Summer and winter.

“And Noah builded an altar unto the LORD; and took of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt offerings on the altar. And the LORD smelled a sweet savour; and the LORD said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man’s sake; for the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth; neither will I again smite any more every thing living, as I have done. While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.”

Noah and his family were safe. The earth was dry again and plants were growing. The animals were free and God had re-established the ecology of the earth and now it was time for Noah to acknowledge God and His goodness. Noah built an altar to the Lord so that he could worship the Lord and praise Him for all the good that He had done. It is important for every person who believes in the Lord to take time to worship and praise him before they move on to the next phase of their lives. Each day offers us a new opportunity to worship God and praise Him. Praise is more than just singing, praise is living a life of submission to the Lord God and His Word. When God saw that Noah had worshipped and offered praise He made a very important promise. It is interesting to note that the oldest trees on earth are about five thousand years old, that is they grew after the Flood. These trees have growth rings to prove that God kept His promise. When it is cold the trees have dark rings and when it his hot the trees have light rings. God has kept that promise till today. Every morning the sun rises and every evening it sets, another promise that God had kept. What a wonderful God we have!

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(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

Go forth of the ark

“Go forth of the ark, thou, and thy wife, and thy sons, and thy sons’ wives with thee. Bring forth with thee every living thing that is with thee, of all flesh, both of fowl, and of cattle, and of every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth; that they may breed abundantly in the earth, and be fruitful, and multiply upon the earth. And Noah went forth, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons’ wives with him: Every beast, every creeping thing, and every fowl, and whatsoever creepeth upon the earth, after their kinds, went forth out of the ark.”

The Lord punished the world for the sin of the world. He saved Noah and his family and made sure that there was sufficient resources for them to re-establish a complete life after the Flood was over. God gave them time to rest and recover from the trauma of the Flood and losing their families and everything that they knew. However, it was now time for them get on with their lives so God told them to go out of the ark and fill the earth again. Adam and Eve were told to fill the earth and now God’s plan had not changed. Sin may have caused extreme hardship and eventual death for sinners but God did not change and His plan was the same. It is good for us to remember that we will face trials, hardship and traumas and we will need to take time to recover and allow our souls to repair but at some stage we will have to get on with our lives. Noah’s life would never be the same as it was before the Flood. There would always be empty places at the table of his heart and he would never be able to return to his childhood home. However, he had to get on with the life that God had given and do the work that God had given him to do.

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(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

And God spake

“And God spake unto Noah, saying,”

In 1 Samuel 3: 1 we read that the word of the Lord was precious in those days. For many years the Lord’s people had not listened to the Lord. Eli’s sons were totally corrupt and didn’t obey the Lord at all and even Eli wasn’t really listening to God. When people don’t listen to God, god stops speaking to them. However, Noah did everything that the Lord commanded him and was saved through the Flood to continue the promised line and eventually the Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ through Whom we may all find everlasting life. If we want to hear the Lord’s voice in our day we have to listen every time that the Lord speaks to us. Things are much easier in our day because we have the Word of the Lord in written form. God didn’t give us His Word for us to ignore or to change to suit our own whims, He gave us His Word that we might obey everything that He has commanded us to do. We don’t obey the Lord so that we can earn His love or our share of everlasting life. He has already done everything that is required for us to have everlasting life. We love Him because He first loved us (1 John 4: 19) and if we love Him we will keep His commandments (John 14: 15). If you want God to speak to you, make sure that you listen to Him remembering that He has spoken clearly and concisely in His word and, because He is consistent, He won’t contradict Himself for your benefit. He won’t contradict Himself so that you can feel good about doing whatever you want to do.

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(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

The glory belongs to God

“And it came to pass in the six hundredth and first year, in the first month, the first day of the month, the waters were dried up from off the earth: and Noah removed the covering of the ark, and looked, and, behold, the face of the ground was dry. And in the second month, on the seven and twentieth day of the month, was the earth dried.”

The Lord had previously shut the door of the ark to keep the people inside the ark safe and to preserve them from the Flood. However, when the danger was gone Noah was able to open the cover of the ark. At this stage, the Lord knew that it was safe for the birds to fly out and find food so he allowed Noah to open up the cover of the ark. However, the Lord waited for Noah to show his faith by opening up the cover of the ark. The Lord commanded Noah to go into the ark and he went in as the Lord commanded him. Now that the Flood was over Noah had to do something himself so that he could come out of the ark. When the ground was dry, Noah was ready to come out of the ark and move around on dry ground. By this time the birds that flew away when he opened up the cover of the ark had taken seeds from the ark and found other seeds left over from before the Flood and the earth was already producing plants for the animals to eat. God arranged everything carefully but Noah had to do what he was told and everything turned out well. The glory belongs to God.

