In Genesis 5, we have God’s list of the first 10 obituaries. Or if you like, we can also call this the first comprehensive genealogy. It is a theological genealogy. This means that God is telling us in this chapter what He is looking for in men. It starts with Adam who shattered God’s dream, then bypassing Able who left no offspring, and ends with God regretting that He ever made man with the approaching of the days of Noah. This period lasted 1556 years and it was the deepest and longest and darkest period of history ever—three times longer than the traditional “Dark Ages” from the fall of the Roman Empire to 1000 AD.

It is from these first 1500 years of civilization, one quarter of man’s existence on the earth, that we get an amazing story which states that although God’s first Adam failed, even in a perfect paradise, God raised up another Adam outside of paradise who, while living in the most wicked environment, nonetheless succeeded in walking with God. Here God has shown us that His divine grace is absolutely, incontestably adequate for every situation of life and that God is able to save to the uttermost (Heb. 7:25). Yes, man can live outside of paradise without ever eating forbidden fruits within his reach. That is the only point that God is trying to make in His theological genealogy covering the first one quarter of human history.

Let us now examine how God covered or reported these 1556 years of history on less than one page of the Bible. Without a doubt, it is here in Genesis 5 that you find out what God wants to write on your tombstone when you come to the end of your journey of life:

This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made he him…

And Adam lived an hundred and thirty years, and begat a son in his own likeness, after his image; and called his name Seth: And the days of Adam after he had begotten Seth were eight hundred years: and he begat sons and daughters… and he died.

And Seth lived an hundred and five years, and begat Enos… and begat sons and daughters… and he died.

And Enos lived ninety years and begat Cainan… and begat sons and daughters… and he died (Gen 5:1-11).

And so it goes on, and on and on for about 1000 years. So-and-so begat so-and-so, begat sons and daughters, and died. We quickly notice the boring similarities of these obituaries. You read one and basically you have read them all. Think of it, after Abel, there was not a single obituary during the first 1,000 years which put a smile upon God’s face. Again, I do not know of another 1,000-year period of history where things were so dark. Men did not seem to know what they were here for, or if they did, they refused to live out that which they knew was right. Do you, my friend, know what you are here for? Are you doing that which you know to be right? Are you perhaps also one of those contributing to the intense moral darkness that hovers over this planet? And are you raising children who will also contribute to this darkness?

But then, oh glory, in the seventh generation there was a change from this morbid monotony of no accomplishments in the sight of God that passed the test of eternity. It says: And Enoch lived sixty and five years, and begat Methuselah: And Enoch walked with God after he begat Methuselah three hundred years, and begat sons and daughters (Gen 5:21-22). Enoch’s life for the first 65 years was just as empty as that of his predecessors. But something happened when he held that first precious little baby in his arms. He began to wake up and perhaps for the first time, he entertained the three greatest questions of life: the questions of origin, purpose and destiny. And it was at this moment that he decided to walk with God! It was at this time that he had eternity burned upon his eyeballs. For the first time, he looked at everything in the light of eternity. From that time forth, Enoch walked with God.

Can you imagine the amount of excitement that this created in heaven. This was more exciting to God and the angels than the whole creation of the universe because the universe is disposable (2 Peter 3:10). But man was created to be the bride of Christ.

Further, since heaven rejoices over one man who repents, how much more does heaven rejoice over one man who begins to walk with God? Finally, the creation of the universe made sense again. Heaven had not seen a man walk with God for centuries. And the marvel is that this man who began to walk with God was living outside the garden of Eden, in a most wicked society. Oh, I do not know how long heaven celebrated because Enoch walked with God, but I have the notion that it could have lasted a while. God had His Adam back even outside of the garden, even though this Adam was born with the carnal nature! He did not have a pastor; he did not have a Bible; he did not know about Jesus; and the Holy Spirit had not yet been given. But Enoch walked with God. He walked with God when there was not just one forbidden fruit to abstain from, but thousands of forbidden fruits. My friend, what excuse do you have now, 5000 years later, for not walking with God, for not being another Adam who keeps his hands from the forbidden fruits of this life?

What acceptable excuse will you have on Judgment Day, with all that God has given you, for not having walked with Him? What excuse will you have for not having taught your children to walk with God, for allowing them to pursue the trophies and the honors of the world, that in the end will make them end up in a place that God could have delivered them from? Enoch walked with God. And how long did he walk with God? Did he make it a day? How about a week? How about a month? The Bible tells us he walked with God for 300 years. Do you know that you are born to walk with God, and that is the purpose of your life and of your children’s lives? So give yourselves to it with all your might.

Now, do you know what it means to walk with God? Here is my simple answer. Look at the preposition “with.” It means together. So, walking with God means locking arms with God and going everywhere with Him. It means not going anywhere unless He goes with you. It means not doing anything unless He is with you in the doing. In practice, it means you are not going to a ballgame unless He goes with you. You are not going on vacation unless He goes with you, and when you go, you go where He wants you to go and when He wants you to go. You will not buy a refrigerator or an automobile unless He goes with you. If He wants you to go to prayer meeting, you go. If He wants you to witness, you do it. You will not have any relationship with a member of the opposite sex unless He is in it with you.

As a woman, you will not dress any way other than the way He wants you to dress. God has a plan for every minute of your life; He has a plan for every dollar you have in your pocket. He wants to be your Lord all the time and Lord of all that you have. Walking with God means your life is no longer your own. It is a romance between you and Him, always satisfying and full of surprises. Your life will always be anointed and under His umbrella of protection. If you are living your life without His presence, you are not walking with God. Think of it, by walking with God, you begin to do what God wanted Adam and Eve to do in the beginning. As you obey God, He will be so happy with you. Again, you will begin to be in fellowship with Him all the time, 24/7. What is that worth?

Finally, what happened to Enoch after he walked with God for 300 years? Did he die? This is what the Bible says: And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him (Gen. 5:24). If you walk with God, at the end of your journey, God will take you! God will send angels to bring you to Himself, or perhaps He will pick you up with a chariot of fire! But, my friend, do not be surprised if you find very few people who are carried by angels to the throne of God. There are few, so very few, who do not have a fake religion. Enoch walked with God and he was one out of an estimated 5 billion people at the time. Yet, it is not complicated to walk with God. You can start by simply obeying everything that God tells you to do and with that you are on the way and you have moved from a life without Him to a life with Him all the time. So, my friend, what is your choice today? Are you going to live your life for the devil another day or are you going to start walking with God as you finish reading this message? May the words “WALKED WITH GOD” be graven upon your gravestone and your annals of God.