ACT 3: CATASTROPHE - THE FLOOD
FROM DUST TO GLORY • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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What can we learn from the behavior of God and Noah?
What can we learn from the behavior of God and Noah?
God’s behavior in the flood narrative teaches us that
God judiciously judges sin but that God is not impetuous in his judgment.
God judiciously judges sin but that God is not impetuous in his judgment.
How do we know that God was not impetuous? We know that God was not impetuous in his flood judgment because man had occupied earth 1,650 years.
The Lord’s judgment was not a divine whim.
The Lord’s judgment was not a divine whim.
How do we know the Lord is longsuffering?
How do we know the Lord is longsuffering?
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.
Peter reveals that
because they formerly did not obey, when God’s patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through water.
if he did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a herald of righteousness, with seven others, when he brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly;
When Enoch had lived 65 years, he fathered Methuselah.
Methuselah means, “When he is dead it shall be sent”
Thus all the days of Methuselah were 969 years, and he died.
To what does this “long-suffering” refer which “waited” while the ark was preparing! How long had God’s patience been exercised? 969 years seems to be the answer—the span of Methuselah’s life. As long as Enoch’s son lived, the world was safe, but when he died, then should it (the Flood) be sent.
God's patience does come to an end and he destroys unrepentant sinners.
God's patience does come to an end and he destroys unrepentant sinners.
According to Genesis 6:7, So God responded with a declaration of irrevocable judgment:
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.”
Then in verse 13,
And God said to Noah, “I have determined to make an end of all flesh, for the earth is filled with violence through them. Behold, I will destroy them with the earth.
And in verse 17 God says that his wrath will come as a flood:
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.
The Genesis assessment of the sinfulness of pre-flood humanity astounds us:
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.
As bad as our world is today, this cannot be said of it. Romans 3:9-18 teaches us that every aspect of our personalities is tainted with sin but it is not true that “every intention” of the thoughts of every man’s and every woman’s heart are “only evil continually”—at least not yet.
God the Father’s behavior in the flood narrative teaches us that his patience with sinners should not be mistaken for his unwillingness to judge sin.
God the Father’s behavior in the flood narrative teaches us that his patience with sinners should not be mistaken for his unwillingness to judge sin.
God’s judgment of sin serves as a reminder that judgment on sin will come.
God’s judgment of sin serves as a reminder that judgment on sin will come.
The Day of the Lord will come 2 Peter 3:10.
But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.
Jesus uses the life of Noah as a foreshadowing of what it will be like when the Son of Man returns in final judgment.
Jesus uses the life of Noah as a foreshadowing of what it will be like when the Son of Man returns in final judgment.
For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.
For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark,
We need to follow Noah’s example and be a “herald of righteousness” and heed the words of Paul:
Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.
Like Noah,
We are Christ’s ambassadors in these last days.
We are Christ’s ambassadors in these last days.
God’s judgment is coming, but He offers reconciliation through Jesus Christ. We must take this message of reconciliation to others. In a sense this is a children's story, because its lessons are plain enough for a child to understand: God hates sin and punishes unrepentant sinners.
NOAH
NOAH
We first hear about Noah in Genesis 5. Chapter 5 details the godly line of Seth as opposed to the worldly line of Cain Genesis 4:17-24. Assuming no generational breaks, Noah represents the 10th generation from Adam. The genealogical account of Noah reads:
When Lamech had lived 182 years, he had a son.
He named him Noah and said, “He will comfort us in the labor and painful toil of our hands caused by the ground the Lord has cursed.”
NOAH
NOAH
Right from the start, we see that Noah is going to be special as he is the only member of this genealogy whose name is explained as to its meaning. His father, Lamech, states that his son, Noah, will bring relief.
NOAH
NOAH
We learn quickly what Noah was to relieve us from in
When man began to multiply on the face of the land and daughters were born to them,
the sons of God saw that the daughters of man were attractive. And they took as their wives any they chose.