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(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

This momentous occasion.

“And it came to pass at the end of forty days, that Noah opened the window of the ark which he had made: And he sent forth a raven, which went forth to and fro, until the waters were dried up from off the earth. Also he sent forth a dove from him, to see if the waters were abated from off the face of the ground; But the dove found no rest for the sole of her foot, and she returned unto him into the ark, for the waters were on the face of the whole earth: then he put forth his hand, and took her, and pulled her in unto him into the ark. And he stayed yet other seven days; and again he sent forth the dove out of the ark; And the dove came in to him in the evening; and, lo, in her mouth was an olive leaf pluckt off: so Noah knew that the waters were abated from off the earth. And he stayed yet other seven days; and sent forth the dove; which returned not again unto him any more.”

Noah and his family had been given enough time to begin to deal with the issues of Post Traumatic Stress but they had an advantage over many people who suffer from that disorder today. They were thoroughly convinced of God’s sovereignty and so they were in a position where they denied themselves rather than feeling the pangs of self indulgence. Even though this was true God still gave them time to get used to the fact that they would be coming out of the ark as well. The first bird to be set free from the ark was a raven, that is, a bird that ate carrion and we can assume that there was still carrion available, floating on the water. Thus God began the process of recycling the materials that would be needed to continue the cycle of life after Noah and his family came out of the ark. When the raven didn’t return, Noah sent a dove but a dove needs trees to rest so the dove returned. In this way God gave Noah time to get used to the idea that they would soon be getting out of the ark and he and his family could prepare their hearts for this momentous occasion.

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(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

Post Traumatic Stress.

“And the ark rested in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, upon the mountains of Ararat. And the waters decreased continually until the tenth month: in the tenth month, on the first day of the month, were the tops of the mountains seen.”

God always works for good and He works in real time rather than at some impossible speed. We, His creatures, need time to work our way through all the issues that relate to everyday living and we cannot cope with things that happen suddenly. Even though the Flood came unexpectedly, Noah needed time to cope with all the issues that flowed from this great disaster. The wider families of Noah and his immediate family were all destroyed in the Flood so they needed time to grieve and go through the various stages that follow a bereavement. Thus God gave them time in the ark to rest and recover from the severe trauma they had experienced. When they came out of the ark they were going to have to continue with the work of living but with all the extra time to recover in the ark God allowed them to minimise their post traumatic stress issues.

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(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

God remembered.

“And God remembered Noah, and every living thing, and all the cattle that was with him in the ark: and God made a wind to pass over the earth, and the waters asswaged; The fountains also of the deep and the windows of heaven were stopped, and the rain from heaven was restrained; And the waters returned from off the earth continually: and after the end of the hundred and fifty days the waters were abated.”

This is the first time that the word “remember” appears in the Bible and this section defines what this word means in the Bible. If we look at the context the first thing we notice is that God had not forgotten Noah and his family. God told Noah to build and ark and then He told Noah to go into the ark and God shut door so that they were safe. None of these actions indicate that God had forgotten Noah in any way. God does not forget under any circumstances even though God is slow to anger (Psalm 103: 8; 145: 8) Then why do we read that God remembered Noah? This simply means that God began to act towards saving Noah from the situation. Noah did everything that God commanded him and now he was in a position to be saved but he was in a big box on the top of a deep Flood. At this stage God allowed the waters to start abating. The fountains of the deep and the windows of heaven were stopped; God’s judgment was complete. All the people that chose to reject God’s love had been given the destruction they chose but Noah was unable to live on God’s earth while it was covered with water. Noah, however, was saved.

Sometimes God remembers no more but He does not forget (Heb 8: 12; 10: 17). In His grace, God will remember sins and the iniquities of the no more because those sins and iniquities have been judged at Calvary. How wonderful when God chooses to remember no more. Every record of those sins and those iniquities has been blotted out for ever and cannot be recovered by and Divine legal authority. We can all live in the comfort of this wonderful knowledge, God does not forget and God is waiting to act for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose (Rom 8: 28) when the time is perfect.

