Advent: God Initiates Peace

The flood is one of the most disturbing parts of history, if you slow down and think about it. It’s easy for a Christian who’s been around the church for any period of time to believe that the story of Noah and the flood is so elementary that it is beneath them. But, this is no simple children’s story. ’ve spent some time this week looking at some of the historical depictions of the Great Flood by a few artists. They picture mom’s holding their babies over their heads trying to keep them above water as long as possible. They show stacks of people and animals frantically rushing together to the highest ground possible until a few of them can remain before the last tip of the mountain goes beneath the waves. There are bodies floating, weary birds flying, and exhausted lions drowning. In one painting, the waters have abated, and Noah’s family is preparing to exit the ark. But, though we typically imagine this as Noah walking out into a picturesque scene with birds singing, this painting shows that everywhere water once was, now the bodies of families and animals lay.

It certainly isn’t your average Christmas story, and it’s important that as we read these accounts and think of their truth that we not sanitize them in our minds. We must not sanitize our Bibles or whitewash God’s judgement, for we do so only to the peril of our own souls and those we love. As we celebrate this Advent season, as we celebrate the coming of our Savior, we can only truly treasure Christ and his coming if we know what it is that He came to deliver us from. All of the devastation of the Bible is written with the coming of Christ in mind. So, as we look at the aftermath of the flood this morning, we won’t just see devastation; we will see grace. We won’t just see judgement; we will see salvation. We won’t just see wrath; we will see peace.

“So the Lord said, ‘I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land” As we saw last week, God had watched as wickedness had filled the earth. God had placed his image in man so that as mankind multiplied across the earth so his image would multiply with them. But, rather than see his glory made clear across the earth, everywhere man went evil was there. So much so that the Bible says that the inclinations of man’s heart, the thoughts of man’s mind were all evil all of the time. God regrets that He has made man and is grieved over the devastation that has come to his creation, and He so he resolves to blot man out from the face of the earth. So, God sends a cataclysmic flood upon the earth. It rains without ceasing for forty days and forty nights, so much so that even Everest itself is submerged. And, as you read, you can’t help but realize that this is God’s word coming true. For God had told Adam and Eve in the Garden that if they rebelled against him, if they did evil, they would surely die.

And, through the flood, we see the Gospel. I want us to look at three ways that we find the gospel in the flood.

“But, God found favor in the eyes of the LORD.” God sends a flood that is just as pervasive as the wickedness. Almost, at least. You see, in the midst of that darkness, in the midst of such an awful judgement, God gives us hope.

“for the intention of man’s heart is evil from his youth” And so, we get to the other side and waters have abated, and Noah leaves the ark, and we make a startling discovery. The flood wasn’t fully effective. God had resolved to flood the earth because man’s thoughts were all evil all of the time. But, then what does it say in 8:21? God says, “I will never again flood the earth for the intention of man’s heart is evil from his youth.” So, the earth has become cleaner, but it still isn’t clean. Sinners have been purged from the earth, but not entirely. So many people make this story all about Noah and what a great man he was. But, do you notice how hard Moses works to show us that this is not about Noah’s goodness at all? This isn’t about Noah! There are wicked men before the flood, and there are still wicked men after the flood. Men are inclined toward evil before the flood, and men are inclined toward evil after the flood. That’s why I had us read all the way through verse 22. I wanted you to see the very next thing we learn about Noah. Noah is delivered from the flood, offers God a sacrifice that pleases him, and the very next thing he does is get drunk, naked, and expose himself in shame. This story isn’t about how good Noah is; this story is about how good God is. This isn’t about how hard Noah worked to avoid the judgment; this is about how gracious God was to spare him from the judgement.

The only reason the flood wasn't fully effective is that God constrained his own righteous judgement by his own sovereign love.

The only reason the flood wasn't fully effective is that God constrained his own righteous judgement by his own sovereign love. God should have fully purged the earth, but his grace constrained him. His love for man compelled him to provide a way by which they might be saved. God's will to populate the earth with his glory through his people will not be thwarted by the unfaithfulness of man. The sinfulness of man will not stop God, though it will condemn most men. But, on the contrary, God will work through the wickedness of man to save remnant by which He will be glorified not only as mighty, but as merciful; not only glorious, but also gracious; not only as Creator, but also as Redeemer. God has chosen to delay in patience and longsuffering his final judgement so that He might save a remnant through which his glory will advance.

The

The truth is that the flood makes far more sense than the Ark. Man is wicked from his infancy. Man is owed the judgement of God and the wrath of God. Mankind’s heart is so wicked that it’s like a cancer in the creation fit only to be removed. But as wicked as man is, God is far more merciful!

