Although the Bible says little about Enoch, what is revealed in Genesis, Hebrews, and Jude is sufficient for us to appreciate his life. Hebrews 11:5-6 shows us that before Enoch was taken by God, he believed in God. This indicates that Enoch not only walked with God, but that he also believed God. "By faith Enoch was translated so that he should not see death" (Heb. 11:5). What does faith mean? According to the context of Hebrews 11, faith means that we believe that God is (Heb. 11:6). This means that we believe that there is a God. God exists, God is real, God is living, God is present, and God is God. We all must believe this. We hope that no one reading this message has any difficulty with this matter. We do believe that God exists and that He is living today.
Hebrews 11:6 says that if you believe in God, you will also believe that He is a rewarder. He not only exists, He is a rewarder. Why does God reward people? Because He is anxious to have man living for and fulfilling His purpose. We should not only believe that God exists, but also that He rewards all those who seek Him out. Although the King James Version says "diligently seek Him," the Greek text actually means "seek Him out." God is in this universe, and no man can see Him, but we must seek Him out. Do you believe that there is a God, that God exists? Then what should you do? You must seek Him out. Enoch did this. He believed that there was a God and he sought God out by believing that God was a rewarder. It must have been his believing in God and his seeking God that motivated him to walk with God. Enoch was God's seeker, and God was his rewarder. He sought God and walked with God, and God rewarded him.
What reward did God give Enoch? God gave him the highest degree of life—escape from death. "Enoch was translated that he should not see death." What a reward that was! For quite a number of years I have told the Lord, "Lord, I don't want to see death. Lord, come quickly. Keep me until the time of Your coming. I do not want to see death, I want to see You." This desire has caused me and still causes me to seek the Lord out. I am not boasting, but speaking the truth I must say that I am a seeker of the Lord. Are you not one of His seekers? By His mercy and grace we are all seekers of the Lord.
When I first began, in this country, to use the term "seeking saints" in my fellowship and prayer, many who heard this term were surprised by it. Later I shortened this term to "seekers," the Lord's seekers. Although some of the saints hesitated in adopting this term, today it is used in all the churches. Many would pray to the Lord, saying, "Lord, You have so many seekers in Orange County. O Lord, capture all Your dear seekers." The Lord is a rewarder, and we need to be His seekers. Enoch believed this and practiced it. He believed that God was and that He would be a rewarder to him if he sought Him out. Enoch did seek the Lord and obtained the reward.
Jude speaks about the environment in which Enoch lived, using the word "ungodly" four times in describing the people and the deeds of Enoch's generation (Jude 15). Nevertheless, Jude records one of Enoch's prophecies in which Enoch used a wonderful word—saints. "And Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied also of these, saying: Behold, the Lord came with myriads of His saints" (Jude 14). Enoch did not say that the Lord is coming with myriads of sinners or ungodly ones or even believers or saved ones. Enoch said that the Lord was coming with myriads of His saints. As the record of Jude reveals, Enoch prophesied what was within him. He realized that his whole generation was ungodly. The neighborhood, the people, and everything else were ungodly. However, he was godly and holy, leading a holy life. Otherwise, he could not have prophesied of the Lord's coming with myriads of His saints to execute His judgment upon the ungodly. The saints mentioned in Jude 14 are versus the ungodly in verse 15. Although the generation, age, society, environment, people, and everything were ungodly, Enoch still lived a godly and holy life. Among ungodly people in an ungodly situation, he lived a godly life. He did this in faith, believing that God was and that He was a rewarder. Enoch walked with God in faith.