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 Sermon > Lecture Messages |
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Title |
Lecture on Genesis Ver.2(108) - Lecture on Genesis Ver.2 (108) |
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Speaker |
Rev. Jaerock Lee |
Bible |
Genesis 7:4~9 |
Date |
2014-05-09 |
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Scripture
Genesis 7:4~9
[4] "For after seven more days, I will send rain on the earth forty days and forty nights; and I will blot out from the face of the land every living thing that I have made."
[5] Noah did according to all that the LORD had commanded him.
[6] Now Noah was six hundred years old when the flood of water came upon the earth.
[7] Then Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons' wives with him entered the ark because of the water of the flood.
[8] Of clean animals and animals that are not clean and birds and everything that creeps on the ground,
[9] there went into the ark to Noah by twos, male and female, as God had commanded Noah.
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
This is 108th Lecture on Genesis.
In Genesis 7:4, God said to Noah, "For after seven more days, I will send rain on the earth forty days and forty nights; and I will blot out from the face of the land every living thing that I have made." It means the judgment of flood would take place in 7 days. Inversely, it can also mean there were still 7 days left until the moment of judgment.
Before the judgment of flood, Father God gave many chances of repentance. However, people didn't turn back from their sins and evil, and eventually they faced the judgment of the flood. They had pushed the boundaries for judgment too far for God to cancel it. Yet still, Father God didn't judge the world right away. Once again He gave another '7 days'. He added 7 more days as 7 is a perfect number. Here is contained the precise justice of God the Father.
Why is it God's justice? These 7 days were like the last suspension period for someone only if he had a desire to turn back and hop into the ark of salvation. If people don't hold onto this chance that God gives, no one can hold a grudge against God.
The period of '7 days' shows how many conditions God examined in order not to violate the law of justice before He executed the judgment of the flood. He checked everything ever so delicately, and He strictly inspected all things.
Now, Genesis 7:5 says, "Noah did according to all that the LORD had commanded him." It means Noah did everything without any errors so that nothing was short in preparation for the judgment of the flood.
Brothers and sisters, Ezekiel 18:23 says, "Do I have any pleasure in the death of the wicked," declares the Lord GOD, "rather than that he should turn from his ways and live?" This is the heart of God the Father. That's why God searched to save just one more soul and gave people chances of repentance until the last moment even though people's sin and evil piled up and He had no alternatives but to judge them.
When He judged Sodom and Gomorrah, He Himself sent archangels to examine those cities. And even in such an urgent situation, He delayed the judgment to save Lot and his family.
It was the same when He was about to judge the city of Nineveh. The city of Nineveh was the capital city of Assyria. Assyria was a hostile country to Israel. Since their wicked ways came up before God, God had to destroy the city. However, God gave the people of Nineveh a chance to repent once more.
God sent Jonah the Prophet to cry out to them, "Yet forty days and Nineveh will be overthrown." Along with the proclamation of judgment, God gave them a suspension period of '40 days.' That is, God gave them time to turn back from their wicked ways; the last chance to escape from destruction and survive.
So no one is able to say, "I didn't get a chance to repent. I didn't have time to turn back from sin and evil." Nobody can complain against God. Fortunately, the people of Nineveh the great city held on to the last chance that God had given them. Along with the king, all nobles and people fasted and repented. The king ordered even the herds and the flocks should fast. Then, God changed His mind about the judgment, and didn't bring the calamity upon them.
As you can see, our God judges in His perfect justice and love, or He withdraws a judgment He once declared. The 7 days of suspension period that God gave before the judgment of Noah's flood was His love to perfect His justice. It was from the mercy of God who would save even one soul if only he desired to come to the ark of salvation.
There is one important fact, here. That is, 7 days before the flood God had Noah and his family and all the selected animals go into the ark. And He closed the door. Therefore, for the 7 days Noah could not cry out to the world that the judgment of flood would soon take place.
Why didn't God allow Noah to warn the people of the world about the judgment and yet give them the 7 days of suspension period? Why did God make Noah close the door of the ark instead of leaving the door left open till the last moment? The judgment of Noah's flood is a microcosm that implies the providence of human cultivation.
In Luke 17:26~27, Jesus said, "And just as it happened in the days of Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man: they were eating, they were drinking, they were marrying, they were being given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all." After knowing that there would be the judgment of flood, Noah diligently warned people. But the people didn't listen to Noah; instead, they mocked and criticized him.
In the 'days of the Son of Man,' that is, when the Lord comes back, the same thing will happen. Through His servants and workers, God diligently tells people that the time is near. Those who listen to Him, accept the Lord, and repent of their sin can receive salvation. So many people, however, are soaked in the sin of the world and they won't even try to hear the gospel; they rather show enmity toward it. It is because the force of anti-christ is getting stronger and stronger in the end time.
