Hebrews 11:7 7 By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith. - NKJV
As we continue our study of the topic of faith, more specifically saving faith, we have been led by God to examine what it looks like in the 11th chapter of Hebrews.
Hebrews was not only written to aid us in our worship in that it emphasizes the deity and supremacy of Christ, but it was also written to emphasize the dangers of apostasy or falling away from Christ! It has warnings such as the following written throughout the letter…
Hebrews 2:1 We must pay the most careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. .-NIV
Hebrews 3:12 See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. .-NIV
Hebrews 6:4 For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, 5 and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, 6 if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an open shame.-NIV
And so the writer of Hebrews does not only exhort us to believe, to exercise/demonsrate/dispay a saving faith…and here is what it looks like….
Hebrews 10 (KJV)
36 For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise:
37 “For yet a little while,
And He who is coming will come and will not tarry.
38 Now the just shall live by faith;
But if anyone draws back,
My soul has no pleasure in him.”
39 But we are not of those who draw back to perdition, but of those who believe to the saving of the soul
Having said that we see in today’s scripture passage another example, another illustration, or demonstrating of what soul saving faith looks like, let’s read that one verse togehter…here is what it looks like….
Hebrews 11:7 By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith. -NKJV
I’ve entitled after one of the most amazing men, in the bible, who in my mind demonstrated one of the phenomenal expressions of soul saving faith…. in this age of “easy belief-ism” my message title today is…
Noah – A Faith That Works!
And by that I mean, not only one that acts, but one that can actually save the soul!
Which is SUCH AN IMPORTANT CONSIDERATION IN THE WORD OF GOD…
James in his epistle PUTS IT BEFORE US in the 2nd chapter when he asks…
James 2:14 What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can [that kind of] faith save him? -NKJV
Q; The implication? NO!
James 2:26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.-NKJV
SO AGAIN BELOVED LET’S LOOK AT WHAT A LIVING FAITH LOOKS LIKE BY LOOKING AT FIRST OF ALL….AT….
I. The Conditions in the life of this man named, Noah.
Genesis 6:1 Now it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born to them, 2 the sons of God saw the daughters of men, that they were beautiful; and they took wives for themselves of all whom they chose.
Let me deal with a controversy right up front in order to explain the conditions!
A) The controversy?
1. Who "the sons of God," are and the “daughters of men”?
a) There have been primarily two major interpretations
b) The daughters of men refers to Cain’s posterity (his “ungodly” line) .
c) The sons of God, refers to the godly line of Seth (Genesis 5)
d) That is one interpretation.
2. The second is that "the sons of God," are a group of fallen angelic beings?
a) How do you clear it up?
B) The context?
1. Genesis 4 and 5 are genealogical chapters tracing the development of the ungodly and rebellious line of Cain and the godly line of Seth.
C) The conclusion?
1. The contextual evidence seems to favor the "the sons of God," is to be interpreted as the being the godly line of Seth.
a) That term “sons of God” is also used of men, the Israelites for example in…
Deuteronomy 32:8 When the Most High gave to the nations their inheritance, when he divided mankind, he fixed the borders of the peoples according to the number of the sons of God- ESV
b) In the NT:
c) Refers to Christians.
Galatians 3:26 You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus
Ok that seems to clear it up where does the confusion come from?
D) The confusion?
1. The phrase, "the sons of God," in the Old Testament is more often used for angelic beings, than to human beings!
Job 1:6 Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came among them.
Job 2:1 Again there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them to present himself before the LORD.
E) My conclusion?
Let us continue in our text says…
Genesis 6:3 And the Lord said, “My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, for he is indeed flesh; yet his days shall be one hundred and twenty years.” 4 There were giants (The Nephilim ) on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of men and they bore children to them. Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown.
1. God said that his judgment of the earth was upon men.
2. Another reason is the answer that AIG gives:
Bodie Hodge – Answers in Genesis
Though it can be argued because angels did take on the appearance of men such as Gabriel (Daniel 9:21; Luke 1:11–20) and the two angels sent to destroy Sodom (Genesis 19:1–13), (but) to assume these angels had reproductive capabilities is another issue. Also, these angels that appeared as men were not the fallen ones. We have no biblical support of fallen angels ever appearing as men or of having physical DNA.
Bodie Hodge – Answers in Genesis
The spiritual can produce physical offspring, as witnessed by the Holy Spirit overshadowing Mary. However, the Holy Spirit is the Creator and has that power (Psalm 104:30). Do fallen angels? The Bible simply doesn’t reveal this.
3. Third reason:
a) How did Satan take down the human race in the beginning?
Genesis 3:1 Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?”- NKJV
i. He apparently entered a snake!
ii. Possible?
