Invited into the Ark
God’s Invitations Defined
God’s Invitation to Noah
Genesis 7:1-7
The Lord then said to Noah, "Go into the ark, you and your whole family, because I have found you righteous in this generation. [2] Take with you seven of every kind of clean animal, a male and its mate, and two of every kind of unclean animal, a male and its mate, [3] and also seven of every kind of bird, male and female, to keep their various kinds alive throughout the earth. [4] Seven days from now I will send rain on the earth for forty days and forty nights, and I will wipe from the face of the earth every living creature I have made."
[5] And Noah did all that the Lord commanded him.
[6] Noah was six hundred years old when the floodwaters came on the earth. [7] And Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives entered the ark to escape the waters of the flood. [16b] Then the Lord shut him in.
God’s Invitations: “Calls of Love”
"He saith unto them, Come and see. They came and saw where He dwelt, and abode with Him that day for it was about the tenth hour" (John 1:39). This is the first of the gracious invitations of the Lord Jesus to "Come" to Him. On this occasion, right after His baptism by John, He invited two potential disciples to come with Him to His dwelling place. Very likely this was an outdoor mat somewhere, for He soon afterwards acknowledged that "the Son of Man hath no where to lay His head" (Matthew 8:20). Nevertheless, one night of abiding with Jesus changed their lives. Soon afterwards He issued another invitation to them. "Come ye after me, and I will make you to become fishers of men" (Mark 1:17), and they never went home again. First He invites us to come to see and know Him, then to come with Him to win others. There is also the wonderful invitation to come to Him for relief from our burdens and cares. "Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest" (Matthew 11:28). And note His promise to those who do accept His invitation: "Him that cometh to me I will in no wise case out" (John 6:37).
There were personal invitations. To Zacchaeus, the seeking sinner glimpsing Jesus from a sycamore tree, He said: "Come down: for today I must abide at thy house" (Luke 19:5). To his friend Lazarus, dead and bound in a tomb, He cried: "Lazarus, come forth" (John 11:43), and not even the grave could prevent his accepting such a call.
There are other invitations from the Lord, with gracious promises to those who come, but note especially the final invitation of the Bible, "And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely" (Revelation 22:17). HMM, Days of Praise, April 10.
Let us start to review God’s invitations toward us…
An Invitation to Survive the Flood
Noah stood apart from the wickedness of his time
And Noah did all that the Lord commanded him. Genesis 7:5 (NIV)
God called Noah to this because he chose to separate himself from all the sin that was going on around him. Would we receive God’s invitation in our time?
Because of Noah’s stand in Righteousness, God offered him and his family grace…
God offers His grace to men and women facing certain judgment.
God still offers grace to sinful people today if they will only repent and receive it.
Grace is the undeserved favor of God.
Will you receive God’s grace today?
An invitation to take a step of faith
Noah invited to come into the ark
The Lord then said to Noah, "Go into the ark, you and your whole family, because I have found you righteous in this generation. Genesis 7:1 (NIV)
Noah had built the ark by faith, now he must enter
“By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith” (Hebrews 11:7).
Noah’s salvation was by grace through faith…no different than a New Testament believer.
For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God-- [9] not by works, so that no one can boast. Ephes. 2:8-9
Noah was saved from the wrath of God in the flood, today we are saved from the wrath by faith in Jesus Christ.
Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him." John 3:36
An Invitation to Noah’s family
The Lord then said to Noah, "Go into the ark, you and your whole family, because I have found you righteous in this generation. Genesis 7:1 (NIV)
God’s great desire is that all men might be saved, that our families might come to salvation…
He then brought them out and asked, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" [31] They replied, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved--you and your household." Acts 16:30-31
The actions of Godly fathers and mothers are evident in the lives of their children and children’s children…
God’s faithfulness is to all generations
Your faithfulness continues through all generations; you established the earth, and it endures. Psalm 119:90
One of the most important tasks you and I are given is to lead our families to Christ…
“And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up” (Deut. 6:7).
“Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it” (Proverbs 22:6).
We will be looking at God’s invitations in the next number of weeks, of course invitations beg an answer.
How will you respond to God’s invitation today?
Will you accept God’s invitation to come to Him in faith?
What are we doing to ensure that our families are saved and walking with God?
Just as in Noah’s day, a storm of wrath against sin is coming and our response will position ourselves and our families to be able to stand or not in that terrible and righteous storm.
Are all of your loved ones in the Ark of Salvation God offers?
