“So Noah did everything exactly as God had commanded him.” v. 22 (NLT)
What a powerful statement! Sometimes when we read something in the Bible we take away the present day challenges that faced the people God used. There was nothing special about Noah. What set him apart is found in verse 9. The Bible says that “Noah was a righteous man, the only blameless person living on earth at the time, and he walked in close fellowship with God.” What a statement! But what God asks him to do next is crazy … build a boat!!!
Now we love the story because we see how it ends, but let think about this from Noah’s perspective. Here are some excuses he could have given with legitimacy,
“But the closest body of water is some 400-500 miles away from where I am!”
“What is rain? That’s absurd”
“There’s no-way I can get ALL the animals in one boat!”
“It will take way to long to build a boat that big, I mean, I don’t even have power-tools”
“Everyone is going to laugh at me and think I’m crazy!”
Noah could have given anyone of these excuses and not built the Ark. However, Noah didn’t make excuses, he simply did exactly what God had commanded! Powerful!! But it’s also convicting! How many times has God asked you or I to do something and we gave excuses instead of doing everything God commands.
The reality is this, each one of us have Ark like moments where God ask us to do something great for the Kingdom. But sadly, some of us are giving excuses instead of following His lead!
Today, will you be like Noah and take advantage of the Ark like moment and do exactly as God commands, or will you shrink back with excuses and miss the opportunity?
Losing a loved one is never easy, especially if it’s a child or teenager, let a lone a suicide. A lot of questions come up around someone taking their own life. But for those that know Christ, we can cling to the promise found in Romans 8:31-38 which says,
“What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us? 32 Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won’t he also give us everything else? 33 Who dares accuse us whom God has chosen for his own? No one—for God himself has given us right standing with himself. 34 Who then will condemn us? No one—for Christ Jesus died for us and was raised to life for us, and he is sitting in the place of honor at God’s right hand, pleading for us. 35 Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? 36 (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”) 37 No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.
38 And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,] neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. 39 No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:31-39 (NLT)
Sometimes we want to put suicide in a category all by itself. However, suicide is included in the word nothing. If someone is in Christ, nothing can separate them for His love.
With that being said, we need to remember that …
Sorrow and Grief are never easy!
When we lose someone we love it is difficult to let go and say goodbye. Even Jesus, who was fully God and fully man, was filled with sorrow and grief when his friend Lazarus had passed away. The Bible says in John 11:35 that “Jesus Wept.”
Now I understand that each of us grieve in different ways. Some of us need to get away and spend some time alone while others need the company of friends. Whichever the case, I encourage you to allow yourself to grieve.
I believe God is a God of Comfort and He is willing to comfort those who ask for His help in this grief process. As you grieve I would encourage you to allow God to comfort you. His Word says,
“He heals the brokenhearted, binding up their wounds.” Psalm 147:3
Jesus said in Matthew 5:4,
“God blesses those who mourn, for they will be comforted.” Matthew 5:4 (NLT)
As you continue to grieve allow God to comfort you as His Word promises He will do, and allow yourself to cry, to laugh, and to share stories that you remember about that loved one. This can help bring healing to yourself and those around you.
The loss of a loved one causes us to realize how fragile and short life can be! None of us know exactly how long we have to live. We are not promised another year, another month, or another day. Each day is a gift from God.
The Bible reminds us just how short life is:
In Job 9:25 it says, “Mans days are swifter than a runner.” James 4:14 says, “Our life is like the morning fog – it’s here a little while, then it’s gone.”
The loss of a loved one causes us to search for answers! When we loose something we try to find it. When we experience a loss of life we try to find life. This process causes us to look for answers about God, about life, about death, and about eternity. Maybe you have asked yourself some of these questions. The Bible has much to say about each of these,
About God
1 John 4:8 says, “God is love.”
Now it is easy to say God is Love when things are going well, but to be honest, it can be difficult to believe “God is love” when things go wrong or not the way we expected them too. But the truth is, that even though the circumstances change, Gods love for you and for me never changes.
The passage goes on and says,
“God showed how much he loved us by sending his only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. This is real love. It is not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.” 1 John 4:9-10 (NLT)
Jesus talks about life and says in John 10:10,
“The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” John 10:10 (NIV)
John 3:16 says,
“For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, and whosoever believes in Him should not parish, but have everlasting life.”
