Stability

The Peace of Stability

Many of us have felt the pains of instability and feeling unsure in our lives. Perhaps you’ve felt the void in your heart of a friend who wasn’t there like they promised, the divorcing of parents, or the passing of loved ones. Maybe you’ve grown up in a situation where perhaps you didn’t feel secure and life was all over the place. Instability can cause anxiety, distrust, worrying and can rob us of our joy for sure.

Well as we look at the life of Noah we find a man that who’s life was spared by God’s grace yet He was witness to one of the most horrifying events to ever happen and now we find him safely off of the boat. Now, I’m sure that Noah has a heart of faith that is struggling with a head full of fear. I don’t believe it would be hard to imagine that if Noah looked into the sky and saw a cloud that his heart would skip a beat. But in this passage we find that God makes a promise with Noah. And His promise is that He would not destroy the Earth by flood ever again (Gen. 9:8-10). As a matter of fact, God doesn’t merely promise this to Noah; but to all living creatures on the Earth, even you and me!

The promise here is one of stability. As a matter of fact, Genesis 8:21-22 says

Genesis 8:21–22 NKJV

21 And the Lord smelled a soothing aroma. Then the Lord said in His heart, “I will never again curse the ground for man’s sake, although the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth; nor will I again destroy every living thing as I have done. 22 “While the earth remains, Seedtime and harvest, Cold and heat, Winter and summer, And day and night Shall not cease.”

So, what we find here is that God is promising that the Earth would never face destruction until that final day where the Earth is renewed and purged of sin and death. He is promising that things will be held in order. Matthew Henry said, “As the old world was ruined to be a monument of [God’s] justice, so this world remains to this day, a monument of mercy, according to the oath of God… The promise of God keeps the sea and clouds in their decreed place, and sets them gates and bars; hitherto they shall come. Job 35:10-11.”

As God makes this covenant, the world will still be sinful. But what we notice here is God’s mercy. That He looks upon a man who has the same sin nature of the others who died in the flood, but He shows grace to this terrified old man and gives him a promise that Noah would be able to hold on to to silence his fears for the rest of his life. But not only does God give us a promise, but He gives a picture to go with it. In v12-17 God says,

Genesis 9:12–17 NKJV

12 And God said: “This is the sign of the covenant which I make between Me and you, and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: 13 I set My rainbow in the cloud, and it shall be for the sign of the covenant between Me and the earth. 14 It shall be, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the rainbow shall be seen in the cloud; 15 and I will remember My covenant which is between Me and you and every living creature of all flesh; the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. 16 The rainbow shall be in the cloud, and I will look on it to remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.” 17 And God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant which I have established between Me and all flesh that is on the earth.”

But why? Why did Noah need a picture and why do we need a picture? Matthew Henry again said that God has given it to us, “That the eye may affect the heart and confirm the faith.” So whenever Noah, his children, and even you look up into the sky after a summer storm and we see the rainbow we can be reminded that God has made us a promise never again to flood the Earth. And as you look at that, let it strengthen your faith. Has He destroyed the world since He made that promise? Of course not. And because that is true, let your faith grow stronger in Him storm by storm!

One writer said, “One thing about the rainbow is that it comes after the rain while the clouds are still rolling away. God knows when our faith is weak and He sends in encouragement that is suitable to the season we’re in.”

Another thing, he continues, is that “In the times that the clouds are darker, the rainbow is often brighter. And in the same way, when the trials of this life are strong, God’s comforting grace is even stronger. 2 Corinthians 1:5”

Why does God make this covenant? It’s not that He gets anything out of it, Noah doesn’t have anything to offer! Instead, one of the reasons that God makes this covenant is because He wants to reassure Noah that He can is His trustworthy God.

In Isaiah 54:9-10 we read,

Isaiah 54:9–10 NKJV

9 “For this is like the waters of Noah to Me; For as I have sworn That the waters of Noah would no longer cover the earth, So have I sworn That I would not be angry with you, nor rebuke you. 10 For the mountains shall depart And the hills be removed, But My kindness shall not depart from you, Nor shall My covenant of peace be removed,” Says the Lord, who has mercy on you.

In this passage God is making promises to the people of Zion and He is strengthening their faith by pointing them back to the covenant He made with Noah. It’s not about God flooding the Earth, but it’s about God’s promise that He has faithfully kept. And so God is saying, Just as I promised Noah I’d never flood the Earth again, I’m also promising you that there is coming a day when I will never be angry with you again. God is highlighting that when He says something, it will happen. When God makes a promise you can take it to the bank.

The Purpose of Stability

But another reason for this covenant is in Genesis 9:1

Genesis 9:1 NKJV

1 So God blessed Noah and his sons, and said to them: “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth.

and Genesis 9:7

Genesis 9:7 NKJV

7 And as for you, be fruitful and multiply; Bring forth abundantly in the earth And multiply in it.”

What God is doing here is giving peace to the family of Noah that he and his family don’t have to worry about the flood and that they should begin having children and scattering image bearers all over the Earth. But why? Because from Noah would come all the people of the Earth and ultimately the Lord Jesus Christ.

Now, what I think we should highlight here is that God doesn’t speak with Noah’s wife, his sons or his daughters-in-law, but only Noah. And that it is through God’s dealing with one man that all the world would be blessed. Is this not just like us and the Lord? Was it not the Father who chose us in Christ (Ephesians 1:4) ? Was it not Christ who died on our behalf and in Christ we have great blessings (Ephesians 1:3)? And is it not through Christ that the whole world is blessed (John 3:16)?

In Genesis 5, Noah’s Dad thought it was Noah that would give deliverance and rest, but next week we will see that he, like all others has failed. But in Christ we have the prince of peace and the deliverer of the Church. And it is in Christ that we enjoy stability far greater than we could ever imagine as He is the unshakable foundation, the unchanging God.

What Does This Mean For Me?

Comfort that God cares for me and keeps His promises. As you and I behold the changing of the seasons, the nice summer breeze, the changing of leaves, or the rainbow after a storm we should be reminded of God faithfulness

Consider the goodness of God in providing safety for the animals on the Ark and let that remind us of how the world will one day be remade.

Just as God cares for the Earth and it’s animals, we should be faithful stewards of the world He has blessed us with.