THE DAYS OF NOAH 16th March 2014 BI: Moses found God s favour and walked with him FCF: We can minimise our sin and God s holiness Reading: Genesis 6:9-22 Noah is a big budget, Hollywood movie on the eve of release. As to be expected the pre-release hype is winding up to typical red carpet frenzy. Alongside the hype is growing resistance from the big three religions. For Jews, Muslims and Christian, well over half the world s population, have a vested interest in Noah being portrayed respectfully on the big screen. Some test screenings to Christian and Jewish audiences have returned largely negative feedback. Criticisms include the movie taking great license with the Biblical story and dark portrayal of Noah. Muslim response is more extreme. Qatar, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates have outright banned the movie. Jordan and Kuwait are expected follow suit. In Egypt, which is hosting the premiere, the Al-Azhar Institute is calling for a ban claiming the movie "contradicts the stature of prophets and messengers... and will antagonise the faithful. In an effort to settle this religious backlash its star Russell Crowe tweeted the Pope offering a private screen with himself. The Pope, in his wisdom, has declined to tweet back. 1 So who is this Noah? Amidst claims from the director (himself Jewish) that Noah was the first conservationist and our often fuzzy view of a sandal wearing, ship builder flanked by a lion and giraffe it can be difficult to discern the man and the story. I mean why did God include this story in the Bible and should we really care? 1 http://www.nzherald.co.nz/entertainment/news/article.cfm?c_id=1501119&objectid=11215703; 7th March 2014 1/7
There are a number of reasons to take notice of Noah. You see, nothing in scripture is wasted. There are no asides, dead end alleys, entertaining or otherwise. Each account, each story, has value. For, as Christians, we believe in the whole counsel of God - worthy of study, reflection and application. Noah is no exception. Also every story whispers his name - the name of Jesus So let s first put Noah into context. We remember in the beginning God created and declared all things very good, including Adam and Eve. But then a terrible lie entered the garden. Wanting to grasp equality with God Adam and Eve ate from the forbidden tree. Sin entered humanity and with it shame, alienation, fear and blaming. The image of God within each of us is marred and we are broken. Ejected from the garden Eve bore two sons. Growing up one murdered the other and the first family was divided. But maybe this is a one off. An exception - serious though it is - but surely something that can be sorted. So from murder in Genesis 4 we move through Adam s lineage in Genesis 5. Maybe with generational distance we will find hope. That murder is put behind and humanity is improving - moving on. Yet in Genesis 6 we see this is not so! Evil s grip has not loosened. Anything but. For by Noah s generation evil s stranglehold is complete, darkness has settled on humanity, Satan s dominion rules. So we read Genesis 6:5-6 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. The Lord was grieved that he had made man on the earth, and his heart was filled with pain. Genesis 6:5-6 Here laid out before us we see the seriousness of sin. Our hearts are inclined to evil all the time and this grieves the very heart of God. And O how we attempt to minimise this seriousness. Surely we are not that bad, we say. We are not axe murders or wife beaters no, no. And God, well he's loving so he won t mind. How far from the truth. One point the flood narrative drives home is God will not tolerate evil no matter how we minimise it. And so we should not be surprised - but often are - when we read the next terrifying verse God says I will wipe mankind, whom I have created, from the face of the earth Genesis 7:7 Yet straight after this grim pronouncement a spark of hope. Verse 8 But Noah found favour in the eyes of the Lord. Genesis 6:8 Now if we take verses 5 to 7 seriously - sin being so bad annihilation is due - how do we make sense of verse 8 - of Noah finding favour? Let s dig a little Most people focus on verse 9 with Noah described as righteous, blameless and walking 2/7