In John 14:6, Jesus says,
“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the father except through me.”
You see this life that Jesus is talking about can’t be earned, bought, or taken away. It is simply a gift from God. It is the gift of salvation that He wants each one of us to have. It doesn’t matter what we have done or where we have been God offers this gift to each one of us, all we have to do accept the gift. Romans 10:13 says,
“For ‘Anyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’”
As you search for answers, have you found the answers you have been looking for? If not, I would encourage you to ask God to reveal those answers to you and to help you understand the things, you don’t know.
Jeremiah 33:3 God says,
“Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.”
The loss of a loved one causes us to live life differently! Upon receiving the news of losing a loved one, life as we knew it changed. No matter how hard we try we cannot change the past, the only thing we can change is the future. God has a future for each and every one of us. He says in Jeremiah 29:11
“For I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.”
This is the promise that we can live on. It is a promise of hope and a future that can be ours through Jesus Christ. Even when our world seems to fall apart or we don’t understand why things happen, God is near. He is willing to help, He is willing to comfort, and He is willing to heal. Will you trust Him today and ask for His help?
“Enoch lived 365 years, 24 walking in close fellowship with God. Then one day he disappeared, because God took him.” v.23-24 (NLT)
How would your life be summed up? I know, many times we don’t want to think about death and dying, but this really isn’t about death and dying it about living. What we live for is what we with leave behind as a testimony of out life. What will you be known for. What will others learn from your life. What will they say about your faith? These shouldn’t become boxes to check on a bucket list, but goals to achieve and then live by.
Today, Take some time to think about whats important to you and write out some life goals that you hope others will see in your daily life. If you were to sum up your life in a sentence or two, what would you want it to say?
“You will be accepted if you do what is right. But if you refuse to do what is right, then watch out! Sin is crouching at the door, eager to control you. But you must subdue it and be its master.” v.7 (NLT)
How do you react when someone suggest you have done something wrong? Do you move to correct the mistake of deny that you need to correct it? After Cain’s gift was rejected, God gave him the chance to right his wrong and try again. God even encouraged him to do this! But Cain refused, and the rest of his life is a startling example of what happens to those who refuse to admit their mistakes. The next time someone suggest you are wrong, take an honest look at yourself and choose God’s way instead of Cain’s.
Understand that sin is waiting to attack and destroy us. Like Cain, we will be victims to sin if we do not master it. But we cannot master sin in our own strength. Instead, we must turn to God to receive faith for ourselves and turn to other believers to receive encouragement and strength. The Holy Spirit will help us master sin. This will be a lifelong battle that will not be over until we are face to face with Christ.
Today, what sin have you let hang around to long without being mastered? Have others pointed out symptoms of this sin that you have ignored? Why not be done with it by confession it to God and then resisting it when the temptation come though the power of the Holy Spirit!
Today we started a brand new series called Heroes! We are unpacking the proof that God can use anybody. During the series we’ll look at Old Testament examples of real people who did extraordinary things because of their faith. Today, we looked at the life of Noah!
* The story of the flood is not a nice little story about animals and a rainbow; It’s a story about sin and judgement.
* We will only obey God in the storm to the degree we trust God before the storm comes.
* The storm doesn’t always grow our faith, but it does reveal our faith!
3 KINDS OF FAITH:
➢ FAIR WEATHER faith.
* The idea that as long as things are going good, you and God are tight! But when things start going bad, your out.
* Fair Weather Faith people say, “God as long as you scratch my back I’ll scratch yours.”
➢ FOUL WEATHER faith.
* Rushing to God when all else fails.
* Praying, “God if you do this …. I will …”
* Seeks God only in Crisis
➢ ALL-WEATHER faith.
* Obeying God regardless!
* Being faithful in easy and difficult times.
TO OBEY GOD IN THE STORM LIKE NOAH:
1. We must DARE TO BE DIFFERENT.
* Noah is like a donut at a weight watchers convention! – he stood out!
* We live in a world that is afraid of standing out and being different.
“This is the genealogy of Noah. Noah was a just man, perfect in his generations. Noah walked with God.” Genesis 6:9 (NKJV)
* The word perfect here does not mean sinless but blameless. Noah was blameless when compared to others.
