May 28, 2026:

GOD’S WORD FOR TODAY:

“When Adam had lived 130 years, he had a son in his own likeness, in his own image; and he named him Seth. After Seth was born, Adam lived 800 years and had other sons and daughters. Altogether, Adam lived a total of 930 years, and then he died..” (Genesis 5.3-5)

TODAY’S REFLECTION ON GOD’S WORD:

As the story is told, we are drawn into the process of producing future generations “in the image of God.” The association connects how God created “mankind” with the progeny of Adam and Eve. I might note that while the length of time during which Adam had other sons and daughters over his 800 years of existence is not made clear, it certainly seems that it was possibly hundreds of years. This would mean that Eve was bearing all those children for hundreds of years, too. Of course, one of the consequences of the flood in the days of Noah is that mankind no longer lived such long lives. One hundred and twenty years became the expected life span of those who were “the people of God.” We know from other records of other cultures that the life expectancy of most people was rarely more than forty or possibly fifty years. There was an association between faith in God and a long fruitful life. However, the more sin invaded the culture of “the people of God,” the more their lives suffered. It would be highlighted by such stories of Abram and Sarai who were without child long after the time of child bearing.

The connection I am reflecting upon today is based on the birth of Seth to Adam and Eve. Eve rejoiced because she had been given a son to replace Abel whom Cain murdered. For Adam, we find a correction of what may have been a parenting issue. We do not read that Adam saw Seth as a replacement for Abel. We do not read that Adam saw Seth as a replacement for Cain who was sent away under God’s threat of protection. Yet, the very words to describe Adam’s understanding of the birth of Seth is clear. Adam had a son brought into the world “into his own likeness and image” as he himself had been brought into the world by God. We do not have to imagine that we are simply speaking of a physical appearance with these phrases. I myself have understood the interpretation of those phrases to mean “God created humankind in the image He believed they would be.” Just as God had imagined how the rest of the world, the universe and the heavens to be, so He created humankind in His image. They reflected Him. They especially reflected Him in their nature and character. So, we may be hearing a similar association with Adam and Seth. This is why I say “a correction.”

Abel did what was right before God, especially when it came to offering the acceptable sacrifice. Abel may well have reflected the right attitude, the corrected attitude of confession and thanksgiving which God recognized when He spared Adam and Eve. Could it be that Eve saw Abel as the reward for that thank offering? Recognizing the wrong which had been done by her, she was grateful for fulfilling the purpose for which she was created. She may have also believed that Abel was perhaps the one through whom her enemy, the Serpent, would be defeated. With Abel’s death, that hope was gone. Then came Seth and her hope was renewed.

For Adam, Cain reflected more of the curse which God had announced in the “toil from the soil.” Such labor was meant to provide for his family and not simply to harvest the fruit of creation in the Garden which bore itself naturally. Yet Adam could not forget how God spared him and Eve out of the goodness of His heart and a love for His creation. He may have counted on Abel to represent one part of him and Cain the other. Since Cain did not understanding why his offering was less acceptable, this may be true. It bears considering. So what then of Seth? Is he being raised in the image of Adam and in his likeness not so much as he was in the Garden but as he was in the world? Could it be that Seth was raised with the full knowledge of “right relationship to God” and the “toil in the soil” reality of every day life? Was there hard work to provide and the Sabbath rest? Was this the legacy that these verses represent? What we know from the conclusion of chapter 4 is that following the life of Seth, his people “called upon the name of the Lord.”

Here, mighty ones of God, is a lesson to be applied in our own daily lives. We cannot live separate lives. We must be united in heart, mind, body and soul before God. Sin desires to separate us into components as if they each are independent of each other and joined in a loose confederation. Our purpose is to fulfill all righteousness by putting our true identity and productivity in right relationship with God. It is hard to do without making sacrifices. Our greatest sacrifice is to put our trust in God and lean solely on Him. It is impossible for us to this. We need assistance. In those days which followed Seth and the rest of the descendants of Adam through him, that assistance was “the Spirit” of the Law. It called for sacrifices remembering the graciousness and mercy of God for our daily lives. “In this world,” Jesus said, “there will be trouble and hardship; but do not fear it for I am overcoming the world.” Yes, from the line of Seth there would be, as God promised Eve, one who would come to finally end the reign of terror of the Serpent. The Serpent would snap at the heel of the man/mankind (evening causing death) but the heel of the that same man/mankind would crush the serpent’s head (the victory of resurrection.) The very One which God pronounced came into the world in Mary. We know His name is Jesus of Nazareth. God so loved the world and sought to redeem it that He sent His own Son to be born in His likeness and image. He would not only “toil in the soil” of the earth but sacrifice with thanksgiving the hope of redemption, renewal, reconciliation and restoration. Mighty ones of God, this is the likeness we are called to bear. It is the likeness we are to grow into so that we might attain in Him and through Him, the life we have always desired. That life is one in peace with “our Father.”

TODAY’S PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING:

Father, in these days we are finding the need to believe even more than ever before. We all have known trouble, some in greater ways than others, but You are offering us the assurance that we will not be consumed by it forever. Regardless of the “time” we are in and the “time” we have been given, we ask for Your Holy Spirit which Jesus asked You to share with us, to lead and guide and direct us in the paths we should go. Teach us what we still need to learn. Empower us to put that learning into action. Bless our actions not as a works righteousness but as righteous works of faith, hope and love in Jesus’ name. AMEN.