Thursday, June 05, 2008

Standing alone

By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family. By his faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that comes by faith (Hebrews 11:7).

Most people know that Adam had two sons, Cain and Abel. Most people are aware that at some point during their adulthood, Cain became jealous of his brother and killed him, committing the first murder in human history. As a consequence of his sin and his unrepentant heart, God banished Cain from the community of God’s people. From early on, there was a divide between those who followed God and those who did not.

What most people don’t realize is how quickly Adam and Eve and their children populated the earth. By the time of Noah, there were likely millions of people living on the earth. But over the intervening centuries, the people had grown away from the Lord. Although God had commanded His followers to only start families with fellow believers, Genesis tells us that men married whomever they desired, regardless of their wives’ beliefs. By the time that Noah was 500 years old, things had degraded to the point that, out of the entirety of humanity, only Noah and his family still believed in the true God. The situation was so bad that God regretted ever creating mankind.

That’s when God told Noah of the judgment to come. I will wipe mankind…from the face of the earth--men and animals, and creatures that move along the ground, and birds of the air--for I am grieved that I have made them (Genesis 6:7). But in evidence of His merciful nature, the Lord set the date for the flood 120 years in the future, in the hope that some additional men and women would heed the visible warning of the ark as it neared completion, and turn from their selfish ways back to God.

Just as God warned Noah of a coming judgment, so has Jesus warned us of an approaching judgment. This day of reckoning will not bring destruction by water; God created the beauty of the rainbow as a pledge that He will never again destroy the earth by flood. This coming judgment will be characterized by consuming, purifying fire. In the days of Noah, the Lord gave 120 years for the people to repent and return to Him; how long He will wait patiently this time we do not know. In the days of Noah, the destruction was limited to the people and the things living upon the earth; in the Final Judgment everything will be destroyed, as we are told in 2nd Peter: the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare.

Noah took the Lord seriously; he prepared for the judgment. The Lord gave specific instructions on how get ready for that day: using gopher wood, he was to build an ark 450 feet long, 75 feet wide, 45 feet high, with three decks, and seal it with pitch inside and out. Noah did not question or change the plans; instead, he got to work. Hebrews tells us, By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family.

I wonder how the people treated Noah when he started building this huge boat on dry land. Some probably pitied him as being delusional. Others wondered why he had become such a religious fanatic. Still others likely made fun of him. But regardless of pity, scorn or laughter, Noah kept right on building. Even though no one else took the Lord seriously, Noah and his family cut gopher wood, planed it, and continued building the ark by which God would preserve their lives.

But let’s be clear—it wasn’t the ark that saved Noah. Without the blessing of the Lord, that ark would never have been built, and Noah would never have boarded it. Noah was saved because of his relationship with the Lord. Hebrews says, By faith Noah…built an ark…and became heir of the righteousness that comes by faith. Like his ancestor Enoch, Noah knew the promise of a Savior which God have given to Adam and Eve to give them hope as they were banished from paradise for their sins. Noah was convinced that God was first and foremost a God of love, a God who was willing to forgive sins, a God who could be trusted and relied upon. Every great man of the Old Testament was great only because he believed in the promises of God, and it was such belief that made Noah great and saved him.

Noah’s faith in God revealed itself in many different ways. Genesis tells us that, just like Enoch, Noah walked with God (Genesis 6:9). Above all else, this means that he was a friend of God. Children often walk home from school together in pairs of two. Why? Because they like each other. Noah walked with God because he liked God. He regarded God as his Maker, his Protector, his Redeemer—the one being in all the universe who cared for and loved him perfectly. Noah liked God. If Noah were alive with us here today, one of his favorite hymns might be "what a friend we have in Jesus."

Turn on the news any day and you will be distressed at the condition of our world. Rampant greed, racial and religious discrimination, abuse and neglect of the weak and defenseless, dishonesty in business and corruption in government. But in Noah’s day things were even worse. In describing worldwide conditions, Genesis 6:11 tells us, the earth was corrupt in God's sight and was full of violence. But of Noah we read, Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time (Genesis 6:9). If Noah were living today, he would give an employer an honest day’s work for his wages. He would treat everyone he met fairly, whether they were white or black, hispanic or native american or oriental. He would stand up for the rights of the unborn, the disabled, and the aged. He would be ethical in all his dealings, whether in business or in serving the public.

