and Eve, they couldn't walk with God anymore. 383 00:23:35,320 --> 00:23:37,120 But was that the end of the story? 384 00:23:37,120 --> 00:23:38,360 No, no. 385 00:23:38,360 --> 00:23:40,320 God is displeased with us. 386 00:23:40,320 --> 00:23:44,080 And so now we're never, ever going to get a chance to walk with God again. 387 00:23:44,080 --> 00:23:49,120 But no, because what happens is a few chapters later, Enoch comes along and shows us something 388 00:23:49,120 --> 00:23:50,120 really startling. 389 00:23:50,120 --> 00:23:51,840 Enoch walked with God. 390 00:23:51,840 --> 00:23:52,840 Wait, wait, wait. 391 00:23:52,840 --> 00:23:55,720 You mean someone can walk with God again? 392 00:23:55,720 --> 00:24:01,440 Someone can actually please God again in spite of our sin, in spite of our rebellion? 393 00:24:01,440 --> 00:24:06,480 When Enoch walks with God, it tells us that it is possible to be reconciled with God. 394 00:24:06,480 --> 00:24:10,120 It is possible for God to be pleased with us again. 395 00:24:10,120 --> 00:24:13,680 Jesus said, I always do what pleases him. 396 00:24:13,680 --> 00:24:18,040 Paul said that we make it our goal to please him. 397 00:24:18,040 --> 00:24:22,320 Whatever you have done in your life and you think God doesn't love you, God has left you 398 00:24:22,320 --> 00:24:25,160 behind or God is displeased with you. 399 00:24:25,160 --> 00:24:26,800 There's hope. 400 00:24:26,800 --> 00:24:34,120 Start walking with God again, because Christianity is not about some general belief in God. 401 00:24:34,120 --> 00:24:37,640 It's about walking with God, not jogging with God. 402 00:24:37,640 --> 00:24:39,560 Hey, woo, see you later. 403 00:24:39,560 --> 00:24:41,720 It's not just bumping into God from time to time. 404 00:24:41,720 --> 00:24:44,360 It's like, oh, fancy meeting you here. 405 00:24:44,360 --> 00:24:48,840 And it's not just having a weekly visit with God, coming to church once a week or something 406 00:24:48,840 --> 00:24:56,720 like that, but walking with God is this consistent daily 24-7 kind of thing. 407 00:24:56,720 --> 00:24:59,680 Here's an example I was thinking of. 408 00:24:59,680 --> 00:25:06,240 According to statistics, 70% of people own a pair of running shoes, but they never run. 409 00:25:06,240 --> 00:25:12,640 No, I should say that 70% of people who own running shoes never actually run. 410 00:25:12,640 --> 00:25:14,660 They might look the part, right? 411 00:25:14,660 --> 00:25:17,840 But the shoes actually don't fulfill the purpose for which they are created. 412 00:25:17,840 --> 00:25:20,200 They sit in the closet. 413 00:25:20,200 --> 00:25:24,200 In the same way, I think it's true to say that many people own their Bibles. 414 00:25:24,200 --> 00:25:26,400 Many people have been baptized. 415 00:25:26,400 --> 00:25:32,800 Many people attend church, but they're not actually walking with God. 416 00:25:32,800 --> 00:25:36,440 Faith isn't just about having all the things or jumping through all the hoops. 417 00:25:36,440 --> 00:25:43,000 It's about using these things daily in your walk with God as you are living in step with 418 00:25:43,000 --> 00:25:44,000 God. 419 00:25:44,000 --> 00:25:46,160 That is how we please God, right? 420 00:25:46,160 --> 00:25:48,280 That is how Enoch pleased God. 421 00:25:48,280 --> 00:25:50,680 In fact, I was thinking about this. 422 00:25:50,680 --> 00:25:55,440 There are so many times in life that I think we are wondering what is the right thing to 423 00:25:55,440 --> 00:25:57,200 do in this situation? 424 00:25:57,200 --> 00:25:59,000 Should I date this guy or not? 425 00:25:59,000 --> 00:26:01,720 Should I make this decision or not? 426 00:26:01,720 --> 00:26:05,680 Should I send this text message or not? 427 00:26:05,680 --> 00:26:11,640 But what if in those moments we just ask the simple question, will this please God? 428 00:26:11,640 --> 00:26:12,880 Will this please God? 429 00:26:12,880 --> 00:26:15,280 Would the thing I'm about to do please God? 430 00:26:15,280 --> 00:26:20,760 Would the words I'm about to say please God? 431 00:26:20,760 --> 00:26:26,520 George Mueller once said that nine-tenths of our difficulties are overcome when our 432 00:26:26,520 --> 00:26:32,640 hearts are ready to do what is pleasing to God no matter what. 433 00:26:32,640 --> 00:26:33,640 So there you go. 434 00:26:33,640 --> 00:26:35,000 We've got Enoch. 