It’s a big “oops” and I’m sure the people didn’t even realize how the way they were living was frustrating their creator. Have you ever been in a hurry in a store only to come upon someone who is clueless, standing right in the middle of the aisle or walkway? They have no concept of time or space and your impatience makes it seem all the more like they left their brain at home. Well, that’s the kind of ignorance I feel these people had. They were going through the motions of life, more focused on the pleasures they could get rather than their creator and how they could serve him.
God’s frustration here is pretty clear. We know God doesn’t make mistakes, although here is questioning himself. Do you ever do that? Question yourself? Maybe it’s something simple like the outfit you chose for the day or what you’re making for dinner. But God is questioning himself and why he ever made these humans. That’s a pretty big deal.
We hear that God made a proclamation to limit the human lifespan to 120 years. This explains why we don’t live for 900+ years anymore. But there are other mysteries in today’s text that I won’t even begin to speculate on. I tried to do some side reading to provide a little insight, and that only got me more confused. If I just pluck verse 4 out of today’s reading, it all seems to fit. To me, verse 4 doesn’t really fit with the rest, other than to show that there was a lot of corruption running rampant in this civilization God had created.
Could God’s disappointment and frustration be similar to what we feel as parents when our children misbehave or make wrong choices? Similar perhaps but on a much grander scale. We know that despite bad behavior, we love our children. That unconditional love must also be magnified when you apply it to the “God scale.”
I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to break God’s heart. I don’t want to be the disobedient child that causes him to roll his eyes and say under his breath, “What now?” I know God loves me, and that is enough for this people pleaser to behave. I like the verse of the day for one of my Bible apps today, Galatians 1:10, “Obviously, I’m not trying to win the approval of people, but of God. If pleasing people were my goal, I would not be Christ’s servant.” Take some time to let that soak in.
It’s easy to read today’s passage and feel well removed from it. But really, we are right smack dab in the middle of it. Aren’t we caught up in a world full of sinners? Don’t we push the envelope on our own faithfulness? We are certainly not perfect. I want to be like Noah and find favor with the Lord.
Let’s pray. Father, forgive me when I am distracted and focusing on the wrong audience. I know you are my main focus. Help me today to be a shining light for you. I want my life to be a reflection of your goodness. Use me to bring an awakening to this broken world. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
