“ if he did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a herald of righteousness, with seven others, when he brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly…”
2 Peter 2:5
Yes,I know. No one is more surprised than I am that this didn’t start with scripture from Genesis, but I’m not in charge so we are going with it!
Sometimes God tells us things that make no sense to other people. Sometimes He promises us things that have zero possibilities or sensibilities in the natural. Sometimes He shows favor to someone and tells him (or her) to do things that the surrounding people cannot see as God. Because it cannot be fathomed with the natural eye, it’s often easy to assume the person has missed God and lost their mind completely.
Genesis 6 tells us that Noah lives in a very wicked time. God wasn’t happy with what He saw. Have you ever been mad enough at your kids that you took it out on everyone around them too? Genesis 6:7 says that God was sorry He had made man on earth and he intended to blot out man, animals, creeping things, birds – all of it (or as the Wicked Witch would say, “I’ll get you and your little dog too!”) How mad was God that he wanted to remove all living creatures from earth?? How bad were the people? Gen 6:5 – “the intentions of the thoughts of his (man) heart was only evil continually.” Evil. Continually. That’s ALL THE TIME.
Enter Noah into the story:
“But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD.” Genesis 6:8
Righteous. Blameless. Walked with God. Words used to describe Noah. Noah found favor with God. How does that turn out? Imagine it for a minute and allow a little creative license:
Noah, I want you to build a boat. A really BIG boat.
Why?
Because it’s going to flood and destroy all living creatures.
What’s “flood”???
Never mind, take these instructions and follow them exactly.
Can you hear Noah’s family?
God wants you to do …what???? Have you lost your mind? What are we going to do with a big boat in the backyard?
God told me to build it.
That can’t be God. God doesn’t say stuff like that. That makes no sense. What’s “flood”?
Agreed, but He said it, so I am going to do it! And I don’t know what “flood” is, so stop asking me!
Can you hear the neighbors?
Look at the crazy man! What is he doing?
Says he “hears from God” – keep the kids away from him.
Says it’s going to flood, he says. Hey, what’s “flood”??
People can’t always see that you have favor and they can’t see or hear what you hear God tell you.
If God has given you a dream and a promise – hold on to it.
God told Noah He was going to establish a covenant with him. He told him months before it came to pass. Before the covenant, there was the flood, destruction, captivity, the long days and nights of nothing but…flood, destruction, and captivity.
At what point during this journey do you think Noah realized he had great favor with God? When he got the instructions for the big boat? Before the storm? When he knew people were dying right outside his boat and he could look around and see all his loved ones safe with him? When the dove came back with the olive leaf?
God promised him a covenant BEFORE the storm. It made no sense what God described to Noah as there had been no flooding before – we made through five busy chapters in Genesis with nary a mention of rain. There had been no mention of a covenant before then either! God promised him the covenant before the destruction.
If God has given you a dream and a promise – hold on to it.
Just because someone else can’t hear what God has whispered in your ear doesn’t mean that what He’s told you isn’t true…
Just because you’re going through the flood doesn’t mean God doesn’t love you…
Just because it’s storming all around and all you can see for as far as you can see is storm doesn’t mean He isn’t there…
Just because you have a dream that seems unattainable doesn’t mean you don’t get to reach it…
If God has given you a dream and a promise – hold on to it.
He loves you.
