[EDITOR’S NOTE: In PART I of this series Pastor Pat laid out the case that we are indeed, living in the Days of Noah. If you haven’t read it you need to check it out by going to last week’s newsletter. Jesus told us plainly that the Last Days would be like the Days of Noah. Today he begins with the TIMES OF NOAH. It is a pretty close comparison. ]
Pat Kleitz
The world was in a dark place during the times of Noah… evil was everywhere and God decided to respond and destroy the earth and everything that had breath… God instructed Noah to build an ark and get aboard with 2 of every unclean animal and 7 of every clean animal and every creeping crawling thing on the face of the earth. He loaded the ark, and all 3 levels were full. Noah and his family boarded the ark…and after 7 days the earth erupted with water… there was an explosion of water from underneath the earth crest….
Imagine a boat that size suddenly lifting off the earth. It was 450 ft long, 75 feet wide…and 5 stories high…estimated it weighted 380,000 tons empty… imagine this huge Ark lifting off the ground…. Imagine the turmoil inside, the fear…will it hold together…. maybe God put the animals in a state of hibernation, maybe not… but this we know for sure it was a rocky ride and for 40 days and nights, it rained nonstop.
I don’t think it was easy for Noah and his family….consider all of those animals in the belly of a waterproof boat… Imagine the humidity, and the dampness . There must have been leaks in the vessel…, and tossed with the waves, they must have experienced sea sickness. What about the smell, the mess to clean up…. and where do you pile it all…
They were 371 days on the ark….thats a whole year….inside of a closed vessel with thousands of animals…
There are four principles we can learn from the account of Noah and the Flood to help prepare us for what is coming.
- When the world erupts in judged it will have an impact on us . – It will be tough times for the church in the end times…it will not be easy; there will be struggles and times of doubt and fear that will come… you may wonder if God is still in control …you will often feel like a ship without a rudder… and wonder when the rain of evil will end…it will impact you…You will need great wisdom at that time..
James 1:2–8 (NLT) Faith and Endurance “Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. 3 For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. 4 So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing. 5 If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. 6 But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. 7 Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. 8 Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do.”
2. Keep your eyes on the dove : Genesis 8:6–12 (NLT) After another forty days, Noah opened the window he had made in the boat 7 and released a raven. The bird flew back and forth until the floodwaters on the earth had dried up. 8 He also released a dove to see if the water had receded and it could find dry ground. 9 But the dove could find no place to land because the water still covered the ground. So it returned to the boat, and Noah held out his hand and drew the dove back inside. 10 After waiting another seven days, Noah released the dove again. 11 This time the dove returned to him in the evening with a fresh olive leaf in its beak. Then Noah knew that the floodwaters were almost gone. 12 He waited another seven days and then released the dove again. This time it did not come back.
Where did the dove go: I have a theory on that: It kept on flying and it eventually landed on the workers of the Tabernacle in the wilderness and gifted them to build, but it didn’t remain there it kept on flying: ..it landed on King Saul so he could prophesy the future, then King David so he could lead the nation and build a might kingdom; and king Soloman so he could build of worship for the Lord: after filling the temple with the power and the glory of God , it continues flying through all the prophets of the Old Testament into the New Testament where it finally found a place to REST…
Matthew 3:11–12 (NLT)
11 “I baptize with water those who repent of their sins and turn to God. But someone is coming soon who is greater than I am—so much greater that I’m not worthy even to be his slave and carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. 12 He is ready to separate the chaff from the wheat with his winnowing fork. Then he will clean up the threshing area, gathering the wheat into his barn but burning the chaff with never-ending fire.” 13 Then Jesus went from Galilee to the Jordan River to be baptized by John. 14 But John tried to talk him out of it. “I am the one who needs to be baptized by you,” he said, “so why are you coming to me?” 15 But Jesus said, “It should be done, for we must carry out all that God requires.” So John agreed to baptize him. 16 After his baptism, as Jesus came up out of the water, the heavens were opened and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and settling on him. 17 And a voice from heaven said, “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy.”
At Pentecost, dove came and rested on the disciple and all who were in the upper room… now he lives in you, and you are the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit…
- So, Keep your eye on the DOVE he will lead you into all truth, he will council you, guide you and tell you of things yet to come…
3. Look for a RAINBOW and follow it to the end.
Genesis 9:11–16 (NLT)
11 Yes, I am confirming my covenant with you. Never again will floodwaters kill all living creatures; never again will a flood destroy the earth.”
