A Ship, But No Sea? - A Sermon in the Woods

[Music] i'll never forget the year that my dad decided to build a canoe he bought plants he went to the store and bought wood fiberglass and resin and over that year i remember helping him glue that canoe together one little cedar strip at a time i remember the day we finally finished that canoe and took it out to the river we took it down to the water turned it right side up and set it there on the water i remember watching that canoe floating for the first time and then paddling down the river for the first time in this brand new canoe you know everybody's got to have a hobby and a boat building of course is a great hobby it's not particularly one of mine but we've probably all heard the urban legend of the the guy who built a boat in his basement he built it without calculating the size of the basement door and then when he was finished with his boat he had no way of getting the boat out of the basement i think that was popularized recently on a tv show but but that story's been around for a long long time but have you ever heard about the guy who built a ship a ship on dry land a ship where there was no sea well we'll be talking about that guy today the story from the bible but before we go any further i want to invite you to bow your heads with me in a word of prayer father in heaven lord thank you for bringing us out to this beautiful place today and lord as we explore this story from your word i pray that you will teach us the lessons you have for us in our hearts and in our lives today we ask this lord in jesus name amen [Music] you know they say where there's a well there's a way it was in the middle of the 1400s the people of the republic of venice had been in a series of wars to expand their territory they were well known around the world as people of maritime trade and maritime warfare they they were at home on the sea and on the water the city of venice of course is right on the edge of the aegean sea and they had quite a fleet of ships that they used both in battle and in trade around the mediterranean but this time they were expanding their empire further inland up and around the lake of gala they had captured the territory but now the duke of milan had come and recaptured the territory and they were making battle plans to defend their territory and reclaim their land but they calculated and through a great length of discussion decided that it would be it would be too expensive to try to make an assault by land on the duke of milan so they said why don't we find a way to attack by water let's see if we can get a fleet of ships up on the lake and if we can possibly get a fleet of ships up on the lake then we can attack by surprise and take the enemy well the problem was there was no easy way of getting ships up on the lake the lake was far inland and even the nearest river that was navigable would leave them still 12 miles over the mountains away from the lake but as i said where there's a will there's a way so they sailed their fleet of ships up the river to the point closest to where they could jump over the mountains i say jump over the mountains it was quite a laborious task they sailed their ships to the closest point where they could make a path up over these mountains to the lake and then by bringing in the army and through great effort and great expense they managed to haul these huge vessels up out of the river and by using wooden logs wooden rollers they were able to roll these ships slowly slowly up this path up the sides of the mountains when they finally crested the top of the mountain this the slope going down and into the lake was even steeper than the slope that they had ascended and they they tied the ships back to trees but the weight of the ships was so great that the trees began to be uprooted and the ships were in danger of of crashing down the mountain and and breaking to pieces before they reached the lake finally they had the idea of hoisting the main sail on the ships there there was a headwind blowing up the mountains and by hoisting the sail they were able to lighten the ship enough that they were finally able to lower these ships down and into the lake it took them three months in this enterprise unfortunately in those three months the enemy gained intelligence of what was going on and were prepared for their attack they may have been repulsed the first time but eventually eventually their plan succeeded and they were able to build a few more ships on the lake and eventually were able to retake their land it has gone down in history though as one of the greatest feats of engineering of hauling a fleet of ships across dry land nothing though nothing in this story compares to the man who built his ship when there was no sea who built his ship not only on dry land but a ship it was designed for a sea that didn't even exist [Music] so [Music] as i'm sure you've guessed we're talking about a man in the bible by the name of noah the bible says in genesis chapter 6 and verse 8 noah found grace in the eyes of the lord the bible describes the character of this righteous man noah using three descriptions three adjectives that we find there in genesis chapter six and verse nine this is the genealogy of noah noah was a just man perfect in his generations noah walked with god three adjectives just noah was just what does it mean that he was just he was righteous he did that which was right he followed god's law not only was he just but it says he was perfect that word perfect is an adjective that describes the unblemished sacrifices that were brought into the sanctuary a representative of christ it means complete sound whole noah was a man of integrity he practiced what he preached he was not a hypocrite he was not acting he was whole in every way and finally it says that noah walked with god what does it mean to walk with god we spoke of this in some previous messages when we spoke last time about enoch it says that enoch walked with god and now noah directed descendant of enoch walked with god he had a relationship with god you see it wasn't so much that noah was such a so much of a better man than everybody else it wasn't so much that noah never had any faults in his life for as we follow the story of noah we find that yes he did have faults and failings but you see he had a relationship with god and in that relationship he was found just righteous perfect before god because he walked with god and this is now given in contrast to the description of the world in which noah lived the earth at verse 11 was also corrupt before god and the earth was filled with violence we talked last time about how the