Chances

Day sixty-three

Starting your morning off by teaching seminary seems to energize me for the rest of the day!  I was privileged to teach the junior class today, which is always a treat, about D&C 98.  I love the Lord's Anger Management program outlined in this section.  So part of my prayer was focused on gratitude for the chance to teach and to learn, and part of it was on preparing to have the Spirit in the class so real learning could take place.  Then I asked that I might apply what I would learn today and be an example to those around me.

I am studying Genesis Chapter 6 today with additional information from Moses Chapter 8.  

The first 5 verses in Genesis Ch 6 give us some insight into how man was behaving at the time of Noah.  The daughters who had been born under the covenant (to those who held the priesthood), were transgressing the commandment of the Lord and were marrying out of the church (Genesis 6:1-2); and the wickedness of man was great in the earth.  They were so wicked that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually (Genesis 6:5).

What was the Lord's reaction?
His Spirit Withdraws
According to Genesis the Lord stated that: "My spirit shall not always strive with man..." (Gen 6:3) the Lord could no longer be with them because of their wickedness.  In Moses 8:17 we learn that it wasn't just the wicked acts but the fact that "...men do not repent..." that required the Spirit to be taken away.

He Gives Warnings
"His (man's) days shall be an hundred and twenty years." (Gen. 6:3)  It sounds like the Lord is shortening man's life span so that they will live for only 120 years, instead of the 500+ years that were usual for the time.  However, in the Book of Moses it is clear that the 120 years refers to the time when Noah would preach repentance and try to save the world before the Flood was sent (Moses 8:17).

He Shows Compassion
"And it repented the Lord that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart"
"And the Lord said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth...for it repenteth me that I have made them"(Gen 6:6-7) 

In Moses 8:25-26 it states: "And it repented Noah, and his heart was pained that the Lord had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at the heart."   "And the Lord said: I will destroy man whom I have created, from the face of the earth...for it repenteth Noah that I have created them, and that I have made them; and he hath called upon me; for they have sought his life."   

I prefer the Moses Ch 8 version of the story, it feels more like the way God would react.  He is always trying to give us chances to repent and come back to Him.  He gave warnings through His prophet Noah to the people, even when their thoughts were evil continually. He didn't give up on them, he gave them 120 years to get their act together. 

The footnote for the word repented in verse six states: The Heb. root means 'to be sorry'. "moved to pity', 'have compassion'.  The last one, 'have compassion', that's the phrase I would choose to describe the Lord.  He tried so hard to help them, but they wouldn't accept his terms of repentance.

How does this apply to me?

We all screw up, maybe not to the point that we think nothing but evil thoughts, but we all make mistakes in judgment.  Isn't it nice to know that the Lord will give us every chance to make things right again?  This is one of the lessons I learned from this chapter: There is hope in Him, even for those that seem filled with wickedness. The Lord didn't want just Noah and his family to be saved, He wanted everyone to be saved. He loves each of us so much that He will do everything within His power to give us the opportunity to be with Him again.  He sets the terms and the consequences, we just have to accept them and follow through. 

The real question for us is:  What will we do with our chances?