Then the Lord said, “My Spirit shall not abide in man forever, for he is flesh: his days shall be 120 years.”
The Nephilim were on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of man and they bore children to them. These were the mighty men who were of old, the men of renown.
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.”
But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord.
NOAH
NOAH
Despite the rampant wickedness that was increasing exponentially upon the earth, there is one man who stands out—a man whose life was characterized by the hand of God’s grace upon him.
NOAH
NOAH
God the Father was not perplexed by man sinfulness neither was he pleased with it. Noah purpose was to preach righteousness thus condemning those who would not believe his message.
Noah’s life shows us that we are saved by grace through faith.
Noah’s life shows us that we are saved by grace through faith.
Noah wasn’t an exemplary individual because he was somehow able to bypass the fallen sin nature we all possess. God’s grace was upon him, aside from which Noah would have perished with all of the other wicked sinners in the flood.
Noah’s behavior teaches us that true faith saves.
Noah’s behavior teaches us that true faith saves.
The concept of God’s grace of course can be seen in every chapter, but the actual word first appears in
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.
GRACE | RIGHTEOUS
GRACE | RIGHTEOUS
But the actual words “grace” and “righteous” appear here for the first time, and naturally, grace comes first, before righteousness, and grace causes it. God’s grace is the only way sinners can be righteous.
RIGHTEOUS
In the Old Testament, a righteous man is a sinner who hates his sin, turns from it, trusts God, pursues obedience, and enjoys acceptance by grace. Noah was righteous; because he was obedient to God’s commands.
GRACE | RIGHTEOUS
The reason Noah was spared was because he "found grace in the eyes of the Lord." Noah was not without sin, but he found favor with God because "he walked with God" (6:9): he agreed with God about the evil of his own sin, turned from it, and trusted God for grace.
BLAMELESS
He is called righteous and blameless in but blameless in the Old Testament doesn't always mean sinless.
A man is blameless if he does not persist in his blameworthy actions, if he hates them, turns from them, and comes to God seeking mercy.
Job 1:1 (ESV)
There was a man in the land of Uz whose name was Job, and that man was blameless and upright, one who feared God and turned away from evil.
BLAMELESS
He was blameless in his generation, standing out among the people of his day. While they were engaging in debauchery, Noah was living an exemplary life.
BLAMELESS
He, of course, was not sinless, but his conduct was blameless despite the evil context. The demonized culture did not divert or pervert him, nor could it indict him. He was the one bright spot among the numberless darkened souls of the primeval world.
WALKED WITH GOD
Finally, Noah walked with God, which puts him in the same class as his great grandfather, Enoch Genesis 5:24; this implies not only an obedient life, but one that has a vibrant and intimate relationship with God.
His obedience did not make him righteous. He was obedient because he was righteous.
His obedience did not make him righteous. He was obedient because he was righteous.
The statement that “Noah was a righteous man” is the first mention of righteousness in the Bible and sets the standard that righteousness comes by faith. The fact that his righteousness came by faith is made unmistakably clear in the New Testament.
Hebrews 11:7 (ESV)
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.
Saving faith not only preserves the saint but causes them persevere.
Saving faith not only preserves the saint but causes them persevere.
Noah faithfully persevered 100+ years in preaching righteousness producing only seven converts. God faithfully preserved Noah. Preaching righteousness in any way, however measured or impassioned, would not have gone down well in the violence-ridden, pre-flood culture. Noah would not have survived had not God, as Peter says,
2 Peter 2:5 (ESV)
if he did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a herald of righteousness, with seven others, when he brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly;
Saving faith produces a supernatural walk.
Saving faith produces a supernatural walk.
We see Noah’s obedient life demonstrated in his willingness to obey without question the Lord’s commands regarding the ark
Genesis 6:22 (ESV)
Noah did this; he did all that God commanded him.
Genesis 7:5 (ESV)
And Noah did all that the Lord had commanded him.
Genesis 7:9 (ESV)
two and two, male and female, went into the ark with Noah, as God had commanded Noah.