“But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark . . .” Matthew 24:37-38 (NKJV)
“By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.”Hebrews 11:7 (NKJV)
* The majority isn’t always right! God + 1 = a majority
* Conformity is often the enemy of Christianity!
– Does my life look more much different from everyone else?
– Remember, the fear of man is a trap.
* When everyone was walking away from God, Noah walked with God!
2. We must TRUST GOD COMPLETELY.
* We obey based on how much we trust God.
* Noah was 500 miles from the Mediterranean Sea when he built the Ark by faith
➢ Jesus and the Ark: INSIDE is the Only SAFE Place.
* We can see the Gospel even in the story of Noah
– Everything IN the Ark was safe!
– Everything is Christ will be saved!
“Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.’” John 14:6 (NKJV)
* We can see the Gospel even in the story of Noah
– There was only one way into the Ark.
– Jesus is the only way to God.
➢ Jesus and the Ark: Both absorbed God’s JUDGEMENT.
* We can see the Gospel even in the story of Noah
– The Flood was the picture of Gods Judgement & the Ark absorbed it.
– The Cross was the picture of Gods Judgement & the Cross absorbed it.
“Then the LORD said to Noah, ‘Come into the ark, you and all your household, because I have seen that you are righteous before Me in this generation.’” Genesis 7:1 (NKJV)
‘Go out of the ark, you and your wife, and your sons and your sons’ wives with you.’ Genesis 8:16 (NKJV)
3. We must REFUSE TO GIVE UP.
* It took Noah between 98-120 years to build the Ark! That’s a long time to want to give up!
PROBLEMS → PRESSURES → PEOPLE Will Tempt You to Give Up.
“And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope.” Romans 5:3-4 (NKJV)
4. We must BE READY FOR ANOTHER ATTACK.
* Satan will not leave you alone because you do one thing right, or persevere through one storm.
“And Noah began to be a farmer, and he planted a vineyard. Then he drank of the wine and was drunk, and became uncovered in his tent.” Genesis 9:20-21 (NKJV)
* Satan is relentless in his attack on us.
– We may avoid one attack, but be warned, there is another one coming.
* Looking at the end of Noahs life we see that the last 1/3 of his life was spent coasting and doing nothing for God.
– The challenge is to serve the Lord all the days of our life!
– If you Coast you’re toast!
ONE LAST THOUGHT
We all have Ark moments; the question is will you be ready for yours?
This is going to be another great series. If you missed any of the talks from our Parent Trapped series, make sure you check them out here. If you missed today, or want to just watch it again, you can do so by clicking here.
I hope you make plans soon to join us at FBC Harvester! If distance is a problem, you are always welcome to listen to any of the teaching. If you have questions, please feel free to contact us here we would love the privilege of helping where we can.
Lastly, here are the songs we sang during our time together.
“The serpent was the shrewdest of all the wild animals the Lord God had made. One day he asked the woman, “Did God really say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden?” v.1 (NLT)
Have you ever doubted something? Doubt causes us to question what we believe to be true and sometimes question what we know to be right. Satan, uses doubt to cause us to question the things of God. For the person who doesn’t know God, he uses doubt to cause you to question the existence of God and the character of God. As a believer, he will use things from you past, to try to keep you from living in the new life that is found in Christ. He does this so you doubt God’s power and your witness.
Doubt is crippling and if we are not careful, we can fall victim to it very easily! Satan wants nothing more than to lead us astray and keep us unsure of the things of God. Here are five ways things Satan uses against us to keep us from experiencing God in the way He desires us to know Him.
Doubt – Makes me question God’s Word and His goodness
Discouragement – Makes me look at my problems rather that at God
Diversion – Makes the wrong things seem attractive so that I will want them more than the right things
Defeat – Makes me feel like a failure so that I don’t even try
Delay – Makes me put off doing something so that it never gets done
Have you experienced any of these? Where we tend to focus is what we tend to go toward. If you are feeling or experiencing any of these things, ask God for wisdom and help. He’s closer than you think and desires to hear from you and help.
Today, have you let Satan lead you away from God. It usually start’s small with a simple question, “Did God Really …?” Satan will attack us in these ways. The only way to stand against it is to seek the Truth and ask God for clarity, understanding, wisdom, and deliverance.
