Good morning, I trust that your week has started well. My week has already been inundated with paperwork. Specifically, travel paperwork, ie, passports and visas. Moving large groups of people around the globe is no easy feat to say the least. Every country has its own interpretation of who should come and go, and it just gets difficult. It’s kinda funny, the US passport historically was reserved for the jet-setting types that flew all over the world, but now it seems a passport is much more common and even required for normal daily events here in the US. Just last week Marge renewed her driver's license and she came back home to get her passport to show them. Not sure where this is going but with the problem of illegal immigration consuming not just the US but the world, personal identification is big business. And just try getting 45 people’s passports together at one time….it’s like herding cats. Meow.
I’m excited for our study this morning. Isn’t it great to be excited about God’s Word? Do you get up in the morning and look forward to spending quality time with Him in His Word? Go ahead and answer, you can be honest. There was a time in my life where I felt like time in the Bible was a form of punishment, like some kind of divine studying that had no test at the end. But oh my, I fully realize now that the tests of life fully require studying this textbook….thoroughly. We’re told in 2 Timothy 3:16-17, “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.” You see life is just that, a series of tests. Our spirit is tested, our will is tested, our wisdom is tested and sometimes even our very faith is tested. So how do you pass all of these tests? Well, the same way you pass any other tests, knowledge of the subject matter. I guess you could say that God’s Word is THE textbook of life. Study it, commit it to your heart, meditate on it day and night and you will be better afforded the opportunity to pass the tests of life. Forgo the Word of God and watch the F’s come fast and furious as you fail the tests of life. I should know, my "report card of life" at times was not something I’d want to take home and get signed!
The reason I’m so excited this morning is that we get to look at one of the most well known of all Bible stories, Noah and the ark. Noah’s story is a rare one that has somehow been almost completely relegated to the confines of the 6 year old Sunday School department. Noah’s story has indeed been made into a kid’s tale, a story of a big toy boat that’s full of fluffy adorable animal pairs. I’ve seen people completely decorate nurseries in the theme of Noah and the ark. Pictures painted all over of the walls of their baby’s room. Giraffes, hippos, lions, bears, lots of water and of course Noah and his cute little cartoon boat right in the middle. Oh yeah, and there’s usually a rainbow in there somewhere. But when was the last time you really sat down and read God’s actual story of the flood? Folks, it’s not a kid’s story at all and personally, I would not want this constant reminder of the evil hearts of men in this story staring at me every time I played legos with my kid. Let’s look at the story of the flood and why God had to call it into existence.
To properly understand the flood, you have to recall the family tree of Adam and Eve. They first had two sons Cain and Abel, and the brothers brought a story. Two brothers, two offerings and two very different hearts. God accepts Abel’s sacrifice but rejects Cain’s. As a result, the anger and pride in Cain’s heart boils over and he murders his brother in the fields one day as they worked. As a result, God cursed Cain and banished him to “be a fugitive and a wanderer on the Earth.” (Gen 4:12) We’re then told that “Cain went away from the presence of the Lord.” (Gen 4:16) Cain rebels against the Lord and is cast out without knowing Him in his heart. Cain symbolizes the “lost” of the world.
After this debacle, Adam and Eve have another son, Seth. Eve says in Genesis 4:25 “God has appointed me another offspring instead of Abel, for Cain killed him.” So, Seth inherited a heart for the Lord like Abel had and he represents the “saved” or those that know God in their hearts. So here we see the first family tree ever, develop two very distinct branches, the lost and the saved.
Now recall that this early in the population of the Earth there was not a lot of singles bars or online dating sites, there was just not that many men and women yet. So the two branches wove back into each other. “When man began to multiply on the face of the land and daughters were born to them, 2 the sons of God saw that the daughters of man were attractive. And they took as their wives any they chose.” (Gen 6:1-2) The “sons of God” are of the line of Seth (believers) and the “daughters of man” are of the line of Cain (unbelievers).
As a result of these numerous unions it brings us to the root cause of the flood. Now listen to God’s Word here carefully and listen to what He says about the shocking condition of the hearts of men and women on the Earth.
“The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 6 And the Lord regretted that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart. 7 So the Lord said, “I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, man and animals and creeping things and birds of the heavens, for I am sorry that I have made them.” 8 But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord.” (Genesis 6:5-8)
“Now the earth was corrupt in God's sight, and the earth was filled with violence. 12 And God saw the earth, and behold, it was corrupt, for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth. 13 And God said to Noah, “I have determined to make an end of all flesh, for the earth is filled with violence through them. Behold, I will destroy them with the earth.” (Genesis 6:11-13)
Folks, this is some intense stuff from God. Some of the most intense you will see this side of the judgements included in the book of Revelation. And the really scary thing? We are barely 6 chapters into the beginning of God’s Word! Already man has a thoroughly corrupt heart and it is forcing God into an extreme position in dealing with it.
Let’s look at six key words and phrases within God’s evaluation of the Earth in Genesis chapter 6.
