Essay from a Concerned American: Noah-a builder and a preacher
“And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them. But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD. These are the generations of Noah: Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God.” (Genesis 6:5-9)
The story of Noah and the ark is one of the most familiar in the Bible. As our passage says, sin had horribly infected the hearts of the people of the world, and they were so hardened against God, that He decreed He would destroy them with a flood.
Yet what does it mean, that “…Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD”? It means Noah had learned God would one day send a Redeemer who would deal with man’s sin and bring Him back into fellowship with Him that had been lost. The promise of a Redeemer was first given in Genesis 3:15. God told the serpent, “And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed, and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.”
Noah had no way of knowing the Redeemer’s name would be Jesus, or that He would be born in Bethlehem or die on a cross and rise again. He only knew that the Redeemer would come, and the outward indicator of his trust in God’s promise was to offer animal sacrifice as God commanded.
Noah also built an ark by God’s direction. It would be huge, about 450 feet long, 75 feet wide, and 45 feet high. With only Noah, his three sons, and their wives to do the work, it would take a long time to build, so the neighbors were no doubt curious about it. Can you imagine the ridicule he got when he told them God would destroy the world with a flood?
Yet as the ark was in progress, Noah was “…a preacher of righteousness,” (2 Peter 3:5) He tried to convince them to come to God in repentance for sin and trust His promise of forgiveness. Yet they, being hard-hearted, didn’t listen and died in their sin. Still, Noah was faithful to obey God, to strive to live pleasing to Him, and to share God’s offer of forgiveness.
Jesus said the time before His Second Coming would be like the days of Noah: “But as the days of Noe [Noah] were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.” (Matthew 24:37) Noah’s time was characterized by wickedness. You don’t have to look far to see the current world is similar.
Still, God gave Noah grace to be a shining light in a dark world. If you know Jesus as Saviour, He can do the same for you. He said, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16) Don’t say, “you can’t be sold out for Christ as a cop”, or “you can’t be sold out for Christ as a politician.” Yes, you can. Jesus would not have given this command if it were not possible to obey.
Yet if you don’t know Jesus as Saviour, please know that “The LORD is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy.” (Psalm 145:8) Yet the Bible also warns, “To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts,” (Hebrews 3:15) Evolutionists may say the flood story was fiction, but Jesus said it really happened. Your soul is at stake. Whom will you believe?
If you want to see how to have eternal forgiveness of sins and a home in heaven by receiving the Lord Jesus as your personal Saviour, please go to www.clevelandbaptist.org, click “Helpful Links,” then “How Do I Go to Heaven?”
Brian Miller 5/3/2021
Cleveland Baptist Church 4431 Tiedeman Road, Brooklyn, Ohio 44144 216/671-2822