Jumping Through Genesis

Chuck Swindoll wrote,
Because of sin, man has taken

the deity out of religion,

the supernatural out of Christianity

the authority from the Bible

God out of education,

morality and virtue out of literature,

beauty and truth out of art,

ethics out of business,

fidelity out of marriage.
Such is the nature of the world in which Noah lived . . . and the world in which we live.

The world knows little about the Bible, but nearly everyone is familiar with Noah’s ark. There are jokes, cartoons, movies, clothing, jewelry, toys and sculptures depicting this Biblical event. On all continents and among almost all peoples of the world ancient catastrophic flood accounts have been found; anthropologists have collected roughly 275 early flood stories.

In the midst of a decadent society one man stood out . . . a man by the name of Noah. Notice what we read about him.

Noah Found Favor
In the New International Version we read that Noah found favor. In the old King James it is, "Noah found grace." Either way it is important that we don't miss something here. Noah did not EARN God's blessing . . .he was given God's favor. Noah was not a perfect man. We have a tendency to see Noah as someone extra-ordinary. It then becomes easy for us to relegate his obedience and faith to the "that's not reachable for me" status. Truth is, he was a common man who was willing to follow the Lord.

He was a Blameless Man

In that godless society no one had any charges against Noah. We can conclude that he had a good relationship with his friends and neighbors. They may have felt he was weird, or one of those "holy rollers", but they respected him. No one wondered if Noah was dealing honestly with them. They knew his ethics were solid. No one had to question whether Noah was cheating on his wife. They knew Noah's was committed to her. No one questioned Noah's methods. They knew he was not seeking to manipulate them when he acted loving. No one questioned Noah's sincerity. . . they may have questioned his sanity . . .but not his heart.

He Walked with God

Noah "walked with God" He didn't just visit with God. He didn't "stop in to see God" on the Sabbath . . . he walked with Him on a daily and hourly basis. Noah's relationship with God was not a temporary fascination, it was enduring and steady. It was a relationship that was nurtured over hundreds of years. It was steady and constant.