Anchored

WEEK 2 – DAY 3: “And God Grieved” Genesis 6:5-7 “Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. So the Lord said, “I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them.” Have you ever stopped for a moment to consider what kind of actions would grieve our Lord? Genesis 6 describes a wickedness that is seemingly distant - - one that we can barely comprehend and selfishly feel far removed from. Man, whom God created from the dust of the ground, had become increasingly wicked. Verse 5 indicates that ‘every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually’. This is a loaded statement. It means that there was not one single aspect of man’s nature that had not been corrupted by sin. Not one. It also indicates that there was a deep level of immoral decay at the very core of man’s being. As a result, God was sorry and grieved. The word grieved describes a deep sorrow - - not because God lacked control or was caught off guard by mankind’s actions - - but, in the face of human sin and rotten rebellion, He felt sorrow. This word – sorrow – is what Bible scholars call anthropopathic, which characterizes God as having human feelings and emotions. But wait! Don’t you dare reduce our Holy God to the same fickle and fleeting emotions that we possess. He is unchangeable and has emotions that reflect the true nature of His character: just, true and perfect (Deuteronomy 32:4). Nevertheless, we do not serve a God who is out-of-touch, unaffected, or detached. Aren’t you glad about that? Not only is He aware of our feelings, He is well-acquainted with them. Hebrews 4:15 is a perfect picture of the genuineness of Christ’s humanity – “For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.” Below are some emotional characteristics that the Bible attributes to God: love (John 3:16, Romans 5:8) hate (Psalm 5:5) compassion (Exodus 33:19) grief (Genesis 6:6) joy (Nehemiah 8:10) rejoicing (Isaiah 65:19) jealousy (Joshua 24:19) When it was clear that God’s plans for humanity were being trampled upon by sin, He found one man with whom He could begin again. History would remember him as Noah.