Are You In the Ark?

Matthew 24:36–44 NRSV

36 “But about that day and hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 37 For as the days of Noah were, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 38 For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day Noah entered the ark, 39 and they knew nothing until the flood came and swept them all away, so too will be the coming of the Son of Man. 40 Then two will be in the field; one will be taken and one will be left. 41 Two women will be grinding meal together; one will be taken and one will be left. 42 Keep awake therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. 43 But understand this: if the owner of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. 44 Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour.

Are You In The Ark?

TODAY IS THE 1ST SUNDAY OF ADVENT. ADVENT MEANS THE COMING OF CHRIST AND REFERS TO BOTH HIS FIRST COMING AND TO HIS SECOND COMING. THE FIRST COMING OF CHRIST, HIS BIRTH, WAS PROPHESIED LONG BEFORE THE APPOINTED TIME AND EVERY PROPHETIC DETAIL WAS ACCURATELY FULFILLED. IN THE SAME WAY THE PROPHECY ABOUT HIS SECOND COMING WILL BE FULFILLED AT THE APPOINTED TIME.

THE PROMISE OF HIS COMING HAS LED TO MANY FALSE PROPHECIES BY FALSE PROPHETS ABOUT THE TIME OF HIS COMING.

MANY PEOPLE HAVE BEEN MISLED AND THEIR LIVES DESTROYED BY PROPHECIES THAT TOTALLY CONTRADICT THE REVELATION OF SCRIPTURE THAT ONLY THE FATHER KNOWS THE TIME. THE ONLY WAY TO AVOID SUCH DECEPTION IS TO BE ALWAYS READY FOR THE LORD’S RETURN. IT IS NOT OUR DUTY TO DETERMINE THE TIME OF HIS COMING BUT OUR DUTY TO AWAKE AND KEEP WATCH FOR HIS COMING.

AS CHRISTIANS WE MUST UNDERSTAND THAT THIS LIFE WE ARE IN IS LIKE A RACE. IT’S NOT A "RAT RACE" BUT THE "CHRISTIAN RACE." WE MUST ALSO UNDERSTAND THAT WE DON’T COMPETE AGAINST EACH OTHER, BUT AGAINST THE EVIL OBSTACLES THAT HINDER US, BOTH PHYSICALLY AND SPIRITUALLY.

AND AS WE LOOK AT THE SPIRITUAL CONDITION OF OUR WORLD, IT IS OBVIOUS - BROTHERS AND SISTERS - THAT “THE FINISH LINE IS BEFORE US,” AND AS THE GREAT BASEBALL PITCHER SATCHEL PAIGE ONCE SAID, "NEVER LOOK BACK BECAUSE SOMEONE MIGHT BE GAINING ON YOU."

WHEN WE CONSIDER THIS CHRISTIAN RACE, OUR EYES MUST BE FIXED UPON JESUS BECAUSE HE IS THE CAPTAIN AND FINISHER OF OUR FAITH.

IT’S SAD….BECAUSE SO MANY TODAY ARE LOST BECAUSE THEY HAVE NOT FOUND REFUGE IN THE SAFETY OF JESUS.

THE SADDEST PART ABOUT IS THAT THEY DON’T SEE THEIR END COMING. THEY HAVE BECOME COMFORTABLE IN SIN. THEY DON’T SEE THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES, BECAUSE THEIR VISION IS CLOUDED BY THE WORLD. BUT I’VE COME TO TELL YOU TODAY THAT YOU’D BETTER GET IN THE ARK.”

IF YOU KNOW THE WORD OF GOD….YOU KNOW THAT THOUSANDS OF YEARS AGO A PREACHER NAMED NOAH LIVED AMONG SINFUL PEOPLE.

AND NOAH PREACHED FOR MORE THAN ONE HUNDRED YEARS TO THE WICKED PEOPLE ABOUT THE COMING PUNISHMENT BY GOD. YET, NOT ONE PERSON IN THE WHOLE WORLD BESIDES THIS PREACHER’S FAMILY WAS OBEDIENT TO GOD.

