IN THE BEGINNING, GOD CREATED THE HEAVENS AND THE EARTH. THE EARTH WAS WITHOUT FORM AND VOID, AND DARKNESS WAS OVER THE FACE OF THE DEEP. AND THE SPIRIT OF GOD WAS HOVERING OVER THE FACE OF THE WATER. (Genesis 1:1 AND 2 ESV)

INTRODICTION

Today there is an attack on the Word of God from almost every angle. Genesis, THE BOOK OF BEGINNINGS, is instructive on this matter, because it is the source of the original attack on the Word of God. The same attack on the truthfulness of God's Word is being made today!

The very first verse in the Bible, Genesis 1:1, gives us the historical fact for the beginning. We see there is a beginning. And in the Gospel according to John, we can also read the following:" In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him was not anything made that was made.” (John 1:1 – 3 ESV) Thus, we see that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit were in the beginning. God the Father is the beginning of all things. His eternal living Word is the instrument of the creation of all things. His spirit HOVERED over the face of the deep at the time of creation. This word “hovered” is the same word that appears in Luke Chapter One verse 35 where we read in the ESV as follows: “And the angel answered her, ‘the Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called Holy – the son of God’." Therefore, the Holy Spirit overshadowed Mary as he had overshadowed the spirit of the deep at the time of the creation of all things

This generation has more opportunity to know the Word of God but seemingly has less actual knowledge of the Word of God than ever in the history of the world. Indeed, the prophet Amos in the 8th Chapter of Amos in the 11th verse warns of the time such as this when he says the following:

“Behold, the days are coming”, declares the Lord God, “when I will send a famine on the land – not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord." (Amos 8:11 ESV)

Is it any wonder that there has been such a geometric increase in violence, and evil in our day?

We have leaders in positions of authority over us, in this nation particularly, who are ungodly and unrighteous and suppress the truth in unrighteousness (Romans 1:18)

1. THE WICKEDNESS BEFORE THE FLOOD

After man had disobeyed God in the Garden of Eden, wickedness increased. In the 6th Chapter of Genesis, we read the following in verse 5: 

“The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually." (Genesis 6:5 ESV) And in verse 11 and 12, “Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight, and the earth was filled with violence. And God saw the earth, and behold, it was corrupt, for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth.” (Genesis 6:11 – 12 ESV).

So it was in the days of Noah. Noah “found Grace in the eyes of the Lord" and God told him to build the ark which he did in obedience to the Lord. Ultimately, God destroyed all flesh on the earth because of the wickedness and violence that filled the earth, and saved only Noah and his three sons, Noah’s wife, and the wives of his sons, as well as, of course, the animals that were on the ark.

These are actual facts, reported by the Creator Himself. In the fullness of time, God the Son became man (fully God and fully man) and was given the name Jesus “for He shall save His people from their sins". (Matthew 1:21b) Thus, we can put together these facts: it is the living Word who created all things according to the counsel of His own will (Ephesians 1:11) by Him all things exist (John 1:3) and, “in Him all things consist" (Colossians 1:17), indeed “He upholds all things by the Word of His power" (Hebrews 1:3)

Knowledge of the beginning gives us understanding of the Cross and redemption. Redemption is the restoration to that which was from the beginning. The freedom that we had at the beginning in our ancestor, Adam, is redeemed and restored to us through the second Adam, the Lord Jesus Christ. It takes as much an act of creation – a second birth – a new creation, as in the beginning. Jesus told Nicodemus in the third chapter of the Gospel of John that he must be born again. Indeed, everyone must be born again or they will not see the Kingdom of God. They are free to do whatever they want to do, but they are not free to do what they ought to do! God's Holy Word tells us that “all have sinned and come short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23) “And you were dead in the trespasses and sins…and were by nature children of wrath…" (Ephesians 2:1 & 3)

1. THE REDEMPTION OF GOD

“But, God, being rich in mercy, because of this world, following the great love with which He loved us, has made us alive in Christ Jesus.” (Ephesians 2:4 - 5) He has created us anew. He has redeemed us with “the precious blood of Jesus.” (1 Peter 1:19a)  Jesus, “…. made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Cor. 5:21) We are a new creation in Christ Jesus.