with God. Surely this is the reason Noah was spared. No - this is putting the cart before the house. Let me explain. It is verse 8 that holds the key. In particular two words - Noah found favour. Now favour is the main Old Testament word for grace. And grace is always unmerited, undeserved and unearned. This is reinforced in the word found. Noah found or discovered or came upon even fell over God s favour - his grace. Noah did not earn favour nor did he deserve favour - he found favour. You see walking with God came after he found favour. Once he found favour then he was able do what is described in verse 9: to walk with God, being right with God, being blameless before God. This a key theme in the Bible. God chooses those who least deserve and shows them favour. To Abraham a refugee in a strange land God says, I will make you into a great nation and all the earth will be blessed by you. Abraham found God s favour. To David youngest son of a farmer in a back water town God say, I will make you a king and because of you many will be blessed. David found God s favour. To Mary, an unmarried teenager from a poor family God says, Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favour with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. Luke 1:30-31 Yes Mary all people will know your name and I will bless all nations through you. To you and I, who in the bigger scheme of things don t count for much - no prime ministers, business corporates, celebrities here - yet God says, You have found favour, I love you and you will be a blessings to those around you. Yes, God choosing the unlikely and doing great things through them is a key theme of Scripture. This defines Noah and led to the saving of all humanity from the flood. And we can learn more from Noah. For when Noah found favour he was able to walk with God - like Adam. And what does this look like for Noah. It will be similar to Adam walking with God in the garden but also different. For Noah, like ourselves, walks in broken world amongst broken people. So what does this look like? First walking with God requires 1. Ridiculous faith What do I mean by this? Well put yourself in Noah shoes. He is landlocked, probably never having seen the sea. Minding his own business and then one day Noah. Yes Lord. I am going to put an end to all people So make yourself an ark of cypress wood The ark is to be 140m feet long, 23m wide and 14m high. Genesis 6:13-15 3/7
So Noah, who I am sure was a rugby fan, was probably was thinking of Eden Park, 140m long about one and half times that of a rugby field; 23m about as wide as a rugby field. 14m high that s like being seated 2/3 up on the main stand. And I wonder what an ark is anyway? Noah - are you think rugby again? Listen up - you got all this? Noah listens and he and his three sons began to do the impossible. Someone who walks with God has a ridiculous - in the worlds eyes - faith. 2. Radical Obedience When we see Noah take up a axe and approach his first cyprus tree we see his faith leading to radical obedience. For Noah begins to build an ark on dry land, forever away from any possible launch site. And O how their neighbours mocked. What you doing Noah? You re building a what? For a what! A flood? Here? You must be crazy! Why so big? You re going to fill it with what? Hey boys you better send your father to a shrink - he s lost the plot. Yes walking with God can appear ridiculous in the eyes of outsiders but led Noah to radical obedience which in turn developed 3. Patient Endurance For Noah and his the family learnt to endure the mocking. Sometimes this too is our lot. People hear we are Christians or see through our lifestyles and question and so You believe what? Jesus rose from the dead? It s a fairy story, someone made it up and you just believe anything? I need Jesus too? Doubt it! You re crazy. You need to see a shrink. You ve lost the plot. Sometimes we are mocked for our faith. Like Noah we can learn patient endurance as we hold fast to our faith and live out obedience. But walking with God often means patient endurance in other circumstances. 4/7
For the final nail was hammered, the animals came, Noah entered with his family and God shut the door. The ark was sealed tight and then the springs of the great deep burst forth, and the floodgates of the heavens were opened. And rain fell on the earth forty days and forty nights. Genesis 7:11-12 And the rain stopped and Noah waited, and waited and waited. All up Noah and his family were shut up in the ark for a year. There is no record of God speaking during this time - just discomfort and waiting, and waiting and silence from God. In the day in day out grind Noah learnt patient endurance. Some here know what it is like to face difficulty day in and day out. Grief, illness, broken relationship. Something that sucks the joy out of life - day in day out. And God is silent. Today learn from Noah. There will be seasons in each of our lives like this. God may be silent but he is with us and these times are but just a season for walking with God also leads to adventure and worship. 