12 Then God said, “I am giving you a sign of my covenant with you and with all living creatures, for all generations to come. 13 I have placed my rainbow in the clouds. It is the sign of my covenant with you and with all the earth. 14 When I send clouds over the earth, the rainbow will appear in the clouds, 15 and I will remember my covenant with you and with all living creatures. Never again will the floodwaters destroy all life. 16 When I see the rainbow in the clouds, I will remember the eternal covenant between God and every living creature on earth.”
Maybe you have heard of the Irish legend : “ There’s a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow guarded by lepricon; ..if you follow the rainbow and find the gold you will fulfill all of your hopes and dreams, you will find happiness in live at the end of the rainbow…
Somewhere over the rainbow Way up high And the dreams that you dream of Once in a lullaby, oh Somewhere over the rainbow Bluebirds fly And the dreams that you dream of Dreams really do come true- Someday I’ll wish upon a star Wake up where the clouds are far behind me Where trouble melts like lemon drops High above the chimney tops that’s where You’ll find me, oh
That’s a legend, and that’s a song, but there’s a fact: Jesus is our rainbow.
- He is God’s promise that in him, we will realize all of our hopes and dreams, success in life, fulfillment, and happiness. He is our great reward in this life and the life to come.
So FIX YOUR RAINBOW….Fix EYES ON HIM….FOLLOW HIM…
4. Finish well: …. pass the baton to the next generation.
That’s what great leaders do…thats what great parents and grandparents do…they leave a legacy to be continued by the next generation…that’s what a great church does…it leaves a lasting legacy….In the relay race, everyone wins… not just the last one who crosses the finish line… the whole team wins….. everyone who runs runs so everyone wins…
Hebrews 11…lists all the great men and women of faith who went before us and finished their part of the race… Hebrews 11:13–14 (NLT) 13 All these people died still believing what God had promised them. They did not receive what was promised, but they saw it all from a distance and welcomed it. They agreed that they were foreigners and nomads here on earth. 14 Obviously people who say such things are looking forward to a country they can call their own.
Hebrews 11:39–40 (NKJV)
39 And all these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise, 40 God having provided something better for us, that they should not be made perfect apart from us.
They ran their part of the race and now they are waiting for us to finish the race so that together with us receive the promised prize the … without us they never will not realized the promised prize of completing the race set before them. Hebrews 12:1–3 (NLT)
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. 2 We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne. 3 Think of all the hostility he endured from sinful people; then you won’t become weary and give up.
The same is true for you. Many of you will not see the prize you are promised, but with the passing of the baton to the next generation, you will. TREVOR…
The sad part of Noah’s life …He didn’t finish well…. cursing his grandson.
Genesis 9:20–29 (NLT)
20 After the flood, Noah began to cultivate the ground, and he planted a vineyard. 21 One day he drank some wine he had made, and he became drunk and lay naked inside his tent. 22 Ham, the father of Canaan, saw that his father was naked and went outside and told his brothers. 23 Then Shem and Japheth took a robe, held it over their shoulders, and backed into the tent to cover their father. As they did this, they looked the other way so they would not see him naked.
24 When Noah woke up from his stupor, he learned what Ham, his youngest son, had done. 25 Then he cursed Canaan, the son of Ham: “May Canaan be cursed! May he be the lowest of servants to his relatives.”
26 Then Noah said, “May the Lord, the God of Shem, be blessed, and may Canaan be his servant! 27 May God expand the territory of Japheth! May Japheth share the prosperity of Shem,and may Canaan be his servant.” 28 Noah lived another 350 years after the great flood. 29 He lived 950 years, and then he died. He planted the garden and got drunk…. Why?
Walk off the ark and the world he knew had changed… what he knew was gone…family, friends, he lived 600 years and it was all gone…Maybe Was he Tired and weary…after 100 years of building an ark… 371 day on it with every species of animals… bugs, creepy crawly things… smells , noise… stuffy hot…Maybe he Lost his vision… his work was done, the ark was empty..it was sitting on a mt. top useless… .all the animals left and were now afraid of him… NOW WHAT? Where do I go from here…Without vision people cast off restraint…
Whats your vision? Will you finish the race,? Will you run without becoming weary … or will you stumble and fall before the finish line and lose your legacy…. drop the baton, and fail the next generation? Noah name meant rest; maybe he couldn’t find rest for himself…the ark came to rest on Mt Ararat …but maybe Noah couldn’t find rest… We live in a wrestles-weary world… where do you find rest? Where do you find peace ….. weres your go to place? Have you identified it?
When the world erupts with God’s judgment it will impact you.
- Keep your eyes of the dove.
- Look for a rainbow an follow it to the end..
- Finish well.
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