world had gotten worse and worse but not only that but how the church those who followed god intermingled with those who loved the world the church compromised with the world until all flesh had corrupted themselves before god this word corrupt in the hebrew language is used to describe something that is totally ruined something that is spoiled like like a rotting piece of fruit stinks there's nothing good it was filled with violence with injustice with wrong with cruelty humankind had chosen to go against god and yes were destroying and had in a sense already destroyed themselves this is the exact opposite of the character of noah while noah walked with god the rest of the world had chosen to sever their relationship with god and in severing their relationship with god they had chosen death rather than life verse 11 describes the ontology the true condition of the world verse 12 describes the way god sees the world you see god is a god of truth and when he looks at something he sees it as it is we may look at the world and say oh the world is a beautiful place the world is full of fun and vigor and and and people are eating and drinking and marrying and giving in marriage the world continues on as it always has been getting better and better but you see god looks at the world and the world is indeed corrupt and god sees it as such he sees it for the corruption that it is verse 12 so god looked upon the earth and indeed it was corrupt for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth you know it says in psalms chapter 14 the fool has said in his heart there is no god they are corrupt they have done abominable works there is none who does good the lord looks down from heaven upon the children of men to see if there are any who understand who seek god they have all turned aside they have together become corrupt there is none who does good no not one so while noah was righteous in walking with with god the world had turned her back on god and then in verse 13 god speaks not as he spoke in genesis 1 and a voice of creative power but he speaks to the truth that is before him he speaks in judgment then god said to noah the end of all flesh has come before me for the earth is filled with violence through them and behold i will destroy them with the earth god speaks in a voice of judgment and today as we talk about this righteous man noah and this terrible time in the world in which we live he lived we will also be talking about the world in which we live today and just as a time of judgment was coming upon the world in the days of noah so a time of judgment is coming upon the world today the days we live today [Music] it is perhaps one of the most difficult topics in the bible to speak about god's judgment the destruction of those who rebel against god many people have wrestled with this concept over the years some have come to the conclusion that the god is so loving god is too loving to truly destroy those whom he has created perhaps his speaking of judgment or is simply an idle threat perhaps in the end all will ultimately live together in bliss in a world that god creates new but sadly this is not the message of the bible sadly there are those no matter what god does who will choose to persist in rebellion against god and this is precisely what we find happening here in genesis chapter 6. for 120 years god would extend mercy to the world an additional 120 years from this prophecy that we find at the beginning of genesis 6 but at the end of that judgment would come god says i will destroy them with the earth it's interesting that the concept that this word destroy is framed in the context of those who are corrupt those who are ruined those who have already ruined themselves god is not arbitrarily choosing to destroy that which is good he created the earth good but that which was good has now become corrupt and he is simply acknowledging and accepting the destruction that they have condemned upon themselves but god god is not too kind and loving to break his word to not follow through with the judgment which he has said he would do against the wicked many years later the people of god the people who lived in jerusalem began to boast against god in their rebellion against him they began to claim that god cannot destroy us they presumed upon god's grace claiming to have made a covenant with death we've made an agreement with death death cannot destroy us we find these words in isaiah chapter 28 but notice isaiah 28 and verse 21 for the lord will rise up as in mount perezm he shall be wrath as in the valley of gibeon that he may do his work his strange work and bring to pass his act his strange act you see the judgment and the destruction of the wicked is not something that is in character of god god wants to love he wants to give grace and mercy but he will act though it is foreign to his character he will act in this judgment of the wicked in order to preserve the righteous who are upon the earth but yes this is a this is a dark subject i know so let's let's move on because i want us to find the hope that we have right here in this passage yes god says i will destroy them with the earth but he says to noah make yourself an ark make yourself an ark and in those words we find not only a message of judgment but an offer of mercy in fact throughout the bible every time god gives a warning of coming judgment he gives without warning an offer of mercy an offer of hope and friends though this world may still today be condemned to the judgment of god yet still today we have an offer of mercy an offer of hope if we will place our faith in him [Music] so [Music] make yourself an ark god says to noah make an ark make a boat of safety so that when this destruction comes you will not be part of it every time god gives a warning of coming judgment when he speaks that warning of judgment he gives with it an offer of mercy i think of the prophet jonah it's an incredible story if you read the story of this prophet he was so unwilling to go and speak this message of judgment against nineveh finally after being swallowed by a fish and coming back he finally goes to nineveh and he speaks this message of judgment forty days and nineveh will be destroyed but the city of nineveh turned the city of nineveh repented from the king himself and his palace to the lowest servant repented in sackcloth and ashes and god relented god withheld this judgment the offer the message of judgment was at the same time an offer of mercy although jonah the prophet was upset god spoke to jonah a beautiful message of mercy that has come down to us through all time don't you think i care about a city of 200 000 people didn't