The Ground is Drying

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Bishop Richard Miller

All Church Church of God

Sermon • Submitted 7 months ago • Presented 7 months ago • 33:05

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Scripture Reference

Genesis 8:1–19 NLT

But God remembered Noah and all the wild animals and livestock with him in the boat. He sent a wind to blow across the earth, and the floodwaters began to recede. The underground waters stopped flowing, and the torrential rains from the sky were stopped. So the floodwaters gradually receded from the earth. After 150 days, exactly five months from the time the flood began, the boat came to rest on the mountains of Ararat. Two and a half months later, as the waters continued to go down, other mountain peaks became visible. After another forty days, Noah opened the window he had made in the boat and released a raven. The bird flew back and forth until the floodwaters on the earth had dried up. He also released a dove to see if the water had receded and it could find dry ground. But the dove could find no place to land because the water still covered the ground. So it returned to the boat, and Noah held out his hand and drew the dove back inside. After waiting another seven days, Noah released the dove again. This time the dove returned to him in the evening with a fresh olive leaf in its beak. Then Noah knew that the floodwaters were almost gone. He waited another seven days and then released the dove again. This time it did not come back. Noah was now 601 years old. On the first day of the new year, ten and a half months after the flood began, the floodwaters had almost dried up from the earth. Noah lifted back the covering of the boat and saw that the surface of the ground was drying. Two more months went by, and at last the earth was dry! Then God said to Noah, “Leave the boat, all of you—you and your wife, and your sons and their wives. Release all the animals—the birds, the livestock, and the small animals that scurry along the ground—so they can be fruitful and multiply throughout the earth.” So Noah, his wife, and his sons and their wives left the boat. And all of the large and small animals and birds came out of the boat, pair by pair.

Some Seasons are Lengthy

Genesis 7 begins with God telling Noah to bring his family and the animals to board the ark because in seven days the rain waters would begin to fall.

Also, Genesis 7:11 states that in the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, on the seventeenth day of the month, that on that day all the fountains of the great deep burst forth and the windows of the heavens were opened. And rain fell on the earth for forty days and forty nights.

So, at this point Noah and his family have been on the ark for forty days plus seven. Said differently they have been there for forty-seven days or approximately six and a half weeks.

After the forty days and nights of torrential downpours, verse 7:17 states that the waters increased and bore up the ark and it rose above the earth or we would say it began to float.

Can you imagine what they must have been thinking? First of all, there is Noah hearing from God and making the ark in the first place. Then there are all the animals that came and boarded the ark. Also, there are the torrential rains for forty days. During all of this the ark has seemed to be a physical demonstration of God’s promise to keep them safe when all of a sudden, the ark then begins to float on the water! This must certainly have created some reason for alarm considering the weight of the ark, the cargo and passengers aboard not to mention that they were now floating away from their homes to an unknown destination.

There are times in our life when we do not always know how long we must endure our challenges or even at times what things will be like when it’s over.

This can be completely nerve racking and overwhelming for many people who cannot rest or have peace without some sense of security.

But I have some good news for you which is that the Lord is trustworthy. Amen. He will never leave us or forsake us and even if we don’t always know the how we certainly can stand firm on the promises that He will see us through and keep us safe if we trust Him and stay committed to Him and follow His ways.

As Christians, everything that happens to us is Father filtered and our discomforts are either to grow us in some way or are being used for His plans and purposes and not to harm us just for harms sake.

Verse 7:34 states that the waters prevailed on the earth for 150 days or 5 months in our calendar.

So at this point Noah and his family and the animals have now been on the ark for approximately 197 days or 6 ½ months and they still had not yet come to rest on the mountains of Ararat.

The Waiting

Moments like these are where our faith gets put to the test.

You see, we hear from God, so we obey and follow God.

We trust Him and things are going along as He said and as we planned.

Then there comes that period of time I refer to as the waiting.

The waiting can have multiple elements but in this case what I am referring to is the sustained period of time that happens after the events which He has prepared you for and before the time which you start to see progress on your situations or receive your blessing.

The waiting is the time when those who do not have a strong faith can often become discouraged feeling like the Lord has forsaken them or that they do not hear from God.

Others may give up on the Lords plan for their lives all together believing the lies of the devil that things will never get better or that they are not really called to follow the Lords direction in this situation.

