Man's Malady-God's Remedy 01 gen.3:1 — J. Henry Brown

Morning to you all. Many of you will remember that four weeks ago that we turned our attention to the book of Genesis, that we might get before it in a simple way some of those things that did not seem to be very clear.

Sin, Sacrifice, and God's Covering

We began to think about man's malady and God's remedy. Man's malady, sin. God's remedy, that sin offering, that sacrifice. And we saw how God came in in a very wonderful way. To meet man's malady, he brought in, as we saw, those coats of skins.

Bringing before us the fact there must have been suffering, bloodshedding, death. The suffering and death of another to provide the covering for them to make atonement so they might stand before him. And surely that which he provided would certainly enable them to stand in his presence, although they had sinned against him.

Malady, God's remedy. And then we went on to see God's provision and decision turned our attention to those two young men, Cain and Abel. And we saw how that, without a doubt, God in doing what he did for Adam and Eve was in this way making it quite plain to those two young men the only possible way in which they could draw near to him by way of suffering, bloodshedding, and death, by way of a sin.

And so, by following this, we see that Cain, we see that Abel had that sense of sin, and so he brought the sin offering. But Cain brought the offering, brought his offering, the fruit of the grass, revealing the condition of his soul that he had no sense of sin.

And we followed this through, we saw how that God pleaded with Cain to be honest, to examine his own heart, and to see that God had made provision, opportunity. If you do well, will you not be accepted?

And if you do not well, then a sin offering couches at the door, right there, not far for you to see. But we saw that Cain was not prepared to do it, and as we followed him through, we saw that he went out from the presence of the Lord.

He deliberately turned his back on the God who was pleading with him, asking him to inspect his own soul, to be honest about things, and to take the opportunity which was his. He deliberately turned his back on God.

He went out from the presence of the Lord. And we saw that he built a city, and then when we turned our attention to Cain's seed, then we saw how that through them we had brought in all those fine arts and music, commerce and colonization, mechanical skill and invention.

All this seemed to come in through Cain's seed. All of it seemed to end up in joy, pleasure, music. And I said to you at that time that it didn't really end up like that. It ended in the judgment of God.

The Corruption of Humanity in Genesis 6

And so this morning, I want to follow that up, and I want to turn your attention now again to the book of Genesis, and let us read in chapter six. Genesis chapter six. Reminding ourselves at this time of the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ, of his coming into the world, just as well for us to remind ourselves why he came, what made that necessary.

Chapter six of the book of Genesis. And it came to pass when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, that the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair, and they took them wives of all which they choose.

And the Lord said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh, yet his day shall be an hundred and twenty years. There were giants in the earth in those days, and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bared children to them, and the same became mighty men which were of old men of renown.

And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 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, both man and beast, and the creeping things, and the fowls of the air, for it repented me that I have made them. But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.

These are the generations of Noah. Noah was a just man, and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God. And Noah begat three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. The earth was also corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.

And God looked upon the earth, and behold, it was corrupt, for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth. And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me, for the earth is filled with violence through them.

And behold, I will destroy them with the earth. Make thee an ark of gopher wood, room shalt thou make in the ark, and shalt pitch it within and without. Now, we can leave our reading there, because the story of Noah, and the ark, and the flood, is quite well known to us.

And with that in our mind, we can now pay a little attention to what we find in the early part of this chapter. Cain went out from the presence of the Lord, and he built that city, and now we find that these people have multiplied, and God looks down upon the condition of these people coming from that time of Cain.

The Depth of Human Depravity

And in verse 5, God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continuing. I think that we read these words time and time again.

We do not spend enough time upon them to really enter into the terrible condition which is brought before us. You notice what it says? Imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.

Notice those words, every, continually. And what does this refer to? Every imagination of the thoughts. Our attention is not being drawn to deeds, to actions, or to words. We're going much deeper than that.