god care about that world all of those people yes he did and that's why he gave this offer of mercy that's why he told noah to build this ark and he built this this immense boat not just a life raft but a boat with three decks the length of one and a half football fields a boat that would rival even the ships that sail the seas today a boat big enough to put two of every kind of living creature on this boat and seven of the clean animals don't you think there was room on that boat for all for any one of those human beings who lived before the flood to come on that boat and yet only eight only eight only noah his wife his three sons and their wives came on that boat god said to noah i will establish my covenant with you and you shall go into the ark you your sons your wife and your son's wives with you and of every living thing of all flesh you shall bring two of every sword into the ark to keep them alive with you and they shall be male and female to keep them alive god says with you i'm going to preserve your life if you have faith in me you know speaking of that time of judgment that is coming upon this world we find in revelation a picture all through revelation of this coming judgment the warning that was given in revelation 14 and a picture of this judgment from the perspective of the heavenly scene given in revelation chapter 11 and verse 18 the nations were angry your wrath has come the time of the dead that they should be judged and that you should reward your servants the prophets and the saints and those who fear your name small and great and should destroy those who destroy the earth a time of judgment not because god is so angry although it says that he was angry but a time of judgment against those who by their actions have demonstrated that they are destroying the earth but with this time of judgment that comes at the very end is another ark not an ark that is a boat that floats on the waters but an ark that contains within it the promise the covenant of god notice verse 19 then the temple of god was opened in heaven and the ark of his covenant was seen in his temple the ark of the covenant was this chest that god had instructed moses to build and place in the most holy place of the tabernacle and now in heaven in this heavenly judgment scene right in the midst of this judgment is an ark an offer of mercy and within that ark is contained the covenant that god wants to make with all who will be faithful to him within the terms of that covenant is life and that covenant is founded by jesus christ and his sacrifice for us it's founded upon the character of god and of his love and if we will accept that love then we will be safe in that coming judgment in this incredible and yes tragic story of the world before the flood i believe we have one of the most profound pictures of the gospel and yes sadly a picture of the world in which we live today isaiah chapter 1 describes the condition of the human heart isaiah 1 and verse 5 the whole head is sick the whole heart faints from the soul of the foot even to the head there is no soundness in it but wounds and bruises and putrefying sores paul uses these passages and others to show how each and every one of us without christ this is our condition yet because of the grace of god just as noah found grace in the eyes of the lord so we too today can find grace in the eyes of the lord not through works which we can do not because we're better than anyone else or more righteous or more holy or work harder but simply because of the grace and love of god and by our willingness to accept that grace paul writes in romans chapter 5 and verse 6 for when we were still without strength in due time christ died for the ungodly and in verse 8 but god demonstrates his love towards us in that while we were still sinners christ died for us much more than having now been justified by his blood we shall be saved from wrath through him yes even in the new testament wrath is coming destruction is coming death is coming but as we read in john chapter 3 and verse 16 god so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life paul writes in ephesians chapter 2 and verse 8 for by grace you have been saved through faith and that not of yourselves it is the gift of god not of works unless anyone should boast do you think noah or anyone else living in the world could have survived the flood just by knowing that a flood was coming do you think that just by building a boat or a tower or anything else that he could construct that he could save himself from the judgment of god no no but god warned him and god gave him specific instruction not instruction on how to save himself but instructions so that he could demonstrate his faith and god using that demonstration of faith in building a simple ark then used that as a means of saving him and his household you see james says in james chapter 2 that faith without works is dead though we cannot save ourselves we cannot do even one ounce one inch towards our own salvation yet when we have true faith we demonstrate that faith by our works what is faith what is faith paul says faith in hebrews chapter 11 is the substance of things hoped for the evidence of things not seen faith is seeing the invisible faith is seeing that which no one else can see because of our belief in the word of god you've heard the phrase faith not fear but is there ever a time when our faith should cause us to fear i believe there is and as we continue on our explorations around this beautiful arch i believe we'll discover the kind of godly fear that god would have us to have a fear that drives us to action and that drives us and leads us to the foot of the cross [Music] what is faith faith is all about believing something that you can't see with your eyes sometimes we think of having faith when we find ourselves wedged in a tight spot sometimes faith takes us into that tight spot not knowing how we'll get out of it faith for noah was seeing a flood coming when no one else could see it coming faith like abraham's faith took him to the top of a mountain with his only son there to offer him as a burnt offering faith is knowing like those three worthies the fiery furnace knowing that there's no way to come out of a situation of life and yet still remaining true to god like i said sometimes we think that faith is simply living without fear but as it was in the case of noah sometimes it is our faith that places fear in our hearts a fear for god not a dread and a terror but an awareness that a time is coming a time is coming for which we must prepare even in this temporal world that we live in we still have to have faith i remember the story