There will be situations and circumstances in this life that are beyond our control. But before, during and after our challenges we can take heart knowing that Jesus does not abandon us.

So we must stand strong in the lord and during the season of waiting take extra time to focus on the fundamentals of our faith which are praying, studying the Bible, attending church, serving others as you can and being faithful stewards in all that He gives us. Said simply loving God and loving people.

You will find no better friend to talk to in your season of waiting than our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He is closer than a friend, His ways are higher than our ways, His wisdom is truth for He is truth and His love is pure love for He Is Love! Hallelujah!

God is Faithful to Restore and Bless

Chapter 8 begins by saying that God remembered Noah and all the animals with him in the Ark and that God made a wind blow over the earth and the waters subsided.

The Lord closed the heavens from rain after the 40 days and nights. Then, He made a wind blow over the earth so that the waters would begin to subside. The waters continued to abate for another 150 days.

Then in the 7th month the ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat. Noah and his family then waited there with the animals and on the 10th month the tops of the mountains were seen.

Have you ever been waiting for your breakthrough or working toward a goal and you see the Lord start to move on your behalf? That is one of the great feelings in life.

You see Noah was not on land yet. He was not about to step off the ark for quite some time, but he could see it there out on the horizon, the mountains. Yes, when you get those moments even if they are small take the time to praise the Lord. The ark had been resting for three months until the mountains could be seen. Yes, they still had a way to go but things were looking up.

Here me today, you may not have complete victory yet, but things are looking up.

You might now be at your final destination, but you are on the road.

You may still be in need, but you can hear that help is coming.

Victory belongs to the Lord and to His people so whatever you are going through just put your hand in His hand and start to celebrate that while you may not be where you will be you bless His holy name you are not where you were. Hallelujah!

If people only knew how far we have come, then they wouldn’t be critical of where we are now.

Yes, He has cleaned us up and put our feet on solid ground but guess what the best is yet to come, and He is not even close to being done with us yet. Thank you, Jesus! Give Him praise!

Forty days later the Bible says that Noah was able to open a window and send out a Raven who went to and fro as the waters were drying up.

Then just a little while longer, Noah sent the dove, but she had no place to set her foot, so she returned.

Noah did not get upset or discouraged but he trusted the Lord and a week later when Noah sent out the dove, she came back with a freshly plucked olive leaf.

The Bible says that Noah knew the waters had subsided and one week later when he sent the dove again, this time she did not return to him.

Verse 13 tells us that on the 601st year on the 1st month Noah was able to remove the covering of the ark and the face of the ground was dry.

Then on the second month the earth had dried out and the Lord told Noah it was safe to leave the ark. So, Noah obeyed God and was blessed.

Conclusion

In closing, today we just saw in this passage of Scripture that Noah, his family, the wild beasts and the livestock were on the ark for slightly over a year. It would be exceedingly difficult for any of us to imagine being confined on a boat in troubled waters for that long.

What it must have been like for Noah and his family to be called by the Lord to do something truly epic with building the ark and enduring this journey. Especially with the knowledge that the world was being judged and feeling the wrath of God.

Throughout the whole journey we can see that God was faithful and kept His promises to His people and though it was not easy for them, Noah, his family and all of the animals made it safely to dry ground once again.

So, I just want to encourage each of you today. I know that we are all dealing with something. There are some which have had difficult times for many days or will for many more days to come.

Just like Noah, it may be that God will have you endure a long season of discomfort because He is about to do something big in you, for you or through you or perhaps it is to protect you.

Whatever your situation today please do not be discouraged or weary but rather have peace knowing that Jesus Christ loves you and will make a way for you to have victory if you place your faith in Him and walk in His ways.

I cannot tell you how long your season of waiting will be but what I do know is that God loves His people and that He will never leave us or forsake us and that my friend gives me peace and joy despite life’s circumstances.

If you do not know Jesus and want to share in the hope and promises only He can provide than please take a moment pray to Jesus and ask Him to forgive you of your sins and to become the only God in your life. If you do then no matter what life brings you can have His peace which passes all understanding and the promise of heaven as your home when you die.

Be encouraged today that Jesus loves you all and while the flood waters may still surround you stay strong because the ground is drying.

Thank you so much for joining me today.

And remember our joy is in Jesus!

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