Grace - Noah

Grace in the Old Testament - Noah (Genesis 6-9) January 7, 2023 Grace is one of those churchy words. But what does it mean, actually? Simply put, grace means "unmerited favor." For a long time, I viewed grace as a "New Testament" concept. For example, I immediately think of Ephesians 2:8 when Paul states: 8 FOR BY GRACE YOU HAVE BEEN SAVED THROUGH FAITH. AND THIS IS NOT YOUR OWN DOING; IT IS THE GIFT OF GOD. Pastor and teacher John Piper wrote that in the ESV, the word "grace" is used 131 times, 124 of those are in the New Testament. Of course, the ultimate understanding of grace in found in Jesus Christ, Himself. Here is how the Apostle John (1:14-17) put it: 14 AND THE WORD BECAME FLESH AND DWELT AMONG US, AND WE HAVE SEEN HIS GLORY, GLORY AS OF THE ONLY SON FROM THE FATHER, FULL OF GRACE AND TRUTH. 15 (JOHN BORE WITNESS ABOUT HIM, AND CRIED OUT, "THIS WAS HE OF WHOM I SAID, 'HE WHO COMES AFTER ME RANKS BEFORE ME, BECAUSE HE WAS BEFORE ME.' ") 16 FOR FROM HIS FULLNESS WE HAVE ALL RECEIVED, GRACE UPON GRACE. 17 FOR THE LAW WAS GIVEN THROUGH MOSES; GRACE AND TRUTH CAME THROUGH JESUS CHRIST. You see, John effectively says that Jesus is grace. So, we've well established that grace is a New Testament concept, but what if I told you that grace is all throughout the Old Testament as well? Both Malachi 3:6 and Hebrews 13:8 remind us that God is the same - yesterday, today, and forever - that He does not change, so we can be confident that God showed His grace, even in the Old Testament. For the next six weeks, we will be in a series we're calling: Grace in the Old Testament, where - you guessed it - we will be exploring examples of God's grace from the Old Testament. We're going to begin with a very familiar Old Testament figure and story - Noah. Noah is first introduced at the end of Genesis 5, and his account - and the account of the flood - carries us through chapter 10. Obviously, we won't have time - nor do I think you want me to do so - to spend our time this morning in the complete story, but it is important to set up the story, to understand the background and general meaning of the account. Let's begin by reading Genesis 6:5-8: 5 THE LORD SAW THAT THE WICKEDNESS OF MAN WAS GREAT IN THE EARTH, AND THAT EVERY INTENTION OF THE THOUGHTS OF HIS HEART WAS ONLY EVIL CONTINUALLY. 6 AND THE LORD REGRETTED THAT HE HAD MADE MAN ON THE EARTH, AND IT GRIEVED HIM TO HIS HEART. 7 SO THE LORD SAID, "I WILL BLOT OUT MAN WHOM I HAVE CREATED FROM THE FACE OF THE LAND, MAN AND ANIMALS AND CREEPING THINGS AND BIRDS OF THE HEAVENS, FOR I AM SORRY THAT I HAVE MADE THEM." 8 BUT NOAH FOUND FAVOR IN THE EYES OF THE LORD. At the end of verse 8, the ESV read that NOAH FOUND FAVOR IN THE EYES OF THE LORD. That word "favor" can be translated "grace," which is the word the King James Version uses. This is the first usage of the word "grace" in the entire bible. You see, grace has always been a theme of the Scriptures, the Lord is unchanged. The phrasing here cannot be ignored. It says that Noah "found grace." What does that mean? Does it mean that Noah earned grace? No. He found it. No one can earn grace, but we all can find grace. The Reformers of the 1500's spoke about the idea of "grace alone," and what they were saying is - according to James Montgomery Boice - "that sinners have no claim upon God, none at all; that God owes them nothing but punishment for their sins; and that, if he saves them in spite of their sines, which he does in the case of those who are being saved, it is only because it pleases him to do it and for no other reason." In other words, even when we deserve judgement, God extends His grace. In our opening verse, we see that the world was "wicked." But how was this described? Every intention and thought was evil. He said that the wickedness was "great." You see, the verb translated "favor" in the ESV, or "grace" means that Noah was looking for God's favor. In other words, in a world that was wicked and evil, Noah was searching for God. How instructive is this for us today? Just like Noah, we must keep our eyes focused on God, in a wicked and evil generation. I think of this often. Jesus said in Matthew 24:37: FOR AS WERE THE DAYS OF