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(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

They were destroyed from the earth

“And all flesh died that moved upon the earth, both of fowl, and of cattle, and of beast, and of every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth, and every man: All in whose nostrils was the breath of life, of all that was in the dry land, died. And every living substance was destroyed which was upon the face of the ground, both man, and cattle, and the creeping things, and the fowl of the heaven; and they were destroyed from the earth: and Noah only remained alive, and they that were with him in the ark. And the waters prevailed upon the earth an hundred and fifty days.”

This is a demonstration of the inevitability of consequences. All the people who chose to reject God by by not doing what He had commanded them died.The sad thing about consequences is that other creatures may be hurt by our actions. In this case all flesh was also hurt by the consequences of the choices made by all those who didn’t do what God commanded. However, God’s grace is shown here as well for God preserved the creation that He had made and eventually the Saviour was born to make everlasting life available to all who believe in Him. Because God knows the future and knew the inevitability of His will, He knew that the Redeemer would be born so Noah had everlasting life as well (see Hebrews 11: 2, 7, 11-16). It is important for us to remember that we cannot blame God for the consequences of our choices. He is completely innocent of any sin but has the integrity to give us what we choose, even though He give us the time an opportunity to repent.

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(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

Good in the latter end.

“And the flood was forty days upon the earth; and the waters increased, and bare up the ark, and it was lift up above the earth. And the waters prevailed, and were increased greatly upon the earth; and the ark went upon the face of the waters. And the waters prevailed exceedingly upon the earth; and all the high hills, that were under the whole heaven, were covered. Fifteen cubits upward did the waters prevail; and the mountains were covered.”

Sometimes we experience the consequences of the choices that we have made and we can blame no one but ourselves. Sometimes God brings trials into our lives as part of His plan so that it would be good for us in the latter end (Deut 8: 16). If we are caught up in our choices God will take His time before giving us our final and absolute end. If God is working so that it will be good for us in the latter end it is important to remember that everything God brings, He brings to an end. If the Flood lasted for ever we could legitimately ask what is the good in the latter end, however, this Flood increased for forty days and then it stopped increasing. For any person who is having a difficult experience it comforting to remember that the Flood will stop increasing after forty days, that is, in God’s good time so that it will be good for us in the latter end. In this case, the entire earth was covered but, after the water went down, Noah and his family were safe and they had everything they needed to live a healthy and prosperous life because God brought it to an end and it was good for them in the latter end.

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(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

The Lord shut him in.

“In the selfsame day entered Noah, and Shem, and Ham, and Japheth, the sons of Noah, and Noah’s wife, and the three wives of his sons with them, into the ark; They, and every beast after his kind, and all the cattle after their kind, and every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind, and every fowl after his kind, every bird of every sort. And they went in unto Noah into the ark, two and two of all flesh, wherein is the breath of life. And they that went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as God had commanded him: and the LORD shut him in.”

The Lord prepares for trouble ahead of time but the solution isn’t always apparent until the need arises. The Lord knew that the Flood was coming and that everyone outside the ark would be destroyed in the Flood. He gave Noah enough time to build the ark and to collect all the animals and bring them to the ark so that they earth would be filled with food and supplies for the people that God saved from the Flood. However, Noah just did what the Lord commanded him without really understanding what he was doing. He didn’t know about rain and he hadn’t heard about the fountains of the deep. However, he built the ark and collected the animals then God shut them in the ark and the rain began on the same day. God doesn’t always give us clear and complete instructions as to the detailed applications of His plans and strategies for it is important for us to have faith. Without faith it is impossible to please God (Heb 11: 6). However God has no intention that we wander around in His world. We are not lost and hopeless. Faith gives substance to the things that we hope for and evidence to the things that we do not see (Heb 11: 1). Noah had faith and that is why he obeyed the Lord and did what He commanded. We can have faith today and go forward in confidence even though our human imagination may tell us otherwise. God is faithful and that is the true foundation of our faith (1 Corinthians 1: 9).

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(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

The fountains of the great deep.

