Series:
SUPPLANTING The LEGACY Of WICKEDNESS—Genesis 6:9—10:32
A—REMOVAL STRATEGY—Genesis 6:9-22
Toward Removing the Legacy of Wickedness
B—VICTORY In The MIDST Of DESTRUCTION—Genesis 7:1-24
C—SALVATION(Waiting for Normal)—Genesis 8:1-19
D—RESPONSE—Genesis 8:20-22
E—POTENTIAL For RESTORATION—Genesis 9:1-19
F—SAME Ol’ SAME Ol’—Genesis 9:20-29
G—The NATIONS—Genesis 10:1-32
Attention:
Tide-To-Go Stain remover. The chemical composition is such that it causes the stain producers to release from their hold on the fabric.
The stain is thus removed from view to a tolerable location.
It no longer threatens the integrity of the clothing where it once resided.
The shirt experiences victory in the midst of destruction.
Need:
All on the ark escaped the destruction of the Flood.
All on the ark escaped God’s removal strategy(designed destruction).
Divinely designed destruction can be escaped/avoided.
How can we escape such an ordained destruction/removal?
4 keys to escape/victory in the midst of destruction.
1— Victory in the midst of destruction requires...
Appropriate MOTION(:1, 5)
Explanation: (:1) Move When God Says Move
:1—“Then the LORD said to Noah, “Come into the ark, you & all your household, because I have seen that you are righteous before Me in this generation.”
It is one thing to know the right thing to do...
But it is another thing entirely to enter into it!
Previously, YaHWeH, Noah’s God had spoken to Noah regarding his involvement in the plan to rid the earth of man’s legacy of wickedness(6:13-21). Noah had been faithful to do all that YaHWeH had commanded him to do. Thus Noah had built the ark to God’s specifications & had collected the food(no meat per 1:29-30 & 9:3) necessary to sustain all the animals as well as his family &(6:19, 21).
Now YaHWeH again speaks to Noah but His words are directed to the imminent fulfillment of His design. The time has come for implementation/application of Noah’s preparations.
YaHWeH now tells Noah to enter the ark that he has built(6:18).
Noah’s call to enter the ark came at YaHWeH’s discretion.
If 6:3 pertains directly to the coming flood, then YaHWeH had previously granted mankind(including Noah) 120 yrs. for spiritual(preaching) & physical(building & loading) preparation.
Because of Noah’s faithfulness to YaHWeH, his entire household was included in those who would be saved from the coming destruction.
“Come into”(See :7, 9)—awb bow’—Qal Imperative—1) To go in, enter, come, go, come in. 1a) (Qal)—1a1) To enter, come in, 1a2) To come—1a2a) To come with, 1a2b) To come upon, fall or light upon, attack (enemy), 1a2c) To come to pass, 1a3) To attain to, 1a4) To be enumerated, 1a5) To go. Strong—To go or come (in a wide variety of applications).
“Household”—tyb bah’-yith—1) House—1a) House, dwelling habitation, 1b) Shelter or abode of animals, 1c) Human bodies (fig.), 1d) Of Sheol, 1e) Of abode of light & darkness, 1f) Of land of Ephraim; 2) Place; 3) Receptacle; 4) Home, house as containing a family; 5) Household, family—5a) Those belonging to the same household, 5b) Family of descendants, descendants as organized body; 6) Household affairs; 7) Inwards (metaph.); 8) (TWOT) Temple. Strong—A house (in the greatest variation of applications, especially family, etc.).
Argumentation:
Lk. 17:27-33—““They ate, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, & the flood came & destroyed them all. Likewise as it was also in the days of Lot: They ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they built; but on the day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire & brimstone from heaven & destroyed them all. Even so will it be in the day when the Son of Man is revealed. In that day, he who is on the housetop, & his goods are in the house, let him not come down to take them away. And likewise the one who is in the field, let him not turn back. Remember Lot’s wife. “Whoever seeks to save his life will lose it, & whoever loses his life will preserve it.”
Mat. 4:18-19—“And Jesus, walking by the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, & Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. Then He said to them, “Follow Me, & I will make you fishers of men.””
