As I was reading through the life of Noah in Genesis 6 & 7, I could not help but see the details that God gave him in the commandments he spoke. God gave him every single measurement for the Ark, the type of animals, how many animals, and even the food he needed to gather for them to survive the great flood. Noah’s life displayed in scripture has one single repetitive phrase over and over. This repetitive phrase is, “Noah did all God commanded him”. As I have went through life, there have been times where I have asked God questions like, “why am I here?” or “why am I doing this”. I have gotten silence rather than a response. While I was still obedient to God’s commands, I could not help but wonder why he was having me do the things he was doing. Can you relate?
I am sure Noah felt the same way. Until the great flood, rain came up from the ground. So, rain falling from the sky was foreign. The Word of God says that Noah was 600 years old when the flood came. I can’t help but think that when Noah saw the Lord close the door after spending his life building the ark, the thankfulness he had for being obedient even if it seemed crazy in the moment. Noah is the reason we are still here on earth today. If it was not for him being obedient to God, humanity would not exist. Noah’s life displays a life of relentless commitment and perseverance. His life is an example for you and I to know that God’s ways are higher than ours, obedience no matter what it seems is essential, and that God is faithful to his word.
There are oftentimes that we reflect on what God has told us and it seems really far off in comparison to where we are now. I am sure this is what Noah felt as he was told there was going to be a flood that covered the entire earth and that he was supposed to build the ark when it never rained before. The ark’s foundation was essential. But the foundation of the arc was laid way before a piece of cypress was laid. Noah’s foundation was God himself. It did not matter what it looked like, he was going to do what God spoke. It did not matter that it had not rained ever before, or that this arc was going to have to fit all the animals and their food. Noah did not look at commandments that he was spoken, he reflected on the faithfulness and righteousness of God.
Has there been something God has spoken to you to do that seems out of the ordinary? Have there been steps that he has asked you take that do not make sense in comparison to what he promised you? In these times reflect on the life of Noah. God is a God of order. He does not command things for no apparent reason. Although it may not make sense to you now, your obedience could be essential to not only yourself but the next generation. Pretty weighty huh?
I cannot imagine personally building the Ark. My what a hard worker Noah must have been to continually go and build the Ark day after day, with not a drop of rain or a cloud in the sky. Sometimes, it can feel this way for you and I too. We keep getting up, pressing into what God told us to do but have not seen any fruit of our labor. Day after day, night after night, we continue to do what God spoke. We wonder if the flood is ever going to come. Rest assured, the flood did come, just as the promises that God spoke shall be fulfilled.
Do not grow weary in doing good. Continue doing what God has spoken you to do, big steps, little steps, and every step in between. It is important to not try to get out of things early or try and skip a step.
“You must follow exactly the path that the Lord your God has commanded you, so that you may live, and that it may go well with you, and that you may live long in the land that you are to possess.” -Deuteronomy 5:33 NRSV
If we want to posses the promises of God, we must be diligent to obey each step he gives us. Whether that is getting up to pray at 3am, leaving your job to raise your kids, or building an Ark when there has been no rain. We are called to be obedient and it is important for us and the next generation to do exactly what God has spoken. No one is going to fulfill the purpose that God has set forth for you to do. No one is exactly like you. Just like there was no one like Noah in the land which is why he had been called to build the ark in the first place!
Just like Noah, we can stand back when all the hard work is said and done, in thankfulness for each step of obedience God called us to take. I am not sure what this step looks like for you. What I do know is that is it vital that you take it and it is important that you continue to build your arc. Continue to follow the path God has commanded you so that you may posses the promise. When God closed the door on the ark, I can only imagine how Noah must have felt as he watched the waters raise above the earth. When we stand back and everything is said and done; When we come face to face with God-let us strive for “well done, my good and faithful servant”. We can do this by obedience, one step at a time.
Scripture To Meditate On:
- “If you love Me, keep My commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever— the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.” -John 14:15 NKJV
- “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.” -Proverbs 3:5-6 NKJV
- He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also. If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honor. -John 12:25-26 NKJV
- Genesis 6-9
