Come Into The Ark Series

Sermon by: Dr. Todd Morris

Text: Genesis 7:1-7

Title: Come Into the Ark (Message 1 in Bible Invitation Series)

Date: January 12, 2003

Introduction: This morning I am beginning a series of message that will last about 12 weeks on the subject of Bible Invitations. The only way that a person can come to God is for God to call that person to Himself. God’s call to people is found throughout the Bible. They are invitations of love. God calls people to "come to Him" because He loves mankind and desires the very best for them.

The first invitation that I find in the Bible is in our text. The flood was about to begin. Because of wickedness God was about to destroy the world. Man had strayed so far from God that He could no longer tolerate their sin, and He decided to wipe out the world and everything in it that would not repent and come to Him.

God gave the people every opportunity to repent and return to His ways. He commissioned Noah to preach and call them to repentance, but not one person other than Noah’s family was found righteous by God. So, we see in verse number 1 of our text that God issues a final invitation before the flood, as He said to Noah’s family, "Come thou and all thy house into the ark."

As we look at this invitation we see that it embodies the characteristics that we will see as we look at many of God’s invitations to people through out the Bible. Lets look together at the first of many invitations.

I IT IS AN INVITATION TO SURVIVE GOD’S WRATH

A. The wickedness of Noah’s time. (5)

1. Wicked in their thoughts

2. Wicked in their moral decisions

3. Wicked in their treatment of one another

B. The judgment that follows wickedness. (7)

1. God always judges wickedness

2. God’s judgment is always laid out before hand

3. God’s judgment is always consistent with what He has said.

C. God’s Grace is offered before judgment.

1. Grace was offered to man prior to the flood

2. Grace is still offered to sinful people

3. Grace is the undeserved favor of God

II IT IS AN INVITATION TO TAKE A STEP OF FAITH

A. Noah is invited to come into the ark.

1. This demanded a step of faith

2. The ark had been built by faith

3. The going in must be by faith

B. Noah’s salvation was by grace through faith

1. Now salvation is by grace through faith

2. Noah was saved from the wrath of God

3. Now we are saved from God’s wrath that is to come

III IT IS AN INVITATION TO AN ENTIRE FAMILY

A. God said, "and all thy house."

B. God wants entire families to be saved (Acts 16:30-31)

C. God expects us to lead our families to Christ

Conclusion: God said to Noah and His family, "come thou and all thy house into the ark." God’s wrath was about to be poured out through the great flood, and He issued an invitation to be saved from that wrath. Noah and his family responded to that invitation by faith and entered the ark and were the only people saved during the flood.

The Bible makes it very plain there is coming soon another day of God’s wrath that will make the flood seem like a Sunday School picnic in comparison. God has told us that He will take His children out of this world before that wrath comes in the form of the Great Tribulation. Yet He makes it abundantly clear that it will only be His children that are saved from that wrath to come. You see Jesus is our ark. He is the ark of safety for the wrath that is coming to destroy this world.

This morning God issues to you an invitation, "Come thou and all thy house to Jesus and be saved from the wrath to come." How are we saved from that wrath? By placing our full faith and trust in Jesus Christ and what He has done on Calvary. It is an invitation that must be responded to in faith. What is your answer to God’s invitation to you? You cannot ignore it, for I have issued it to you on His behalf this morning. This day, this hour you will make a decision to accept God’s invitation to be saved from the wrath to come, or you will reject it. The invitation has been issued. Will you respond by faith as Noah and his family did, or will you reject it as the multitudes in Noah’s day did and be destroyed.

You say, "Preacher Todd, I responded by faith a long time ago, and am safely in the ark." That is wonderful my friend, but what about your family? Are you doing everything possible to see your family saved?

The storm is coming! Are you and all your loved ones in the ark?