435 00:26:35,000 --> 00:26:37,400 We've got the life that he lived. 436 00:26:37,400 --> 00:26:39,320 We've got this legacy that he left. 437 00:26:39,320 --> 00:26:40,760 He pleased God. 438 00:26:40,760 --> 00:26:44,320 And finally, what lessons, what other takeaways can we learn? 439 00:26:44,320 --> 00:26:48,160 Well, I just want to share two more brief ones here. 440 00:26:48,160 --> 00:26:51,320 So well, one, they come from this phrase here. 441 00:26:51,320 --> 00:26:56,480 And without faith, it's impossible to please God because anyone who comes to him must first 442 00:26:56,480 --> 00:27:06,900 believe that he exists and that he second rewards those who earnestly seek him. 443 00:27:06,900 --> 00:27:13,060 So one lesson for us is that faith begins when we believe that God exists. 444 00:27:13,060 --> 00:27:15,680 It's impossible to walk with God if you don't believe he exists. 445 00:27:15,680 --> 00:27:19,560 It's impossible to please God if you don't believe God exists. 446 00:27:19,560 --> 00:27:23,800 But when we believe God exists, that's the starting point of faith. 447 00:27:23,800 --> 00:27:26,400 But listen, he's not just saying believe any God exists. 448 00:27:26,400 --> 00:27:31,440 He's not just saying we please God when we believe in a higher power or we believe in 449 00:27:31,440 --> 00:27:32,880 some kind of supreme being. 450 00:27:32,880 --> 00:27:37,880 No, he says when we believe that he exists, he exists. 451 00:27:37,880 --> 00:27:40,560 And of course, he's referring to a certain deity. 452 00:27:40,560 --> 00:27:44,880 He's referring to the God of the Bible, to the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 453 00:27:44,880 --> 00:27:49,360 He's referring to the God who was the father of Jesus. 454 00:27:49,360 --> 00:27:54,520 And so when you believe in this God, it's the starting point of faith. 455 00:27:54,520 --> 00:27:56,080 You don't have to have a degree in theology. 456 00:27:56,080 --> 00:27:59,560 You don't have to understand all the soteriology or whatever. 457 00:27:59,560 --> 00:28:03,200 You just need to believe to start this God exists. 458 00:28:03,200 --> 00:28:13,720 In fact, I was thinking, do you remember the very first time that when Moses meets God 459 00:28:13,720 --> 00:28:21,520 and God kind of gives Moses his name, he says, Moses, I am who I am, which could be just 460 00:28:21,520 --> 00:28:22,520 as easily translated. 461 00:28:22,520 --> 00:28:26,920 You know, Moses, I am he who exists. 462 00:28:26,920 --> 00:28:27,920 Right? 463 00:28:27,920 --> 00:28:35,160 So basically, I think what we're saying is we need to believe the one who exists exists. 464 00:28:35,160 --> 00:28:38,280 That is the starting point of faith. 465 00:28:38,280 --> 00:28:42,640 Lots of brilliant people in the world believe in a God, just not this God. 466 00:28:42,640 --> 00:28:49,480 Albert Einstein, for example, he believed in a God, a God that was vastly superior to 467 00:28:49,480 --> 00:28:56,640 humankind, but not a God who was involved at all in human affairs, but believing in 468 00:28:56,640 --> 00:29:00,480 some unknown higher power like Einstein did. 469 00:29:00,480 --> 00:29:06,680 I suppose it's I suppose it's a starting point, but anyone who comes to God, walks with God, 470 00:29:06,680 --> 00:29:11,240 must believe in the God of the Bible, the one who exists. 471 00:29:11,240 --> 00:29:17,080 And then the second lesson is we have to believe that you this God rewards us according to 472 00:29:17,080 --> 00:29:23,240 Hebrews 11, must believe he rewards the cosmic force can't reward you. 473 00:29:23,240 --> 00:29:24,240 Right? 474 00:29:24,240 --> 00:29:25,800 A higher power can't reward you. 475 00:29:25,800 --> 00:29:30,160 Only someone who is personal can reward you. 476 00:29:30,160 --> 00:29:33,440 Many religions would say God is a punisher. 477 00:29:33,440 --> 00:29:35,400 Christianity says he is a rewarder. 478 00:29:35,400 --> 00:29:36,400 Right? 