Friday, September 30, 2005
Genesis 8
Genesis 8
“The Flood”
In Chapter 7, Noah entered the ark, and God flooded the Earth. All of Humanity, less the 8 people on the ark, were destroyed. God flooded Earth, killing all of the wickedness of Humanity.
Vs. 1 “But God remembered”
God remembered Noah and the animals on the ark. I can’t imagine what it must be like to destroy all that you have created and loved because it turned against you, but that is what God had to deal with. Humanity had become haters of God, the One who created them. So God preserves a small section of Humanity and animals for reproducing after the flood had taken all the others.
Consider this:
Let’s look at it from Noah’s view. One day you are living life as you always had, not living to please God, and then God interrupts all life as you know it and changes your heart (Gen 6:8). Now, you are one who cares about what God thinks but no one else around you really does. Then God drops the bomb on you that He is going to destroy all that you see around you (Gen. 6:13); every living thing that breathes. God tells you that you have been chosen to propagate the Earth after the flood (Gen. 6:18). A few things overwhelm you: one is that you are not going to die; the other is that everything and everyone else is!
How would you respond?
Well it gets worse. Noah is called to tell people that life is going to end, for 120 years this is what Noah does(Gen. 6:3, 1 Pet. 3:20). No one believes him, because nothing happens. 120 years of nothing happening, yet Noah continues to build anyway. Then at the first sign of rain, Noah is told to get his family on the ark. I am sure as they began to load up people laughed at him. “Do you think this RAIN will kill us all?” they mock. But when the waters rise, they begin to cry out to Noah, but the doors of the ark have already been closed by God. Then the worst happened. Noah had to hear his neighbors, all of his extended family, and all the people that he had known die (Gen 7:21-24). Did they scratch at the sides of the ark? Did they yell and cry out until they sunk underwater? And then, all that was is no more. Noah had to wait until all was over before he could get off the ark. When the ground finally showed itself again (Gen. 8:3-14). God calls to Noah, and tells him to come out. He and his family step out of the ark (Gen. 8:18).
How does a man deal with this?
“Then Noah built an altar to the LORD” - Gen 8:20
Noah dealt with it the only way he could. He recognized that God has the power to both create life, and to end it. It doesn’t have to make sense to us, it just is. Noah may have dealt with being mad at God. Noah may have been scared, angry, confused, or any combination of feelings. BUT! At the end of the day, Noah knew it was right to worship God.
What are the floods in your life?
How do they challenge your faith?
Better yet, how do worship God when it is all over?
Gen 8:20-21
“Then Noah built an altar to the LORD and, taking some of all the clean animals and clean birds, he sacrificed burnt offerings on it. The LORD smelled the pleasing aroma and said in his heart: "Never again will I curse the ground because of man, even though every inclination of his heart is evil from childhood. And never again will I destroy all living creatures, as I have done.”
“The Flood”
In Chapter 7, Noah entered the ark, and God flooded the Earth. All of Humanity, less the 8 people on the ark, were destroyed. God flooded Earth, killing all of the wickedness of Humanity.
Vs. 1 “But God remembered”
God remembered Noah and the animals on the ark. I can’t imagine what it must be like to destroy all that you have created and loved because it turned against you, but that is what God had to deal with. Humanity had become haters of God, the One who created them. So God preserves a small section of Humanity and animals for reproducing after the flood had taken all the others.
Consider this:
Let’s look at it from Noah’s view. One day you are living life as you always had, not living to please God, and then God interrupts all life as you know it and changes your heart (Gen 6:8). Now, you are one who cares about what God thinks but no one else around you really does. Then God drops the bomb on you that He is going to destroy all that you see around you (Gen. 6:13); every living thing that breathes. God tells you that you have been chosen to propagate the Earth after the flood (Gen. 6:18). A few things overwhelm you: one is that you are not going to die; the other is that everything and everyone else is!
How would you respond?
Well it gets worse. Noah is called to tell people that life is going to end, for 120 years this is what Noah does(Gen. 6:3, 1 Pet. 3:20). No one believes him, because nothing happens. 120 years of nothing happening, yet Noah continues to build anyway. Then at the first sign of rain, Noah is told to get his family on the ark. I am sure as they began to load up people laughed at him. “Do you think this RAIN will kill us all?” they mock. But when the waters rise, they begin to cry out to Noah, but the doors of the ark have already been closed by God. Then the worst happened. Noah had to hear his neighbors, all of his extended family, and all the people that he had known die (Gen 7:21-24). Did they scratch at the sides of the ark? Did they yell and cry out until they sunk underwater? And then, all that was is no more. Noah had to wait until all was over before he could get off the ark. When the ground finally showed itself again (Gen. 8:3-14). God calls to Noah, and tells him to come out. He and his family step out of the ark (Gen. 8:18).
How does a man deal with this?
“Then Noah built an altar to the LORD” - Gen 8:20
Noah dealt with it the only way he could. He recognized that God has the power to both create life, and to end it. It doesn’t have to make sense to us, it just is. Noah may have dealt with being mad at God. Noah may have been scared, angry, confused, or any combination of feelings. BUT! At the end of the day, Noah knew it was right to worship God.
What are the floods in your life?
How do they challenge your faith?
Better yet, how do worship God when it is all over?
Gen 8:20-21
“Then Noah built an altar to the LORD and, taking some of all the clean animals and clean birds, he sacrificed burnt offerings on it. The LORD smelled the pleasing aroma and said in his heart: "Never again will I curse the ground because of man, even though every inclination of his heart is evil from childhood. And never again will I destroy all living creatures, as I have done.”
