Genesis Chapter 6 & 7
We might this morning call our sermon NOAH's FOLLY. Now this story of Noah and his Ark has been hijacked for years by animal lovers. And indeed by our Sunday School teachers. it has been reduced to a nice little fable about animals going into the ark two by two. All of this has its attractions for young children but this is not what adults need to hear who are eager to feed on the Living Word of God. So this morning let us go some way towards redressing the balance and look at the true story of Noah.
In an age of unbelief we must ask ourselves whether this story is fable or fact. Well based on all secular knowledge there was a great an awful flood about ten thousand years before Christ. And of further interest to us - earlier this year on Channel 4 there was a most interesting programme on Noah's Ark and the remains that have been found high up in the mountains of boat whose dimension are identical to those described in Genesis. indeed the weight of evidence is so great that only a fool could now say there was no flood and there was no Noah's Ark.
But all of this will bring us no word from the Lord. Rather let us consider Noah, for here we will find real meat for our souls. So what can we say of Noah - he was a good man, he listened to God, he walked with God and he obeyed God. Listen to Hebrews 11 on Noah, "It was faith that made Noah hear God's warnings about things in the future that he could not see. he obeyed God and built a boat in which he and his family were saved. As a result, the world was condemned and Noah received from God the righteousness that comes from faith." Noah was a godly man who would preach repentance to his neighbours and to his fellow countrymen for over a century without the slightest effect. He was perfect. Not in all things but in his sincerity.
But think of the appalling consequences for Noah in ploughing this lonely furrow. Around him on every side was sin. He was out of step, he was alone in his faith, think of the doubts and fears that must have beset him. think of the pressures that just have been brought to bear on him to conform to the way of the world. These would have subtle and not so subtle. He would have been mocked and despised. "poor Noah" might have been the kindest of all. And when he began to build the ARK can you imagine the reaction of those around him? When he talked of good and morality and godliness how he must have been laughed at.
Now before we explore this further let us address one pint about the animals being taken into the ARK. From time to time someone will point out that the size of the ark would not have allowed all the animals to be accommodated. Such people merely betray their ignorance of scripture. Noah is commanded to take into the ARK two of each kind and seven pairs of the ritually clean animals. The important thing to understand here is that is was division after their kind rather than species. He was to take types of animals rather then every single species and breed. That's what the Bible says and that's what the ARK could accommodate.
With that laid to one side let's return to Noah. Listen to Matthew Henry on this, "it is easy to be religious when religion is in fashion; but it is an evidence of strong faith and resolution to swim against a stream to heaven and to appear for God when no one else appears for him."
Now that's something we can in our present society more and more identify with - for we are indeed swimming against the stream in our secular society. How often now do we find ourselves the only Christian in a situation? How often now are we challenged in our beliefs? Everyone else is doing it and it is hard to not get caught up in other peoples behaviour and attitudes. It isn't easy to stand out in a crowd. To walk away from what is happening around you and take no part in it. Such pressures. And that's of course what the people of Noah's day had done. They had compromised their faith out of existence. And of the people round about Noah - what about them? Listen to Matthew Henry on this: "Take away conscience and fear of God and men become beasts and devils to one another. ". Matthew Henry was writing at a time of almost universal belief in this country - but we the real truth of this now in our times.
But let's return to Noah. he has to build an ARK. Do you see what God does here? Listen again to Matthew Henry: "God chose to employ him in making that which was to be the means of his preservation, both for the trial of his faith and obedience and to teach us that none shall be saved by Christ but those only that work out their salvation. We cannot do it without God and he will not do it without us."
God makes Noah into a type of Messiah. For Noah preaches repentance and he is the saviour of inferior creatures, he provides shelter and he provides food. he is a type of Christ. Christ offers us in the ark of the church exactly that - salvation form the terrible judgement that is to come. Noah saved those whom he was to rule and so does Christ. As the writer to the Hebrews puts it in talking of Jesus, "when he was made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all those who obey him."
Noah sets us a fine example of faith and obedience. And in this unbelieving society in which we live, a society that causes many of us to shake our heads and wonder and many more go to bed at night fearful we can learn from this. We can see that the consequences of godlessness do not go unpunished. We can see also what is required of us. We are to godly people. We are to listen to God, we are to walk with God and we are to obey God at whatever earthly cost that entails. In doing that in faith we will win through to the end and we will be saved. We will know heaven! So take courage from all of this. Stand firm and immovable in your faith. God will give you the courage you need to stand out against this world in which we live. The Church is the ARK of our Salvation.