From Judgment To Renewal Series

Judgment To Renewal

Text: Genesis, Chapters 6-9

Introduction.

Every year, from late summer until early fall, we experience what the weather reporters call “Hurricane Season”. It’s amazing how far the science has developed in predicting and understanding hurricanes over the years.

Many lives are saved today because of this science. Think about the early warnings people get now, compared to the days when Galveston Island was with by a hurricane, which killed over 3,000 people. That event resulted in the building of the Galveston seawall in order to save lives from the powerful storm surges of hurricanes.

Now suppose—just suppose—that you were living in South Florida before all this science was available. There were no hurricane charts or maps—no T.V. weather people to tell you about a storm that was coming, or where it would likely make landfall. There was no science to let you know whether or not you should evacuate. You are totally on your own.

O.K.—Now, suppose someone tells you a hurricane is coming—but you don’t really know what a hurricane is! Are you with me so far? Then suppose that same someone tells you to build a big box boat—but you’ve never seen a boat, so you’re not an experienced shipbuilder. In fact, you’re a farmer!

So, you look around at your neighbors, and they don’t seem to care that a hurricane is coming—they just go about their lives in the same way they’ve been living. They don’t make any preparations for the coming hurricane.

You know that building a big box boat is going to take a long time and will demand a great sacrifice. Plus, you will have to quit farming and become a full-time shipbuilder. You know your neighbors are going to ridicule you when you explain why you’re doing it!

Would you do what the person told you? Would you believe a hurricane was coming and build that boat?

I think whether or not we did what the “person” told us would depend on who the person was—if we believed them—and most important, do we trust them?

If we didn’t believe that person, we probably wouldn’t build the boat. However, if we did believe and trust that person, well, then we would build that boat!

In the Bible, we’re told about a real person who was faced with that dilemma. It wasn’t a hurricane that was coming—it was a great flood that was coming to destroy the world. The man’s name was Noah, and the Hebrew writer says this about him in Hebrews 11:7—

Hebrews 11:7

---7---“By Faith, Noah, being warned by God about things not yet seen, in reverence prepared an ark for the salvation of his household, by which He condemned the world, and became an heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.”

In today’s study, we come to Noah and the great flood. Most of you who come every week know that we started a series of lessons from the Book of Genesis.—the “Book of Beginnings”.

If we want to know more about Noah, this great man of faith, we must go back to the beginning—back to the Book of Genesis. We find the story of Noah in Genesis, Chapters 6-9.

Review.

A good teacher normally begins a class by reviewing what has been previously discussed. Let’s review the first 5 chapters, beginning with Genesis 1:1---1---“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth…”

God created the world and mankind, and His work was good. Adam and Eve lived in a perfect world called the Garden of Eden; and, as long as they did what God said, it would remain perfect.

God created man to work and God told Adam to tend and keep the Garden. He had created male and female and told them to “be fruitful and multiply”—He created a family for them.

In Chapter 3, we learn that Adam and Eve violated God’s command and sin entered into the world. We also learn that sin is bad and we are against it!

In Chapter 4, we read the story of sin over powering one of Adam’s and Eve’s children. The son, Cain, is jealous of his brother’s offering to God….and then sin comes knocking at the door of Cain’s heart.

In Genesis 4:6-7, God asks Cain—

---6---“Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen?

---7---If you do well, will not your countenance be lifted up? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door, and its desire is for you, but you must master it.”

God told Cain, “sin desires to have you” and “you must master it”. However, Cain did not master sin and, have him, it would. He killed his brother, Abel, who was faithful.

Then we come to Chapter 5 of Genesis; and, we find the genealogy of some really old people! But it’s important to understanding how prophecy to come is later fulfilled. Apparently Adam and Eve had several children—they were fruitful and they did multiply. We’re told the names of three of the children—Cain and Abel are two of them. We’re also told that sometime after Cain killed Abel, they had another son—Seth—who was born after Adam and Eve had lived 130 years (Genesis 5:3).