Here we are, barely seven chapters into Genesis and the plot continues to thicken with more and more wickedness. From chapter four that Jon walked us through with Cain and Abel, to chapter seven that we will focus on today, the sin and evil multiplies to the point where God can not find anyone on earth that is still righteous, except…
I love a good bible meme – you know I had to throw that in there! Yes, I’m a dork.
Joking aside, we reach the very real point where God tells Noah it’s time (finally). He and his family have only been working on this project for 50-75 years – depending on how you do the math. Can you imagine that much time or work on a project of this proportion? Not to mention the years they endured of questions, ridicule, and scoffing from the community?
The Lord then said to Noah, “Go into the ark, you and your whole family, because I have found you righteous in this generation. Take with you seven pairs of every kind of clean animal, a male and its mate, and one pair of every kind of unclean animal, a male and its mate, and also seven pairs of every kind of bird, male and female, to keep their various kinds alive throughout the earth. 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.”
And Noah did all that the Lord commanded him.
Isn’t Noah’s faith so inspiring? God told him what to do and how to plan and prep – for something that Noah would never have been able to fathom or understand. And how exactly did he catch all the animals to get them in the ark?! For those that have seen the movie Evan Almighty, do you think they just followed them onto the Ark?
A few months ago, our family made the trip to the Ark Encounter in Kentucky. I really didn’t know what to expect and we were surprised with all that it had to offer. When you first arrive there is a ton of scientific research and how they came up with the conclusions they did. There is information about what is known as fact and what they speculate based on other findings, customs of the time, etc. I didn’t realize the degree of “ark doubters” in the world – I’ve taken it for granted that all Christians believed that both the ark and flood truly existed and happened. Apparently, there’s a decent sized population that believe the ark was a metaphor and didn’t actually happen. Wow – that seems like a slippery slope…where would it begin and end if some things in the Bible are metaphors and some things actually occurred? How would you know what is what, especially when all sides can tout scientific proof? Of course I have curiosities about how it all worked, and how it happened… but I believe our God is so big and so powerful, He can create something out of nothing. He can get all those animals to fit on the ark, and keep them fed while they are there.
All of Noah’s diligence and the details really came to life for me at the Ark Encounter. There are so many amazing exhibits at this life size replica – I could have spent way more time there learning (my 5 year old maxed out after 4 hours). The scientific research is fascinating! Here are some pics from our time there:
My appreciation for Noah’s faith grew, and my heart swelled from the love God has for us.
Despite our sin, God sees a heart that is righteous and desires to follow Him. He is patient with us and gives us time to work out our soul’s salvation. He makes a way for us, even when we don’t understand what it will look like on the other side. He is our provider and protector. He perfectly times His plans.
