January 3, 2017 – Genesis 8-11 – The God of Mercy and Grace

Below are my thoughts from the daily Bible reading of the West Side Church of Christ. Today’s reading comes from Genesis 1-3. Before reading I invite you to pray and asked God to speak to you as you read His Word. Also above in the tabs is a link to the Bible reading plan.

What Does This Passage Say?

• Genesis 8-9 concludes the story of Noah. God remembered Noah and his family while they were shut inside the ark. Over time the water receded and Noah and his family began making a new life for them in the cleansed world. God also made a covenant with Noah, and all of mankind, to never again flood the earth like He did here. He marked this covenant with a rainbow in the sky, a symbol that reminds us today of God’s promise.
• Genesis 10-11 begins to show us how mankind began to multiply on the earth. Sadly, mankind continues to be sinful, and wanted to reach God. So, they built a tower. This action displeased God. But instead of wiping mankind off the earth, God simply gave a punishment, mixing up language.

What is This Passage Teaching?

• In these chapters we see that God is a God of mercy and grace. In providing the covenant to Noah, He promised never to destroy mankind again like He did in the flood. In a few generations, mankind has fallen into sin once again. Instead of destroying mankind, God scrambled their language.
• Chapter 11 ends by showing us the family tree of Shem, one of Noah’s son. At the very end of that family tree we meet Abram. Abram is the very man God will select to begin His plan of salvation and redemption. God is a God of salvation.

How Can I Apply this Passage to my Life?

• God loves you. No matter how many times you may mess up, God still loves you. In our reading we watched God cleanse the earth, make a covenant with Noah, and just a few generations later, and only two chapters later, mankind is up to our old sinful tricks again. But instead of wiping out mankind, God simply punished us. While we may face the consequences of our sin, God still loves us. God is still about mercy and grace. In your moments of weakness remember, God loves you!