Noah (1)

‘...Noah found favour with the Lord.’ Genesis 6:8 NLT

If you want to enjoy God’s blessing, observe two things about the life of Noah. First, he honoured God. ‘By faith Noah, being warned by God concerning events as yet unseen, took heed and constructed an ark for the saving of his household.’ (Hebrews 11:7 RSV) Noah had never seen rain, nor had anyone else. He lived more than 100 km from the nearest ocean. Even if he could learn to build a ship, how would he get it to water? And how about rounding up all those animals? For over 100 years he was a laughing-stock. But because he honoured God, he came out on top. Secondly, Noah obeyed God. ‘…Noah did everything exactly as God had commanded him.’ (Genesis 6:22 NLT) Understanding can wait; obedience can’t. Instant obedience will teach you more about God than a lifetime of Bible discussions. In fact, there are many of God’s commandments you won’t understand until you first obey them. When Noah emerged from the ark after the flood, God said to him, ‘…Be fruitful and increase…I now give you everything.’ (Genesis 9:1-3 NIV) With God, your reward will always be greater than your obedience. Sometimes we try partial obedience: ‘I’ll attend church but I won’t give sacrificially. I’ll read my Bible but I won’t forgive the person who hurt me.’ Partial obedience is disobedience! The Bible says, ‘…A person is justified by what he does and not by faith alone.’ (James 2:24 NIV) Why is obedience so important? Because Jesus said, ‘If you love me, [you will] obey my commandments.’ (John 14:15 NLT)