Mk. 8:34-38—“When He had called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said to them, “Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, & take up his cross, & follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake & the gospel’s will save it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, & loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? For whoever is ashamed of Me & My words in this adulterous & sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.””
Num. 20:7-12—“Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, “Take the rod; you & your brother Aaron gather the congregation together. Speak to the rock before their eyes, & it will yield its water; thus you shall bring water for them out of the rock, & give drink to the congregation & their animals. So Moses took the rod from before the LORD as He commanded him. And Moses & Aaron gathered the assembly together before the rock; & he said to them, “Hear now, you rebels! Must we bring water for you out of this rock?” Then Moses lifted his hand & struck the rock twice with his rod; & water came out abundantly, & the congregation & their animals drank. Then the LORD spoke to Moses & Aaron, “Because you did not believe Me, to hallow Me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them.””
Illustration:
Chris Tomlin’s— ‘I will Follow You’
“Where You go, I’ll go,
Where You stay, I’ll stay,
When You move, I’ll move
I will follow You,
Who You love, I’ll love,
How You serve I’ll serve,
If this life I lose, I will follow You”
Appropriate MOTION
My experience immediately following my resignation/A church, out of the blue, with an old resume of mine, calls stating that they want me for their pastor/Out of ten committee members,with many resumes, separately all 10 of the members chose me! They were certain that I was sent of God to be their pastor/However when this happened, I was at the lowest point that I had ever been in my ministry!/I ‘could not” take that church!/Totally internal...I was not prepared to MOVE in God’s direction!/Having missed that opportunity, there is no way that I will ever recover the loss...I cannot know the people who were adversely effected by my selfishness...I cannot know the people who will not be in heaven because of my fleshly indulgence...But I will have to answer to God for it & I will lose rewards due to my failure!/Appropriate MOTION
*—Soon we will be receiving NAMB Annie Armstrong easter Offering/Will you MOVE Appropriately?
Application:
?Has Appropriate MOTION sealed your Victory?
?Will you be Victorious in the midst of destruction?
2— Victory in the midst of destruction requires...
Appropriate LIVING(:1b)
Explanation: (:1b) Surrender
:1—“Then the LORD said to Noah, “Come into the ark, you & all your household, because I have seen that you are righteous before Me in this generation.”
In the presence of rampant apostasy, Noah lived in a manner which glorified YaHWeH as the One, true God.
“Seen”—har raw-aw’—V.—1) To see, look at, inspect, perceive, consider—1a) (Qal)—1a1) To see, 1a2) To see, perceive, 1a3) To see, have vision, 1a4) To look at, see, regard, look after, see after, learn about, observe, watch, look upon, look out, find out, 1a5) To see, observe, consider, look at, give attention to, discern, distinguish, 1a6) To look at, gaze at. Strong—a primitive root; To see, literally or figuratively (in numerous applications, direct & implied, transitive, intransitive & causative).
“Righteous”(See 6:9—“Just”)—qydu tsaddiyq —Adj.—1) Just, lawful, righteous.
“Before Me”(See :18—“Surface”)—Mynp paw-neem’—N. m.—1) Face—1g) with prep—1g1) In front of, before, to the front of, in the presence of, in the face of, at the face or front of, from the presence of, from before, from before the face of. Strong—The face (as the part that turns); used in a great variety of applications (literally & figuratively); also (with prepositional prefix) as a preposition (Before, etc.)
“Generation”—rwd dowr—1) Period, generation, habitation, dwelling. Strong—properly, A revolution of time, i.e. An age or generation; also A dwelling.
Argumentation:
Zeph. 2:3—“Seek the LORD, all you meek of the earth, Who have upheld His justice. Seek righteousness, seek humility. It may be that you will be hidden In the day of the LORD’S anger.”
Heb. 11:6-7—“But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, & that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world & became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.”
Prov. 11:4—“Riches do not profit in the day of wrath, But righteousness delivers from death.”
Prov. 11:5-9—“The righteousness of the blameless will direct his way aright, But the wicked will fall by his own wickedness. The righteousness of the upright will deliver them, But the unfaithful will be caught by their lust. When a wicked man dies, his expectation will perish, And the hope of the unjust perishes. The righteous is delivered from trouble, And it comes to the wicked instead. The hypocrite with his mouth destroys his neighbor, But through knowledge the righteous will be delivered.”