4. Adventurous Spirit Eventually the waters recede and the ark runs aground. Birds are released and and return and then the dove didn t and it was time to leave. But it s was a new world. The old has gone and what awaits before Noah? Maybe it s better to stay. It s safe - well as soon as they kick out a few restless lions and the like. There s comfort in the known. There is little risk. Plenty of food and the best, the only shelter around. Wouldn t it be easy, better to stay in the ark. But where is the adventure in that? For walking with God involves risk, stepping out and adventure. For then God spoke. After 12 months of silence God said to Noah, Come out of the ark, you and your wife and your sons and their wives. Bring out every kind of living creature that is with you so they can multiply on the earth and be fruitful and increase in number upon it. Genesis 8:15-17 Noah stepped out and started the adventure of a new life. How many of us need to hear this word today. How many have heard God in the past but are settled and comfortable in our ark - and a little bored. Today listen to God speak as he calls us out of our comfort and into the unknown. Someone who walks with God knows what it is to have an adventurous spirit. 5. Priority of Worship And what was the first thing Noah did with his new life? Noah built an altar to the Lord and, taking some of all the clean animals and clean birds, he sacrificed burnt offerings on it. Genesis 8:20 5/7
Noah made worship a priority. With joy he gave thanks and worshiped. And for the first time since Genesis 1, when God pronounced all things good, we read God is pleased (20). God was pleased with Noah s worship. Someone who walks with God makes worship a priority. So let s pull this all together. Who was Noah? Well he isn t a fictional character, colourful and useful as a children's story. Nor is he a dark, brooding hero depicted in the up-and-coming movie. Nor was he merely the first conservationist. No - Noah was one who found favour. Amongst the wickedness of his world he discovered God s undeserved favour and it captured his heart. Drawn to this loving God, Noah walked with him. Like Noah, we least deserve his love but we too can walk with God. This is by faith - ridiculous faith. So it appears to those who watch on. This faith leads to obedience - those who find Jesus love to follow his Word. This in turn develops patient endurance in the face of mocking or in the challenge of the day to day grind of life. But as we make worship a priority then there is always the adventure of new beginnings. Now I want to fish by painting the bigger picture. God de-creates! Because of humankind s wickedness God de-creates. In Genesis 1:1 we read the waters and chaos covered the earth and by bringing the flood God again brings chaos and water to cover the earth. But this is not total annihilation for Noah becomes like a new Adam. Noah walks with God and is told to multiply and fill the earth - as was Adam. And beside the beached ark God makes a covenant with Noah and his descendants. The very first covenant recorded in the Bible. A solemn agreement where God promises Noah Never again will all life be cut off by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth. Genesis 9:11 And the rainbow becomes a sign of this covenant. Now covenants are another key theme running through the Bible. A covenant in those times was between a powerful ruler and a subservient people. Like between a king and a conquered people. The king promises to protect and the people promise to serve. These covenants were sealed by animal sacrifices, by blood. There was a sign, a symbol, to remind both parties of the promise. And in this all Old Testament covenants point to Christ. For God made a covenant with Noah not to flood the earth. This was sealed by the blood of animals and the sign was the rainbow. 6/7
Later God made another covenant. He would make Abraham the father of many and nations would be blessed through him. This was sealed by the blood of animals and the sign was circumcision. And this pointing to the final and lasting covenant God makes with you and I. This covenant is the promise of our salvation and adoption as dearly loved children. This is sealed by the blood of Jesus and the sign is the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Yes every time we take communion we hear the words: After supper he took the cup, saying, This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me. 1 Corinthians 11:25 Between God and Promise Sealed Sign Noah no flood blood of animals rainbow Abraham many children/bless the nations blood of animals circumcision Us salvation/adoption blood of Jesus Holy Spirit Yes God s covenant with Noah, with its rainbow in the sky, points to this final covenant when Jesus would come, and through his blood, Satan would be crushed and we become children of God. The fall is reversed and we know the joy of walking with God. Let us pray. Summary of Key Covenants 7/7