“Then the Lord God formed the man from the dust of the ground. He breathed the breath of life into the man’s nostrils, and the man became a living person.” v.7 (NLT)
There is a lot of talk about where we came from. Many try to deny that man is a created being by a creative God. Evolutionist say that we evolved. The Bible says that we were made from the dust of the ground formed from the hands of God. There is nothing special about dust and dirt. In fact, as a kid I would make stick figures as I played with play-do or clay. But my clay figure never came to life. Many times we over look the most important part of our creation and that is the fact that God breathed the breath of life into our nostrils so we could become a living person. Without the breath of life, our bodies would simply be like the play-do figures we made as children. Without the breath of life, our bodies once again return to dust and dirt.
The breath of life is different for each person. Some will live long lives on this earth while others will only be here for a short while. Some will be influential, while others will be influenced. Some will desire to know God, while others will reject God. Some will put their faith in Christ, while others will deny Him. Some will believe in Heaven and Hell, while others will say this is all there is. Some will believe there are many ways to Heaven, while others will believe there is only one way to Heaven. Some will seek religion, while others will seek a personal relationship with God. The fact that you are breathing and have the breath of life is a gift from God; how you use this gift is up to you. I don’t know about you, but I want to make everyday count, because I never know when today, may be my last day!
Today, how will you take advantage of the breath of life that God has given you?
A couple of years ago I had the privilege of leading my oldest son to Christ. It’s a night I’ll never forget!!!! Thankfully I was an active blogger and captured the story. Here is a recap of how the night went:
Josiah and I have been reading the Bible together before he goes to bed each night for quite sometime now. We have made it through the Old Testament and just started the New Testament. The last couple of nights have been on the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. Tonight, the passage was from Acts 1 when Jesus ascends to Heaven. As Josiah and I talked about the lesson, we talked about Heaven and who gets to go to Heaven. We talked about what keeps people from heaven. He knows that sin keeps people from Heaven (We’ve talked about sin for awhile and he knows what sin is). So when I told him that sin keeps us from God and if we don’t have Jesus in our heart we can’t go to Heaven, He understood it. He asked if I (me) died would I go to Heaven and I said yes because I have asked Jesus into my heart and He forgave me of my sin. And because I have done that, when I die, I get to go to Heaven. After I said this, I asked him, “What happens to people that don’t ask Jesus into their heart?” He said with a gulp, “they go to Hell.” I asked, “Why do they go to Hell?” He said, “Because Jesus hasn’t taken away their sins.”
At this point my heart began to race. I asked Josiah, “Have you ever asked Jesus to come into your heart and forgive you of your sins? He said, “I want too but I don’t know how!” So innocent. I said, “All you have to do is pray and ask Jesus to come into your heart and to forgive you of your sins. If I pray with you, do you want to pray and ask Jesus to come into your heart and forgive you of your sins?” He said, “Yes!” So needless to say, we called Stephanie into the room, of coarse Jackson followed, and as a family we prayed together and Josiah asked Jesus to come into his heart and forgive him for his sins. As a dad, this is the moment you pray for and as a pastor/dad you try not to rush, but tonight, I am proud to proclaim we have one more for Jesus in the Gould Family! Josiah asked Jesus into his heart!
But the story doesn’t end there. This last weekend I had the privilege of Baptizing Josiah. What a special day is he publicly professed Christ. Another moment that will forever be etched in my heart as a dad! Here is Josiah’s profession of faith in Christ and Baptism.
Many of you have asked about Joplin and how you can get involved. We are currently collecting supplies that are being sent as people and teams go to the area. Feel free to pick up these supplies and drop off items in the Fellowship Hall here at FBC Harvester. Here is a list of the supplies we are collecting and sending:
cases of bottled water
socks and underwear
diapers and formula
bottled water
personal hygiene items
blankets
pillows
cots
work gloves and boots
first aid supplies
paper products
chain saw oil
hand sanitizer
manual can openers, etc.
If you would like to make a donation please make your check payable to “FBCH” and write “Joplin Relief” on the envelope. You can donate through the offering, the church office, at the Information Center on Sunday, or by mailing.
We are in contact with Red Cross and College Heights Christian Church in Joplin and are working on details for a volunteer trip in the next couple of weeks as volunteers become more needed.
For the latest info, make sure to follow FBC Harvester on Twitter @fbcharvester We will also be updating the website as we get more information. Please continue to be in prayer for those affected by the tornado and how God can use each of us to help in this great time of need.
