Yesterday, we read Genesis 7 and what a delight it was (and still is) to learn how it points to our salvation in Christ! Noah and his family entered into the ark and they were saved from God’s wrath and judgment. Genesis 8 is a chapter of a new beginning. Let us glean some lessons in this chapter:
1. GOD REMEMBERS
Genesis 8:1 And God remembered Noah, and every living thing, and all the cattle that was with him in the ark: and God made a wind to pass over the earth, and the waters assuaged;
Noah had spent about 370 days in the ark, and one might be tempted to think that he had been forgotten there. When the Bible tells us that God “remembered” Noah, it doesn’t mean that God had forgotten him. No. It means that in the midst of the great flood, God stayed true to his promises. He promised to deliver Noah, his family and all those animals from death and destruction. The Lord was with them and never forgot them. The core lesson is that, while Noah was in the ark, God was passing judgment on the earth; but at this point, God again turned His active attention towards Noah.
Dear Gogolight, do you feel forgotten by God in your season of waiting? Permit me to awaken your consciousness to God’s unending Presence with you. Be strengthened as you observe the three ways in which God remembered Noah:
A. God sent a Wind
God is God over all forces of nature. He commanded the wind and it blew. At His word, the water level began to decrease upon the earth. God often uses a gradual natural activity. He could have dried the waters instantly but He did it gradually, just as He created the universe gradually. God is sovereign but He created the natural force of wind and used it for His purpose.
What’s more important for us is that wind is a biblical symbol of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:1–2, John 3:8, Job 33:4). At salvation, God sent the Holy Spirit to us (Eph. 1:13, John 14:26). The very fact that God sent His Spirit to live in you forever is an indication that you are never forgotten.
B. God gave him Signs
Talk of tops of the mountains Noah saw, talk of the birds and the signals Noah got from them (to be discussed later), talk of the face of the ground that was dry, God continued to send signs to Noah before eventually leading him out of the ark. Even to confirm His promise to never again destroy the earth with water, God gave Noah the sign of a rainbow. In like manner, God continues to send us signs that He is with us and for us always. “Blessed be the Lord, Who daily loads us with benefits…” (Psa. 68:19)
C. God spoke to him again
In vs. 16-17 God instructed Noah to leave the ark with his family and the animals. As far as we can tell, this is the first record of God speaking to him since He told him to enter the ark. The year in between had been a time of silence from heaven. Well, as for us, there is no moment of silence from God, because even though we “feel” that God is “silent”, He has “already spoken” to us in His Word – the Bible! God speaks to us through His Word. He has already said that He will never leave nor forsake nor fail us (Heb. 13:5, Deut. 31:8, Josh. 1:5, 1Chr. 28:20)
We have seen how God remembered Noah. I think it’s high time we observed how Noah responded to God.
A. Noah left the Ark (Gen. 8:18-19)
This was a step of faith. Hebrews 11 says that “By faith Noah built the ark…” We can safely conclude that “by faith Noah entered the ark…” and “by faith Noah left the ark.” After salvation, we respond to God by obeying Him and walking in the Spirit (Gal. 5:16).
B. Noah built an Altar (Gen. 8:20)
The first thing Noah does after stepping on dry ground is to build an altar to God. The offering indicates his complete surrender and total dedication to the God Who was not only a God that has wrath, but also a God full of mercy. This is a picture of salvation by grace alone. Noah understood that he played no role in his salvation. After salvation, we respond to God’s grace by offering our lives as a living sacrifice in gratitude (Rom. 12:1, 1Pet. 2:5), living by faith and doing good works (Eph. 2:10).
Noah took “every clean animal and every clean bird”. What a costly sacrifice! With only seven of each animal/bird on the ark, Noah didn’t fear that they’d go into extinction if he sacrificed some of them. A costly sacrifice is pleasing to God – for it was a sweet-smelling savour unto God (v. 21). The lesson for us is to give our PFD with the virtue code, value code, and vantage code. (Learn more: Excelling In The Grace Of Giving — Part 1 https://gospelofgraceoutreach.org/sermon/excelling-in-the-grace-of-giving-part-1/)
2. GOD RESTORES
God showed that even out of chaos, He can give man a new beginning. After saving Noah and his family, God blessed them and told them to be fruitful and multiply across the earth (Gen. 8:15-19). He restored the blessing He blessed man in Eden! Christ offers us a new beginning. Anyone who believes is made a “new creation” (2Cor. 5:17, Gal. 6:15, Eph. 4:24).
In His act of restoration, God promised to never again destroy the earth with water (Gen. 8:21-22). To show that He is faithful to keep His promises, God repeated His New Covenant to Noah three times (check Gen. 9:11, 15). God also promised that the seasons of the earth will come and go in predictable patterns till the end of this world (v. 22). God’s new covenant to us is a promise to forgive our sins and to never leave or forsake us (Isa. 54:9, Isa. 12:1). He promised that we will never perish (John 3:16, John 10:28) and we will never see corruption (1Cor. 15:51-58). Although we fell in Eden, God has restored all believers (and will restore anyone who believes) back to His communion, peace, joy, and eternal life.
3. GOD REVIVES
Genesis 8:7,10-11 And he sent forth a raven, which went forth to and fro, until the waters were dried up from off the earth…And he stayed yet other seven days; and again he sent forth the dove out of the ark; And the dove came in to him in the evening; and, lo, in her mouth was an olive leaf pluckt off: so Noah knew that the waters were abated from off the earth.
I want to draw our attention to the birds that Noah sent out of the ark.
A. The Raven
Ravens are “unclean” birds (Lev. 11:13-19; Deut. 14:11-18). Ravens feast on rotten flesh, so when Noah sent it out, it found plenty of dead bodies to feast on the surface of the ocean. It did not return to the ark. The raven is attracted to death and dead things, and has no interest in revival or life.
B. The Dove
By contrast, doves are “clean” birds (Deut. 14:20). They do not feast on other birds or animals, whether dead or alive. The first time Noah sent out a dove, it came back because the water wasn’t low enough. The second time, the dove returned with an olive leaf, indicating that plants were beginning to grow. The third time he sent out the dove, it didn’t come back at all. Noah then knew that the end of the flood must be very near.
The dove is a symbol of the Holy Spirit (Luke 3:22). It symbolizes both life and peace. The dove provided the olive branch to Noah as a sign of life. Olive oil also symbolizes the Holy Spirit (1Sam. 16:13; Zech. 4:2-6). Only the Holy Spirit can offer you life and set you free from death and sorrow. The things of the flesh will never bring you life; only the Spirit can bring you life and peace. The Spirit has set us free from death, bondage, addiction, and sorrow (Luke 4:18, Isa. 61:1, Isa. 49:9).
Dear Gogolights, just as the raven (the flesh) cannot offer life, let us make no provision for the flesh (Rom. 13:14, Gal. 5:16, 24). As spirit-filled believers, let us make peace with one another (Rom. 12:18, 1Thess. 5:13, 2Cor. 13:11).
Let us continue in our preaching of the gospel of the grace of God, for although God promised never again to destroy this earth with water, one day, He will destroy this earth with fire! (2 Peter 3:10) The only way of escape is Jesus.
Grace to you, Church!
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