Noah: Just a man who is a Just man
Genesis 6
At a burning building in NYC Harlem district, a blind girl was perched on the fourth floor window. The firemen had become desperate. They could not fit the ladder truck between the buildings, and they could not get her to jump into the net, which she, or course, could not see. Finally, her father arrived and shouted through the bullhorn that there was a net and that she was to jump on his command. The girl jumped and was so completely relaxed that she did not break a bone or even strain a muscle in the four-story fall. Why? Because she trusted her father completely, when she heard her father’s voice she did what he said to do and trusted him to help.
Noah is that type of man. It is for this reason that Noah is called a just and righteous man. Noah believed God even though he did not fully understand, he trusted God. For it is God who takes ordinary men, gives them an extraordinary task, in order to show HIS greatness.
There is a common statement that says, “A person seldom rises far above the average goodness, or sinks far below the average wickedness of the age in which he lives.” Most fall in the middle with some who would press to the extremes. John Maxwell, in his book “21 Irrefutable laws of leadership” calls this the law of the lid. The height to which one rises or falls is proportionate to the society, which one lives. Noah is a man who is not like his contemporaries. His belief in God helps him to rise over and above. He is just a man who rises to be a just man.
GE 6:5 The LORD saw how great man’s wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time. 6 The LORD was grieved that he had made man on the earth, and his heart was filled with pain. 7 So the LORD said, "I will wipe mankind, whom I have created, from the face of the earth--men and animals, and creatures that move along the ground, and birds of the air--for I am grieved that I have made them." 8 But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD.
There are differences between Noah and his contemporaries.
1. Legal Standing:
a. Noah was a sinner whose faith in God made him justified before God. It is his faith in God that helps him find favor in the eyes of the LORD.
b. Abraham is such a man. (Romans 4:3 and James 2:23)
c. Righteous and blameless do not mean sinless, just forgiven.
2. Spiritual Character
a. Noah is righteous in regards to his heart. It is because his heart was right with God that he is by nature born again by Grace.
b. His contemporaries are alienated by ignorance and hardness of heart.
1. As were the people in Nineveh, there were those who did not know their right from the left, did not know right from wrong.
2. Hardness of heart has to do with knowing God’s decrees but not following them.
RO 1:18 The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, 19 since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. 20 For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities--his eternal power and divine nature--have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse. 21 For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.
Today, we can know all righteousness, we can know all God’s decrees, we can knowledge that can fathom all mysteries, but if we do not accept the Grace of God, we have NOTHING and we are alienated from God. His righteous judgment is going come, and we can be found short of His Glory.
I know there are those who preach that God will send strong warning before his judgment will fall finally on the earth. There once was a man who lived in a town that experienced a severe flood. As the waters began to rise a police car came by to warn the man to flee, “not to worry, God will save me” the man replied. The waters soon rose above the man’s porch and a patrol boat came by, “get in” they called. “Not to worry, God will save me” replied the man. Soon the water rose up to the man’s roof, he climbed out on the roof and a helicopter came by, “grab the rope” they shouted, “not to worry, God will save me” the man replied. A short time later the man drowned. He appeared before God and said; “Why didn’t you save me?” God said, “I sent the police, a boat and a helicopter what more did you want?” God sent strong warning in the day of Noah. Noah warned the people, in plain sight he built the ark. But when time came to close the door, it was too late. So it will be when the Lord returns.
Noah did what he was told even though he did not understand it, and God counted him righteous.
3. Outer Walk
Like Enoch, Noah walked with God. His daily life was a testimony to this Walk. He walked with God, even though no one else did. His contemporaries walked in defiance of God’s ways.
Today we may try to excuse ourselves.
“I know its wrong, but…
“That’s okay, God will forgive me.”
“God knows me and knows I can’t help it.”
Or maybe “Who cares.”
Today people would rather believe a lie than give in to the truth. They would rather gamble on a lie than give themselves over to be accountable to God. The rain clouds of judgment are coming, the warning has been sounded, are you ready to give in to God, or drown in judgment?