AS A PREACHER, I CAN IMAGINE NOAH’S FRUSTRATION. IT’S FRUSTRATING TO PREACH OVER AND OVER, WEEK AFTER WEEK, SUNDAY AFTER SUNDAY, ABOUT THE WAGES OF SIN:

... ABOUT LOVING ONE ANOTHER AS GOD LOVES THEM...

... ABOUT BEING COMMITTED AND DEDICATED TO KINGDOM BUILDING...

... ABOUT THE NEED TO LAY ASIDE HATRED AND JEALOUSY AND DISOBEDIENCE.

YET SEE THE SAME BEHAVIOR CONTINUE IN SOME PEOPLE. AND TRUTH BE TOLD…..IT’S ALMOST LIKE WHAT THE PREACHER SAYS GOES IN ONE EAR AND COMES OUT THE OTHER.

NO DOUBT BROTHER NOAH WAS VERY SAD AND FOR SURE, GOD WAS GREATLY DISPLEASED.

BUT A REAL PREACHER WILL NOT STOP PREACHING JUST BECAUSE SOME PEPOLE DON’T LISTEN. THAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THOSE WHO ARE SENT AND THOSE WHO JUST GOT UP AND WENT!

FOR 120 YEARS NOAH PREACHED AND AT THE THE COMMAND OF GOD, WITH THE HELP OF HIS FAMILY, BUILT A LARGE BOAT AS GOD HAD INSTRUCTED HIM.

SINNERS LAUGHED AT NOAH AND HIS FAMILY BECAUSE OF WHAT HE PREACHED, BECAUSE OF THE GODLY WAY HIS FAMILY LIVED, AND BECAUSE OF THE ARK THEY BUILT.

FOR WE KNOW FROM THE BIBLE RECORD THAT GOD FLOODED ALL THE EARTH AND DROWNED EVERY PERSON EXCEPT THIS PREACHER AND HIS FAMILY.

IT WAS A TERRIBLE TIME BECAUSE ALMOST ALL PEOPLE ON EARTH DIED IN THAT FLOOD. ONLY NOAH AND HIS FAMILY SURVIVED. YES, THE SAME FLOOD WATER WHICH DESTROYED THE UNGODLY WORLD, SAVED NOAH AND HIS FAMILY. THESE EIGHT SOULS WERE SEPARATED BY THAT WATER FROM THE WICKED WORLD BECAUSE THEY WERE IN THE ARK!

WELL... SADLY, TODAY MANY PEOPLE STILL REFUSE TO OBEY GOD. PREACHERS OF RIGHTEOUSNESS ARE LAUGHED AT AND GOD IS GREATLY DISPLEASED. BUT I WANT YOU TO KNOW THAT GOD’S PUNISHMENT IS COMING AGAIN, ALTHOUGH THIS TIME GOD IT WON’T BE WATER, IT’LL BE FIRE!

THE BIBLE - IN 2 PETER 3, BEGINNING AT VERSE 9 - SAYS,"THE LORD IS NOT SLACK CONCERNING HIS PROMISE, AS SOME MEN COUNT SLACKNESS; BUT IS LONGSUFFERING TO US-WARD, NOT WILLING THAT ANY SHOULD PERISH, BUT THAT ALL SHOULD COME TO REPENTANCE.

BUT THE DAY OF THE LORD WILL COME AS A THIEF IN THE NIGHT; IN THE WHICH THE HEAVENS SHALL PASS AWAY WITH A GREAT NOISE, AND THE ELEMENTS SHALL MELT WITH FERVENT HEAT, THE EARTH ALSO AND THE WORKS THAT ARE THEREIN SHALL BE BURNED UP.

SEEING THEN THAT ALL THESE THINGS SHALL BE DISSOLVED, WHAT MANNER OF PERSONS OUGHT YE TO BE IN ALL HOLY CONVERSATION AND GODLINESS, LOOKING FOR AND HASTING UNTO THE COMING OF THE DAY OF GOD, WHEREIN THE HEAVENS BEING ON FIRE SHALL BE DISSOLVED, AND THE ELEMENTS SHALL MELT WITH FERVENT HEART?"

