In The Beginning | Safe In the Ark
In The Beginning: (Part VIII)
SAFE IN THE ARK
Genesis 6:17-18
For behold, I will bring a flood of waters upon the earth to destroy all flesh in which is the breath of life under heaven. Everything that is on the earth shall die. But I will establish my covenant with you, and you shall come into the ark, you, your sons, your wife, and your sons' wives with you.
As we go through our series in Genesis, I hope we are not just being captivated in knowing about the origins or the beginnings of everything. I hope we are also realizing the eternal purpose and plan of God for His creation. Now, we will move to a narrative that is very familiar to a lot of us even if one didn’t grow up in a Christian household. Today we will see the wonderful truths in the narrative of Noah and the Ark.
What do you remember about Noah and his ark? I remember this story so vividly. I remember the many times my mom would come to me and my brother’s bedroom and read us this story. I remember the different pictures of the ark, the different pairs of animals, the flood, and Noah and his family. Having heard it this way, there was a point when I thought Noah and his Ark was just a bedtime story. In my young mind, I was always fascinated by how this story could have happened. When I grew up, however, I saw there was so much more to this story and how God revealed Himself during that time.
One fascinating thing I found out in my time in seminary is that all around the world, there are ancient myths and legends surrounding a flood and an ark which has many similarities to the Biblical account. There was this Babylonian poem about Gilgamesh and his cubic shaped ark on a colossal flood. There was also a myth in Hawaii, wherein a man named Nu-u made a canoe with a house on it with all the animals living in it. There was also a story in China where a legend explained that the flood was caused by an argument between a crab and a bird, but Fuhi and his wife, together with their 3 sons and their wives escaped this worldwide flood and repopulated earth. And lastly is the ancient myth found in Greece wherein Deucalion was told to build a chest to survive a flood. Isn’t it fascinating that we have these ancient myths all around the world of a worldwide flood? Though it’s not flawless evidence of the Scripture’s account of Noah, we can certainly say that these legends are pretty strong hints that this biblical narrative was more than probable.
One certainty though is that Noah, the ark, and the worldwide flood in the Scriptures is not written as a legend or a bedtime story. It is history in which Scripture is revealing something grand about God and humanity. We may think it has nothing to teach us today, but in reality, it shows us relevant principles we can go through and encourage us to continue to be faithful in the Lord as He is faithful to us.
1. The Severity of Sin’s Destruction
Genesis 6:5-7 The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the Lord regretted that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart. So, the Lord said, "I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, man and animals and creeping things and birds of the heavens, for I am sorry that I have made them."
Something we need to remember about the book of Genesis is that Moses was the one who wrote it as God revealed to Him such great truths about Himself and His creation. Moses was to pass this revelation along to the Israelites because they needed to know that the God who saved them from the Egyptians is much more powerful and awesome than the gods and idols all around them. Now in this narrative about Noah from Genesis 6-7, we see humanity’s turn for the absolute worst.
Last Sunday we saw how Moses recorded the genealogies illustrating the growth of the population of man back in earth’s early history. But then, as humanity grew in number, they also grew in their sinfulness and brokenness. The Scriptures describe this in a very somber way. God looked down from heaven and He only saw great wickedness, and there was nothing in the hearts of men but just continual evil. We see two effects of this wickedness and evil. First, we see a reaction from the Creator. In a very poignant statement, Genesis says that the Lord regretted and was grieved that He made mankind. Another effect of all the evil and wickedness was the corruption and violence that became rampant in God’s most special creatures.
This was never meant to be God’s purpose and design for His ultimate creation. Sin had permeated so deeply in humanity’s heart that they all collectively became evil in God’s eyes. The language of regret and grief is so fascinating because one would think that God being so powerful and transcendent, emotions like these would be beyond Him. What we see here is what theologians call anthropomorphism, in which the biblical writers assigned human aspects to God in order to relate Him to their audience. I believe the regret and grief that God felt after mankind’s demise just shows how special they are to their Creator.
This passage shows that God takes man’s sins personally. God has such a zeal for man that it hurts Him to see that they would rather unconsciously choose suffering and death than to follow and be with Him. We can also see that God takes sin seriously. Here, God clearly demonstrates His justice and holiness. This is why He cannot stand sin. It is an affront to His identity and reign over all the earth. Now we might say that God should just forgive everyone and not do anything about it. Wouldn’t that show that He is not really righteous and just? It’s as if a father who lets his children disrespect him and destroy themselves. What kind of father would he be? Man chose to live apart from God and, in this, we see the full essence of sin and its grievous effects.