479 00:29:36,400 --> 00:29:39,920 Many people think that God is distant and harsh, but when you walk with God, you come 480 00:29:39,920 --> 00:29:45,940 to see him as a rewarder, someone who blesses you and provides for you. 481 00:29:45,940 --> 00:29:51,160 If you don't like the idea of this idea from Hebrews 11, that God is a rewarder, just keep 482 00:29:51,160 --> 00:29:53,220 in mind what the reward is. 483 00:29:53,220 --> 00:29:59,480 Certainly the only reward in mind here is the reward of knowing God himself. 484 00:29:59,480 --> 00:30:03,520 Those who seek God are rewarded with a relationship with God. 485 00:30:03,520 --> 00:30:04,520 And that is the reward. 486 00:30:04,520 --> 00:30:09,040 The reward is knowing him, the joy and satisfaction that comes from knowing him. 487 00:30:09,040 --> 00:30:14,040 Jesus says, seek and you will find find what you'll find an easy life. 488 00:30:14,040 --> 00:30:15,040 You'll find money. 489 00:30:15,040 --> 00:30:16,040 You'll find prosperity. 490 00:30:16,040 --> 00:30:17,040 Is that the reward? 491 00:30:17,040 --> 00:30:18,040 No. 492 00:30:18,040 --> 00:30:21,400 Seek God and you will find God and you will realize that he is the reward. 493 00:30:21,400 --> 00:30:26,480 James as well invites us, he says, draw near to God and God will draw near to you. 494 00:30:26,480 --> 00:30:29,840 Walk with God and God will walk with you. 495 00:30:29,840 --> 00:30:36,080 So the reward for seeking God is finding God and walking with God. 496 00:30:36,080 --> 00:30:37,160 Let's end. 497 00:30:37,160 --> 00:30:40,120 Let's end with this. 498 00:30:40,120 --> 00:30:44,520 After surgery, one of the first things that doctors want to do is they want to get you 499 00:30:44,520 --> 00:30:45,520 up and walking. 500 00:30:45,520 --> 00:30:46,520 Okay. 501 00:30:46,520 --> 00:30:51,280 It might seem counterintuitive because your body's weak, but they know that walking promotes 502 00:30:51,280 --> 00:30:55,840 healing and gets your circulation going and prevents all sorts of complications. 503 00:30:55,840 --> 00:30:59,320 And it helps you grow and heal more quickly. 504 00:30:59,320 --> 00:31:00,320 It's essential. 505 00:31:00,320 --> 00:31:02,840 Walking is essential to life and health. 506 00:31:02,840 --> 00:31:05,440 The same is true spiritually. 507 00:31:05,440 --> 00:31:10,040 Walking with God isn't just some optional extra for the super spiritual. 508 00:31:10,040 --> 00:31:12,760 It's not something you just do when it's easy or convenient. 509 00:31:12,760 --> 00:31:15,760 It's essential for our spiritual health. 510 00:31:15,760 --> 00:31:17,680 It's how we grow stronger. 511 00:31:17,680 --> 00:31:19,440 It's how we stay connected to God. 512 00:31:19,440 --> 00:31:24,000 It's how we recover when life knocks us down. 513 00:31:24,000 --> 00:31:32,240 But just like in the hospital, the key to spiritual health is to get up and start moving. 514 00:31:32,240 --> 00:31:37,200 Are you walking with God this morning? 515 00:31:37,200 --> 00:31:40,640 Maybe your faith feels really, really weak or life has knocked you down. 516 00:31:40,640 --> 00:31:43,280 But the answer is not just to stay where you are. 517 00:31:43,280 --> 00:31:46,320 The answer is to take that first step. 518 00:31:46,320 --> 00:31:48,540 Walking with God, you don't have to be perfect. 519 00:31:48,540 --> 00:31:49,880 It just requires movement. 520 00:31:49,880 --> 00:31:55,080 Remember, it just requires some kind of daily intentional step to move toward him, whether 521 00:31:55,080 --> 00:31:59,240 that's reading your Bible or praying or worshiping him. 522 00:31:59,240 --> 00:32:05,800 Enoch's story, it reminds us that walking with God is not only possible, it's totally 523 00:32:05,800 --> 00:32:06,800 transformative. 524 00:32:06,800 --> 00:32:08,460 It's how we grow. 525 00:32:08,460 --> 00:32:09,460 It's how we heal. 526 00:32:09,460 --> 00:32:11,640 It's how we find our way into his presence. 527 00:32:11,640 --> 00:32:20,600 So wherever you are today, start walking, walk with God and keep walking with him until 528 00:32:20,600 --> 00:32:26,440 the day comes when you find yourself in his presence. 529 00:32:26,440 --> 00:32:29,440 Amen. 530 00:32:29,440 --> 00:32:32,440 Thank you for listening to this week's episode of Trinity Sermons. 531 00:32:32,440 --> 00:32:41,880 This sermon was recorded at Trinity Church, Streetsville on January 19th, 2025.