IN OTHER WORDS, THE LORD ISN’T SLOW ABOUT KEEPING HIS PROMISES, AS SOME PEOPLE THINK HE IS! IN FACT, GOD IS PATIENT, BECAUSE HE WANTS EVERYONE TO TURN FROM SIN AND NO ONE TO BE LOST.

. . . AND THE DAY OF THE LORD’S RETURN WILL SURPRISE SOME PEOPLE LIKE A THIEF. THE HEAVENS WILL DISAPPEAR WITH A LOUD NOISE, AND THE HEAT WILL MELT THE WHOLE UNIVERSE. THEN THE EARTH AND EVERYTHING ON IT WILL BE SEEN FOR WHAT THEY ARE.

. . . BUT GOD HAS PROMISED US A NEW HEAVEN AND A NEW EARTH, WHERE JUSTICE WILL RULE. BUT MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS, YOU’LL NEVER SEE IT, UNLESS YOU GET IN THE ARK

JESUS, IN THIS PARABLE, IS PAINTING FOR HIS DISCIPLES (AND FOR US) A COMPARISON OF THE CONDITION OF HUMANITY IN NOAH’S DAY AND THE CONDITION OF MANKIND IN OUR DAY. AND WHAT JESUS IS TELLING US IS THAT: THIS LAST GENERATION IS LIKE THE ONE OF NOAH’S DAY. IT’S PLEASURE-ORIENTED AND SELF-GRATIFYING.

ALL SOME PEOPLE KNOW TODAY IS EATING AND DRINKING,

IN OTHER WORDS, OUTSIDE OF THEIR PHYSICAL WANTS AND DESIRES THEY HAVE NOTHING ELSE! GOD IS NOT IN THEIR LIFE

AND THEN HE TALKS ABOUT MARRIAGE AND GIVING IN MARRIAGE. HE’S TALKING ABOUT THE FACT THAT SOME PEOPLE ARE ONLY CONCERNED ABOUT FLESH AND FLESHLY LUSTS AND DESIRES.

TO SUM IT UP, THEY WERE EATING AND DRINKING, WHEN THEY SHOULD HAVE BEEN REPENTING AND PRAYING.

. . . AND THE SADDEST PART ABOUT IT WAS THAT “THEY HAD NO IDEA WHAT WAS ABOUT TO HAPPEN!” THEY DIDN’T REALIZE THAT DESTRUCTION WAS JUST AROUND THE CORNER. AND SO, JESUS - HERE - IS TRYING TO WARN HIS DISCIPLES (AND US) THAT “IT’S TIME TO GET RIGHT. . . AND DO IT NOW!” BECAUSE A TIME IS COMING WHEN GOD WILL SEPARATE THE LOST AND THE SAVED.

THE BIBLE SAYS THAT TWO WILL BE IN THE FIELD OR AT WORK AT THE TIME OF CHRIST’S RETURN. ONE WILL BE TAKEN AND THE OTHER LEFT. I CAN IMAGINE THAT WHEN GOD DESTROYED THE WORLD THE FIRST TIME, THAT’S THE WAY IT WAS. SOME DIDN’T EVEN PAY ATTENTION TO ALL OF THE RAIN THAT WAS FALLING. THEY PROBABLY SAID, “WELL IT’S BEEN RAINING FOR A FEW DAYS. IT’LL STOP AFTERWHILE.”

. . . BUT WHEN THE RAIN REACHED BIBLICAL PROPORTIONS, WHEN PEOPLE STARTED SEEING THEIR NEIGHBOR’S HOUSES BREAK LOOSE FROM THERE FOUNDATIONS AND SINK; WHEN THEY SAW THEIR NEIGHBOR’S CATTLE AND PETS SWIMMING FOR THEIR LIVES; WHEN THEY WITNESSED THEIR OWN MATERIAL THINGS BEING WASHED AWAY IN THE FLOOD . . . EVERYONE OF THEM CAME RUNNING, TRYING TO GET INTO THE SHIP! BUT I HEARD NOAH SAY, “I HEAR YOU KNOCKING, BUT YOU CAN’T COME IN! GOD’S GOT THE KEY AND THE DOOR IS LOCKED!”