Isa. 3:10-11—““Say to the righteous that it shall be well with them, For they shall eat the fruit of their doings. Woe to the wicked! It shall be ill with him, For the reward of his hands shall be given him.”
Jn. 5:39-40—““You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; & these are they which testify of Me. But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life.”
Col. 2:20—3:7—“Therefore, if you died with Christ from the basic principles of the world, why, as though living in the world, do you subject yourselves to regulations-- “Do not touch, do not taste, do not handle,” which all concern things which perish with the using--according to the commandments & doctrines of men? These things indeed have an appearance of wisdom in self-imposed religion, false humility, & neglect of the body, but are of no value against the indulgence of the flesh. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. For you died, & your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory. Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, & covetousness, which is idolatry. Because of these things the wrath of God is coming upon the sons of disobedience, in which you yourselves once walked when you lived in them.”
Gal. 2:20—““I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; & the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me & gave Himself for me.”
Mat.7:21—““Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.”
Mat. 12:50—““For whoever does the will of My Father in heaven is My brother & sister & mother.””
1Jn. 2:17—“And the world is passing away, & the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.”
Gal. 5:19-25—“Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, & the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions & desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.”
Rom. 6:8-14—“Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, & your members as instruments of righteousness to God. For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace.”
Illustration:
The Depression(1929-1940)/Many lost all of their possessions, homes...Their income, livelihood & needs—food, sustenance/Wandered about begging from those who owned property/Those who survived did so by staging down their lifestyle to match the atmosphere—Most lived in abject poverty in cities, relying on soup kitchens & cardboard houses/Uncertainty yields insecurity yields frugality/Appropriate LIVING
Contrast that life with life in Christ!—Certainty, security, richness that extends way beyond earthly possessions—We must live a Christian life based upon our Victories in Christ!/This is Appropriate LIVING!
Application:
?Has Appropriate LIVING sealed your Victory?
?Will you be Victorious in the midst of destruction?
3—Victory in the midst of destruction requires...
Appropriate DIRECTION(:2-16a)
Explanation: (:2-16a) Submission/Application/Obedience
:2—“You shall take with you seven each of every clean animal, a male & his female; two each of animals that are unclean, a male & his female;
:3—“also seven each of birds of the air, male & female, to keep the species alive on the face of all the earth.”
The pairing of animals is reiterated to Noah with further designations & explanations as to that purpose of keeping them alive(6:19).
This time Noah was told that he was to differentiate between “clean” & “unclean” animals. This is an important designation as this will be determinative of their number which are included on the ark. Noah was to take all the “clean” animals by pairs of seven(14).
Noah knew the difference between clean & unclean. Noah knew how to properly worship YaHWeH prior to the Law. Unqualified “birds of the air” were to be taken by sevens also. It is not specified whether these birds were clean or unclean—as the Law distinguishes certain birds as unclean(Lev. 20:25-26) but this can be assumed.
Lev. 20:25-26—“‘You shall therefore distinguish between clean animals & unclean, between unclean birds & clean, & you shall not make yourselves abominable by beast or by bird, or by any kind of living thing that creeps on the ground, which I have separated from you as unclean. ‘And you shall be holy to Me, for I the LORD am holy, & have separated you from the peoples, that you should be Mine.”
“Clean animals” would be used by the people of God for worship & consumption.
All the animals whether “clean” or “unclean” are taken with the express purpose of keeping their offspring alive thru the destruction of the imminent flood.
:4—“For after seven more days I will cause it to rain on the earth forty days & forty nights, & I will destroy from the face of the earth all living things that I have made.”
Noah was told that he had a period of 7 days before the flood would begin(:10).
Noah is told that it would “rain” for 40 days & nights.
The “rain” would cause all land-dwelling animal life as well as birds to perish. These were things which God Himself had created from nothing.
During these 7 days, is when Noah finalized the work of providing for himself, his family & the animals. He was in the closing moments before the initiation of God’s reckoning day against man’s wickedness.
