Genesis 9 - Life in the Post-Flood World

In Genesis 9, Noah and his family step off the ark to a world that has been totally changed by the flood of Genesis 7. At that time, God instructed Noah on how to live in the post-flood world. While giving Noah instructions, God told Noah that He would provide and protect him, that there would never again be a judgment by flood, and God extended his grace and forgiveness to Noah, even when he fell.

God gives protection to man. In verse 2, God said, "The fear of you, and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth, and upon every fowl of the air, upon all that moveth upon the earth, and upon all the fishes of the sea, into your hand are they delivered."

In the post-flood world, food would be scarce for a while. Animals who were desperate for food would become more vicious in their search for sustenance, and man could be prey to some. So, to protect man, He gave animals an instinctive fear of man. So, God protected man.

Not only did God protect man from animal attacks, He protected man from starvation. In verse 3, "God said "Every moving thing that liveth shall be meat for you, even as the green herb have I given you all things." Fruits, vegetables and grain, which had been man's food supply, would be in short supply in the months following the flood. So, God expanded man's food supply to include meat.

God then set protections for man from other man. In verse 6, God said "Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed: For in the image of God made He man." When one man kills another, He commits violence against the image of God, and God takes that seriously. So, God's penalty for murder is execution.

God then promised that He would never destroy the world in a flood again. In verse 11, God said "I will establish My covenant with you, neither shall all flesh be cut off any more by the waters of a flood, neither shall there any more be a flood to destroy the earth."

God promised to never again destroy the world with a flood. In fact, He won't destroy the world again until His judgment in the end time.

Then, in verse 13, God said "I do set My bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between Me and the earth." This is, of course, the rainbow. When you see the rainbow in the sky following a rain, you have a reminder that God promised that He won't destroy the world with a flood again. You also have a reminder that God is delaying His judgment upon the earth, giving men plenty of time to repent. 2 Peter 3:9 says "The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some men county slackness, but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance."

And finally, God is gracious, even when His people fall. Verses 18-29 record how Noah got drunk and passed out naked in his tent, and the fall-out this caused in his family. From this, we learn that alcohol abuse is sinful, and it destroys lives, families and testimonies. But, we also learn how forgiving God is. Despite this sin Noah committed, God still held him in high regard. God loves us, and forgives our sin, but we have to repent and turn back to Him.

God has given us many blessings. He has met our needs for shelter and food, He comforts us after the storm by providing the rainbow, and He forgives our failures. Have you appreciated His blessings today?

The Journey: Genesis 7

In Genesis 7, God was getting ready to judge the world because of the evil in it. God is getting ready to do the same thing today. The evil in the world has grown to the point that God is getting ready to end everything, judge the quick and the dead, and establish His kingdom on earth.

The thing to remember about the judgement of God is that He spares His people from His wrath. He spared Noah from the flood by commanding him to build the ark. The ark, by the way, is a symbol of Christ.

1 Peter 3:20-21 says "Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water. (21) The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God) by the resurrection of Jesus."

Some misinterpret this passage to mean that baptism saves people. That is not what this passage is saying. First of all, in the days of Noah, water didn't save people, it killed them. Secondly, the baptism isn't water baptism, rather it is being baptized (immersed) into Christ. Noah and his family went into the ark, and was saved from God's wrath.. God wants people today to be in Christ, so they'll be safe from His wrath. Those who are in Christ are those who have accepted Him as savior.

There are important lessons from Genesis 7. There is the call to salvation, obedience, and the security of salvation.

First, there's the call to salvation. Verse 1 says "And the LORD said unto Noah, come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before Me in this generation."

There is the invitation, "Come thou, and all thy house into the ark." God was inviting Noah and His family into the ark to be saved from His wrath. The ark represents Christ. God wants us to be in Christ, which means He wants us to repent of our sin and believe in Christ for salvation. He wants us to live for Him to avoid destruction.

And let's not forget there was a reason God invited Noah into the ark. God invited Noah into the ark to save his life. The reason God wants you to accept Jesus Christ as your personal savior is that He wants to save your from the destruction of His wrath when He judges the world. So, repent of your sins and trust Jesus Christ as your personal savior.

In Revelation 18:4-5, the Lord says "Come out of her My people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, that ye receive not of her plagues. (5) For her sins have reached out unto Heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities."

In Revelation 18, God told His people to come out of Babylon. He told them to come out of that city. Don't partake of her sins or plagues. Today, He is telling us to come out of the worldly lifestyle. Don't partake in the world's sin. Come out of sinful lifestyles and turn to Christ. Do not be conformed to this world.

Christians, God has called us to be separate from the world, and to be joined to Christ. Don't adopt the world's mentality. Our outlook is different. We are different. We are not of the world, we are of Christ.

In Genesis 7, we also learn of obedience. In verse 5, the Bible says "Noah did according unto all that the LORD commanded him." God warned Noah of the coming flood, the judgment. Noah believed God, so Noah moved quickly to do the things God told him to do, namely building the ark. Or, as Hebrews 11:7 says, "By faith, Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of righteousness which is by faith." Noah's obedience was motivated by his faith. His faith was what saved him, and his obedience was an expression of his faith.

James 2:18 says "Yea, a man may say, thou hast faith, and I have works: show me thy faith without thy works, and I will show thee my faith by my works."

The premise of the book of James is that if you have faith, you'll have works to show for it. Faith results in works. Noah believed God, (i.e. had faith), therefore he obeyed God and built the ark.

Jesus said in John 14:15 "If ye love me, keep My commandments." If you love Christ, keep His commandments. Moreover, if you love Christ, you will keep His commandments.

Then, we learn about the security of salvation. Verse 16 says "And they that went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as God had commanded him: and the LORD shut him in."

Remember, the ark is symbolic of Christ. Noah went into the ark. God shut him in. God sealed Noah in the ark. The door was shut and Noah wasn't coming out. When you trust in Christ as your Savior, you enter into Christ. God shuts you in, and you are not coming out.

Jesus said in John 10:27-29 "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow me. (28) And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of My hand. (29) My Father, which gave them Me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of My Father's hand."

Christ gives us eternal life, which, by definition, can't be ended. He promises we shall never perish. He assures us that no man can pluck us from His hand, nor can they pluck us out of God's hand. If that doesn't settle the fact that those who are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ are saved forever, then I don't know what does. If you truly have faith in Jesus Christ, you'll never let it go. More importantly, He'll never let you go.

Answer God's call to salvation and Christian living. God bless you.