APPLICATION: Brothers and sisters, I deserve the flood, but I’ve received the Ark! I disobey God more than I obey him. I deserve the flood. People’s lives can be falling apart all around me, and all I can do is think about a savings account or dishes in the sink. I deserve the flood. God has always provided for me, always cared for me, always sustained me, always came through for me, and yet I am still overcome with unbelief. I deserve the flood. But, as much as I deserve the flood, God has still given me the Ark. God provided Noah’s salvation from the flood, and I am saved the same way that Noah was. By God’s power, provision, and grace. Jesus came because in God's holiness you are wicked, but in God's mercy you are loved, and so, by God's power and provision you might be saved. Jesus came because God is saving a remnant from within a crooked generation. We deserve the flood, but God has given us Jesus!

“And God said to Noah” 6:13 To really get what’s happening in the story of Noah, you have to understand the one-sided nature of what’s going on. Noah is saved from the flood because God warns him. It's not because Noah is wise or scientifically advanced or has a meteorological instinct. Noah is saved because God comes to him. If God doesn’t come to Noah, Noah is going to die. God goes to Noah before Noah goes to God. Noah’s children are going to die. God came to Noah and warned him of his coming judgment and demanded that he build the ark out of grace! Something really cool, is did you know that is the very first time that the word grace is used in the Bible? And, it establishes a pattern. What makes grace grace is that it comes at the initiative of God because of the love of God. Noah didn’t go to God; God went to Noah.

“Then Noah built an altar to the LORD and....offered burnt offerings on the altar.” And, this isn’t lost on Noah. There’s no doubt in Noah’s mind. Imagine the scene as Noah exits the Ark after being on board for over a year. The entire world’s population has been demolished. No doubt, Noah would have heard people beating on the side of his boat and screaming as the flood waters rose. The waters would have expedited the decomposition of the bodies, and so, as Noah exited the ark, he would have encountered bones as far as he could see. There would have been no mistaking the gravity of God’s judgement for Noah. Noah would have understood with crystal clear clarity the grace that he had received. And so, Noah responds with the only sensible response. He builds an altar (the very first altar mentioned in the Bible!), and he worships God. He offers a burnt offering from each of the clean animals. The purpose of the burnt offering was really two fold: 1) To seek the atonement of your sins, acknowledging that the cost of sin is death. So, you would literally burn the animal being sacrificed until there was nothing but ashes. Nothing was salvaged. 2) To express thanksgiving to God for showing mercy in sin. So, you acknowledge that the source of all that is is God himself by offering sacrificially from your own herd. And, it’s not like Noah has an enormous herd. He has only what was on the ark. But, God was the source of the Ark and God was the source of the animals and God was the source of the grace he had received, and so, he offers in thankful worship to God what he has to offer.

“And when the LORD smelled the pleasing aroma, the LORD said in his heart, “I will never again curse the ground because of man” And, God accepts Noah’s sacrifice. He’s see Noah coming to him in faith (as remembers him) and recognizing his grace, and he takes great pleasure in the worship of Noah. And then, God does the unthinkable. He enters into a covenant with Noah BY HIS OWN INITIATIVE. Don’t miss this. Noah is praising God and offering God a sacrifice, and with that sacrifice he’s demonstrating how generous and gracious God has been toward him. When all of a sudden, God speaks again. "Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him, "Behold, I establish my covenant with you, as many as came out of the ark; it is for every beast of the earth." God obligates himself to Noah. God freely offers to Noah a covenant relationship, protecting him from judgement.

God Saves for Relationship

Simply saving Noah wasn't enough for God. God saves Noah FROM the judgement FOR a relationship. God didn't just want to save Noah. God wanted to be known by Noah! You see, not only is this the first time we see the word 'grace' in the bible, but this is the first time that we see 'covenant' in the Bible. God operates in relationship with humans through covenants founded by his initiative to live in relationship with him. Throughout the passage, God is referred to as LORD, which is the covenant name of God for Israel. All of this is pointing us to the most glorious reality that Noah was saved from the judgement so that he might enjoy a relationship with God. And get this, through his relationship with Noah, God would bless the whole world. The blessings of God's covenant with Noah encompassed every living thing that would ever live. So, there is this personal grace extended to Noah, and then, there is a common grace extended to all of creation. The seasons would be back in order. The animals would be thriving again. It wouldn't be eden, but the creation would again begin proclaiming the handiwork of God again, even if it bore the scars of fallenness.

Simply saving Noah wasn't enough for God. God saves Noah FROM the judgement FOR a relationship. God didn't just want to save Noah. God wanted to be known by Noah! You see, not only is this the first time we see the word 'grace' in the bible, but this is the first time that we see 'covenant' in the Bible. God operates in relationship with humans through covenants founded by his initiative to live in relationship with him. Throughout the passage, God is referred to as LORD, which is the covenant name of God for Israel. All of this is pointing us to the most glorious reality that Noah was saved from the judgement so that he might enjoy a relationship with God

And get this, through his relationship with Noah, God would bless the whole world. The blessings of God's covenant with Noah encompassed every living thing that would ever live. So, there is this personal grace extended to Noah, and then, there is a common grace extended to all of creation. The seasons would be back in order. The animals would be thriving again. It wouldn't be eden, but the creation would again begin proclaiming the handiwork of God again, even if it bore the scars of fallenness.