NOAH, SO WILL BE THE COMING OF THE SON OF MAN. Did you hear that? Jesus said He will return in a time which is as the days of Noah. This means that the population will be great - Genesis 6:1. There will be sexual perversion - Genesis 6:2; there will be demonic activity - Genesis 6:2; there will be constant evil in the heart of man - Genesis 6:5; and there will be widespread corruption and violence - Genesis 6:11. Friends, we don't have to look far to see all this present in our world, our country, our state, our city, and our neighborhoods today. In part, this is why later we will be spending time praying. Because from this description, and from what Jesus said, He may be returning very soon. Are you ready for His return? Have you accepted His gift of faith? Maybe, stated another way, are you actively searching for God's grace? That brings us to our main idea: When I search for God's grace, I am seeking God. Notice what the Scriptures say about Noah. We already saw in 6:8 that Noah found favor in God's eyes. But look at the next verse. Verse 9 reads: THESE ARE THE GENERATIONS OF NOAH. NOAH WAS A RIGHTEOUS MAN, BLAMELESS IN HIS GENERATION. NOAH WALKED WITH GOD. Noah was righteous, blameless and he walked with God. Just as we noted earlier with grace, this is also the first time the word "righteous" is found in the Bible. I love how Warren Wiersbe put it, "Noah's righteousness didn't come from his good works; his good works came because of his righteousness." Noah's righteousness is also mentioned in Ezekiel 14, Hebrews 11, and 2 Peter 2. Righteous was his standing, his designation before God, and he was also called blameless, which describes how others saw him. None of these terms meant that Noah was without sin - just read the end of chapter 9 to see this. So, why this designation? Why did others see him this way? Because he walked with God. And just like Enoch before him, walking with God spared him from the judgement that would soon come. The lesson we can learn from Noah is to live righteously and be blameless, and how this is done is by walking with God. So, for the rest of our time together this morning, I want to discuss: HOW TO WALK WITH GOD First, is to ... * Be obedient (Genesis 6:22, 7:5, 8:18; Hebrews 11:7) o There are several examples of this in the Genesis account. * 6:22 says that Noah all that God commanded him, * 7:5 echoes that, and * 8:18 reveals his obedience to God's instruction to "GO OUT FROM THE ARK" in verse 16. * Then, Hebrews 11:7 reads: BY FAITH NOAH, BEING WARNED BY GOD CONCERNING EVENTS AS YET UNSEEN, IN REVERENT FEAR CONSTRUCTED AN ARK FOR THE SAVING OF HIS HOUSEHOLD. BY THIS HE CONDEMNED THE WORLD AND BECAME AN HEIR OF THE RIGHTEOUSNESS THAT COMES BY FAITH. * Pastor and author John MacArthur put it this way: "Noah's obedience to God was not just a matter of doing what he was told, but of trusting in God's character and promises." * But, as the writer of Hebrews said, it was by faith that Noah acted. God told him to, so he did. o Beginning of the new year always brings about "New Years Resolutions," or other goal setting activities. Most of the time, they are good: eat better, lose weight, exercise more, spend more time with family, read your bible more, pray more, and so forth. All good things. * Maybe God is calling you to do something with your skills, talents, or abilities. Just like Noah, we are to be obedient to that call. o Next, we are to ... * Be worshipful (Genesis 8:20) o I love how Noah responded after the 150 days on the water. o Genesis 8:20 reads: THEN NOAH BUILT AN ALTAR TO THE LORD AND TOOK SOME OF EVERY CLEAN ANIMAL AND SOME OF EVERY CLEAN BIRD AND OFFERED BURNT OFFERINGS ON THE ALTAR o I just finished reading a book by Cameron Dodd - if that name sounds familiar it's because our church had the pleasure of supporting the Dodd's missionary work in Papua New Guinea several years ago. * In the book, Cameron tells their story of pain, suffering, and of her husband's untimely death to lung cancer. * The title of the book is "Unshakable Joy" - excellent book, by the way, I highly recommend it. * Noah had just went through 40 days and 40 nights of a storm that destroyed the earth and everything on it, then