Noah

Noah’s Ark

Stories and parables are things  that linger in our imaginations…we remember them our entire lives. That’s why, perhaps, Jesus so ofter taught in parables. Sermons come and go rather quickly, so as a child I always enjoyed hearing stories from the Old Testament and especially about the heroes; I wonder why more preachers do not tell the old stories about Samson, Goliath, Moses and Noah. So for the kids her and those of us who are still  kids at heart,  I would like to re-tell you the story of Noah’s ark and share with you some interesting things that we can learn from Noah.

The story of Noah reminds us about patience and trusting God to get the things done, in our lives, at the proper time. Noah was called by God to build the ark when he was 500 years old.  Never complain, or think you are too old to be of use to God or His redemptive work.  He calls men and women, well beyond what was perceived to be their prime years, to do seemingly impossible work. He also calls young girls and young boys, like the Virgin Mary, and a little boy named Samuel, to do incredible things that older and more able men and women might never agree to do. Jesus chose as disciples teenagers, not learned men.  God looks at the heart, not the wrinkles or our youth. . He looks at the diamond within each of us—-not the dusty coal that conceals that diamond. The word retirement does not exist in the Hebrew or Greek texts, and conversely, the greatest heroes of the Bible were often teenagers, some eight year olds, not men at their prime.

Okay, so think about this and perhaps we can better understand why God chose Noah. It took Noah over 100 years to build the ark. They used wood from an extinct tree-“gopher”. It must have been like our present day cypress.  To our knowledge, there were no power tools or any Home Depots. All was done by hand. Imagine toiling away for 100 years to build something, the likes of which no one had ever seen, and to get up every morning, day in and day out, and build this monstrously large wooden ship on dry land.  We celebrate men and women of faith who obey God despite the apparent absurdity of the assigned task.   But  while Noah was doing this project he was not applauded and praised by others.  Rarely are Christian heroes acclaimed during their lifetimes.  Has He called you…. or me… to do somethings absurd?  Is His Hand upon you to create, or sustain, or believe in something crazy? Do you find yourself alone in your passion and the call He has placed upon you?  Are  you really willing to obey Him and be forgotten, or laughed at,  by every other soul in world,  in order to do what He tells you to do?  Noah was. And that makes him a true super-hero.

The ark was the largest ship ever built till the 1850s. Did you hear that?   One man and his sons built that largest, moving, man-made object on the face of the earth for at least 6000 years!  It’s a bit humbling to look at what most of us accomplish in a lifetime, and how we complain when God gives us a hard task;   imagine the stories that could be told after you are long gone if you accept and obey His call on your life!  The Ark  was 1/3 the size of the Titanic!  At 450 feet long, 75 feet wide, and 45 feet high, the volume of the ark  was about 1.5 million cubic feet. That big boat had about as much space as 250 railroad stock cars, which could comfortably hold every land roving/roaming species on the face of the planet at that time—- and then some.

Did you know that there are more than 270 stories about a catastrophic flood that covered the earth from cultures around the world. Most of these stories bear similarities to the biblical story of Noah and the ark.  Something unheard of did happen that caused the earth to be covered with water 6000 years ago.  Think of it: almost 300 stories about the great flood are recording  from cultures all across the globe.

It’s interesting also to note that the ark was built only to float, not to sail anywhere. It had no rudder or sails or means of propulsion.  The length-to-width-to-height ratio of 300 to 50 to 30 is the same that shipbuilders use today. This is the best ratio for stability in stormy weather. When Moses wrote these words to describe the ark he had no knowledge of shipbuilding or engineering. It’s as if a master builder was guiding his plans. 

Did you know that right now, if the earth was completely flat,  there would be enough water in the oceans to cover the earth 8,000 feet deep.  And that’s what God did.

But think about these lessons for you and me:

It took the man 100 years to build a ship—-the first ever built—on dry land.  What he was asked to do by God looked like lunacy!  And for 100 years this “lunatic” never gave up!  He toiled to build something based solely up his faith in God—-he was 100% sure of what God had said and he accepted the commission to do it—there was no turning back.

What has He commissioned you to do—-and how many hours, let alone days,  does it take for you to  give up if we don’t see immediate gratification?  The closer we are to Him, the more we will heed His call, the more we do precisely what He says, and, perhaps,  the more idiotic what we do, and are becoming,  will appear to those who love the most—-and to the rest of the world.  

It’s strange that Noah’s wife’s name is never mentioned.  But I wonder if this was because she did not share in his vision.  It’s tough to be in a relation, marriage or fellowship when the one(s) you love does not share your vision from God.  But Noah’s first love—-as with Abraham, David and the other heroes—- was his love for God, not his spouse, his friends or his sons.

For 100 years he must have been the butt of many jokes and constant ridicule.  Don’t you hate to be laughed at—especially when you know that you are right? How quickly would most folks today give up and walk away after the first few snide remarks.  Most men and women prefer the approval of others than God.  It’s the great women and men and that craved God’s smile that inspire us, not those that always wanted to be loved by the mob. … We look too much to others for confirmation that what we’re doing is right! If God calls you to do something difficult, the worst thing you can do is look to another man for confirmation!  But you won’t hear Him and if you don’t know His voice. Do you?