Bodie Hodge – Answers in Genesis
The Bible seems to portray Satan and his angels as disembodied spirits. So then, how can both Satan and a real serpent be the culprit? From other passages we find an important principle. Satan and demons can enter into people and animals and influence them. For example, Judas was entered by Satan in Luke 22:3; and the swine were entered by Legion, which consisted of many demons (Mark 5, Matthew 8).
iii. So for me a safe place to land on this issue is this - demon spirits entered men!
iv. And used their physicality to further produce and promote Cain’s ungodly line!
1 John 3:12 Do not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own actions were evil and his brother's were righteous.
WHAT IS THE POINT OF THIS EXPLAINATION?
1. This was the condition of Noah’s day!
Genesis 6:5 Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
KJV- And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually
a) Their every idea or embodied thought, which presented itself to the mind through the working of the heart—that is, the whole inner nature of man—“was only evil continually”— all the day, from morning to night, without reproof of conscience or fear of the Divine justice. A more forcible picture of complete depravity could scarcely be drawn; and this corruption of man’s inner nature is ascribed to the overthrow of moral and social restraints.
2. RESULT?
Genesis 6:11 The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.
a) Sound familiar?
Genesis 6:12 So God looked upon the earth, and indeed it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth.
Genesis 6:6 And the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart.
Genesis 6:6 And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.-KJV
b) This is an anthropomorphism. (the attribution of human characteristics or behavior to a god, animal, or object).
c) God isn’t sorry, regret, nor repents regarding anything he does, this statement is meant to express his emotion.
d) He is an emotional Being. He was grieved over what man had done.
Ephesians 4:30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
Genesis 6:7 So the Lord said, “I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them.”
But let us consider this….
II. The Character of Noah.
Genesis 6:8 But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.
A) Point?
1. This is the first time and place in the bible where grace is mentioned!
2. Why did Noah find grace in the eyes of the Lord?
HENRY M. MORRIS III, D.MIN. - The language of Genesis 6:8 gives us insight into Noah’s character. “Found” is a simple active perfect verb, not a passive one. Thus, Noah found favor—grace—in God’s eyes because he was actively looking for it.
2. How do we know he was actively looking for it?
Genesis 6:9a This is the genealogy of Noah. Noah was a just man,
Genesis 6:9 "Noah was a righteous man - NASB
3. Implications or the connotations here?
a) His worship was acceptable!
Hebrews 11:4 By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts; and through it he being dead still speaks
b) Abel’s sacrifice spoke to Noah.
c) Like Abel, he approached God on the basis of an acceptable sacrifice, a substitutionary blood sacrifice.
d) The implication is that Noah worshipped God in a manner that pleased God!
Genesis 6:9b perfect in his generations.
e) Perfect — ???????- tä·mem'
i. Complete, whole, entire, sound, healthy, wholesome, unimpaired, innocent, having integrity.
ii.. The implication is that he had a heart that was “perfect” toward God.
2 Chronicles 6:19a For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him
iii.. Whose heart is perfect, i.e. upright and sincere
iv. That is, one that is sincere in his desire to do God's will.
D) Point?
1. One that was much unlike the people of his generation!
And then it says that….
Genesis 6:9b Noah walked with God.
2. Just like Enoch did!
E) Progression?
1. Worship – Walk?
a) "What does it mean to walk with God?"
A. W. Tozer - "Walking with God is living in a state of unbroken worship."
And Amos also says…
Amos 3:3 “Can two walk together, except they be agreed?”
b). To walk with God means that you and God are in agreement about life.
c) To walk with God means you have aligned your life, your will with His.
d) It means it is your heart’s desire is to please God
e) To walk with God means you do want to glorify God
F) Pattern?
1. When you worship God. (In spirit and in truth)
2. And you endeavor to walk with God (Sincerely & consistently).
3. The next thing that is going to happen is that you are now ready to work for God!
Let’s look at….
III. The Calling of Noah.
Genesis 6: 13 And God said to Noah, “The end of all flesh has come before Me, for the earth is filled with violence through them; and behold, I will destroy them with the earth.
A) Call?
Genesis 6:14 Make yourself an ark of gopherwood; make rooms in the ark, and cover it inside and outside with pitch. 15 And this is how you shall make it: The length of the ark shall be three hundred cubits, its width fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits. 16 You shall make a window for the ark, and you shall finish it to a cubit from above; and set the door of the ark in its side. You shall make it with lower, second, and third decks.
1. Build an ark!
a) Build it according to my specifications.
b) Why?
Genesis 6:17 And behold, I Myself am bringing floodwaters on the earth, to destroy from under heaven all flesh in which is the breath of life; everything that is on the earth shall die.
