The Power of the Understated

Scripture often has a great deal to say about some people.

People like Moses, Abraham, and David come to mind.

There are others, to be sure.

In comparison, some are barely mentioned,

There may be a verse here and a verse there making these individuals easy to overlook.

Enoch was such a person.

Genesis 5 tells us he was the father of Methuselah.

But then Scripture adds one especially important verse.

Genesis 5:24 (NRSVue) - Enoch walked with God; then he was no more, because God took him.

Here, scripture tells us that “Enoch walked with God.”

Although brief, this statement is full of meaning.

What does it mean to walk with God?

Well, what does it mean when we walk with someone?

It means we have a personal relationship with that person.

So, when Scripture tells us that “Enoch walked with God” it means that Enoch had a personal relationship with God.

Later, the New Testament adds a bit more about Enoch and his relationship with God.

Hebrews 11:5 (NRSVue) - By faith Enoch was taken so that he did not experience death, and “he was not found, because God had taken him.” For it was attested before he was taken away that “he had pleased God.”

Enoch not only walked with God, but Enoch also “had pleased God.”

These are two small verses from among thousands in Scripture.

But they should make us ask, “Do I walk with God?”

They should make us ask, “Do I please God?”

The only way we can respond yes is to have a personal relationship with God.

When it comes to Scripture, never underestimate the power fn the understated.

Sometime the most important things Scripture has to say, it says in a few words.

It can even do it in as few as two words…

John 11:35 (KJV) - Jesus wept.

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at otherbrotherjim.blogspot.com on Friday, January 24, 2025.

I will be back here on Friday, February 7, 2025

New Year; New You

Psalm 48 is a song about the strength of Zion.

But the Psalmist ends the song with a reminder of the source of strength.

Psalm 48:14 (NRSVue) - that this is God, our God forever and ever. He will be our guide forever.

John 14 is a beautiful chapter,

In its opening verses, Christ reminds his followers of several inescapable facts,

He reminds them that He is going to prepare a place for them.

He also reminds them that they know the way.

Only Thomas asks the question that the others were asking themselves.

“Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?”

John 14:6 (NRSVue) - Jesus said to him, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

As we enter a new year, it is good to bear these facts in mind.

Change is inevitable.

But as a rule, we resist change.

But change is necessary if we are to grow spiritually.

The man I am today is different from the boy I once was.

Nor am I the man I was decades ago.

In years to come, I will not be the same man I am today.

Yet throughout the years of change and personal growth, God remained constant.

As we leave behind another year and embark on another trip around the sun, we leave things behind.

Perhaps the past year was one of joy.

Perhaps it was one of sorrow.

More likely, it was a year that combined both.

As we embark on the new year, we know that change lies ahead.

May we see the challenges we encounter as opportunities for spiritual growth.

May we remember that God never changes.

May we remember that Jesus is the way, the truth and the life.

May we remember that He is the way to the Father.

And may we not be the same people we were when the new year comes to its end.

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at otherbrotherjim.blogspot.com on Friday, January 10, 2025.

I will be back here on Friday, January 17, 2025