“Destroy”(See :23)—hxm maw-khaw’—V.—Qal Perfect(completed action)—1) To wipe, wipe out—1a) (Qal)—1a1) To wipe, 1a2) To blot out, obliterate, 1a3) To blot out, exterminate; 2) (Qal) To strike. Strong—a primitive root; properly, To stroke or rub; by implication, To erase; also To smooth (as if with oil), i.e. Grease or make fat; also To touch, i.e. Reach to.
:5—“And Noah did according to all that the LORD commanded him.”
In all these preparatory matters Noah was blameless in obeying his God, YaHWeH. Literally it reads, ‘Noah did all YaHWeH commanded him.’
This had been stated in 6:22.
Can we say the same in regard to what God calls us to undertake. Do we obey Him explicitly as true servants?
:6—“Noah was six hundred years old when the floodwaters were on the earth.”
Noah was 600 yrs. old at the flood’s initiation. Noah celebrated his 601st birthday on the ark by the end of the flood(8:13).
Noah’s three sons were born to him after he had reached 500 yrs. of age(5:32). Thus Shem, Ham & Japheth were potentially 100 yrs. old & younger by the time of the flood’s initiation. No doubt they helped their father in all the preparations.
:7—“So Noah, with his sons, his wife, & his sons’ wives, went into the ark because of the waters of the flood.”
Noah & his immediate extended family entered the ark “because of the waters of the flood.” Seemingly, the flood’s arrival initiated their entrance to the ark as God Himself called them inside(:1). They had been notified, thru Noah by God, that there would be one week within which to complete their final preparations(:4).
Noah & his family did in fact, enter the ark when or as the flood began. They were the last ones in(:15) as they were ultimately responsible for the safety of the animals & the integrity of the ark itself.
:8—“Of clean animals, of animals that are unclean, of birds, & of everything that creeps on the earth,
:9—“two by two they went into the ark to Noah, male & female, as God had commanded Noah.”
:10—“And it came to pass after seven days that the waters of the flood were on the earth.”
:11—“In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, on that day all the fountains of the great deep were broken up, & the windows of heaven were opened.”
:12—“And the rain was on the earth forty days & forty nights.”
“Rain”(See :4—rjm maw-tar’)—Mvg gheh’-shem—1) Rain, shower.
‘Designates a heavy or torrential rain.—Victor Hamilton
:13—“On the very same day Noah & Noah’s sons, Shem, Ham, & Japheth, & Noah’s wife & the three wives of his sons with them, entered the ark--
:14—“they & every beast after its kind, all cattle after their kind, every creeping thing that creeps on the earth after its kind, & every bird after its kind, every bird of every sort.”
:15—“And they went into the ark to Noah, two by two, of all flesh in which is the breath of life.”
Used previously in 6:17—““And behold, I Myself am bringing floodwaters on the earth, to destroy from under heaven all flesh in which is the breath of life; everything that is on the earth shall die.”
:16—“So those that entered, male & female of all flesh, went in as God had commanded him; & the LORD shut him in.”
Argumentation:
If you don’t have God’s direction, you cannot please God because your faith is too small. You have not sought relationship with Him.
Like you’ve gotten married but your spouse remains locked outside!
Col. 2:1-10—“For I want you to know what a great conflict I have for you & those in Laodicea, & for as many as have not seen my face in the flesh, that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, & attaining to all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the knowledge of the mystery of God, both of the Father & of Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom & knowledge. Now this I say lest anyone should deceive you with persuasive words. For though I am absent in the flesh, yet I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good order & the steadfastness of your faith in Christ. As you have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted & built up in Him & established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving. Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy & empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, & not according to Christ. For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; & you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality & power.”
1Cor. 2:9-14—“But as it is written: “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, Nor have entered into the heart of man The things which God has prepared for those who love Him.” But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God. These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.”
Php. 4:6-9—“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer & supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; & the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts & minds through Christ Jesus. Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue & if there is anything praiseworthy--meditate on these things. The things which you learned & received & heard & saw in me, these do, & the God of peace will be with you.”
Rev. 2:17—““He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give some of the hidden manna to eat. And I will give him a white stone, & on the stone a new name written which no one knows except him who receives it.”’”
Rev. 2:7—“He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God.”’
Rev. 2:11—“He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death.”’
