Enoch

Hebrews 11:5 “By faith Enoch was taken from this life, so that he did not experience death: “He could not be found, because God had taken him away.”[a] For before he was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God.”

Introduction

Enoch and Elijah were the two individuals in the Bible who were directly carried away to heaven, this is not something to skip and go to the next chapter, surely we would like to know more about them. Enoch got qualified for this ‘special flight’! No visa, no passport, no paper work but direct flight to heaven. Phew!

God took him -These words squeezed my heart! God was soooooo moved by this guy Enoch that He took him away to be with Him.

The words ' chosen by God' has become familiar that we fail to comprehend the essence of it

The Bible says ' 1 Peter 2:9:

"But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light

Ephesians 1:4:

"For He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless in His presence".

John 15:16:

"You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit—fruit that will remain.'

There are many scriptures related to this but I picked the above to make you understand what it means to be "chosen '.

Illustration: I talked about being picked out by God to my Abide School students today by citing Noah as an example. My actual title was 'measurements' to the students, I mix Bible verse with education and speak to them. I was preaching this message in the midst of pagan teachers who had just celebrated a big hindu festival, and mixed group of students from various religions. I consider this platform precious, and I was not going to skip it.

Why would God select only , I repeat 'only Noah' from the whole world? Tell me. (Genesis 6:8)If God did not find anything fantastic in Noah, He would not have selected him, also God gave Noah very specific measurements for the building of the ark:

Genesis 6:14 -16-

The ark is to be 450 ft long, 75 feet wide and 45 feet high. Genesis 6:16 instructs Noah to construct the ark with a roof and a ventilation or light opening of approximately 18 inches (one cubit) below the top, leaving space between the roof and the side walls for light and air. "

Meditate:::Just look at the precise details! Look! Don't just quickly read the Bible, look, look, read, make notes and meditate. Instead of sitting and overthinking , Apostle Paul says, don't overthink but just meditate only on those that are true Philippians 4:8( 8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.) Hallelujah!! Fear the Lord who expects you to perfectly 'measure'. God would not have given this project of measurements, if Noah had been a careless and reckless person. Anybody listening? God is just not going to select you for wearing a big cross or jumping during worship, He is looking for good deeds. Anybody listening?

Personal testimony: I was unable to find a good tailor when I moved to Hyderabad so I gave my clothes to stitch with a sample dress also. But when I went to collect, I found it very tight and small. When I asked him the reason, he saw Shalu (my daughter) stand close to me so he said,' ok no problem, give it to your daughter.' This is the kind of people we see around the world, that includes Christians too, who live lacklustre life without perfection.

God weighs your life, has measured you and created you, you were fearfully and wonderfully made. Proverbs 21:2, which states, "Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the heart". God had the measuring scale with Him while He created you, not just approximate but perfect. Anybody listening????

Likewise, listen to this, He will weigh your deeds and bless you accordingly. Romans 2:6"God will render to every man according to his deeds:". Your life is measured!

God trusted Noah to build the ark according to measurements and to perfection because God watched his life.

👉Noah woke up sharp 5am to pray, not beat around the bush and say,' I pray the whole day.'

👉He walked with God and talked with God and his life reflected it.

Coming back to what I said earlier, I preached all what I said above in the school. Whenever I spoke about God, I made sure to say 'Jesus Christ '. Amen.