APPLICATION: This story would be remarkable if it stopped at salvation. But, the most stunning part of this story is that God doesn't just save Noah from the judgement. He saves Noah FOR a relationship. He saves Noah for the sole purpose of letting Noah know how kind and gracious and merciful He is. He saves Noah so that Noah can know him. This is why normative, Bible-belt, cultural Christianity just won't hold water in the Kingdom of God. This is why anyone who is satisfied with the thought of merely not going to hell even if they never walk with God can never be. God wants more than your deliverance from condemnation! God wants a relationship! Think about that for a second! Grace! The most spectacular discovery a person can make is that God wants to be known personally by you. In the Bible, God is called our Father, our Counselor, our Friend. He is called our Shepherd and our Refuge. Why would you settle for anything less? Why would you want anything less? No child wants the possessions of their parents apart from the love of their parents. No wife wants the paycheck of their husband without the affection of their husband. If you know God, you will not be content with a distant, impersonal, relationship, even if you got heaven. No! You want God. You want to know him. You want to know his love. We don't pray so that God will be impressed with us. We pray because we know God! We don't read our Bibles because it will earn us stickers on the charts of heaven. We read our Bibles because we know God, and we want to know him better. We don't come to church because we're afraid of what might happen if we don't. We go because we know God, and we want more of him. Jesus came so that you could know something even grander than the pardon of your sins. Jesus came to pardon your sins so that you could know God!

“I have set my bow in the cloud” And so, God says that He’s hanging up his bow. He’s temporarily laying down his weapon of war, He’s delaying his final judgement so that the news of grace, the glory of his Name might reach the corners of his creation. The truth is that the flood should come every, single day that a sinner roams the earth, for sinners pollute God’s creation. But, God has withheld a ‘daily deluge’ (Calvin) for sinners so that they might find grace and ultimately bring him glory.

The rainbow is proof that God wills to be at peace with the very sinners owed his wrath. The Rainbow is a reminder of the judgement we are owed and the grace that we are offered. The rainbow should cause us to both tremble and rejoice. The Rainbow points us forward to the day in which a young, virgin mother will give peace so that wrath of God might be satisfied and man might have the opportunity for ultimate peace with God.

APPLICATION: Jesus came so that sinners could enjoy God. - You were an enemy of God. - You are an adopted child of God. - You were children of wrath. Now, you are children of grace. You were once far off, but now you've been brought near. You were doomed to feel the sting of his bow, but instead you will know the bounty of his table. So, enjoy him! The world reviles him. The atheist denies him. The complacent ignore him. But, his children enjoy him! When things are good and your marriage is at peace and your savings account is full, enjoy the provision of God and the generosity it afford. When you don't know how you'll take another step and it feels like your life is unraveling at the seams, enjoy the promises of God and the hope it assures. When you stand on the threshold of death and the lives of those you love is coming to an end, enjoy the victory of the risen Christ and life He secures. Moment by moment, in your Bibles and in your prayers, in your friendships and in your family, in your job and in your church, in your hobbies and in your missions, enjoy the presence of God! Enjoy the friendship of God! Enjoy the relationship that you now have in him! Enjoy god, brothers and sisters! Enjoy him!

“God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth” The flood purges the earth. Truthfully, the world is better off immediately following the flood. There is less wickedness singularly because there are fewer people. But, the purging won't last and the cleansing isn't full. The earth is still fallen and men are still sinners. But, one day, it will be purged completely and made new. It will be washed clean and built anew, and people will fill it. But, they won't fill it as sinners; they will fill it as the redeemed. They won't fill it as the wicked; they will fill it as the image of Almighty God. This momentary peace promises future peace

APPLICATION: The flood proves that the Serpent doesn't win. The flood proves that God is ultimately in control and that God will ultimately triumph. The judgement of sin, and the destruction of wickedness promises to us that one day God will establish his perfect reign through Christ, and his people will endure no more. The flood promises that Jesus is coming. The flood promises that a final judgment is approaching. The flood promises that the Serpent will be thrown into the lake of fire and that the people of God will be on the other side worshipping God in victory! The flood fills us with awe and fear and trembling. The flood provokes us to worship. The flood puts on our lips the final prayer of the Bible, "Come, Lord Jesus!"

Advent: God Initiates Peace

Introduction

God’s Word

Read

“You Will Surely Die”

God Saves a Remnant.

Not About Noah

Constrained By Grace

We Deserve the Flood, But Receive the Ark

God initiates a relationship.

An Offering to God

God Saved Noah For Relationship

Jesus Came So You Could Know God

Covenant of Peace

Jesus Came So You Could Enjoy God

God will make all things new.

The Serpent Doesn’t Win