YOU SEE, IN THE TIME BEFORE THE FLOOD, PEOPLE BUILT CITIES BUT THEY FORGOT THE GOD THAT MADE THEM! THE DECENDANTS OF CAIN HAD CATTLE, RICHES, AND FARMS, BUT THEY HAD NO APPROVAL OF GOD UPON THEIR LIVES! THEY WERE RICH IN GOODS, BUT THEY WERE BARREN AND POOR AS FAR AS GOD’S POWER WAS CONCERNED!

NOT ONLY THAT, BUT THE DECENDANTS OF CAIN HAD INVENTED MANY KINDS OF INSTRUMENTS. THEY HAD ALL KINDS OF MUSIC, BUT THE SPIRIT OF GOD WAS NOT IN THAT MUSIC! THEY WERE ARTISTS IN WOOD AND STONE. THEY WERE SKILLFUL WITH IRON AND BRASS, BUT THEY HAD FAILED GOD AND CARED NOTHING ABOUT SERVING HIM! THE CHILDREN OF CAIN FOLLOWED IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF THEIR FATHER. THEY ALSO BECAME MURDERERS! CAIN HAD SET THE EXAMPLE BEFORE THEM AND THEY FOLLOWED THAT EXAMPLE. THE JUDGEMENT OF GOD MULTIPLIED TEN TIMES!

NOW YOU MAY SAY, “WELL PASTOR... THAT WAS IN THE BIBLE DAYS. SURELY MAN HAS NOT BECOME THAT WICKED TODAY.” BUT I WANT YOU TO KNOW THAT ALTHOUGH WE HAVE COME THROUGH SOME DARK AGES, AND CIVILIZATION HAS ADVANCED IN THIS GENERATION. . . PEOPLE HAVE DEPARTED FROM THE FAITH, JUST LIKE IN NOAH’S DAY!

WE HAVE MODERNIZED OUR CITIES, HOUSES, LANDS, HIGHWAYS, AND CHURCH HOUSES. SOME HAVE EVEN TRIED TO MODERNIZE THE OLD-TIME RELIGION. AS A SOCIETY WE’VE MOVED, BUT THE DIRECTION IS STILL DOWNWARD!

– MEN STILL BUILD CITIES BUT THEY FORGET CHRIST!

– WE HAVE MORE CATTLE, LANDS, PROPERTY AND MONEY THAN EVER BEFORE, BUT THE MEN ARE DRIED UP IN THEIR SOULS!

– WE HAVE BETTER MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS TODAY, POLISHED AND EXPENSIVE. FOLK CAN PLAY BEAUTIFUL MUSIC ON THESE INSTRUMENTS. BUT THE SAD PART ABOUT IS, THEY DON’T USE THEM FOR GOD AND THE CHURCH. “AS IT WAS IN THE DAYS (BEFORE THE FLOOD) SO IT IS NOW!

I’M GONNA LEAVE YOU ALONE IN A MINUTE, BUT IN THE DAYS BEFORE THE FLOOD MAN MADE HIS OWN RELIGION TO SUIT HIMSELF! IN THE DAYS BEFORE THE FLOOD PEOPLE STRAYED AWAY FROM THE LORD!

THEY PROSPERED AND MADE GOOD WAGES. THEY HAD A HIGH STANDARD OF LIVING, BUT THEY WERE TOO BUSY TO HEAR NOAH PREACH THE MESSAGE OF JUDGEMENT!

THEY THOUGHT A MESSAGE OF JUDGEMENT WAS OLD AND OUT OF DATE. THEY WERE BUSY; BUT BEING SO BUSY CAUSED THEM TO LOSE THEIR SOULS. THEY WERE DRUNK ON THE CARES OF THIS WORLD.

MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS, ISN’T IT STRANGE THAT PEOPLE USUALLY LEAVE GOD WHEN ALL IS GOING WELL? IN OUR DAY PEOPLE ARE PROSPERING AS NEVER BEFORE! MEN AND WOMEN SPEND THEIR LIFETIME EATING AND DRINKING. IT SEEMS THAT’S ALL THEY’RE LIVING FOR!

ALL THE TIME MEN ARE BUILDING MORE AND MORE FINE RESTAURANTS. THEY BUILD MORE AND MORE FINE HOMES. ALL THE TIME PEOPLE ARE WORKING SHORTER HOURS. THEY ARE GETTING MORE AND MORE OF THE LUXURIES OF LIFE. BUT INSTEAD OF SPENDING THAT LEISURE TIME READING THE BIBLE, PRAYING OR GOING TO CHURCH, THE AVERAGE PERSON SPENDS IT FOR THEMSELVES, TO SATISFY THE LUST OF THE FLESH!

THE PLACES OF AMUSEMENT ARE FULL DAY AND NIGHT. PEOPLE ARE DRUNKEN ON THE PLEASURES OF THE WORLD. PEOPLE TODAY HAVE TIME TO TRAVEL AND GO ON VACATIONS. BUT THEY HAVE NO TIME FOR GOD!

THEY WOULD RATHER HEAR A MAN-MADE SERMON THAT MAKES THEM FEEL GOOD, BUT HAS NO WARNINGS OF JUDGEMENT!

THEY GO TO BALL GAMES, CARNIVALS, CIRCUSES, CONCERTS, ROADHOUSES, AND NIGHTCLUBS, BUT THEY DON’T GO TO CHURCH!

I SAW A POST ON FB THE OTHER DAY THAT SHOWED A PACKED FOOTBALL STADIUM, A CONCERT FULL OF PEOPLE…A PARADE WITH A LOT OF PEOPLE

. . . BUT I NEED TO TELL YOU THAT PROSPERITY DOES NOT PROVE THAT A NATION IS RELIGIOUS. PROSPERITY, MANY TIMES, MAKES PEOPLE FORGET GOD!

THE PEOPLE IN NOAH’S DAY MAY HAVE BEEN LIVING A HIGH LIFE, BUT VIOLENCE INCREASED IN THE EARTH IN THE DAYS BEFORE THE FLOOD.

THE WHOLE EARTH WAS FILLED WITH VIOLENCE! THE PEOPLE GREW WEAKER AND WISER!

THEY WERE FULL OF HATRED, ENVY, LUST AND PRIDE! MEN FORGOT GOD AND BECAME AS WICKED AS MEN COULD BE!

THEY ROBBED AND KILLED UNTIL GOD HAD TO DO SOMETHING, OR THE WHOLE WORLD WOULD HAVE BEEN AFFECTED BY THIS WICKEDNESS.

AND SO GOD HAD TO DESTROY THE WORLD. BUT FOR ONE RIGHTEOUS MAN... GOD SAVED HIM AND HIS ENTIRE FAMILY. HE PUT THEM IN A SHIP!

I’M ALMOST FINISHED HERE, BUT YOU KNOW... BECAUSE NOAH BELIEVED GOD, GOD SAVED HIS FAMILY! AND HE’S NOT THE ONLY ONE THE BIBLE TALKS ABOUT:

– ABRAHAM BELIEVED GOD. AND GOD GAVE HIS SEED THE LAND OF PROMISE!

– RAHAB BELEIVED GOD. AND GOD SAVED HER HOUSEHOLD!

– THE CANANITE WOMAN BELIEVED GOD. AND CHRIST HEALED HER DAUGHTER!

– BECAUSE FOUR MEN BELIEVED GOD, CHRIST HEALED THEIR PARALYZED FRIEND!

SAINTS, GOD’S WORD IS TRUE: "BELIEVE ON THE LORD JESUS CHRIST AND THOU SHALT BE SAVED, AND THY HOUSE!" YES. . . NOAH AND HIS FAMILY WERE SAVED BY AN ARK, A SHIP WHICH GOD COMMANDED HIM TO BUILD.