Noah was obedient among a crowd of the disobedient. There are many today who have little respect for God’s commandments; some don’t even want them displayed at our courthouses. But it was far worse in Noah’s day. Today, sinners try to excuse their behavior with statements like "I had a lapse in judgment." In Noah’s day, doing evil wasn’t a lapse in judgment, it was a full-time occupation. But of Noah we read, Noah did everything just as God commanded him (Genesis 6:22). It’s not all that hard to follow God’s rules some of the time, but to live your life by His standards continually, that’s the test of discipleship. If Noah were living today, he would take very seriously the Almighty’s command to raise children in the fear and love of the Lord. He would pray with his children every day, read the Bible with them frequently, and be with them at worship every Lord’s Day. Noah did what was needed to ensure the safety of his family, and it all hinged on their relationship with God.

Noah was steadfast and immovable even when he had to stand alone. Noah lived 600 years before the flood, and 350 years after it. He saw a lot of life. Imagine how far back 600 years would take you. You would have been alive before the birth of Martin Luther or the European discovery of America. 600 years is a long time to remain loyal to God when everyone else has turned to money-making and partying. Imagine that every church stood empty, there were no religious programs on TV or the radio, and not a single blogger wrote about Christ. Would you keep devoting yourself to God’s worship?

When Noah was a teen, there were places to go that should be avoided, there were things to do that were dangerous and wrong. All the young men and women were attracted to these thrills—but Noah stood alone. When he was a young married man, the adults surrounding him were concerned about eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, and nothing more. But keeping his focus on God’s kingdom and His righteousness, Noah stood alone. In his later life, when God warned of the coming judgment and execution by flood, no one else prepared for it. Noah stood alone.

It takes courage to stand alone. It takes courage for a youth to say to the group, "this isn’t right—let’s not do it." It takes courage for a struggling married couple to make devotion, prayer and worship their first priority, when there is so much pressure to work overtime, run the kids to another game, or collapse into bed, exhausted. It takes courage to come to church alone, when no one in your family wants to come with you. It takes courage to give up earthly pleasures in anticipation of heaven, when the television tells you to "just do it."

For almost 600 years, Noah stood alone. He had the courage to do so, because he knew that he was not alone. He walked with God, and God walked with him. He didn’t need the approval of anyone else; having God on your side puts you in the only majority that matters.

Noah was concerned about saving others. 2nd Peter 2:5 calls Noah a preacher of righteousness. The man’s entire life was a sermon. The building of the ark was a sermon. Throughout the years of construction, Noah must have explained why he was building it, how important it was that the people repent of their hard-heartedness and return to God for mercy. He certainly tried to remind them of God’s promise to send His representative from heaven, who, although mortally wounded by the devil’s bite, would ultimately live to crush the head of our enemy and offer forgiveness to everyone who places their trust in Him. Noah was a preacher who held out the gift of the Righteous One of God. But he converted no one. What would you think of a pastor if he, in 120 years, converted not a single person? You’d probably conclude that the pastor was a failure. Noah wasn’t a failure; he was faithful to God—it was the people that disregarded his words who were failures.

It was a day like any other day. The sun rose. The people went to work. A few may have noticed that Noah wasn’t around and the door into the ark was shut. Then, the rain began to fall. Water fell in torrents from the sky, and geysers of water erupted from the ground. For 40 days and nights God poured out His judgment. Some probably screamed for help and pounded on the door of the ark. Others tried to climb mountains and find safety, but were surrounded by terrified wild animals who were also seeking sanctuary. Family members blamed each other for not taking Noah’s warnings seriously. Genesis simply says, Every living thing on the face of the earth was wiped out; men and animals and the creatures that move along the ground and the birds of the air were wiped from the earth. Only Noah was left, and those with him in the ark (Genesis 7:23).

Jesus said, As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man (Matthew 24:37). The sun will rise that morning. People will be driving along the highway. Some will be praying. Some will be in bed, or at work, or out golfing or fishing or hunting. Then suddenly, unexpectedly, the Son of Man will appear in all His holy glory, accompanied by countless angels. This will be the final judgment.

What a great and wonderful day for the people who belong to Jesus! Like Noah was lifted free of the sinful earth in the ark, so will all believers be lifted up in angels’ hands and carried to eternal joy. But all the rest—all those who didn’t have the time for Jesus, all who didn’t believe that they needed Him, all those who said that they would think about spiritual things when they were older—all of them will feel the cleansing fire that will end sin forever.

Are you ready? Are you building a spiritual ark to save yourself and your children? The Bible is the blue print—Jesus says, Repent and believe the good news! (Mark 1:15) The Lord Jesus, who died for your sins, who rose on the third day to open heaven to you, and who will return to judge who will be invited in, reminds you to keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come (Matthew 24:42).

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