Theme: Enoch, Walked with God, Part 1
“By faith Enoch was taken up so that he would not see death: and he was not found because God took him up; for he obtained the witness that before his being taken up he was pleasing to God. And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.” (Hebrews 11:5,6)
“Enoch lived sixty-five years, and became the father of Methuselah. Then Enoch walked with God three hundred years after he became the father of Methuselah, and he had other sons and daughters. So all the days of Enoch were three hundred and sixty-five years. Enoch walked with God, and he was not, for God took him.” (Genesis 5:21-24)
Thought:
I love taking a walk, both by myself and with others. Wherever we have lived, I’ve found several routes to walk, sometimes for exercise, always to enjoy the outdoors. Growing up in the countryside of central California, where I enjoyed exploring the 45 acres we lived on and much of the surrounding countryside, I often took a walk when I came home from school to just get away and think.
When I first started serving at Flagstaff Christian Fellowship, I would begin many mornings by walking various routes while praying through the Lord’s Prayer and then praying for my family and members of my church family. It was a great time of spiritual growth for me as I talked to God about many things, and then He would bring to mind the verses I had memorized or remembered from my Bible reading. I found praying was easier on a walk than sitting in a quiet room.
The example of Enoch in Hebrews 11:5 brings us to Genesis 5. We do not have a lot of information about Enoch, but we do know that he did not experience physical death. In Genesis 5:24, it is recorded that Enoch walked with God, and he was not, for God took him. As seen above in both passages, “Enoch was taken up so that he would not see death.” (Hebrews 11:5)
In Hebrews 11:5, the author states that Enoch was taken to heaven without dying because he was pleasing to God because of his faith. In verse 6, the author explains how Enoch exercised his faith and pleased God. But first, we go back to Genesis, where in Genesis 5:21-25, it is written that Enoch walked with God. In Hebrews 11:5, we are told that Enoch was pleasing to God, and in verse 6, the author of Hebrews shows us how Enoch pleased God by faith:
- Enoch walked with God,
- His coming to God,
- Believing that God was,
- Seeking God.
I’d like to take several weeks to explore each of these ways that Enoch pleased God, beginning with his walking with God.
Enoch walked with God:
Ryrie in the Ryrie Study Bible writes, “Enoch is an exception to the dismal refrain,’ and he died’ of this chapter. He walked (literally walked about, i.e., lived with God), and instead of letting him die, God took him. In other words, Enoch went directly to heaven without dying.”
Let me speculate a little, drawing on other scriptures, about Enoch walking with God. When Enoch walked with God (in Genesis 5), he believed God was who He said He was, the almighty living God, and Enoch believed what God told him and showed him. However it happened, God talked with Enoch, and Enoch responded back, for 300 years. Think of the questions he might have asked Him.
We are told in Genesis 5:21 that in the 365 years Enoch lived, he walked with God for 300 years. We are not given the details, but walking with God for 300 years is significant. Scripture doesn’t specify whether this walking was literal, but there are examples of the pre-incarnate Christ appearing to Abraham and in the fiery furnace with Daniel’s 3 friends. Whether physically or spiritually present with Enoch, “Walking with” implies a relationship and back-and-forth communication. Through the years, I’ve had someone say to me, “Let’s take a walk,” or I’ve said this to someone else. There was always a back-and-forth sharing and often caring from one person for the other.
Psalm 62:8 gives us a picture of this kind of relationship with David and his Lord. He may start the Psalm stating his soul waited for God in silence, but in verse 8, as he refers to trusting in God, he exhorts us to “Pour out your heart before Him.” I imagine there were times in those years of Enoch walking with God that he poured out his heart to God as they walked together.
Another aspect of Enoch walking with God involved asking God questions. David in Psalm 8:3, asked God, “When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars which You have ordained; what is man that You take thought of him, and the son of man that You care for him?” Enoch might have asked God a similar question, “Lord, tell me more about your amazing creation, and why do you let me take these walks with you? Why would you share your thoughts with me, one of your creations?”
Enoch might have asked God what the Psalmist does in Psalm 119:9, “How can a young man (like me) keep his way pure? By keeping it according to Your word.” Lord, show me how to walk in this world with all of its distractions and still keep my life pure.
Throughout scripture, we see saints talking with and asking God questions. The idea is that these saints had a relationship with God. “Walking with” implies that relationship. My Christian faith is more than believing a set of truths that I hold to, though that is part of it. I personally know the God who created me, because He reached down and chose me to be His. Even as the bible shows believers asking God many questions, Enoch would have asked them all and more. Thinking about that, he might have asked God not only why God created him, but also a question like, ” Why did you make those colors?” or ” Why that animal?”
When we spend time with our three grandsons, ages 1 to 5, they at times ask both simple and more complex questions. When reading a Beginner Bible to our 5-year-old grandson, he would ask us about God and why He did certain things the way He did, and how He cared for people. He is a good example of someone who asks God questions.
In the New Testament, we see the writers refer to the way we live by using the phrase “walking”. In Romans 6:4, Paul writes about us walking in newness of life. In 2 Corinthians 5:7 he writes “for we walk by faith, not by sight.” In Galatians, Paul writes, “But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.” In Ephesians 4:1, Paul writes, “Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness.” The New Testament uses the picture of walking when addressing our living as followers of Christ. When coupled with Enoch in Genesis and Hebrews 11, they emphasize our faith as a growing relationship with our God. With these passages, I add the little phrase from 1 Thessalonians 5:17, “pray without ceasing,” and I picture a daily, moment-by-moment relationship with God.
Reflection:
How might Enoch’s example, along with David’s in the Psalms, help you grow in your understanding of a daily walk with God? What question might you ask God about His creation when you take a walk today? What will you ask Him in your devotion time about your relationship with Him? What comes up during the day you could talk to God about?
Prayer:
Father, help me walk with you today. Help me work out the salvation you began in me. Give me Enoch’s and David’s hunger to know you more.
Stan Johnson 5/27/2026
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