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Grieved Hearts
When the LORD saw how great was man’s wickedness on earth, and how no desire that his heart conceived was ever anything but evil, he regretted that he had made man on the earth, and his heart was grieved.
Ever since the Fall of Adam and Eve, the human has been capable of very evil things. Throughout history we have seen terrible examples of such evil. But there are certain periods where the evil is worse than at other times. Today is one such example.
God’s heart is grieved because of the tremendous evil that has spread so quickly from the first sin. That is often the way evil works. It takes only a little time for really horrible evil to occur. One little sin can sometimes become a lot of big sins. (As an aside, this is why frequent confession can be helpful.)
But just as sin can spread all over the place through one man, so too can goodness do the same. A kind action can change someone’s entire day. As much as evil may sometimes appear to abound, there are also instances where really amazing things occur too.
In the midst of all the evil in the world, Noah stands out to God as one who “found favor with God.” Noah’s goodness has an impact far beyond the evil of his day. And because of Noah’s goodness, God promises never to destroy the earth again. Noah’s goodness results in a covenant for all of us.
Of course, the ultimate goodness of one person’s good actions having eternal effects is that of Jesus. His act of total self-gift in his passion and death results in our being able to be saved. So do not let your hearts be grieved. It is still the case that God can do great things in our lives. He can soften the hardest of hearts and can forgive the biggest of sins.
So do not let your heart be grieved!
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