When the time comes, however, the Lord will come back in the air, and those believers will be raptured and enter the 7 Year Wedding banquet. Meanwhile, the 7 Year Tribulation takes place on this earth. At this time, those who are left on the earth are those who don't believe in the Lord at all, or who don't have faith worthy of salvation. Even among such people, some may wake up as they witness the Rapture. They finally realize the Bible is true and understand Heaven and Hell exist.
For them to be saved and to go to Heaven, they have to keep their faith in Jesus Christ no matter what kind of torture or threat they may encounter. Since the Holy Spirit is withdrawn, they have to keep their faith all by themselves. Since God the Father knows that some will receive salvation even through this way, God allows the period of 7 Year Tribulation. It is to give the last chance to those who cannot receive salvation under the justice.
The 7 days of suspension period before the judgment of flood had the same meaning as this '7 Year Tribulation.' 7 days before the judgment of flood, Noah and his family entered the ark, and it is the same as the saved children enter the 7 Year Wedding Banquet. At the same time, just as there is 'Gleaning salvation' during the 7 Year Tribulation, even after the door of the ark was closed, it could open to whoever would knock on the door.
It is because God 'desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth,' just as said in 1Timothy 2:4. During the 7 days of suspension period before the judgment of flood, nobody warned about the judgment... because Noah and his family had already entered the ark.
It is the same just as people have to keep their faith only with their will-power since the Holy Spirit is withdrawn during the 7 Year Tribulation. Once the door of the ark was closed, only those who could realize the situation and turn back without any help could grab the chance of salvation. However, among such countless people, there was not one person who repented and came into the ark.
It will be the same in the 7 Year Tribulation. Initially, many people will repent. As those believers face terrible persecution, however, most of them will renege and renounce their commitment and deny Christ. It will be rare to find those who can keep faith and reach salvation. As you can see, the judgment of Noah's flood is very similar to the end time of human cultivation.
Dear brothers and sisters, Let's precede to Genesis 7:6~7.
It says, "Now Noah was six hundred years old when the flood of water came upon the earth. Then Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons' wives with him entered the ark because of the water of the flood." "Noah's sons and his wife and his sons' wives' were those who believed in his words and followed him when he built the ark and conveyed the will and providence of the Father.
As a result of believing in the word of God given to Noah and following him, they could receive the amazing blessing of salvation. Even though there was no evident sign of flood before their eyes, they believed in Noah and obeyed him.
True faith is to believe in even invisible things like this. In addition, true faith is accompanied by the acts of obedience. Nothing was invisible, but Noah just obeyed the word of God and built the ark for a long period of time; it was faith. Regarding this, Hebrews 11:7 says, "By faith Noah, being warned by God about things not yet seen, in reverence prepared an ark for the salvation of his household, by which he condemned the world, and became an heir of the righteousness which is according to faith." Noah's family listened to Noah and stayed together with him; all these were the acts of faith.
And this faith eventually allowed for Noah and his family to gain salvation. If someone who didn't belong to Noah's family had heard Noah, believed him, and tried to enter the ark, would God have stopped him and said 'No' to him? Of course He would not have done it. Our Father God doesn't set some specific people to be saved. Noah diligently cried out, but people loved the world, didn't listen to Noah, and even ignored his words. And the result of their disbelief was the judgment and destruction.
The same applies today. Many people preach the gospel, but few people hear it, believe it and follow it. Some may go to church, but many of them are after the world in their hearts. They say with their lips that they believe, but they still love the world and take in the world; they are not different from those who didn't come into the ark.
Let me tell you why. Say, someone has his one leg inside the ark, but the other leg out in the world. If the judgment of flood comes upon him, can he hold onto the ark even in such strong rains and winds? Sooner or later, he will fall off the ark and down into the water. Therefore, those who try to play both sides- the world and faith- are not considered to have true faith. Those who have true faith worthy of salvation are those come into the ark completely, which means they come into the word completely and show the deeds of staying away from and avoiding the world.
By the way, are you sure whether or not you possess the faith to be saved? Pull your leg back from the world; withdraw your heart from the world and completely come into the truth. Come and get all of 'you' into the safety of the ark of salvation and completely and fully enter the eternal world; I hope you can be blessed like this.
Now, Genesis 7:8~9 says, "Of clean animals and animals that are not clean and birds and everything that creeps on the ground, there went into the ark to Noah by twos, male and female, as God had commanded Noah." As I explained in the last lecture, all animals were basically brought into the ark by two, male and female, and clean animals, by sevens for the survival of species.
On top off this, Noah took of unclean animals two, and of clean animals by sevens more. How did these animals stayed in the ark during the flood? As the great flood began, the original light of God was taken away from this earth, and the inherent natures of animals began to be revealed. Then, how could so many kinds of animals stay together in the ark for over a year? |
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