You Must Put Up With The Rain To See A Rainbow

Genesis 9:12-14 And God said, This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth. And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud.

One of the most interesting parts of nature is that of the rainbow.

The rainbow is defined as the arch of brilliant colors that appears in the sky when the sun shines after a shower of rain.

It forms in that part of the sky opposite the sun.

If the rain has been heavy, the bow may spread all the way across the sky, and its two ends seem to rest on the earth.

There are seven colors of the rainbow: violet, indigo, blue, green, yellow, orange, and red.

These blend into each other so much that most observers only see four or five colors.

Across the world, rainbows are known by many different names. Italians call it the “flashing arch”.

The people of Annam call a rainbow “the little window in the sky”.

North African tribes greet the rainbow as the “bride of the rain”.

People in central Europe call it the “bridge of the Holy Spirit”.

Whatever you call it , it is beautiful and wonderful.

Each of us have heard the story of Noah and the ark.

We understand Noah and his family were saved by the ark when God sent a flood to destroy the world that had become wicked.

At the end of the flood, and after a period of the earth drying, the inhabitants of the ark were allowed to leave the ark and return to the earth.

God then spoke to Noah and gave him various promises.

One of those promises involved the rainbow.

At the conclusion of a shower of rain, God said that he would put a bow in the sky that would be an everlasting sign of a promise between God and all living creatures on the earth.

This promise was that God would no longer destroy the whole earth with a flood.

Every time you and I see a rainbow fill the sky after the rain, we can be reminded of one of God’s awesome promises that have remained true throughout the ages of time.

The Bible associates the rainbow with a manifestation of divine glory.

The rainbow has always been a source relating to the divine promises of God’s glory and power.

The spiritual significance of Noah’s rainbow was a sign of God’s love and pledge of His sparing mercy.

In the book of Revelation there is a rainbow mentioned round about the throne of Jehovah.

This is a symbol of mercy to God’s children amidst the coming judgments on the wicked.

Throughout the scriptures, the rainbow is the emblem of God’s loving faithfulness to His covenant with His people, and the pledge of sure hope to them.

When we think of the rainbow, we think of the awesomeness of God.

We are reminded that He is a God who keeps his promises.

We see that God will never forget His people regardless of the problem.

We understand that there is hope from the sin and wickedness of the world.

It is representative of the Christian life which allows us to walk with Him and be a part of a heavenly Kingdom.

I think it safe to say that we all want the rainbow in our life.

We want an assurance that God is with us and will not forget who we are.

We need to be reminded of His love and closeness.

We forget too often of the hope that is within us and need God to wrap his arms of promise around us and assure he cares.

I want the rainbow in my life.

I want to know that God cares and loves and keeps his promise.

Yet there is something that is most evident in the scripture when God gave this distinct promise to Noah.

Three times God promised a rainbow to Noah.

Notice:

Verse 13 “I do set my bow in the cloud”.

Verse 14 “When I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud”.

Verse 16 “And the bow shall be in the cloud”.

As I read these verses over and over something seemed to stand out like a neon sign.

The Lord promised a rainbow.

Thank God for the rainbow.

I am grateful for the covenant of the rainbow.

That assures me and gives me strength.

However, every time he promised a rainbow, he also promised a cloud!

Oh no!