We also see here that mankind was on a path to destroying themselves with their own corruption and violence. Not only was their sin hurting God deeply, but they were also hurting each other. This is what sin does. It corrupts us internally, destroys us relationally, and grieves God fully. And because of man’s unceasing evil, God had to take action. God, in His wisdom and sovereignty, decided to blot out man and every other living thing out of the face of the earth. Man had reached the point of no return that there was no other choice. God will send destruction and start over.
So how is this applicable in our lives today? We need to remember that our God takes sin seriously and God takes sin personally. The truth that our sins break the heart of God should lead us to stop and think seriously of the way we live our lives. Not only that, but sin also breaks God’s purpose and design in our lives. We were meant to live in community and harmony together under God. And yet, we see the reversal of God’s intentions –– so much corruption and violence are mentioned here. I heard a very pertinent statement about willful sin. It is that we never suffer sin alone. Our sins, even hidden sins, will gravely affect people around us.
Now, this is not just to scare us or guilt us about sin. But we need to be somber about the gravity of sin, especially in a culture and society that minimizes this concept. We need to answer some relevant questions today. How have we minimized sin in our lives? How have we turned our backs from God and chose to live the way we want to instead of God’s way? If God never turns a blind eye towards our sin, how can we ignore our sin? God sees us and knows us. Nothing is hidden from Him. As Jeremiah 16:17 says, “For my eyes are on all their ways. They are not hidden from me, nor is their iniquity concealed from my eyes.” What should be our reaction that this is what sin does to God and what it does against us?
2. The Profoundness of God’s Grace
Genesis. 6:8-9 But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord. These are the generations of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his generation. Noah walked with God.
Gen. 6:18 But I will establish my covenant with you, and you shall come into the ark, you, your sons, your wife, and your sons' wives with you.
Now in this passage, we will see how even in one of humanity’s darkest and most corrupt times, God’s unmatched grace still shined. The passage said that Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord. Someone might ask, how could God be gracious when He decided to ruin the whole earth through a flood? We see here that God gave time for people to repent and turn back to Him. In Gen. 6:3, God gave mankind 120 years before He sent the rains to flood the earth. Not only that, but He chose a man who was righteous and blameless in order to be the witness that the generation needed. Here, God’s patience and desire for man to come to Him is ever so present. God, even in man’s great rebellion, still extended His hand for them to come to Him. According to 2 Peter 2:5, God called Noah to be a preacher of righteousness before the flood. Even in building the ark, it was a sign for others that they needed to be saved. God did not fully give up on humanity. Sadly no one listened, but God still chose to start over with Noah and his family.
In Gen. 6:18, we see God making a covenant relationship with Noah and his family. This is the first mention in the Scriptures of the word covenant. Basically, what God is doing here is that He is offering to Noah a binding promise that Noah will be safe with God in the ark. This covenant will be expanded later on, but what is important here is that God is the one initiating both this promise and relationship with Noah. It was not Noah who had to work for this covenant. God was the one who started it and will complete it. God was the one who offered salvation for that generation and will continue humanity’s line and show who God truly is.
So, what principle can we get from here? We see God’s grace is for all and yet people still have a responsibility to accept it. He will not force a decision from us. He will not override our free will. He wants us to choose to be with Him as He gives us insurmountable ways that we can come back to Him. What are we waiting for? Why are we so hesitant in giving ourselves to the God of the universe?
He is not a God who will waste our life. He intends to give us life to the fullest. However, there will come a day when the time to make a decision will be up. Man’s choice to be with God or turn away from Him will be final. 2 Peter 3:9 says, “The Lord is not slow to fulfill His promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.” This is the same way we should see heaven and hell. It is not that God sends people to hell. What is sad is that people would rather choose hell than be with God. “There are only two kinds of people in the end: those who say to God, "Thy will be done," and those to whom God says, in the end, "Thy will be done." All who are in hell have chosen it. Without that self-choice, there could be no hell. No soul that seriously and constantly desires joy will ever miss it. Those who seek, find. Those who knock, it is opened.” ― C.S. Lewis, The Great Divorce
Another principle we see here is that we have a God who longs and desires to be in covenant relationships with His most special creatures. I don’t know if you feel the gravity of that statement but to put it simply, God just wants to be with us. He wants to be in an intimate relationship with us. Just as He established that relationship with Noah, so He established an intimate and loving relationship with us just as He did with Noah. I don’t know why, but God chose to be with us even if we did not choose Him first. This should give us so much humility and confidence of the way we view God and His eternal grace for us.