floating for many days to follow until it was safe to get off the ark, and his first response was to build an alter and worship God. * The Dodd's - even in the moments were the most difficult, never ceased worshipping their Savior. o Later in chapter 9, verse 1, God blesses Noah and his family. o That faith. That righteousness. That blamelessness. That walking with God resulted in an attitude of continuous worship. o It's unfortunate, but many of us don't put God first in our lives. Jesus reminded us in Matthew 6 to seek first the Kingdom of God. The writer of Proverbs 3 reminded us to acknowledge God in all our ways. o When I studied this last week, I went through chapters 6-9 and identified all the ways that God showed His grace on Noah. I'll put the list up on the screen for you. * Noah was chosen (6:8, 13; 7:1) * Noah was given purpose (6:14) * Noah was given revelation (7:1,4) * Noah was protected (7:7) * Noah was remembered (8:1) * Noah was given a new life (9:1) * Noah was provided for (9:3) o If you have been saved, you have also received these same blessings, the same grace upon you. o But, I want you to notice that many of these blessings are basic needs. * 9:3, for example, was God's blessing of food, something that we have taken for granted * But, a few verses before this, we see God's hand in all of creation. You see, even if one does not believe, and has rejected God, look at verse 22: WHILE THE EARTH REMAINS, SEEDTIME AND HARVEST, COLD AND HEAT, SUMMER AND WINTER, DAY AND NIGHT, SHALL NOT CEASE. * You see, God sustains this earth and everyone in it, even though many reject and despise His very name. o And because of this, our attitude must be an attitude of worship. Lastly, to walk with God, I must ... * Be a preacher of righteousness (2 Peter 2:5) o Peter called Noah a "HERALD OF RIGHTEOUSNESS," which implies that Noah warned those around him, either while building the ark, or maybe even prior to that. o We don't know. The Bible is not clear on when Noah preached, but it is clear that he did. o Recall the condition of the world at the time of Noah. Jesus, in Luke 17:27 says: THEY WERE EATING AND DRINKING AND MARRYING AND BEING GIVEN IN MARRIAGE, UNTIL THE DAY WHEN NOAH ENTERED THE ARK, AND THE FLOOD CAME AND DESTROYED THEM ALL. o These people saw Noah building an ark for possibly close to 100 years, and as he warned them, it did not stop them from living for themselves, and ignoring the saving message of faith by the grace of God. o Yet Noah's response was to tell others about the Lord. o Many of us complain about the world around us - myself included - but the cure is, and always will be, Jesus. Are we sharing our Lord with others? Are we loving our neighbor enough to be a preacher of righteousness? Noah was a man of God. Noah was called righteous. Noah was blameless. Noah was obedient. Noah worshipped the living God, and ... Noah was a preacher of righteousness. It was because he was seeking God. It was because he walked with God. That's why I said earlier: When I search for God's grace, I am seeking God. Returning back to a verse that I opened with earlier this morning, Ephesians 2:8, when Paul told us that it is BY GRACE WE ARE SAVED THROUGH FAITH - a verse that reminds us of what God did by bringing Noah and his family through the flood - He gave them new life. Today, when we learn of the story of Noah, it's more than God getting us through the storms of life, it is a historical account that should point us directly to Jesus. Noah, righteous Noah, and his family received God's grace in place of judgement. Now, we too, receive God's grace in place of judgement because of Christ. So, when you read the Old Testament, look for God's grace. When you live your lives in this wicked generation, look for God's grace. Remember, Noah found God's grace because he walked with God. What's stopping you from walking with God? Are you ready, like Noah, to live by faith? I want to close with some words from famous evangelist Billy Graham: "God's grace is not dependent on man's performance. Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord, not because he was perfect, but because he was a man of faith who trusted in God." Let's pray. 2