There is no record that anyone helped him—-not a single soul in 100 years of work. So, for those of us who whine about how we do “all the work and no one helps”, you’re in good company so quite your whining!  That’s the way it’s always been in the mundane work of God, or raising a godly family, or living a godly life! It’s nearly always lonely when you hear the song of God and He sings to you about radical idea or crazy project. “If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away.” (Henry David Thoreau)  “But are you up for it, or are you like the thousands, and perhaps millions of souls, that laughed at Noah—-and later drowned?

How do you keep at it, for years and years, when no one lends a hand or stands with you or offers you a word of encouragement?  He was not working for man or serving as some sort of ‘humanitarian” or. “United Nation”  purpose—otherwise he would have given up or at which he would have  became bitter. He was called to become a master builder for the King of Kings.  What’s the King of Kings called you to master? Are you an ark builder—-called by God to do something extraordinary?  Or are you the kind that throws stones at the ark? Do you look to man, or for God’s hands for your provisions, your charter, your blueprints and His the pat on the back?  Look to God for these things and you will never give up and you will “make your ark”.   If you are depending upon others you will never finish your ark….or what you build will never float.

The assignment God gave Noah was to build a boat that was unsurpassed in the history of the world.  It required at least 4000 trees for its construction…the boat was enormous!  Imagine yourself not only building this collossus, but also living on it with the same three sons, daughters in law and your spouse for one year on a boat the size of a cruise ship and taking care of every special of animal and their messes!  We have six dogs in our home—-it’s time consuming and a mess most of the time. This man took care of tens of thousands of animals! Noah was a superman——a special person and God knew it. 

It’s said that the medieval churches were meant to represent the inside of an upside down ark—-a place of sanctuary and safety!  The ark was a place of safety from the storm that kept them secure from certain death. Who knows how many people perished because they were not in the ark, some say millions, some say billions,  but Noah and the seven were saved.  The architecture of the early church reflected that idea—-we are in the ark of God—safe from certain destruction.  

It took 15,000 men to build the Titanic and about 900 to service it once at sea. Granted, the ark was not a cruise ship, but only four men and four women took care managing the boat along with tens of thousands of animals and their own meals and needs for a year!  These folks worked on that ark. If you’re in Christ’s church—the ark of God—you work. It’s not a cruise ship.

When Noah built the ark he used “pitch”, something made from burned wood or charcoal. The pitch made the ark water tight and able to keep the folks inside alive. But the word “pitch” also means “atonement”.  It means, literally, “to cover”.   In essence, therefore, this is the first mention of “atonement” in the Bible. Whatever the exact nature of this “pitch” may have been it sufficed as a perfect covering for the Ark, to keep (out) the waters of God's judgment on the world outside, just as the blood of the Lamb provides a perfect atonement for the soul and allows us in.

But listen: Noah build the ark—not God. God gave him the tools, the inspiration, the blue-prints,. It was God called the animals into the ark, but  Noah had to do the work, feed and water the animals and live with the sore arms and legs after long hours of hauling logs!  That’s the way God does things.  He could have snapped His fingers and made the ark or the Titanic.  He could similarly have winked His eye and created Solomon’s temple.  He could also wave His hand and make all men perfect creatures—-but that’s not how He does things. He gives us the will, and arms our minds with the ability to choose.  But He calls us to do the work—-and there’s something good about doing it like He said—-with excellence and godliness. The ark did not leak, sink or function improperly. It is said that the ark may even still exist, frozen solid, on the mountains of Turkey to this very day.

The Hebrew word for ark is “TEVAH” , תבה.  That word only appears in two places in the entire Old Testament.  The first place is Genesis in reference to Noah’s big boat—the ark.  The second place is in Exodus where the baby Moses is placed in an “ark”.  We translate the same word for ark as “basket” in Moses’ narrative, but it’s the same word. The basket preserved the life of the most important man in the Hebrew nation.  Two times an ark was used as the divine instrument for God to deliver His chosen people. 

In Genesis, mankind was to be destroyed by a flood of water.  In exodus God’s chosen were being destroyed by water—-babies drowned in the Nile river by Pharaoh.  But God saw to it that Noah and his family, as well as Moses, would be saved by placing them safely in an ark to protect them from the waters.

“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 and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.” Hebrews 11:7, NIV.   Has there ever been a more urgent time for a Noah in our nation and Noahs in our communities?!  Divine warnings…..Godly fear….salvation for those who will turn to God.

One last point friends: God shut the door to that ark—-once the folks were inside, they were sealed, safe, secure in that ark. Nothing could snatch them out and they could not accidentally wander out either. In Genesis 7:16 we read that once Noah, his family and all the animals were on board, “God shut him in.”   The point is that God shut and sealed the door. In other words, once God shut Noah and party inside the ark, no one was going to open the door.  When God shut the door, God’s people were protected and those on the outside were destined for judgment and death. Once in the ark, no one can take us from His hand. Jesus said, “I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand.  My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand” (John 10:28-29).

If you are in, you’re safe and secure within the ark and you have no fears. If you are not in the ark, you’re going to drown.