1) “every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.” When God uses absolutes, He means it. Every intention of man’s thoughts was evil in his heart. EVERY ONE. This is one of the most alarming statements in God’s Word. Man was so thoroughly corrupt and prideful in his sin against God that every single thought was against God. AND it was evil continually. This is not an every once in a while deal or a sometimes I do what is right before the Lord thing. Men and women’s thoughts and intentions were continually evil in everything they did.
2) “And the Lord regretted that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart.” Wow. As God observed the true heart of man it grieved Him to His heart. Now of course this is God we’re talking about here; He made these men and he knew their hearts. It doesn’t say that God was surprised, it says it grieved Him to the point that He had regretted even making them. Have you ever had a choice before you and even though it looked a bit dicey you still did it? I have. I knew I was doing it, but I just wasn’t super sure what the eventual result would be. Sometimes you just have to let things play out. And of course, there has been numerous times in my life where I look back at the results and just have to admit how poorly it turned out. How it troubled the heart of God to see the absolute evil that man was capable of. And it all comes back to the that first bite in the garden. That first sin is being passed down to every man and woman ever born....even today.
3) “I will blot out man whom I have created….. for I am sorry that I have made them.” It so troubles my heart to read this. The same heart that beats in my chest today is what was responsible for God having to make this decision. And folks, the same hearts exist today and are still openly and blatantly sinning against Him today. And it’s not simply the sin in our lives, it’s how we approach God with that sin. Do we confess it to HIm, apologize, ask forgiveness and repent of that sin in our lives? Or do we openly embrace the sin in our lives and live with it like it’s a pet. Do you love your sin? Has it become such a part of you and your life that you’ve given it a name? As I sit here to write this this morning and research some verses on Google I couldn’t help but get hit over the head with their home screen banner image. A 7 part rainbow themed image promoting gay pride and homosexual progress throughout the decades. You can hate me and you can bash me, but folks, God’s Word says homosexuality is a sin. Now how do you deal with sin? Do you wave it right in front of God’s eyes and because it’s seems good to you, you embrace it and promote your sin to the world? You see it’s not just the sin but how we deal with that sin in the eyes of God. The people in the days of Noah had great sin in their lives, they embraced it with vigor, and they lived in their sin comfortably. And as a result, God will blot them out.
4) “Now the earth was corrupt in God's sight, and the earth was filled with violence.” Corrupt is defined as “to change from good to bad in morals, manners, or actions.” The earth was filled with corruption. People had moved completely from the things of God to pure evil. As a result, the Earth was filled with violence. Filled. Remember when God uses absolutes you can take it to the bank. This was not just a few small skirmishes or disagreements. This would not have been a place and time where you wanted to be alive. There would have been abundant, open murders in the streets, assaults, thefts and brutalities that would shock you. And it was everywhere, the Earth was filled with it.
5) “And God saw the earth, and behold, it was corrupt, for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth.” Again here in God’s evaluation of the Earth we see the alarming use of an absolute. For ALL flesh had corrupted their way. ALL. The shocking thing about Noah’s story is that out of the entire Earth, God could only find one righteous man. One. “Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his generation. Noah walked with God.” (Gen 6:9) As God looked down upon the Earth in judgement of the evil and the wicked, He could only find one righteous man…Noah. ALL others had corrupt hearts and corrupt flesh before God.
6) And God said to Noah, “I have determined to make an end of all flesh, for the earth is filled with violence through them. Behold, I will destroy them with the earth.” I will destroy them with the Earth. What a tremendously powerful statement as we see God determining what He will do with this wicked people that are so comfortable in their sin against Him. You know speaking of sin, it’s not just “your” sin. Don’t we often rationalize that to ourselves. Well, I know that this or that is wrong but if I do it, it’s my own business. I mean it’s not like it will hurt anybody else right? Folks, the power of sin is one of the single biggest powers in the world today. Sin destroys. Sin kills. Sin is death. “For the wages of sin is death.” (Rom 3:23) Sin is not limited. It’s not just “your” sin. Sin spreads like wild fire. Sin affects you, those around you, your family, your friends, your relationships, your church family, your community, your work peers and on and on. Don’t buy into the lie that it’s “your life and you can do what you want with it.” The cost of your sin does not simply stop with you. It’s a virus that will infect all those around you.
So, after looking at what causes God to bring the flood, you can hopefully see that this is not some happy, fluffy story that looks like a zoo on a boat. The superfluous evil that resided in the hearts of men and the arrogance of their sin filled lives against Him, left Him no choice. Their prideful embrace of their sin left Him no choice. Their absolute rejection of their maker left Him no choice. His choice? I will blot out man and I will destroy them with the earth.
God hates sin and we should to. Take a careful look at your life today and get rid of the sin that enslaves you. Start a war on the sin in your life. As God looks into your heart, don’t let Him make the same evaluation that He had to make upon looking at these people. Be like Noah, Noah walked with God.
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