Jesus is described in scripture as being the Lamb of God. The Passover Lamb slain from before the foundation of the world. Even though He was tempted in all points as are we, He never sinned. He was without sin. Therefore, He is described as being without spot or blemish. Jesus voluntarily went to the Cross and paid the penalty for our sin – death- that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him. From the Cross He declared “it is finished”! Jesus paid it all. There is nothing left to pay. You receive the Lord Jesus Christ when you repent from your sin and place your faith in Christ alone for your salvation. Have you done that? If not, why not? We no longer face the sentence of death that those in Noah’s day faced. There is no "double jeopardy" in God's court.

III.    THE WORLD IN NOAH’S DAY

In the 24th chapter of Matthew, Jesus is asked by His disciples to tell them when shall the destruction of Jerusalem be and what shall be the sign of Jesus’ coming and of the end of the world? In response, Jesus answers as follows: "but concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the Angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only. For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. For as in those days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man." (Matthew 24:36 – 39 ESV)

Therefore, we see that the keys that indicate that the time of the return of Christ is drawing near from Genesis 6:5 is that (1) the wickedness of man was great in the earth; and (2) every intention of the thoughts of man's heart was only evil continually; (3) the earth was corrupt in God sight; and (4) the earth was filled with violence. In verse 12 of Genesis Chapter 6, the conclusion is “and God saw the earth, and behold, it was corrupt, for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth”.(Genesis 6:12 ESV) Wickedness! Evil thoughts continually! Corruption! Violence! All flesh corrupted their way on the earth!

So it was in the days of Noah. Is that what we're seeing right before our eyes in this day, not only in this country but around the world today?

IV.    GLOBALISM

It is being revealed today, even in the political arena in the United States, that there are many whose sole or entire interest is toward globalism. No borders; no sovereignty of nations; free-trade all around the world; unrestricted travel; all being controlled by one entity. A one-world government. There are indications that included in this description of globalism is an attempt to bring about a one-world Church. Indeed, even the present Pope of the Roman Catholic Church is taking the position – completely contrary to scripture – that “good Muslims, good atheists, good Buddhists, and other good pagans can go to heaven”. This is completely contrary to what Jesus has declared in the 14th Chapter of the Gospel of John where he says, “I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father (heaven) except through Me." (John 14:6 ESV)

All of this is a part of the attack on God's Word. If you do not know God's Word, you cannot know whether you’re hearing truth or not. for there are many false teachers who proclaim that which is false  to actually be true, and there are many false teachers who proclaim that that which is evil is good and that that which is black is white.  So we must be aware of both the attack on God's Word and the truth of God's Word. The prophet Isaiah spoke in the 5th Chapter of the Book of Isaiah of the condition of the nation Israel in his day as follows:

“For they have rejected the law of the Lord of hosts, and have despised the Word of the Holy One of Israel." (Isaiah 5:24b ESV)

Jesus, the living Word of God, declares that He is TRUTH! His word is TRUE! It is the Word of God that is the light of the world and, thus, enables us to see the truth, to understand the truth, and to apply the truth correctly to our lives. Repeatedly, throughout all of scripture, we are told that man shall live by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God! We are repeatedly told that God's Word is true and is our daily bread. Jesus is the bread that comes down from heaven. Jesus is the light of the world. Jesus is the living water which satisfies all thirst. Listen to what the Psalmist says in the 19th Psalm:

The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul;

    The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple;

The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes; 

The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; 

The rules of the Lord are true, and righteous altogether. 

More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold;

Sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb. (Psalm 19:7 – 10)

    Thus, we can see that Jesus, the living Word of God, the Holy Word of God, is sufficient for all things. The Holy Scriptures are sufficient and “profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be PERFECT thoroughly furnished unto all good works.” (2 Timothy 3:16) This doesn’t leave any room for doubt! The scriptures are true, accurate, and sufficient for all things. The scriptures say that, “God is light and in Him is no darkness at all!” (1 John 1:5) Repeatedly, we find God’s Word is sufficient. “Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.” (Psalms 119:105)

The living Word of the living God is under attack and we need to choose this day who do we believe? Do we believe the words of men? Do we believe the Word of the living God? It is the Word of God that gives us truth, indeed is truth itself, and gives us the light to see and understand and comprehend truth even in the face of evil, violence, and corruption. I know not what course others may take, but as from me and my house we will take the Word of God!

CONCLUSION

Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of His glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen! (Jude 24 ESV)