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The Flood and the Rest of the Bible
In the sermon this morning, we’re going to be primarily talking about Genesis 6-9. It is in these chapters that we read of Noah. But this isn’t the only place in the Bible where we read about him. The Bible is flooded with references to Noah and the ark.
The flood shows the power and authority of God. Psalm 29:10 says, “The LORD sits enthroned over the flood; the LORD sits enthroned as king forever.” The use of the word “flood” is noteworthy in Psalm 29:10. The word is only used elsewhere in Genesis to refer to the great flood during the time of Noah. The flood was powerful—so powerful that it destroyed all living things that weren’t in the ark. God was in complete control. He sits over the flood as a king sits on a throne, exhibiting His power and position.
The flood shows God’s compassion. The flood is a demonstration of God’s anger, but after the flood, we see a demonstration of God’s kindness. In Genesis 9, God makes a covenant, promising that He will never again use water to destroy all flesh (Gen 9:8-17). This event is used in the book of Isaiah to reassure the people that God is a God of lovingkindness. “This is like the days of Noah to me: as I swore that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth, so I have sworn that I will not be angry with you, and will not rebuke you” (Is 54:9).
The flood shows how people respond to God’s judgment. The people in the time of Noah went on with business as usual until the day that the great rains began to fall. Jesus says in Matthew 24 that judgment is coming and that people will respond to judgment with the same sort of apathy seen in the time of Noah. “For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man” (Matt 24:37-39).
The flood shows God’s patience. Just as parents do not enjoy punishing their children, God did not enjoy seeing creation be punished. God wanted people to turn to Him. “God's patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared” (1 Peter 3:20).
The flood shows that God rescues the godly and punishes the wicked. In 2 Peter we read that if God “did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a herald of righteousness, with seven others, when he brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly” (2 Pet 2:5) then we can be assured that “the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment” (2 Pet 2:9).
The flood shows how we should respond to God. “By faith Noah, being warned by God concerning events as yet unseen, in reverent fear constructed an ark for the saving of his household. By this he condemned the world and became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith” (Heb 11:7). Noah responded to God with “reverent fear.” This resulted in Noah building the ark exactly as God had instructed. If we are people of faith, then we will be busy building a life of obedience to God.
