GOD S MERCY STRATEGY PART II (GENESIS 5:21-32) Oct. 5, 2014 I. INTRODUCTION It s interesting that there s a major Hollywood film about one of the most significant displays of the judgment of God in history: the flood. There are other elements to the story of Noah, but judgment is one of the main themes. The flood is about God s judgment being brought on the earth. 1. People went to see it. That s one of the reasons that we ve been in this series of messages As in the Days of Noah. The movie, whether we agree with it s interpretation or not, will continue to open up doors for dialogue with people about God s mercy and judgment. 2. The Judgment of the Flood. God had created all things and declared that it was very good (Gen. 1:31). Mankind rebels against God and goes down the road of sin and lawlessness to the point that he is maximally corrupt at the core. Not some or most, but every inclination of his heart was evil continually. Judgment is inevitable. It comes in the form of a flood that covers the whole earth. Yet, right along the theme of judgment is the theme of mercy. All the events surrounding the flood are about God s mercy being revealed even in the midst of his righteous judgment. There is a rainbow around God s throne in heaven. It speaks of the vastness of God s mercy. And He who sat there was like a jasper and a sardius stone in appearance; and there was a rainbow around the throne, in appearance like an emerald. (Rev. 4:3) 1. Jasper (a clear diamond) speaks of God s dazzling purity. 2. Sardis (Carnelian is the modern term deep red) speaks of His zeal for justice. It s zeal to remove all that is not holy. Judgment against sin. 3. Rainbow (resembling an emerald) speaks of the vastness of God s mercy. a. Just as a rainbow around the throne of God, God s mercy is shown before and after the judgment of the flood. II. GOD S MERCY BEFORE THE FLOOD God sends prophetic messengers to warn of the coming judgment: Enoch prophesied (Jude 14), Methuselah, and Noah preacher of righteousness (2 Pet 2:5). God gives 4 generation of witnesses Enoch, Methuselah, Lamech, and Noah to call people back to God. 1. Thank God for the people that He sends into your life to help you! 2. God sends prophetic messengers to give people time to return to Him. The LORD saw how great man's wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time. 6 The LORD was grieved that he had made man on the earth, and his heart was filled with pain. 7 So the
LORD said, "I will wipe mankind, whom I have created, from the face of the earth-- men and animals, and creatures that move along the ground, and birds of the air-- for I am grieved that I have made them." (Gen 6:5-7 NIV) 3. The flood was not a rash decision of a burst of anger. It was preceded by many opportunities to return to God. God s heart is one of grief and heart-ache. His children had rebelled against him and become corrupt to the core. Patience (God gives you more time to turn and seek Him) 1. Enoch named his son: Methuselah. Methuselah s name can mean several things, one of which is: When he dies it will be sent, prophesying of the flood that is to come. Enoch named his son as a prophetic sign. 2. Methuselah very life becomes a sign of God s mercy: more time to repent and return to God. Methuselah (Gen. 5:25-27) has the longest life on record, 969 years. He died in the year of the flood (7:6). God was giving maximum time to give people an opportunity to turn and choose life. a. The longer Methuselah lived, the longer judgment was put off. Methuselah s long life is a symbol of God s mercy in stalling the coming judgment of the flood, so that people would have more than ample time to repent and be saved. (1) God tells the angels: Keep him alive! At all cost! I want to give people more time! God delayed Methuselah and the flood it as long as possible and gave people every opportunity to choose life. Only 8 were saved in the ark. In the recent movie, Noah, there is a scene where it begins to rain and people begin to storm the ark to take it over. They re trying to get on the ark. 1. It doesn t tell us in the Bible, but my guess is that the people resisted to the last moment, not to save themselves. Their hearts so hardened and they were defiant, shaking their fists at God and saying, I m not getting on Your ark! Never! III. GOD S MERCY AFTER THE FLOOD God establishes a renewed order. Man is given a second chance to seek God s Kingdom first. Some things have not changed. Man is still fallen, yet is a recipient of God s mercy. 1. Gen. 9:1-7 God was giving mankind, through Noah and his family, a second chance on the earth. God reinstates Noah to fulfill the original mandate to Adam. Man is to rule and reign over creation as God s representative: to be fruitful and multiply. Some things have changed: 1. Man s relationship with animals has changed. Animals will fear mankind. From this time on, which was not the case before. (When God s Kingdom is restored, the original dynamic will be restored (Isa. 11:6-9). 2. He can eat meat for sustenance. But he is to avoid eating blood. - 2 -