Ok so…
B) In Accordance with a - Coming Crisis Catastrophe!
But ….
Genesis 6:18 But I will establish My covenant with you;
C) The Call is coupled with a Covenant!
1. This is the first time the word Covenant is used in the bible!
a) Covenant-???????-ber·eth'
i. An alliance, a pledge, an agreement between two parties.
2. Covenants are a central theme in both the OT and NT regarding the relationship between God and man.
3. There often contain within them mutual responsibilities, obligations, and promises on both sides of a covenant.
a) Example: Marriage.
b)Noah’s part:
i. Build the ark
ii. Get in it!
Genesis 6:18b and you shall go into the ark—you, your sons, your wife, and your sons’ wives with you. 19 And of every living thing of all flesh you shall bring two of every sort into the ark, to keep them alive with you; they shall be male and female.
20 Of the birds after their kind, of animals after their kind, and of every creeping thing of the earth after its kind, two of every kind will come to you to keep them alive.
IV. The Commitment of Noah.
Genesis 6: 22 Thus Noah did; according to all that God commanded him, so he did.
A) Point?
1. That is the key theme of Noah’s life!
Genesis 7:5 And Noah did all that the Lord commanded him.
Genesis 7:8b all creatures that move along the ground, 9 male and female, came to Noah and entered the ark, as God had commanded Noah.
Genesis 7:16 The animals going in were male and female of every living thing, as God had commanded Noah. Then the Lord shut him in.
a) That is what soul saving faith looks like!
Matthew 28: 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
b) Please consider with me….
V. The Conflict (By this I mean the inner conflict) of Noah!
Henry Blackaby – The Seven Realities of Experiencing God- Reality 5. - God’s invitation for you to work with him
always leads you to a crisis of belief that requires faith and action
What would be…
A) Crisis or the conflict with the calling?
1. The Length of it!
Genesis 6:3 And the Lord said, "My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, for he is indeed flesh; yet his days shall be one hundred and twenty years." – ESV
a) Noah it is going to take you 120 years to fulfill this call!
i) It is going to take 120 years of perseverance, stick-to-it-ness to get it done!
2. The Logic of the calling?
a) Ark - ?????? têbâh, tay-baw'; a box!
i. A big floating device!
ii. No rudder
iii.No sails
iv. No steering device
v. One that weighs about 1,450 tons!
3. The Largeness of his calling?
a) 450 – 510 feet long, 75-85 feet wide, and 45- 51 feet high.
b) And by the way, there are no lumber yards, you are going to have to chop down every tree!
4. The Utter Lunacy of his calling?
a) And by that I mean the “insanity” of it!
2 Corinthians 5:13 If we are “out of our mind,” as some say, it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you.
b) Why would some say that Noah was out of his mind? Listen…
Genesis 7:4b I will cause it to rain on the earth forty days and forty nights, and I will destroy from the face of the earth all living things that I have made.
c) Rain? None up to that time!
Genesis 2: 4 This is the history of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens, 5 before any plant of the field was in the earth and before any herb of the field had grown. For the Lord God had not caused it to rain on the earth, and there was no man to till the ground; 6 but a mist went up from the earth and watered the whole face of the ground. 7 And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being
d) The earth had an In-ground sprinkler system!
e) Water falling out of the sky?
g) I can imagine the struggle that Noah had trying to perceive this phenomenon of water falling out of the sky!!
e) Something that he had never seen, and had never happened before!
f) And he lived 600 years before he saw it!
Genesis 7:11 In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, on that day all the fountains of the great deep were broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened.
g) The “fountains of the great deep” are probably oceanic or possibly subterranean sources of water.
BUT THAT IS WHY I NAMED THE NEXT POINT…
VI. The Christianity of Noah!
1Peter 1:8 Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, 9 for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
A) Point?
1. That is what saving faith looks like!
2. You don’t have to see to believe!!
John 20:29 Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
Hebrews 11:7a By faith Noah,
Hebrew 11:7b being divinely warned of things not yet seen,
VII. The Conviction of Noah?
A) Conviction?
1. What is faith?
Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.
a) Conviction -??e???? –elegchos
i. a proof, that by which a thing is proved or tested
ii. a means by which something is brought to light, exposed.
B) Conclusion?
1. He had a conviction regarding God’s Prophetic Word!
Genesis 6:3a Then God said to Noah, “The end of all flesh has come before Me; for the earth is filled with violence because of them; and behold, I am about to destroy them with the earth.
2. He acted on /obeyed God’s Commanding Word!
Genesis 6:3b (Thus) Make (this is a command) for yourself an ark of gopher wood…
a) He was moved by God’s Word.
Luke 5:5 But Simon answered and said to Him, “Master, we have toiled all night and caught nothing; nevertheless at Your word I will let down the net.”
b) What moved him?