Rev. 3:5-6—““He who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments, & I will not blot out his name from the Book of Life; but I will confess his name before My Father & before His angels. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”’”
Rev. 3:12-13—““He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, & he shall go out no more. And I will write on him the name of My God & the name of the city of My God, the New Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God. And I will write on him My new name. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”’”
Rev. 3:21-22—““To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame & sat down with My Father on His throne. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”’”
Mt 7:13-14—““Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate & broad is the way that leads to destruction, & there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate & difficult is the way which leads to life, & there are few who find it.”
Illustration:
My OTR flatbed work for CT/I was assigned to a trainer/Had a double bunk/Together we Fueled, Washed truck, Rode, Ate, Slept, Delivered & Picked up, Swapped trailers/I received Appropriate DIRECTION
Row crops/To get the most out of your land you must plow it a certain direction/Getting the first furrow right is vital/Appropriate DIRECTION
Application:
?Has Appropriate DIRECTION sealed your Victory?
?Will you be Victorious in the midst of destruction?
4— Victory in the midst of destruction requires...
Appropriate PROTECTION(:16b-24)
Explanation: (:16b-24)
:16—“So those that entered, male & female of all flesh, went in as God had commanded him; & the LORD shut him in.”
?Are you certain that the LORD Himself has shut you in?
:17—“Now the flood was on the earth forty days. The waters increased & lifted up the ark, & it rose high above the earth.”
:18—“The waters prevailed & greatly increased on the earth, & the ark moved about on the surface of the waters.”
“The waters” of the flood rose(“increased”) dramatically that it became “exceedingly” deep causing the ark to “moved about” upon the collected waters.
The picture is of the ark’s being so perfectly designed for this voyage that it so fit the sea as a man is to walking. “The waters” were of no consequence to the ark. The waters were unrelenting in their prevalence—They did not recede.
:19—“And the waters prevailed exceedingly on the earth, & all the high hills under the whole heaven were covered.”
The waters did not abate but rather “prevailed” so that they rose higher & higher so that they covered not merely some of the high hills but “all the high hills.” This is a world-wide flood rather than a local one because all the high hills “under the whole heaven” are included.
:20—“The waters prevailed fifteen cubits upward, & the mountains were covered.”
The water increased to the point that “the mountains” were all “covered.” It is made plain that this was a worldwide flood as the mountains(high ones, not just short ones or certain ones) everywhere under the heavens were covered.
Not only were all “mountains” covered, but they were covered to a point 15 cubits(22.5 ft.) higher than the highest peaks.
“Some think Noah’s flood was only local. However the description of it found in Gen. 6 through 8 makes this patently absurd. If it was local, Noah had 120 years to migrate out of the area to safe ground! Why waste all that effort building a ship? He only had to move less than 1500 feet a day to reach the farthest point on the globe! With the possible exception of Ps 29:10, this word always refers to Noah’s flood. The real reason for insisting on a local flood is the acceptance of evolution with its long geological ages. Most holding that view are not willing to allow a global world wide flood to have happened less than 5000 years ago. To admit such eliminates the need for the geological ages for most of the geological column would have been rapidly laid down by Noah’s flood.”—BDB
:21—“And all flesh died that moved on the earth: birds & cattle & beasts & every creeping thing that creeps on the earth, & every man.”
“All flesh” “that moved” upon the earth died as the waters reached above the mountain peaks. Again the types of moving animals are reiterated—”birds,” domestic animals, all wild animals & “creeping creatures.” The list nonchalantly includes “every man” among those creatures which died.
:22—“All in whose nostrils was the breath of the spirit of life, all that was on the dry land, died.”
All creatures within which was harbored “the breath of the spirit of life” & that required &/or was recognized as being “on the dry land” indeed “died.”
All living things having contact with man on the dry earth met their fate prematurely due to man’s failure to seek the very God who had not only created them but had revealed Himself to them.
:23—“So He destroyed all living things which were on the face of the ground: both man & cattle, creeping thing & bird of the air. They were destroyed from the earth. Only Noah & those who were with him in the ark remained alive.”
“So/Thus”=the previous events were the means by which YaHWeH blotted out all “living things” on the earth’s surface. These which were “destroyed” are categorized as paired as “man & cattle” as well as “creeping thing & bird.” This signified that every one of them had been “destroyed.” Thus they were taken “from the earth.”