3. God also gives the right and responsibility for capital punishment. God demands a reckoning for the man s blood that is shed. When murder is committed, death is the penalty. It s a moral restraint on mankind that keeps us from spiraling downward out of control. D. In light of this second chance that mankind is given, God makes a covenant with man and all creation. We call it the Noahic Covenant. 8 Then God spoke to Noah and to his sons with him, saying: 9 And as for Me, behold, I establish My covenant with you and with your descendants after you, 10 and with every living creature that is with you: the birds, the cattle, and every beast of the earth with you, of all that go out of the ark, every beast of the earth. 11 Thus I establish My covenant with you: Never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of the flood; never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth. 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. (Genesis 9:8-17) IV. THE RAINBOW OF GOD S MERCY God set a rainbow in the sky as a sign of His covenant, His promise to never again destroy the earth with water. God referred to the rainbow as "My rainbow" and "My covenant" (Gen. 9:13, 15). 1. Because of the changes in the earth s atmosphere, with the belt of water around the earth removed due to the flood, it may have been the first rainbow. 2. No matter how sinful man becomes in the future, God will not destroy the earth with water. There is a rainbow around God s throne in heaven. It speaks of the vastness of God s mercy. And He who sat there was like a jasper and a sardius stone in appearance; and there was a rainbow around the throne, in appearance like an emerald. (Rev. 4:3) 1. Q: Did God give the rainbow as a sign because it was what was around His throne or did God put it around His throne because He wanted to remember the promise? Either way, God s throne is surrounded with mercy, promise, and life! 2. Ezekiel also saw this rainbow around Jesus on the throne. When Ezekiel saw this, he understood that God would show mercy in the coming Babylonian judgment. Like the appearance of a rainbow in a cloud on a rainy day, so was the appearance of the brightness all around it. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the - 3 -
LORD. So when I saw it, I fell on my face, and I heard a voice of One speaking. (Eze. 1:28) 2 Things different from this rainbow from the ones we usually see in nature: 1. This one is a circle. The rainbow completely encircles the throne of God. The glory of God s mercy surrounds God s Throne of majesty. Mercy completely encircles His Throne and all the works of His government. 2. This one has a green hue about it, like an emerald, speaking of life. God s mercy is what allows life to thrive and flourish. V. CONCLUSION: WHAT DOES GOD S MERCY MEAN FOR US? It s God s goodness that leads us to repentance. Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance? (Rom. 2:4) 1. There can be different reasons we do or don t do the things we do: a. Fear of punishment/judgment: I scared to sin because I know I can get caught and will have a price to pay. b. Guilt/shame/condemnation. c. These are valid motivators. But love is the greatest. People will work harder, longer, and with more happiness when it s out of love. Lovers vs. workers. 2. If you re praying for someone that s headed down the path of death, they need to repent (turn around) and return to God, pray for God s goodness to be revealed to them. a. Don t pray that something terrible will happen and they ll seek God out of desperation. True repentance and transformation happens when people encounter the goodness of God. 3. Love is the greatest motivator. NT: Jesus not to condemn, but to save. Judgment is coming, yes, as we ll see next week, but this is the time of God s favor. The day of salvation. Seek Him while He may be found. a. Religion is the counterfeit of true love for God. Both love and religion look similar on the outside. Both will pray, fast, give, serve, and live for God. But, at the core (the heart), they are completely different. b. Love is the greatest motivator. People may come to Christ if they are afraid to go to hell, but that is a secondary motivator. It s the kindness of God that draws us to repentance (Rom. 2:4). There s a difference between immaturity and rebellion. God enjoys us even in our immaturity. - 4 -
1. On the outside, they may look similar, but God looks at the heart. We must not write ourselves off as rebellious when we are spiritually immature. a. E.g. King David had many failures, yet he knew that God delighted in him. He also brought me out into a broad place; He delivered me because He delighted in me. (Psa. 18:19) 2. God truly delights in you even in your weakness, even as a parent delights in their child. We grow best when we know that the Father delights in us. His heart is for us. 1. We grow bitter when we think our acceptance depends on our performance of how we measure up to certain standards, because we can never meet God s standards on our own. 2. God would say to you: I believe in the best things for you. I m going to be for you no matter what. I ll leave the lights on until you come back home. For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. (Jer. 29:11) VI. COMMUNION 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 (NKJV) God s ultimate mercy strategy: God sent His Son, Jesus Christ to make a way for redemption and glory. If you haven t made the decision to put your faith in Jesus Christ, today, you can make that decision. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. (John 3:16-17) 1. God of OT vs NT. No, God is the same. God is a God of mercy. This doesn t mean that He can just sweep sin underneath the rug and pretend it doesn t exist. a. Justice demands that there be a penalty for sin. We know that it s wrong to murder, to steal, to commit adultery. We demand justice when these things affect us. b. The justice of God is satisfied on the cross and His judgment goes upon Jesus Christ, the Son of God. We are forgiven of the debt of sin and now we re at neutral, then we re credited with Jesus righteousness. For if by the one man s offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ. (Rom. 5:17) God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Cor. 5:21) 2. The level of righteousness that you have been given is perfect righteousness. bonafide! a. What are you waiting for to feel the delight of God s heart over you? - 5 -