I. Introduction
A. What an "Epitaph for a man to put on his tombstone!"
B. The greatest testimony that could be placed on a man’s tombstone was that which is recorded in the Word of God concerning the man Enoch - "but he never used it!"
C. Enoch was the son of Jared and the father of Methuselah; He lived to be 365 years old before he was taken by God.
D. Not a whole lot is said concerning this man, yet we see in this just a few passages a great man of faith Enoch was.
E. What Can We Learn from the Life of Enoch?
F. Gen. 5:24 says…. "And Enoch walked with God: and HE WAS NOT….. for God took him."
G. Enoch Was Not WHAT??? Let’s look at 3 Aspects of Enoch’s Life that help to answer this question -
H. Enoch was not Conformed to the World
I. Enoch was not Controlled by the World
J. Enoch was not Condemned with the World
II. Enoch Was Not Conformed to the World (Heb. 11:5-6)
A. Notice that Enoch’s name is listed in the "Hall of Faith" - "….he had this testimony, THAT HE PLEASED GOD." Without Faith it is IMPOSSIBLE to Please God!
B. There are many different ideas of how to please God -
1. Doing Deeds (Rom. 4:20) "By the deeds of the law shall no flesh be justified in His sight…."
2. Public Praise (Matt. 15:8) "This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me."
3. Faltering Faith (James 2:17-26) "But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?"
4. Religious Rituals (James 1:26-27) "If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man’s religion is vain."
C. Sincerity DOES NOT Make a Difference When ONE is Wrong! A Person is simply Sincerely WRONG!!
D. The Apostle Paul stated, "I beseech you therefore brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And BE NOT CONFORMED TO THIS WORLD: but BE YE TRANSFORMED by the renewing of your minds….." (Rom. 12)
E. Enoch was not conformed to this world - How do I know???
F. Enoch had this testimony that he pleased God!
G. The world does not please God because the world is enmity against God -
H. "Can two walk together, except they be agreed?" (Amos 3:3) I. The testimony of Enoch was that "He walked with God!"
III. Enoch Was Not Controlled by the World (Jude 14-16)
A. In the short epistle of Jude, we read something of the life of this man Enoch - He was a Preacher!
B. Enoch’s life was not controlled by the world; He was a man who was separated to the task of getting out God’s message.
C. Not many people today are committed to the task of proclaiming message of God.
D. Reasons Why People Don’t Want to Tell the Story
1. Unpopular to Ungodly (Jude 14-15)
2. Loss of Loved Ones (Jude 16)
3. Jolting of Judgment (Jude 14)
E. My friend, not many today are prepared to do the work of a missionary - Paul preached of righteousness, temperance, & judgment to come! So did Enoch!!
F. The world today would say that a person would have to be crazy to give up a good job, a great future, or a comfortable life-style to do what needs to be done.
G. Matt. 9:37-38 - "The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few; Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest."
H. I count it a privilege to labor for the Kingdom of God! What an honor to be an emissary of the Lord of Hosts!!!
I. Enoch was not controlled by the World - We should not be controlled by the philosophies of the world either!!
IV. Enoch Was Not Condemned with the World (Heb. 11:5-6)
A. The Word of God is quite emphatic that there is coming a day of Judgment!
B. As revealed in the life of Enoch - (pictures the Rapture before the Judgment of the Flood) - "As it is appointed unto all men once to die, and after this the judgment." (Heb. 9:27)
C. The Bible teaches a Pre-Tribulation Rapture which means that the Lord Jesus Christ will come back for His Bride, the Church, made up of ALL Born-Again Believers.
D. However, just as recorded in the Book of Genesis, there will follow a terrible time of judgment - The Tribulation Period!
E. 2 Thess. 1:7-10; 2 Thess. 2:1-3:5
V. Conclusion/Invitation
