THREE MEN

“Adam, Seth, Enosh” (1 Chron. 1:1 NKJV).

Each of the first three verses of 1 Chronicles consist of only names. And each verse has only three names. The typical reader may find this boring, and might be tempted to skip both chapters 1 and 2 since they only contain names. Yet there are messages in these names which will give us much helpful instruction. In today’s verse, just three names of men are given. It is a short verse, but it is long on instruction. The three men are Adam, the sinning man; Seth, the substitute man; and Enosh, the spiritual man.

Adam, the sinning man - When we think of Adam, we think of sin and the fall. Here was a man who had all the advantages, yet still sinned. This reminds us that it is not advantages that assure performance, rather, it is attitude. Further, Adam’s life refutes the idea that a new environment will make men behave better. Adam’s experience says we need a new birth more than a new environment. He had the perfect environment but still sinned. We do not begrudge anyone a new home, but there is white collar crime as well as blue collar crime. People need a new heart more than they need a new environment.

Seth, the substitute man - When Seth was born, Eve said, “For God has appointed another seed for me instead of Abel, whom Cain killed” (Gen. 4:25). The name “Seth” means ‘substitute.’ He was a substitute for Abel who was murdered by Cain. When Abel was murdered, Satan thought he had destroyed the seed through which Christ would come. But God raised up Seth to continue the line. God’s work will not be stopped. He has a Seth for every murdered Abel.

Enosh, the spiritual man - When the Bible reports the birth of Enosh to Seth, it says, “Then began men to call upon the name of the Lord” (Gen. 4:26). The descendants of Cain, the other son, were ungodly. They were successful in the world but not spiritually. However, when Enosh came along, “then began men to call upon the name of the Lord.” Note that it is “men” not just Enosh. This shows the influence of Enosh. He influenced others in a good way spiritually. Would to God that all believers did the same

(Adapted from Butler Daily Bible Reading)

Soli Deo Gloria (To God Alone Be The Glory)

Quotation of the Week

“The more we’re attracted by Christ, the less we’ll be attracted by the world!”

Anonymous

Word Study

Destroy

In Rom. 14:20 we read, “Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All things indeed are pure, but it is evil for the man who eats with offense!” (NKJV)

Destroy is the Greek word kataluo (καταλύω = kat-al-oo'-o). It is made up of two words: “kata” which is an intensifier and means down, against, and “luo” which means loose, release, destroy, abolish. Thus the word means to destroy, demolish, dismantle, abolish, annul, and do away with. Metaphorically, kataluo means to overthrow, i.e. to render vain, to deprive of success, to bring to naught. Literally, it speaks of destroying, demolishing or dismantling an edifice.

In Classical Greek kataluo can describe the breaking up or the putting down of something, such as a democracy. When applied to laws and customs, it means annul, abolish, i.e., bring to an end. It can also refers to finding lodging. In the Septuagint, kataluo can mean remain, spend the night, stop, bring to a stop, and remove. In the New Testament kataluo carries the idea of abolish, annul, taken down. Here in Rom. 14:20, the word is used of the marring (damage) of spiritual well-being, the pulling down of the work of God in a brother’s life, and is set in contrast to building up (Rom. 14:19). It is a vivid picture of the potential effect of failing to heed Paul’s warnings that relate to interactions between strong and weaker brethren in Christ.

Prophecies Fulfilled by Jesus

Old Testament Prophecy – That his birthplace would suffer a massacre of infants (Jer. 31:15)

New Testament Fulfillment – Matt. 2:17-18

Bible Facts

The Bible states that God created life according to kinds (Gen. 1:24). The fact that God makes a distinction agrees with what scientists observe - namely that there are horizontal genetic boundaries beyond which life cannot vary. Life produces after its own kind, i.e. dogs produce dogs, cats produce cats, and roses produce roses. Never have we witnessed one kind changing into another kind as evolution supposes. There are truly natural limits to biological change. .

Bible Quiz

Whose bones did Moses take along with him when he left Egypt for the Promised Land?

**Answer to last week’s trivia: How many years did Adam live? Adam lived 930 years (Gen. 5:5).

That’s in the Bible

“Various times and various ways”

“God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets” (Heb. 1:1 NKJV).

God has always used a variety of ways to speak. He speaks through prophets, angels, dreams, donkeys, His enemies, and lastly, His Son. God speaks to us today through the Bible: “But the word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may do it” (Deut. 30:14 NKJV).

Did You Know – Christian History

William Strong was born March 3, 1877, to Presbyterian parents. Following in his father’s footsteps, William too sold insurance. He joined a church and attended it dutifully, but had no personal knowledge of Christ. In his Autobiography of a Hypocrite, he wrote, “I was simply strolling on my respectable way to Hell without being conscious of the fact, beyond a vague uneasiness which told me something was wrong.”

Determined to sell a policy to a Christian businessman, he waited for him at the Fulton Street Noon Prayer Meeting. He was astonished at the number of savvy businessmen he saw ‘wasting time” there. But as he listened to the speaker, a light dawned in his soul and he was converted. Immediately, he began to study the Scriptures.

William began work with local servicemen. However, one day he learned of a serious financial need in Bolivia. He sent the funds, but the words “who will go for us?” kept ringing in his ears. Determined to become a missionary, he tried to find a mission that would accept him. No one wanted him because he was 45 years old. Confident that the Lord knew what he was asking, William forged ahead, founding his own mission. By 1923, he was in Tacna, Chile, working with US servicemen.

However, after U. S. soldiers were ordered home in 1926, William began to work among the Chilean servicemen. Soon he was holding mass meetings. He distributed 20,000 Gideon New Testaments each year. At first, the work was known as Soldiers & Gospel Mission. But in 1964, it became Gospel Mission of South America. William Strong worked for his Gospel Mission thirty-seven years. He died in 1960. But his son Bill and others carried on. By 1997 there were over 7,000 national men in various branches of Chilean military service, who called themselves the Uniform Evangelical Mission. Today the Gospel mission works in three countries (Chile, Argentina and Uruguay), emphasizing Bible translation and education with a strong use of radio and TV

A Little Humor

One day a space shuttle crashed to the ground in the yard of a preschool. When he finally struggled out of the wreckage, the astronaut shouted, “I’m free! I’m free!!!” At this point, one of the little children standing there shouted back, “Big deal, I’m four!”

Thought Provoking Church Sign

“Jesus came to save the lost, the last, and the least!!”