Imagination of the thoughts, and even deeper than that, the imagination of the thoughts, deep down into the very being of man. The imagination of the thoughts, only evil continually. None of us here has ever seen anything like this.

None of us ever experienced anything like this. This is beyond us. If you can just reach into it to see what this condition really was. It was a condition of utter appalling corruption. There wasn't a single redeeming feature about it.

There was nothing there to which God could make an appeal. Every imagination of the thoughts of man's heart, only evil contiguously. We haven't got that today. We are drifting into it. We are coming into it more and more.

And the Lord himself says, as it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be, the coming of the Son of Man. So that when he comes, he will find the same condition that we find here in those days, in the days of Noah, when every imagination of the thoughts of man's heart is only evil continually.

You're going right deep down to the source of all action, and of all speech, all words. Nothing can come out of this that God can in any way deal with. Only one thing for it, and that is that God must judge it.

He must sweep it all away, and that's what he intends to do. But notice also that the Lord said, my spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is my spirit shall not always strive with man.

God's Spirit Striving With Humanity

My spirit shall not continue to strive with man. Notice that evidently there is a limitation, a limitation to the striving of the Spirit of God, a limitation. Now, this is a very serious thing, that God himself tells us that he will not continue, he will not go on forever striving with man, pleading within man by his spirit, reaching man in his innermost being.

He will not continue to do that. He will not go on doing that. Always. There's a limit to it. There will be a time when God will cease to strive with man. What a serious thing this is. I know there are people today who are probably walking about the faith of the earth, that the Spirit of God has ceased to strive with.

I would never dare to try to point them out. I would hate to think that this is true, but in all probability it is true. Now, there are men and women who have been so set in their evil, every imagination of the thoughts of the heart, all the evil continually that God finds he cannot go on pleading any longer.

The day of grace finished, far as those people are concerned. We would never dare to point out to point out any person and say it is true then. There are people who are inclined to think it is true themselves, and they're very concerned about it.

But if they're concerned about it, believe me, it is definitely not true. Because if it is really true that the Spirit of God has ceased to strive with them, that there is nothing in them to which God can appeal, then there won't be any concern.

Not the least concern. And when a person finds that he is not one little bit concerned about what God is doing in reaching to him, then that person is in a desperate state. When mortification has set in, and there's that stupor and languor, the doctor knows very well that the condition is hopeless.

So here we find, plainly before us, God saying, my spirit shall not always, shall not continue to strive with man. The implication, of course, is that God's Spirit does strive. And I believe myself that God himself, in his great love and rich mercy, is all the time reaching out to men and women.

Not simply when they come under the sound of the gospel, not simply when they gather together in a church or in a chapel, when they're under the sound of the gospel, but in many ways, varied ways, God reaches men and women in the power of his Spirit.

Maybe in a moment of danger, maybe when they are bereaved of a beloved one, but many circumstances of life that God himself draws near. And he speaks, he pleads, he brings before the person the sense of need, and if there's a response, then God is there to do that work of his, of cleansing, begetting, and bringing that person into a relationship with himself.

My spirit shall not always strive with man, in that he is flesh. Now, we looked at that condition of flesh. Our Lord Jesus Christ himself said, that which is born of the flesh is flesh. That condition is something which is final.

You cannot alter it, you cannot make it any different, you cannot improve it, you cannot mend it. That's what it is, and that's what it always will be. And said the apostle Paul, they that are in that flesh, they cannot please God.

It's an impossibility for man in the flesh to please God. My spirit shall not always strive with man, in that he is also what a condition this is. And so, God makes it perfectly clear that he is going to deal with this situation, and he's going to deal with it in judgment.

He has pleaded, but it has been of no avail. Men and women brought themselves into this condition of utter appalling corruption, in which now there is nothing to which God can make any appeal, and from which he can get no response.

Hardening of the Heart and Divine Judgment

One may suppose that it's very hard for God to treat men and women in this way. Remember Pharaoh? God hardened his heart, but don't forget that God did not harden Pharaoh's heart until Pharaoh had hardened it again and again.

