Even in the worst of storms, the Captain of our souls still gets us to the mountain top.
While there is no record of Noah’s failure in Hebrews 11, as we come to Genesis 9 we learn the sad lessons recorded there. The man who started so well and continued so faithfully, finished his course in a measure of shame rather than success. It stirs us to ask ourselves: How is our own spiritual progress?
The Conditions in Noah’s Day
From Genesis 6, we can appreciate the condition of the world in which Noah lived. We are struck by the awfulness of those conditions (vv. 5, 11, 12). However, in the midst of that social, moral, and behavioral darkness, “Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord” (v. 8).
I wonder if you’ve ever looked out on the world in which you live and have seen it as wicked, corrupt, evil, and violent. Have you stood where Noah stood?
The Confirmation of Noah’s Faith
James tells us that faith without works is dead. The living faith of Noah is seen in the fact that he demonstrated his faith by his works: “according to all that God commanded him, so did he” (v. 22).
In the midst of this dark and evil world, Noah sought to be obedient to the Word of God. We may find ourselves in an equally dark and evil world, but what God asks of us is no greater than that which He asked of Noah—to be obedient to His Word.
The Character of Noah
While man may look on the outward appearance, God looks on the heart. Thus, the Lord evaluates the nature of Noah. We read that Noah was “a just man” (v. 9). In his moral relationship with God, Noah was righteous, loyal, and obedient to what God desired of him. Reading Ezekiel 14, it is interesting that Noah is mentioned alongside two other men in Scripture noted for their righteousness: Job and Daniel.
In the school/college environment and in the workplace, it can be extremely difficult to be righteous and just. Everyone is looking to cut corners and to bend the rules in order to get the edge over the competition. The man or woman of faith needs to be just and righteous in all their dealings.
But Noah also stood out because he was “perfect in his generations” (Gen. 6:9). This testimony is even more remarkable when we note that the earth was corrupt and “filled with violence” (v. 11). Even in such an unfavorable and hostile environment, Noah sought to be blameless. He tried to ensure that no accusations about his behavior or language could be justifiably leveled against him. The divine estimate of the world was that “all flesh had corrupted his way” (v. 12), but the divine appraisal of Noah’s life was: “thee have I seen righteous before Me” (7:1). The Lord’s estimate is what counts. Noah was righteous in the eyes of God!
Noah Walked with God (Gen. 6:9)
This was not an occasional stroll or a carefully scheduled event. It was the whole manner of Noah’s life. He sought to walk habitually with God, as Enoch had done before him.
We read in Hebrews 11 that Noah “prepared an ark” (v. 7). Using the materials that God had indicated, Noah set about and completed the task of building a vessel that was capable of containing at least two of each animal species in the world at that time. We don’t know exactly how long it took him, but this task indicates that Noah’s life of service for God was lengthy.
Can we imagine what the reaction of the people of our locality might be if we started building a 43,000-ton vessel out of wood on the outskirts of town, especially if this was one of the points in the country furthest from the sea. To build it there would be regarded as an act of sheer stupidity. What did it cost Noah to be faithful to his God and to obey God’s Word? Are we prepared to pay the price?
Noah Built an Altar to the Lord
This is also the first mention of the word “altar” in the Old Testament, and it is noticeable that this was Noah’s priority. Once the ark had been emptied of the animals, Noah worshipped.
It is significant that Noah “offered burnt offerings” (v. 20). Not just one but many! Such a great salvation as that which Noah had experienced deserved a multiplicity of sacrifices as an acknowledgement of the grace of God.
We might ask ourselves what our priority in life is. When we gather for corporate worship on the Lord’s day morning, do we come with a multitude of sacrifices, full hearts from which should flow worship to our God?
Noah’s Faithfulness to Man
Noah was a preacher of righteousness by his life, as well as from his lips (2 Pet. 2:5). His message and his life were in perfect harmony. We don’t know exactly how long it took Noah to build the ark. Some suggest a minimum of 100 years. In all of that time, he preached, warning people of the coming wrath of God. Yet, as 1 Peter 3:20 tells us, the ark that Noah prepared only saw eight souls saved—Noah and his family.
We don’t underestimate the difficulty of preaching in 2012. We can preach in the open air and face heckling. We can knock on doors and face rudeness and indifference. We can distribute tracts and have them returned by an irate householder. We can preach to empty seats. It sometimes seems that we see no one saved. Would it be counted strange if we felt like giving up? Yet, in faithfulness to our Lord and to our fellow men and women, we must sound out the gospel, even if it is scorned, ridiculed, and rejected.
Noah’s Faithfulness to his Family
Noah was a family man. He had three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth, and, in the goodness of God, they initially followed their father. However, we would stress that although Noah’s family was to accompany him in the ark, this could only be on the basis of their personal response in faith—Noah couldn’t force them in. Equally, the spiritual life and testimony of the father is no guarantee of the salvation and blessing of the family, although it is important that the life and testimony of the father is not a stumbling block to his family.
The Failure of Noah
The actions of Noah in Genesis 9 warn us of the dangers that are prevalent even in seemingly innocent things. The vineyard that he planted was innocent in itself. The wine that came from the grapes (this is the first mention of wine in the Bible) need not to have produced the effects it did, if it had been consumed in appropriate quantities. However, Noah “drank of the wine and was drunken” (v. 21). The excess of wine soon led to other excesses: “he was uncovered within his tent” (v. 21). The consumption of wine led to a relaxation of his self-control. This brought a sad failure at the end of the life of Noah and became a cause of stumbling to his son, Ham.
It is salutary that Noah’s failure should be occasioned by what was a legitimate occupation of husbandry. What he should have controlled became the controller of him! It can be that, when things seem most favorable, we lower our guard and, as a consequence, fail. The apostle Paul cautions all of us of this when he says, “let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall” (1 Cor. 10:12).