In The Days Of Noah

"Now the earth was corrupt in God's sight, and the earth was filled with violence. and God saw the earth, and behold, it was corrupt, for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth. "

"And God said to Noah, "I have determined to make an end of all flesh, for the earth is filled with violence through them. Behold I will destroy them with the earth" (Genesis 6:11-13 ESV)
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I downloaded a book called "As It Was In The Days Of Noah" by Jeff Kinley tonight. I barely got through the introduction and a few pages into the first chapter and I had to stop and write! I love that! I love feeling this compulsion to sit down and compose something that I know God is prompting me to write.

Thank you, Lord Jesus, for Your Holy Spirit that grows creativity inside us all.

Anyway, this book is about the similarities between the time of Noah and our current world state. I knew that Jesus had spoken directly about Noah and the evil he faced. Typically when I think about Noah, I get the cartoon image we tend to teach our children. Cute boat, huggable animals and a pudgy Noah looking on. That's appropriate for children but it's most definitely not accurate for adults. We need truth! I need truth! I want to think more about these things I tend to gloss over in my reading of the Word. Noah is a good place to start I think.

From the book, "Jesus believed in Noah. And the flood. And the Ark. In fact, nowhere in Scripture is there even the slightest hint that the man Noah, his story, or the worldwide Flood event is a metaphor, mythological tale, morality parable, or fictional tale. On the contrary, the reality of the Flood even is firmly established. But of course you would expect this from the Bible right? Even more amazing, however, is that Jesus links the historicity of Noah and his Ark to the certainty of coming prophetic events and His physical return to this planet."

Stop right there! Jesus Christ, the King of Kings, believed in Noah. How many times have I read over the Scripture where Jesus references Noah and didn't even give one thought to this little pearl! My Lord believed something to be truth and it is truth. Period. There are no ifs, ands, or buts about it. It was important enough for Him to reference it in His lifetime. It would probably be a good idea for me to dig deeper into Noah.

The author says, "Undoubtedly, Noah's is the quintessential story of prophecy, divine intervention, and judgment."

"This book unveils the heart of man and the holiness of God."

Scripture says that the people in Noah's time were wicked. They basically did whatever they wanted to do. There were no limits. Everything was permitted and nothing was off limits to the appetites of the people. Their hearts were evil. . . to the very core.

Ok. I'm thinking about this world around me and I see it without much effort. I mean it doesn't take a lot of investigative work to read the latest headlines of murder, rape, greed, lust and envy. So many more vile things are loose in our world and truth be told, much worse is set to come. We can't let ourselves become numb to the evil around us! Complacency will cause us to drown in wickedness and condone it.

Wake up from your slumber, O Christian!

Take into consideration these heart stopping words. I mean really meditate on them for a while. This is God the Father speaking about the people He created. The creation that He breathed literal life in to.

"And the Lord was sorry that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart. So the Lord said, "I will blot out an 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" (Gen. 6:6-7)

This book asked a question that really caught me off guard- basically had I ever really thought about how God felt about the whole thing? Did I ever consider the words written in Scripture about His heart? I can honestly say that I have never thought about it, not once!
I feel shame in my heart because of this. How could I have read this story and never stopped to consider what these words meant.

From the book, "God's Spirit was grieved. He actually experienced sorrow, an unusual concept to contemplate, particularly in the context of judgment. But there are facets of God's relationship with humankind that emotionally affect Him, bringing lament and regret to His Spirit."

Grief. Sorrow. Lament. Regret.

Those words are not trivial. They are speaking about deep, gut wrenching emotion. How much more are these emotions in our God? How much more sorrowful is Jesus when He looks upon this world He died for? I simply cannot fathom it. I think I can but let's face it....I can't. All I know is that this one aspect of the big story of Noah has be upset and really thinking about myself.

What sorrows do I cause the Holy Spirit?

What areas of my life are bringing grief to the Lover of my Soul?

Am I causing the Father to lament my sin?

Have I caused Him any regret?

Oh, dear Lord, I pray that I have not! I just can't think on it too long because I get emotional. I want so much to make Him happy. I want to make Him proud of me, His daughter. I want to walk through this short life remembering that I have a crown upon my head, I am Holy because HE IS HOLY!

Abba,

You know my heart, my short comings, my weaknesses. There isn't anything I can hide from you. I try though! I must exasperate you so much when I do that! Forgive me Lord. Savior, Your mercy and grace to me are beautiful. They are music to my soul. Joy to my inmost being. Keep me focused on Noah as long as you need to Lord. I'm here, I'm Yours. Mold me and teach me. I want to be open to what You have in store for me. No more hanging out in the shallows -- I'm deep sea diving with You my Beloved.

(More to come as I read the book)