In response to this we are reminded that “only” those “in the ark” “with” “Noah” survived. Noah is recognized as everyone’s & everything’s savior due to his willingness to “do according to” God’s instruction(:5).
:24—“And the waters prevailed on the earth one hundred & fifty days.”
The water after the 40 day inundation prevailed above the peaks for 150 days prior to its beginning to receed. If a land-dwelling creature were to attempt to cling to life at the highest peaks, it would have to do so for a minimum of 150 days under water! The only possibility would be that birds could conceivably land upon the ark, survive 40 days of torrential(?) rains & would then have to be so hardy as to survive 150 days with no food. Even sea birds which feed on fish would be unable to endure.
Imagine an absolutely endless horizon with the only hope of life being the huge wooden monstrosity of the ark.
There is no way to avoid such destruction, particularly if it is meant for such as yourself!
Argumentation:
Mat. 24:37-44—““But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days before the flood, they were eating & drinking, marrying & giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, “& did not know until the flood came & took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. Then two men will be in the field: one will be taken & the other left. Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken & the other left. Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming. But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched & not allowed his house to be broken into. “Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.”
2Sam. 22:31-34—“As for God, His way is perfect; The word of the LORD is proven; He is a shield to all who trust in Him. For who is God, except the LORD? And who is a rock, except our God? God is my strength & power, And He makes my way perfect. He makes my feet like the feet of deer, And sets me on my high places.”
Ps. 91:1-11—“He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, “He is my refuge & my fortress; My God, in Him I will trust.” Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler And from the perilous pestilence. He shall cover you with His feathers, And under His wings you shall take refuge; His truth shall be your shield & buckler. You shall not be afraid of the terror by night, Nor of the arrow that flies by day, Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness, Nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday. A thousand may fall at your side, And ten thousand at your right hand; But it shall not come near you. Only with your eyes shall you look, And see the reward of the wicked. Because you have made the LORD, who is my refuge, Even the Most High, your dwelling place, No evil shall befall you, Nor shall any plague come near your dwelling; For He shall give His angels charge over you, To keep you in all your ways.”
Prov. 14:26-27—“In the fear of the LORD there is strong confidence, And His children will have a place of refuge. The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life, To turn one away from the snares of death.”
Prov. 18:10—“The name of the LORD is a strong tower; The righteous run to it & are safe.”
2Pet. 2:4-9—“For if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them down to hell & delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment; & did not spare the ancient world, but saved Noah, one of eight people, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood on the world of the ungodly; & turning the cities of Sodom & Gomorrah into ashes, condemned them to destruction, making them an example to those who afterward would live ungodly; & delivered righteous Lot, who was oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked (for that righteous man, dwelling among them, tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing & hearing their lawless deeds)-- then the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations & to reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment,”
Ps. 33:16-22—“No king is saved by the multitude of an army; A mighty man is not delivered by great strength. A horse is a vain hope for safety; Neither shall it deliver any by its great strength. Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear Him, On those who hope in His mercy, To deliver their soul from death, And to keep them alive in famine. Our soul waits for the LORD; He is our help & our shield. For our heart shall rejoice in Him, Because we have trusted in His holy name. Let Your mercy, O LORD, be upon us, Just as we hope in You.”
Illustration:
Working in the yard on a hot summer’s day/Floppy hat sunscreen, water/Appropriate PROTECTION
Yellowstone National Park is bear country/Hiking/Always store food outside of the tent! & Hang it high in the air/Otherwise you will possibly be attacked & at least wake up to no supplies!/Appropriate PROTECTION
Application:
?Has Appropriate PROTECTION sealed your Victory?
?Will you be Victorious in the midst of destruction?
CONCLUSION:
Visualization:
Tide-To-Go Stain remover— Victory in the midst of destruction!
Action:
Victory in the midst of destruction requires Appropriate...
1. MOTION(:1, 5)
2. LIVING(:1b)
3. DIRECTION(:2-16a)
4. PROTECTION(:16b-24)
Presented 03/11/2012pm to:
Needmore Baptist Church
1620 Mt. Vernon Rd.
Woodleaf, NC 27054