“In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened. And the rain was upon the earth forty days and forty nights. ‘

God intended to completely wipe sin from the earth. Noah was a man who did everything that God commanded him so he wasn’t included in the Deluge. However, God’s plan was to destroy all those who had chosen self indulgence rather than self denial and this was the way that God effected His plan. If we have rain for a few hours we can expect flash flooding, if there is rain for a few weeks then there is large scale flooding, in this case there was rain for forty days and forty nights. This led to a huge flood. We read in the first chapter of Genesis (v1), “An God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament and it was so.” When the Flood came this division was destroyed and the fountains of the great deep were opened, there was no longer any dividing force keeping the waters of the great deep from invading the earth and they came forth with vengeance from the Lord, in this way the entire earth was flooded. Before the Flood there was one continent because the waters under the heaven were gathered into one place so that there was one body of water and one body of land. After the Flood the land was broken up and began to drift slowly upon the deep. Thus the modern continents, mountains and valleys were formed and the earth became unstable as they shifted. At the edge of the great plates on the surface of the earth, both above and under the oceans, we find the “rings of fire” where the fire under the earth seeks to find release. Everything that we study today and can prove empirically can be explained by reading the Bible and applying it.

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(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

The Flood of waters.

“And Noah was six hundred years old when the flood of waters was upon the earth. And Noah went in, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons’ wives with him, into the ark, because of the waters of the flood. Of clean beasts, and of beasts that are not clean, and of fowls, and of every thing that creepeth upon the earth, There went in two and two unto Noah into the ark, the male and the female, as God had commanded Noah. And it came to pass after seven days, that the waters of the flood were upon the earth.”

Noah had been working for a hundred years to get this ark build. He had not seen rain, in any form, all the days of his life yet he did what the Lord commanded him to do. Now, that he was six hundred years old the flood of waters came upon the earth. These days people want to see evidence before the commit to anything but we are told, “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Heb 1: 11). Noah had faith and he did what he was told, he didn’t wait to see any evidence because he would have been running around with a saw trying to cut trees down while the water was washing him away. God requires faith for people who want to have a relationship with Him and if we have faith then everything will be prepared when the emergency arrives and we will survive to eternal life. There will be a day soon when, “if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:” (1 Thes 4: 14-16) Everyone who has faith and is ready will go to be with Him forever but those who don’t have faith won’t go to be with Him and will be in a lot of trouble.

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(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

This book of the Law.

“And Noah did according unto all that the LORD commanded him.”

There is a huge difference in outcomes when people do what the Lord commands them to do. When a person goes against the Lord’s command they follow a pathway that leads to death while if they do what the Lord commands they follow a pathway that leads to life. The Lord Jesus Christ said, in John 17: 4, “I have glorified thee on earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do.” At this time He was saying that He had completed everything that was required for the establishment of the church was complete and all the people were as trained as they could be before His death and resurrection. We can learn from this that doing what the Lord commands leads to more than just life for the individual who does what the Lord commands, it also leads to life for other people as well. In Noah’s case his obedience lead to life for every person that believes on the Lord Jesus Christ and is saved. In Christ’s case the outcome was exactly the same. For everyone else there is also a way that leads to life for themselves as well as others.

This leads to the question, “How do I know what God’s will is for my life?” For everyone about 99% of God’s will for their life is the same as 99% of God’s will for everyone else’s life. The Lord said to Joshua, after he took over from Moses, “This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.” (Josh 1: 8) In Proverbs 3: 6 we read, “In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.” If we do these two things then we will never be in doubt as to what God has commanded us and our lives will lead to life for ourselves and others.

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(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

Come into the ark.

“And the LORD said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation. Of every clean beast thou shalt take to thee by sevens, the male and his female: and of beasts that are not clean by two, the male and his female. Of fowls also of the air by sevens, the male and the female; to keep seed alive upon the face of all the earth. For yet seven days, and I will cause it to rain upon the earth forty days and forty nights; and every living substance that I have made will I destroy from off the face of the earth.”

Noah did what the Lord commanded and now it was time for him to experience the consequences of his action. He spent 100 years building an ark and now it was time for him to take the ecological basis of the future along with his the chosen family line into the ark so that the world would be punished for the sin that had taken complete hold of everything apart from Noah’s family. We must remember that animals do not sin because they were not made in God’s own image and did not have the ability to choose to enjoy God’s love. Even with the animals God’s wisdom and grace is evident. The clean animals are animals that can be eaten and offered in sacrifice so God made allowance for these animals to be available in abundance after the Flood. God told Noah that it was going to rain but Noah had never seen or heard of rain before. In those days the earth was watered by a mist that came over the land. However Noah believed God in this respect as well. Thus Noah and his family were saved.

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(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)