Enoch
God’s Introduction
For Enoch to be an individual that is very often mentioned in both childhood and adult education within the Church, we know less about his life than possibly any other individual. You can find pages of articles written about Enoch, yet his name is only mentioned in 10 verses in all Scripture, and 8 of those verses are lists of genealogies (Genesis 5:18-19, 21-24; I Chronicles 1:3; Luke 3:37).
Enoch is the 7th generation of man from Creation, making him the great-great-great-great-grandson of Adam. He is the father of Methuselah, grandfather of Lamech, and great-grandfather of Noah. By using some simple math in Genesis 5, we see that Enoch was born to Jared 622 years after Creation. When Enoch was 365 years old, the Bible tells us that he was taken by God and did not die. At the time he was taken, his grandson Lamech had already been born, but his great-grandson Noah had not. Also, with the exception of Adam, all his forefathers mentioned in the genealogy were still alive.
*It’s important to note that the Enoch we are discussing is not the same as Enoch the son of Cain mentioned in Genesis 4:17-18.
Character’s Identification
If we had the opportunity to control how history remembers us, I would hope we would want the same legacy that Enoch has: “Enoch walked with God” (Genesis 5:24). Those four words are the defining statement of Enoch’s life. Enoch is one of only two individuals recorded in Scripture that appear to have been taken from this world through a means other than death. The Bible tells us that he was simply “taken” (Genesis 5:24). While that statement may leave some ambiguity, the Hebrews writer clarified what that meant in Hebrews 11:5 by stating “By faith, Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death…”. The other individual we know this happened to was Elijah. While we have some details about how Elijah was taken (II Kings 2:11), which involved a fiery chariot and some type of storm, we know nothing about the way in which Enoch was taken.
I’ve often wondered where Enoch is today. Is he in Heaven with God? Was he ushered straight to Paradise awaiting the Judgement with all other saints who have passed on? There’s no way for us to know, but what we can know is that he lived his life in a way that is a perfect example for us today.
Our Impression
#1. We can also walk with God. It may feel impossible to follow the example of someone who was so righteous that God personally chose Him out of all humanity to be ushered straight to eternity. However, the Holy Spirit recorded exactly how we can do the same. “…if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin” (I John 1:7). “For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world – our faith” (I John 5:4).
#2. We can also avoid death. Do I mean we will avoid physical death like Enoch? No. I don’t anticipate that God will take any of us prior to our physical death. But physical death is not what we want to avoid. “The one who conquers will not be hurt by the second death” (Revelation 2:11). Like Enoch, we can avoid spiritual death, an eternity in hell, so long as we follow his example and “walk with God”.
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