• Emmaus road disciples
• Luke 24:27
• Jesus is the hero of the OT!
THE SALVATION BOAT
Genesis 6:11-7:24 (selected verses)
1. Illus. of Hadecol
• My grandmother swore by Hadecol.
• It was good for warts, tuberculosis, pneumonia, bad breath, tired blood etc.
• She would give it to us, and we never got better. She was sure the next dose would do it, but it never did.
• I remember her throwing her last bottle out, disappointed and discouraged, and saying, “this stuff is no good for anything.”
• She had been sold a bill of goods, a remedy that didn’t work.
2. Need: I want to talk to that person today who has been looking for a spiritual remedy that works. You have an emptiness, an aching hole in your soul where the wind blows through late at night. Or perhaps your symptoms include a feeling of dirtiness, a dirtiness so deep that no matter what you try you can’t feel clean. Either way, you’ve tried every remedy the world has to offer: booze, immoral relationships, one night stands, things etc., but none of them have worked.
3. I want to tell you today about the only remedy that will work. Its called salvation, and God provided it for us by virtue of Jesus’ death on the cross 2000 years ago.
4. The story we read today is about a boat. It is not an ordinary boat. This boat from not only designed to save its inhabitants from the flood, but also to teach us about salvation.
5. Note vs 14- “cover it inside and outside with pitch…” The Hebrew word is "kaw-far." This word is used 70 times in the OT, and this is the only time it is translated “pitch.” Every other time it is translated “atonement!” See Exodus 32:30. We could make a strong case grammatically for translating vs 14, “cover it inside and outside with atonement…”
6. In our text, the Bible describes the terrible flood that destroyed the earth, and the ark that provided safety for all that were in it.
7. The ark symbolically portrays the salvation that is available in Jesus Christ.
8. What lessons about salvation can we learn from the ark?
I. LESSON ONE: SALVATION REQUIRES AN ACT OF FAITH
1. See 6: 17-18. The world had never seen a flood on the magnitude of what God described. It is even possible that they had never seen rain before (Genesis 2:5-6)
2. But, God said it was going to rain! They believed what God said, and they acted on that belief. Ladies and gentlemen, that is the biblical definition of faith. God says it in His Word, we believe that God says, and we act on the basis of that belief.
3. Illus. of little girl at church
• One Sunday night after church, her daddy had put her on top of car. He held out his arms and said, “jump, I’ll catch you.”
• She walked right over to the edge of that car roof and jumped, fully certain that her daddy would be as good as his promise to catch her.
• I thought, “that’s as good an example of faith as I’ve ever seen. God speaks, we believe, we act.
4. Just as they entered the salvation boat by faith, so we enter salvation by faith! Ephesians 2:8
5. God says, “I died for you, and if you will turn control of your life over to me, I’ll save you.” We believe what God says, and we say, “here Lord. Take control of my life and save me.”
6. Notice something with me. In order to be saved from the flood, they had to enter the boat through an act of faith. In order to perish in the flood, all they had to do was… nothing!
7. In order to be saved and forgiven, you have to enter by faith into a personal relationship with Christ. In order to live under the condemnation of God, and one day go out into an eternity in hell, all you have to do is…nothing.
II. LESSON TWO: JESUS CHRIST IS THE ONLY WAY TO BE SAVED
1. See 6:16 There were three decks of various sizes, but there was only one (the door) door. There was only one way into the ark, take it or leave it! If you wanted into the salvation boat, you went through the door God provided!
2. Illus. of Ethel Thompson
• Took a trip to Washington D.C., and as part of trip took a tour of the White House.
• Got separated from group, took wrong door, grabbed by security and interviewed.
• Told one of the security men, “What do you expect? You shouldn’t put so many doors in this place!”
• My friend Ethel would have been safe on the ark, because there was only one door in the whole place!
3. Just as there is one door into the salvation boat, so there is one door into salvation. John 10:9.
4. There is not a Baptist way, a Methodist way, and a Catholic way. There is not a Buddhist way, a Muslim way, and a Christian way. There is not a works way, and a religion way, and a faith way. There is one way: the Jesus way!
5. The only way to be saved is through a personal faith in Jesus Christ. There are no exceptions, no loopholes, and no alternatives.
6. You say, “that’s pretty narrow!” No, it’s exceptionally large! Did you notice that God seems to give a size for nearly everything in the ark? Windows, length, height etc.
7. When you get to the door, no size is given. All we know it that it was big enough to accommodate the biggest animal. There is only one door into salvation, but it’s big enough for everybody. No matter what you have done, or how big your load of sin, the mercy found in Jesus is big enough to accommodate you!
III. LESSON THREE: THE SAFETY OF THE BELIEVER DEPENDS ON GOD
1. See
7:1 God called them into the salvation boat (come into… God was there).
7:16 God shut the door.
No instructions for any rudder or steering device. God steered the boat and saw to its safety.
2. Illus. of made for TV movie, “Noah.”
• Starred Jon Voight and Mary Steenbergen
• I was looking forward to it, but it was a mockery.
• Trying to get the door closed against to floodwaters and mob. Later, Noah arguing with sons over which way they should steer.
• Nothing could be further from the biblical revelation. God was in the boat, God shut the door, and God steered the craft.
• From start to finish, their safety was 100% God’s responsibility.
3. When you come to Jesus, your spiritual safety is God’s responsibility. It isn’t up to you to keep yourself safe in Christ, its up to God. He will never lose one of those who belong to Him!
CONCLUSION
1. What lessons can we learn about salvation from this ark?
Salvation requires an act of faith.
Jesus is the only way to be saved.
The safety of the believer depends on God.
2. Here’s the $64 question: have you trusted Christ as your savior?
3. Read this passage. Either you were in the ark (safe) or you were outside the ark (perished). Are you in the ark?
4. If the answer is yes, then what about your children? Are they in the ark?