the story of a man who lived in the side of mount saint helens this man disregarded all of the warnings that came as the scientists measured the earthquakes they used their instruments to determine that a dome of magma was rising inside the mountain and that any day any moment this mountain could explode everyone else heeded the warnings and evacuated but this one man stayed until that mountain exploded and his remains to this day are buried beneath the volcanic rock and ash you know sometimes we have to have faith even in this world to believe things that we cannot see fires or floods threaten property and emergency responders come and work hard to try to get people to evacuate and inevitably it seems there are some who fail to heed the warnings for some those rescuers have to come back and pick them out of very dangerous conditions others sadly it is the last decision that they make the rescuers are not able to come back in time to save their lives you know even today we're living our entire world is living in a pandemic a time when an invisible substance an invisible virus is permeating the air and causing all of us to have to change our lives and because of this because it's invisible because its effects may seem harmless there are many people there are many people who want to deny that a pandemic is even taking place who who say why should we change our lives to take all of these precautions against a virus that we can't even see and sadly many people even many of my friends are getting sick and have had several friends who have died who have died needless needlessly because they failed to have faith in the warnings they failed to have an appropriate fear and i'm not saying we should live in fear but noah noah did not live in fear of the flood but he lived in the knowledge knowing that a flood was coming and he prepared and so those today whether it is a virus whether it is a fire those who heed the warnings can be prepared and when the disaster strikes they have the tools with which to meet it i'm not preaching about coronavirus or evacuating for fires or floods although that's important but i think there are fair illustrations of a far more important warning that the bible gives us the warning that god's judgment is soon to finish the god jesus is coming in the clouds of heaven and at that moment every case will be decided every mind will be made up and those who have neglected to heed the warning those whose lives are not in tune with jesus those who fail to walk with god on that day will find that it is too late faith is a choice it is a choice to believe the invisible rather than simply believing what we can see and hear it is a choice that leads us to rest in god sometimes that leads us to have peace and assurance that all is well when all around us seems chaos and tumult sometimes that choice leads us to take action to take action to preserve our lives for eternity a faith that works like noah's faith in building an ark a faith that takes the precaution not out of fear but out of knowing that god is in control and that he has come to give us a warning and yes as we come to the very end of this world we have the warning that jesus is coming soon he says in matthew chapter 24 speaking of the signs of his soon coming matthew 24 and verse 37 as the days of noah were so also will the coming of the son of man be for as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking marrying and giving in marriage and knew not until the flood came and took them all away so also will the coming of the son of man be why did those people not know why did they not know that flood was coming until it was too late was it because they had no opportunity to know no noah had been building that ark probably for 120 years he had been preaching to the world but they refused to believe and so it will be in the last days many will be surprised when jesus returns not because they had no idea that he was coming back but because of their choice their choice not to believe second peter chapter 2 and verse 5 god did not spare the ancient world but saved noah one of eight people a preacher of righteousness bringing in the flood on the world of the ungodly and we read in hebrews chapter 11 in verse 7 by faith noah being divinely warned of things not yet seen moved with godly fear prepared an ark for the saving of his household by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith building a ship on dry land a ship without a sea you see noah knew that the sea was coming the flood was coming and so he built for the world that it wasn't yet and by building for the world to come he saved himself and his house how are we living friends are we living for the world that we live in today or are we building for tomorrow are we building a character for eternity are we living in the knowledge that jesus is coming soon that the day of judgment is already upon us jesus describes two men in matthew chapter 25 he says whoever hears these sayings of mine and does them is like a wise man who built his house on the rock and the rain descended and the floods came and the winds blew and beat on that house and it did not fall for it was founded upon the rock in contrast to the foolish man who built his house on the sand and when the rain and flood came his house was swept away friends will you have the faith of noah can we together build that ark which is to say first of all to accept that righteousness of jesus christ to enter into that ark of safety that he has provided then to do what he says to keep his word to follow his commandments which group will we be in when that flood comes so soon will we be inside that ark safe and sound or will we we be found outside hoping wishing for another chance the choice is yours the choice is ours let us pray father in heaven lord you have provided an ark of safety and that safety is found only in our lord and savior jesus christ in a loving relationship with him lord you have given us a warning yes a warning of coming judgment and yes a warning of destruction for those who refuse to receive you lord may we not be like those who are so unfaithful may we not reject the warning until it is too late but may we heed that warning not out of fear but out of faith may we then live in the peace and confidence and assurance knowing that you are saving us through your ark which is jesus christ may we have that relationship like noah did and be found walking with god this is our prayer lord in jesus name amen [Music] so [Music] you

Channel: Daniel McFeeters

Views: 46

Rating: 4.4285712 out of 5

Keywords:

Id: te_hGKWz53o

Length: 42min 29sec (2549 seconds)

Published: Sat Aug 28 2021