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Finding Favor

Words of Faith Final

Finding Favor
Words of Faith 2-8-2022
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy © 2022
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
Faith Fellowship Church - Melbourne, FL
www.faithfellowshipweb.com
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Genesis 6
    [5] Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. [6] And the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. [7] And the Lord said, "I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, from man to animals to creeping things and to birds of the sky; for I am sorry that I have made them." [8] But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord.

        What a mess! Genesis 1-2 describes the Creation. Genesis 3 describes the Fall of humans into sin. Genesis 4-11 describes the growing devastation of sin. What a mess.
        Few sentences describe the lost state of humanity as clearly as Genesis 6:5. "Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually."  Man was desperately lost!  
        The word translated as "wickedness" is broad and far-reaching. It means more than just bad-- pure evil. With this evil came calamity and adversity. Man was harmful and displeasing. Man was wretched and troubling. What a mess.
        As God looked upon the miserable state of man, He was grieved. The text literally says that God "repented" the Creation of man. God was so grieved by what He saw that he regretted having made man on the earth in some deep sense. Even with the sovereign knowledge that eventually humanity would know redemption and salvation, God could not ignore the hideous acts of man or the corruption of human hearts. So, the Lord God determined to wipe out the corrupt humans.
        But don't miss verse 8. Here we see a ray of hope. Amid the great wickedness, God saw Noah, and Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord. Noah was not the source of hope; God was. But Noah was someone willing to trust and accept hope.
        Noah was not perfect. He was a sinful human and part of the fallen world. But Noah clearly was not gripped by the wickedness thriving on the earth. He was the one man that the Lord God could call upon to be obedient.
          The Lord does not call us to be perfect, only obedient. He does not look for us to be without error, but he calls us faithful. It is often said that the Lord wanted to start over at the time of the flood, but this is not so. Noah was part of the same world that was being blotted out.   
           The story of Noah is often told as a children's lesson, but it has powerful truth for every believer. The story of Noah tells us from the beginning that the Lord God is looking for those who will prove faithful. The story of Noah tells us that we do not have to be absorbed by a wicked world around us. Those who trust in the Lord will be saved. It is not a matter of earning salvation. It is a matter of faithfully receiving what the Lord offers. That is the journey of Noah.
            Question. As the Lord God looks upon the earth today, what does He see? Certainly, He sees the devastation of sin and wickedness of man. As His gaze falls upon you today, what does He see? Does the Lord see someone different from the wicked culture around you? Does the Lord see someone ready to hear and obey? Does the Lord see someone receiving His favor by faith and trusting Him to live each day?

           Lord, the pain of sin is all around me, yet You have offered me hope. You have offered me life. Give me the strength to walk with You today. I will not be perfect, for I am a sinner. May I be found faithful? May I be found obedient? Thank You for Your favor expressed to me in Your Son Jesus. In His Name, Amen.

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© Jeffrey D. Hoy 2022
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy - Faith Fellowship Church (EFCA)        
2820 Business Center Blvd.
Melbourne, Florida 32940 (321)-259-7200
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
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The Words of Faith devotion is published five days a week by E-mail, excluding Federal holidays. Please feel free to forward this devotion to a friend who might be blessed by this devotion. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture is quoted from the New International Version (R) of The Holy Bible. Copyright (c) 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Words of Faith (c) 1997, 2022 Jeffrey D. Hoy. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to forward this copyrighted material or use portions of it with appropriate notation of the source for non-profit purposes.