The Danger Of An Unstable Father

Genesis 6:1-4. [6:1] When man began to multiply on the face of the land and daughters were born to them, [2] the sons of God saw that the daughters of man were attractive. And they took as their wives any they chose. [3] Then the LORD said, "My Spirit shall not abide in man forever, for he is flesh: his days shall be 120 years." [4] The Nephilim were on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of man and they bore children to them. These were the mighty men who were of old, the men of renown. (ESV)

After weeks of protests snarling downtown Ottawa and blockading border crossings, nearly two-thirds of Canadians have lost faith in the ability of the country to maintain peace, order and good government and 53 per cent have lost faith in the enforcement of the law, according to a new poll. About one-third (32 per cent) of Canadians believe that if governments will not protect “fundamental Canadian values,” then they must take action themselves — even if it requires violence. Sixty-two per cent of Canadians also say they’ve lost faith in the ability of the country to keep peace, order and good government. A further 52 per cent of Canadians believe the country is “beyond broken,” (National Post (Latest Edition). 18 Feb 2022. Tyler Dawson National Post tdawson@postmedia.com)

Although there is disagreement on who exactly are the parties taking action in Genesis 6:1-4, it is clear that the kind of relationship described here involved some form of grievous sexual perversion, wherein the “sons of God” saw and with impunity took any women (“daughters of man”) that they wanted. The sequence here in Gen. 6:2 (“saw … attractive [good] … took”) parallels the sequence of the fall in Gen. 3:6 (“saw … good … took”). In both cases, something good in God’s creation is used in disobedience and sinful rebellion against God, with tragic consequences. (Crossway Bibles. (2008). The ESV Study Bible (p. 61). Crossway Bibles.)

God designed the family to be the first line of defence against sin and evil. It should be an environment of learning, nurturing and protecting but it does not always function as God intends. A father must neither abuse his responsibilities in harming his family nor have a hands off, lassez-faire attitude, which is a serious neglect. Such is neglect is basically opening up the gates to the enemy. But to seek out evil in entertainment or a mistaken spirit of openness is an abuse beyond measure.

In Genesis 6:1-4 we see that the wickedness of humanity had reached such proportion that they had engaged themselves in demonic relationships. Not only did they not seek God, not only did they not endeavour to know God, but they pursued demons. It is a warning for Today's family in allowing the world to dictate standards and the chaos that will result. From Genesis 6:1-4 we see that to have God, and not the world be the pattern for our families, we must be weary of having four things: 1) An Unstable Father that is Too Permissive (Genesis 6:1), 2) An Unstable Father that Loses Control (Genesis 6:2), 3) An Unstable Father that Tests God's Patience (Genesis 6:3), and 4) An Unstable Father that Reaps What he Sows (Genesis 6:4).

To have God, and not the world be the pattern for our families, we must be weary of having:

1) An Unstable Father that is Too Permissive (Genesis 6:1)

Genesis 6:1. [6:1] When man began to multiply on the face of the land and daughters were born to them, (ESV)

At this point in Genesis, the world was already full of sin. For humanity there was murder, polygamy, pride, anger, and vengeance. We have seen quite a catalogue of sins before we ever get to chapter 6. But here in chapter 6 the level of human evil has reached such a point that there is an engagement with the very powers of hell, the very demons themselves. In fact, it is apparently sought out. With the passing of years the seed of Serpent became ever more numerous. The seed of woman—righteous mankind—diminished to the point of being represented by one man, his three sons and their four wives. The opening verses of Genesis 6 point out the contrast between these two communities (Smith, J. E. (1993). The Pentateuch (2nd ed.) (Ge 6:1–10). Joplin, Mo.: College Press Pub. Co.). Moses interrupts his genealogy of Adam’s descendants in order to describe the awesome catastrophe God sent on earth’s inhabitants during the life of Noah. Here he traces the developments that led to God’s decision to send the flood (Jeske, J. C. (2001). Genesis (2nd ed.). The People's Bible (74). Milwaukee, Wis.: Northwestern Pub. House.).