January 5-Genesis 7:1-8:22

In many places the Bible speaks of God’s wrath–anger against sin.  Two examples:  Isaiah 13:13 says, “Therefore I will make the heavens tremble; and the earth shake from its place at the wrath of the Lord Almighty, in the day of his burning anger.”; and Revelation 19:15 says, “Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations.  ‘He will rule them with an iron scepter.’  He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty.”

It must certainly have been terrifying.  Look again at Genesis 7:22-23.  “Everything on dry land…died.  Every living thing on the face of the earth was wiped out; men and animals…Only Noah was left, and those with him in the ark.”

Many people want to craft God in their own image.  They want Him to be kind and loving all the time.  They never want Him to be terrifying in judgment. 

If we are to have any chance of grasping the complexity of God’s character, and this truly is impossible because of our finitude and His infinitude, nevertheless He reveals Himself to us, and wants us to grasp what we can, so to have a chance we must not deny parts of God’s character that are revealed in Scripture, and revealed repeatedly.  Here, as when God put Adam and Eve out of the Garden of Eden, and when God placed a mark on Cain, we see the judgment of God.  In this case God decided that the populated earth had become too wicked to continue.

Look at the forces God released in judgment.  The floodgates of heaven are released.  No meteorologist has ever seen these on doppler radar.  This phrase surely means atmospheric conditions brought about when God calls all water molecules to battle stations.  Please don’t laugh at my non-scientific expressions.  I am simply saying God has resources we haven’t seen.  Paul writing in Colossians 1:17 says of Jesus Christ, “He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.”  The writer of Hebrews similarly says, “…sustaining all things by his powerful word” (Hebrews 1:3).  If energy and matter are theoretically interchangeable, just imagine what God can do with the molecules at His command.  Also Genesis 7:11 says, “the springs of the great deep burst forth.”  This suggests that the flood was caused not only by rains from heaven, but also by gushers from deep within the earth.  Perhaps from the bottoms of the seas, but not necessarily even limited to that.

Consider the three actors in this drama.  The first actor is a group–all the wicked who are being wiped from the face of the earth.  Are they deserving of this judgment?  Yes.  God had told Adam that the punishment for sin is death.  And in chapter  6, God tells us that the wickedness of humankind had become exceedingly great. 

The second actor is Noah and his family and the pairs of animals brought on the ark.  Some will surely say this alone makes this story ridiculous.  How could two of every living creature be gathered together and fit in the ark?  I simply answer, the Almighty God does miraculous things, even preposterous things.  But lest I get sidetracked,  let’s consider Noah.  God has declared him righteous, and only he among his whole generation.  Righteousness is more than being extremely moral.  It is being acceptable to God.  And as revelation unfolds we will see that righteousness does not come from being excessively good, but rather from placing one’s faith in God.  So it is with Abraham later in the book of Genesis.  And so Paul declares in the book of Romans.  God was pleased with Noah.  Noah is saved from God’s judgment because God chooses to save him and his family. 

Finally the third actor is God.  God is more than just the actor, he is the director, the stunt man, the camera crew, special effects operator, screen writer and every other member of the crew.  He even shuts the door of the ark for Noah after everyone is inside.  This story, and I believe it truly happened, is not only a story of judgment but also a story of grace.  Judgment and grace meet in the holiness of God.  It is unloving and irresponsible for a parent to let a child do as he or she pleases.  Permitting such behavior repeatedly to the point that it dominates the child’s thinking, emotions, and every action is abusive.  God could not be God and tolerate the wickedness that was going on in Noah’s day.  So God’s act of judgment was also an act of grace.  God saved Noah and started again.

Now are we to conclude that there never again has been a time of wickedness comparable to Noah’s time?  No.  After Noah’s generation was judged God declared He would not again act to judge the world with such severity (Genesis 8:21-22).  Does this mean that the return of Jesus Christ will not involve extreme judgment?  Again the answer is no.  When Christ comes again in final judgment a new heaven and a new earth will be created to replace this present earth.

Dramas are designed to draw us in and to make us identify with a character.  With whom do you identify?  None of us are God, so we can only identify either with Noah, or the wicked.  Praise be to God, that because of Jesus Christ we can be made righteous like Noah.  We can be among those who please God.  Even the wicked can be forgiven and be made righteous in Jesus Christ.

The proclamation of the Gospel begins even in Genesis with Noah and his family saved by grace.