And so, this goes on in many instances of men and women harden their hearts again and again, of a people hardening their hearts against God, and it goes on and on. And finally, God has them, then he hardens, and there's no possible escape.

Suffering of God, yet his day shall be 120 years. God says, I'm still going to strive a hundred and twenty years, must need build the ark. God is going to sweep away this utter appalling corruption, but he is going to save out of it those through whom he can still secure that purpose which he purposed from a way back in eternity.

He's going to save these eight precious souls out of this judgment. Now, this story is very familiar to us, the story of the ark and Noah, and more often than not, when we hear this story, it's used in the preaching of the gospel.

We are told that that flood brings before us the judgment of God. We're told that the ark brings before us, and we're told that Noah brings before us the sinner. And so, when we see Noah, the sinner, getting into the ark and being saved from the judgment of the flood, then we have a picture of the sinner believing in the Lord Jesus Christ, and being saved from the judgment of God.

Noah as a Picture of the Saint

Well now, that sounds all right, but when we look into it a little more deeply, it isn't quite all right. I want you to notice verse 9 says, these are the generations of Noah. Noah was a just man, and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God.

Notice please, Noah was a just man. That has to do with his character. Noah was perfect in his generation. That has to do with his conduct. Noah walked with God, and that has to do with his communion.

Now then, in his character, in his conduct, in his communion, would you tell me that he was a sinner? Would you tell me that this man is the type of a sinner? A just man, a perfect man, and a man who walked with God.

Now, I said, say well, not really, so that there must be some other idea in what we find in these words. We can agree, of course, that the flood was indeed the judgment of God, that the ark, of course, would be a type of Christ.

Now, we've got to be careful. He is definitely not the type of a sinner. If he is a type, he's a type of a saint. If this is salvation, and then it's more a salvation of a saint than it is the salvation of a sinner.

These things demand our attention. Why is it that God molded and made everything in this way? Why should we have this man brought before us in this way, as just, perfect, and one who walked with God? When we go back to the early chapter, to Adam and Eve there, we can see the type of sinner.

But, when we come on to this, we find the type of the saint. And, so that the ark, with Noah and the flood, these are bringing before us salvation which is deeper, mightier. Not only a salvation from, but a salvation to.

This is something tremendous. I want you to notice also this, that it's not so much the thought that Noah and those that were with him in the ark were saved from the judgment, that it was the judgment that saved them.

It was the waters of the flood that bore the ark up, and carried it through, and eventually arrested it on cleanly swept earth, on a new earth. It was the floods of judgment that did that. Not that they were saved from the judgment, but saved by the judgment.

Can you get the thought? As we look at this scene, when for 120 years this man Noah, just, perfect, walking with God, a preacher of righteousness, 120 years, bearing witness to those people, and yet they took no heed.

They hardened their hearts again and again, until every imagination of the thoughts of the heart, all the evil continual in God, can do nothing with it. So, he says, all right, you finished the ark, Noah, now you come in, and those that are with you, and they entered into the ark.

And then, the fountains of the deep were opened, the heavens were opened, the rain came for 40 days and 40 nights, and the waters rolled, covered the hills, the mountains, and all those that were there.

That utter appalling corruption was swept away in the judgment of God. But, there's the ark being born on the waters of judgment, and those within the ark are perfectly safe, and this goes right away through until they rest, saved, resting on a new earth.

So, that this is not salvation just from, but salvation to. The very judgment is the means of bringing them through into a different environment, into a different state, into a place where they can say, all things have passed away in that flood of judgment.

Noah, Baptism, and Death-to-Life Salvation

Behold, all things have become new. Now, you think of it. There are three things brought before us there. We have these three things brought before us in baptism, and strangely enough, when Peter makes mention of Noah, and those that were with him in the ark, that he says they were saved through water, and he goes on to say the like figure were unto baptism doth save us by the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Strange how he links this all up together. Noah, the ark, the flood, and he says, and then he says, and the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. So, that really speaking, those people in the days of Noah, when the flood came, this utter appalling corruption which characterized them, we find these people were there in that flood of judgment.