I saw a tweet by an atheist and I think unknowingly, He explained the whole majesty of God’s grace. He tweeted, “CHRISTIANITY: Belief that one God created a universe 13.79 billion yrs old, 93 billion light yrs in diameter (1 light yr = approx. 6 trillion miles), consisting of over 200 billion galaxies, each containing ave. of 200 billion stars, only to have a personal relationship with you.” Isn’t that crazy that this is what we’re holding onto? That the God of everything wants to have a personal relationship with us? An atheist understands this is the whole concept of Christianity. We ought to live in this light so we can live in great gratitude for Him. So, God’s grace is so real and yet our choice is also real. The question is will we choose God?
3. The Depth of One Man’s Faith
Gen. 6:9 These are the generations of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his generation. Noah walked with God.
Gen. 6:22 Noah did this; he did all that God commanded him.Gen. 7:5 And Noah did all that the Lord had commanded him.
Now we will look more at Noah and his faithfulness towards God. According to the passage, he was described as righteous and blameless as he walked with God. This is in sharp contrast with the world He was living in. From all the corruption and violence, Noah stood out to be someone who went against the flow and listened to God’s calling in his life. God told Him to build an ark, as it will save him and his family from complete destruction. Everything might have seemed foolish to those around him and he might have endured mockery and insults, but Noah believed in God. Remember, God warned mankind that they will have 120 years before He would send the flood. It is not unreasonable to think that Noah was calling upon his people to repent and believe in God’s way of salvation. Sadly, as we all know, no one cared to listen, except Noah and his family. Noah trusted God and obeyed even when it did not make sense.
Noah exemplified what faith in God is. Noah believed in God and obeyed Him, and all that God commanded. Noah’s faith led him to action even when others thought it was outrageous. In the end, Noah saw the fruit of his faith as it was salvation for him and his family. And not just this, but through Noah’s obedience, all of humanity was spared as now everyone had come from his lineage. In Heb. 11:7, we see an even deeper dive into Noah’s faith. It says, “By faith Noah, being warned by God concerning events as yet unseen, in reverent fear constructed an ark for the saving of his household. By this he condemned the world and became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.”
Noah and his family were safe in that ark. Even when his obedience to God seemed foolish to so many, God honored Noah’s faith. What’s awesome about this story is that we can see many references to how Noah can be a type of Jesus and how the ark is the Gospel for us. Jesus, like Noah, was blameless and righteous. He is the beloved and begotten of the Father. He obeyed the Father even in the midst of all the insults, persecution, and death. In Jesus’ obedience, he brought forth the only way for mankind to be saved. It is to believe in the work that Jesus died in our place, for us sinners, and He rose again in order to give us eternal life. 1 Corinthians 1:18 says, “For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.”
Just as Noah’s family was saved through his obedience, we can be part of Jesus’ family and be safe and secured through Jesus’ obedience. Just as Noah’s family simply entered the ark so they wouldn’t suffer God’s judgment of the flood, so we simply enter into God’s saving grace through putting our faith in Jesus and His work alone. The Gospel is the ark that takes us safely home. Even with all the rains and floods of life, all the ups and downs, all the insecurities and anxieties, all the doubts and fears, still Jesus is there for us and promises us we are safe and secure in the ark.
We are comforted and loved, He showed it to us when He gave His life for us and gave us a new life through His resurrection. The difference now is that the door to this ark is still open. God still invites sinners to come in. And just as Noah was called to be a preacher of righteousness for His generation, I believe God calls us to be the same. We can call and invite people to be safe and secure in the ark with us. We can show love and compassion to those who are still outside of the ark. God still wants to add more individuals and families to be with us inside this new ark, and we are being called to let people know they can come in.
We need to pray, love, warn, and witness for those who are seeking safety and security that only Jesus can provide. We are to get out of our comfort zones and also trust and obey God with what He is commanding us. As God gave Noah a limited amount of time, so our time is limited. Let us proclaim that through Jesus, we can be saved and let us demonstrate Jesus through our actions and love. The story of Noah should not just be a bedtime story for us. In a way, God offers us the opportunity to partake in this story and plead for others to join us safely in the ark that Jesus has given us.