THAT ARK WAS A PICTURE OF CHRIST. THERE ARE THREE (3) ARKS MENTIONED IN THE WORD OF GOD. EACH WAS A PLACE OF REFUGE, SHELTER, AND SAFETY.

NOAH’S ARK SECURED THOSE WHO WERE IN IT FROM THE VENGEANCE AND VIOLENT WRATH OF AN ANGRY GOD: THAT IS THE ARK OF CHRIST, OUR SUBSTITUTE.

THE ARK PROTECTED GOD’S CHOSEN ONE, MOSES, FROM THE MURDEROUS DESIGNS OF A WICKED RULER, PHAROAH: THAT ARK IS CHRIST, INTO WHOM WE HAD BEEN PLACED BY OUR LOVING FATHER FROM ETERNITY.

THE ARK OF THE COVENANT SHELTERED THE TWO TABLES OF GOD’S HOLY LAW, AND BEING COVERED WITH BLOOD, WAS THE PLACE OF ATONEMENT, MERCY, AND ACCEPTANCE WITH GOD FOR SINNERS: THAT ARK IS CHRIST OUR MERCY-SEAT.

PUT IT ALL TOGETHER SAINTS AND YOU’LL DISCOVER THAT FROM THE BEGINNING THERE HAS BEEN BUT ONE PLACE OF REFUGE FOR SINNERS, ONLY ONE WAY OF SALVATION. AND THAT IS CHRIST! IF YOU WANT TO BE SAVED, YOU’D BETTER GET IN THE ARK!

I’M GOING TO MY SEAT, BUT I HAVE TO ASK YOU A QUESTION: ARE YOU IN THE ARK?

– THERE’S SAFETY IN THE ARK!

– THERE’S SALVATION IN THE ARK!

– THERE’S PEACE IN THE ARK!

– THERE’S JOY IN THE ARK!

– THERE’S LOVE IN THE ARK!

I HEAR THE LORD SAYING:

“ALL ABOARD!!!”

“ALL ABOARD!!!” “IT’S TIME TO GET INTO THE ARK!”

NO WONDER THOSE OLD SAINTS SANG: “TIS THE OLD, SHIP OF ZION. TIS THE OLD SHIP OF ZION! IT HAS LANDED MANY A THOUSAND!”

TELL YOUR NEIGHBOR, YOU’D BETTER GET ON BOARD! NOW SLAP THREE PEOPLE A HIGH FIVE AND TELL THEM, “I GOT MY TICKET AND I’M READY TO SAIL!”

“ARE YOU IN THE ARK!”

EPILOGUE

THE DOOR IS OPEN FOR ALL WHO WILL TO ENTER IN AND BE SAVED! IF YOU PERISH, IT’LL BE BECAUSE YOU DESPISE THE ARK AND REFUSE TO ENTER IN.

ARE YOU IN THE ARK?

IF YOU’RE IN IT’S BECAUSE THE LORD PUT YOU IN:

IN ELECTION - IN REDEMPTION - IN REGENERATION.

. . . AND IF YOU ASK HIM SO, THE LORD WILL PUT YOU IN AND KEEP YOU IN! IN THE ARK, ALL IS SAFE!

AS THERE WAS BUT ONE ARK IN THE DAYS OF NOAH, THERE IS BUT ONE WAY OF SALVATION FOR POOR, HELPLESS, GUILTY SINNERS. THE WHOLE WORLD WAS DROWNED UNDER THE FLOOD OF GOD’S WRATH, EXCEPT FOR THOSE EIGHT HAPPY SOULS IN THE ARK. EVEN SO, THE WHOLE WORLD SHALL BE DESTROYED IN THE EVERLASTING WRATH OF ALMIGHTY GOD, EXCEPT THOSE HAPPY, BLESSED MEN AND WOMEN WHO ARE IN CHRIST. CHRIST ALONE IS THE SAVIOR OF MEN.

"THERE IS NONE OTHER NAME UNDER HEAVEN, GIVEN AMONG MEN, WHEREBY WE MUST BE SAVED." IF YOU WOULD BE SAVED, YOU MUST COME INTO THE ARK, CHRIST JESUS!