Hebrews 11:7c moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household,
c) Please note: Not in worldly carnal fear, but godly fear!
NASB- in reverence prepared an ark
i. Reverence - e??aß??µa?- eulabeomai
a.To stand in awe of.
b.To give careful heed or to be moved with reverent regard/respect for something or someone.
Albert Barnes- His reverence and respect for God induced him to act under the belief that what he had said was true, and that the calamity which he had predicted would certainly come upon the world.
Matthew Poole - All great admiration (for God) has some fear joined with it: God’s appearing, though in mercy, was ever full of terror and amazement; what will his appearing be, when he shall come in judgment to render vengeance?
Ok so that is the conviction of Noah, but let’s have some real talk…let’s talk about…
VIII. The Cost for Noah?
Let me quote Jesus first before I make my point?
Luke 14: 28 “Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it? 29 For if you lay the foundation and are not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule you, 30 saying, ‘This person began to build and wasn’t able to finish.’ 31 “Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Won’t he first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand? 32 If he is not able, he will send a delegation while the other is still a long way off and will ask for terms of peace. 33 In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples.
A) What did Noah’s calling cost him?
1. Livelihood?
a) How would he find time to do anything else?
b) If he did, how would he finance it – it had to come out of his own pocket!
2. Relationships?
3. Reputation?
a) Crazy Noah ! Building a boat in his backyard!
4. Sanity?
a) God did I hear you right?
b) God speaks to Noah four times in Genesis only twice before the flood
i. Build it (6:13-14)
ii. (120 years later) Genesis 7:1 - Get into it heart
IX. The Consequence of Noah’s faith?
Hebrews 11:7d by (it) which he condemned the world….
A) Condemned - ?ata?????- katakríno
1. to give judgment against, to judge worthy of punishment a. to condemn
2. by one's good example to render another's wickedness the more evident and censurable
3. IE., HE PASSED JUDGMENT ON THE WORLD!
A) How?
Jarrod Jacobs- Noah condemned the world at that time because he followed God and had the backbone to stand for his convictions and preach God’s word to others. He did God’s will regardless of the consequences to himself or his family. There are too few people like this today. Let us stand behind God’s will and have the backbone that was characteristic of Noah!
1. By his life!
a) Every tree he felled, every spike he drove, every year that passed, that he remained obedient to the project he was condemning the world,
2. His lips!
2 Peter 2: 4 For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them in chains of darkness to be held for judgment; 5 if he did not spare the ancient world when he brought the flood on its ungodly people, but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others.
Charles Spurgeon -He went out and preached to them, but many would not hear him, for they thought him mad. Those who did listen to him said to each other, “He is building a vessel upon dry land—is he sane? We are scientific, and therefore we know how absurd his preaching is; no one ever heard of the world being drowned by a flood.” I cannot reproduce the letters that were written about the sturdy patriarch, nor can I recount the spiteful things that were said by the gossips, but I have no doubt they were very clever, and very sarcastic. Those productions of genius are all forgotten now, but Noah is remembered still. For all the scorning of many he went on obeying his God: he stuck to the lines on which God had placed him, and he could not be turned to the right hand or to the left, because he had a real faith in God.
X. The Conclusion to Noah’s life?
Hebrews 11:7e and became….
A) Point?
1. Became - (ginomai) means to come into existence.
2. This means that he come into the existence into someone that he wasn’t before… but he was now….
Q: What?.
Hebrews 11:7f heir of the righteousness which is according to faith. –NKJV
3. WHICH IS THE ONLY RIGHTEOUSNESS THAT CAN SAVE!!
Romans 3: 10 As it is written: “There is no one righteous, not even one;
Romans 3:21a But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. 22 This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe.
Spurgeon - God declared him righteous—not righteous by his works, although his works, following upon his faith, proved him to be righteous.
The proclaimer of God’s righteousness became the inheritor of God’s righteousness!
CLOSE…
1. Does your faith - work?
a) By that I mean - Can it save?
Ephesians 2: 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
2. Does your faith witness?
AT Robertson - There are two requirements necessary for one to be a witness
(1) A witness must have seen that about which he or she seeks to bear witness.
(2) A witness must tell others what he or she has seen.
3. Does your faith walk?
AW Pink- Witnessing and working ('service') is what are so much emphasized today. Yet dear reader, Heb. 11 does not begin with the example of Noah. No indeed. Noah was preceded by Enoch, and for this reason: There can be no Divinely-acceptable witness or work unless and until there is a walking with God!…
4. Does your faith worship acceptably?
John 4:23 Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. 24 God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth
Albert Barnes- with the heart, and not merely in form.