To them it was death, and to them it was burial. Now, we got that clear. As far as the people were concerned, in their utter appalling corruption, there was death, and there was burial in those waters of judgment.

Now, as far as those in the ark are concerned, they too are in the place of death, also in the place of burial, but there's more to it than that. They are also in the place of resurrection. They come through.

This flood was the judgment of God, and as we're thinking of this flood as being the judgment of God, we can see that as far as the people are concerned who were judged, that to them that judgment meant death and burial, and that was the end.

They never came out of it. But, as far as those who are in the ark are concerned, it's a matter of death, it's a matter of burial, but it is also a matter of resurrection. They eventually come forth out of the ark onto a new earth.

They're coming out onto resurrection ground. They've come through death and burial to resurrection. So, Peter said, you see, baptism is a light figure, because in baptism we have death, and we have burial, and we have resurrection, all three.

And, as far as we are concerned, we have believed in the Lord Jesus Christ. It's true of us. Death, burial, resurrection. Now, if you can follow me as I'm thinking now of the judgment of God on the earth at that time, as the flood being the judgment of God, as those who came into that judgment being dead and buried, and that was the end, and then these who were in the ark of coming through this death, burial, onto resurrection, this was the judgment of God upon the earth at that time.

The Cross as God's Judgment on the World

Now, I turn your attention to the cross of Christ, and I remind you of this fact that the Lord Jesus Christ himself evidently referring to that cross, because you remember he said, now is my soul troubled.

What shall I say? Father save me from this hour. Which hour? Father save me from this hour, but for this cross came I unto this hour. Father glorify thy name. This, he said, signifying what death he should die.

And, when he was dealing with it, he said, now, as he is thinking of that cross, now is the judgment of this world. The cross of Christ was the judgment of this world. The flood in the days of Noah was the judgment of God on the world.

The cross, in some sense, is the judgment of this world. It was in the days of Noah, so it is now. The Lord Jesus Christ went to that cross, and there he represented the man in the flesh. There he represented the sinner.

There he represented that utter appalling. He takes it all up into himself there on the cross, and the judgment of God came upon him. This was the judgment of the world, and God's viewpoint of it is this, that if he looks at the cross of Christ, he sees that all men and women who have corrupted the way upon the earth are dead, and they are buried.

That cross signifies the end of the man in the flesh. But what about those who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ? They, too, are brought into the same position. Death, burial, but more, resurrection. They are brought through onto resurrection ground through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

So, you see, the judgment of all was a picture of the judgment yet to come. And so, as we see in Noah's day, that Noah and those that were with him in the ark, you see, not only, to them it wasn't only just death and burial, but it was resurrection there in the ark.

And there's your picture, you see, of what you find in the cross, that those who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, they are there to identify themselves with him in that death, and in that burial, and in that resurrection.

Mercy, Repentance, and Faith in Christ

As the apostle said in the second epistle to the Corinthians, looking at that cross, he says, now henceforth know we no man after the flesh. Those there with regard to the flesh was put away in that flood, in that judgment of God.

And all that has to do with the flesh is they're put away in the purse of the Lord Jesus Christ. As far as God is concerned, this is a judgment which is pronounced upon the world. The flood was a type or a figure of that.

But here we have the reality in Christ, a judgment pronounced. It's not yet carried out, but that is God's judgment, and those who believe not, their position is dead and buried. Final judgment will be carried out by God himself on those who continue to harden their heart against it.

And yet, you see, God still goes on pleading with men and women today. Although that cross is his judgment of the world, it's pronounced. He's pronounced the sentence, not carried it out. And between the passing of the sentence and the actual carrying out of the sentence, then God comes in with this offer of mercy.