Genesis 8:18 (ESV)
So Noah went out, and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives with him.
Noah was revered as one of the few exceptionally righteous men in the history of God’s people.
Ezekiel 14:14 (ESV)
even if these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they would deliver but their own lives by their righteousness, declares the Lord God.
Ezekiel 14:20 (ESV)
even if Noah, Daniel, and Job were in it, as I live, declares the Lord God, they would deliver neither son nor daughter. They would deliver but their own lives by their righteousness.
God says through the prophet that even if Noah, Daniel and Job were present in the land, God would not spare the people from his judgment (indicating that only they would be spared). That’s some righteous company to be in (Daniel and Job).
HALL OF FAITH | HEBREWS 11
HALL OF FAITH | HEBREWS 11
We also know that Noah is included in the “Faith Hall of Fame” in Hebrews 11, another indication that Noah was considered a model of faithfulness.
Hebrews 11:7 (ESV)
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.
This refrain of obedience represented Noah’s long life—
Genesis 6:22 (ESV)
Noah did this; he did all that God commanded him.
Here was a man who knew who God was, knew who he himself was, and obeyed God’s word. Noah was a man alive to God. Here was monumental obedience. Calvin gets to the point:
First, the prodigious size of the ark might have overwhelmed all his senses, so as to prevent him from raising a finger to begin the work. Let the reader reflect on the multitude of trees to be felled, on the great labor of conveying them, and the difficulty of joining them together. The matter was also long deferred; for the holy man was required to be engaged more than a hundred years in most troublesome labor. Nor can we suppose him to have been so stupid, as not to reflect upon obstacles of this kind.
First, the prodigious size of the ark might have overwhelmed all his senses, so as to prevent him from raising a finger to begin the work. Let the reader reflect on the multitude of trees to be felled, on the great labor of conveying them, and the difficulty of joining them together. The matter was also long deferred; for the holy man was required to be engaged more than a hundred years in most troublesome labor. Nor can we suppose him to have been so stupid, as not to reflect upon obstacles of this kind.
James 2:26 (ESV)
For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.
The Flood reminds us of God’s divine power and freedom over His creation.
The Flood reminds us of God’s divine power and freedom over His creation.
I am the Lord, and there is no other, besides me there is no God; I equip you, though you do not know me,
that people may know, from the rising of the sun and from the west, that there is none besides me; I am the Lord, and there is no other.
I form light and create darkness; I make well-being and create calamity; I am the Lord, who does all these things.
“Shower, O heavens, from above, and let the clouds rain down righteousness; let the earth open, that salvation and righteousness may bear fruit; let the earth cause them both to sprout; I the Lord have created it.
“Woe to him who strives with him who formed him, a pot among earthen pots! Does the clay say to him who forms it, ‘What are you making?’ or ‘Your work has no handles’?
The Flood reveals God’s deadly anger over sin.
The Flood reveals God’s deadly anger over sin.
The Flood reveals God desire to save sinners.
The Flood reveals God desire to save sinners.
Sin is just as much a problem after the flood as before. The flood of judgment did not eradicate sin. The New Testament writers see the flood as a foreshadowing of the final judgment with fire 2 Peter 3:5–7,
For they deliberately overlook this fact, that the heavens existed long ago, and the earth was formed out of water and through water by the word of God,
and that by means of these the world that then existed was deluged with water and perished.
But by the same word the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly.
and the ark as a foreshadowing of final salvation 1 Peter 3:20–21,
because they formerly did not obey, when God’s patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through water.
For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.
But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty.
For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy,
heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good,
treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,
having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people.
Then Noah built an altar to the Lord and took some of every clean animal and some of every clean bird and offered burnt offerings on the altar.
And when the Lord smelled the pleasing aroma, the Lord said in his heart, “I will never again curse the ground because of man, for the intention of man’s heart is evil from his youth. Neither will I ever again strike down every living creature as I have done.
Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree”—
for then he would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.