He comes in, and he begins to work in the power of his Spirit to convict of sin and righteousness and judgment, you see, to lead people to repentance and to faith in Christ, to identify themselves with him there on the cross, you see.

And so, they're brought through onto resurrection grounds. We need to remind ourselves of this fact that today we have, in some measure, this corruption. We have the flesh, so much of it manifesting itself today, and God's still striving.

And we have to remind men and women that God is not willing that any should perish, but rather that all should turn to him and as he had patience in Noah's day, 120 years, striving with man. But he said, my spirit shall not continue to strive.

There's a limitation to the grace of God. He will not always strive. Now, if you're willing to hearken to the voice of the Spirit of God as he is striving in your heart to lead you to that repentance and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, there can be this quickening and this being brought into a relationship with God.

The Conversion of Amos

I remember some years ago having a meeting, and it was brought into this meeting a man who was covered with blood. He was gashed about pretty badly. He lost his coat, and his shirt was torn in shreds, and they brought him into the meeting, and they sat him down there, and the man was drunk.

He was a minor, and he'd been fighting. And as he sat there, he sobered, and he listened to the gospel. And at the end of that meeting, this man believed on the Lord Jesus Christ. His character was dreadful.

At one time, he only escaped the gallows by the skin of his teeth. He and his friend had been into some public house and got blind drunk, and when they were going home, they saw a policeman standing on the pavement, and they stopped and had a little talk together.

And then they decided what they were going to do. And the policeman, he saw them coming up the road, and he was determined he wasn't going to take any notice of them, because he knew very well there would be a lot of trouble.

So he thought, well, let them pass, and let them go home, because I know what they are. But when they got near to him, and walked past him, behind him, the one man knocked the policeman's helmet off, and the other crashed a bottle on his head, and he dropped to the pavement, and then they walked off.

Somebody saw it, and they were eventually arrested and brought forward, accused of murder, at least accused of a crime. The policeman was between life and death for many months, but he recovered, and these men finally got out of prison.

You couldn't find a worse character anywhere than this man. Believe me, his name was Amos. Who gave him that name? I don't know. Amos gave it. He could not read, he could not write. The worst possible character you could find anywhere, and yet God had spoken to that man again and again, and at last brought into this meeting.

He stood there, sobered, still covered with blood, his clothing torn to shreds, and he confessed Christ as his Savior. How we thank God that our Lord Jesus Christ came, that he might reach those who have got into a condition like that.

But, you know, there are many people who are still resisting the striving of God. They've never been in the hands of a policeman, they've never been in prison, they've never been guilty of any of these crimes that are committed today.

They're respectable people, and yet they're still not yielding to the striving of God's Spirit. May the Lord help us that we may in some measure be able to reach out to these people, that they may come to know him as safe.

Shall we pray? O God, our Father, in the name of our Lord Jesus, we give our thanks to you again for thy precious word, for what we find there with regard to these days of old, so much brought before us that we can pay attention to.

And what we see of old is a type of what we see today. Our God, we would ask of thee to help us to remember. Our Lord Jesus Christ did come, and he came that he might save his people. He came that he might save men and women.

He came that he might be made sin, that he might bear sin, that he might ensure the judgment of God on account of that sin, and that those who would be willing to identify themselves with him on that cross, and to acknowledge that was what they deserved, and that they would be in a position then to say, and that was what they had received, that thou would make over to them all the value of that suffering of thy beloved son.

They would become new creatures in Christ Jesus. All things passed away, all things become new, and all things of God to go on their way, henceforth not to live unto themselves, but unto him who died for them and rose again.

So we ask of thee, our God, that thou would search our hearts, each one of us, any here this morning who has yet have not yielded to the striving of thy Holy Spirit, that they may do this, ere it be too late, before that time comes when thy spirit will not continue to strive.

So we ask of thee for thy help and thy blessing, in the name of thy beloved son, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.