Noah is one of the most famous people in the Bible.  God showed great favor upon him and his family because he was obedient to the commandment of God which led to he and his family being saved from the global flood that killed all of mankind.  Let’s take a look at highlights from his story and learn some lessons that God would have us imitate in our lives.  Here are those highlights.

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Lamech was Noah’s father.  He was 182 years old when Noah was born (Genesis 5:28-29).

 

However, evil began to be unbearable to God on the earth. God said that the thoughts of all mankind on the earth were centered on doing evil.  So, God’s patience had run out.  He decided to eliminate mankind and the animals on the earth with a global flood (Genesis 6:1-8).

 

One major issue really helped wickedness spread. That one issue was that the righteous people on the earth started marrying the unrighteous ones.  It is as the Bible says, “Do not be misled: “Bad company corrupts good character” (1 Corinthians 15:33 New International Version).  This is why God wants Christian to marry other Christians.  Sometimes, those we marry can turn our hearts away from serving God and cause Him to be angry with us.  So, when you are dating, wait until the other person becomes a Christian before marrying her (1 Corinthians 7:39).  That way, you will be pleasing to God.  Remember, pleasing God is the most important thing we must do in this life and it is necessary for us to go to heaven.

 

Jesus said, "...If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me” (Luke 9:23).  Remember, we are to be givers to God; this is what a sacrifice is.  It means to give up something to please Him.      If we want to do something that would cause us to hurt God’s feelings, then it is something we have to give up.  Sometimes, some of our relationships are not good for us; so, we have to give them up to please God.

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Although all seemed gloom and doom in Noah’s story, God gives Noah and his family hope!  God makes a covenant with Noah to save him, because God saw Noah as a righteous person.  Do you remember what a covenant is from our previous lessons?  A covenant is a set of rules God gives to save someone from disaster.  In this case, God shows Noah how to be saved from the global flood.  

 

Noah will have to obey this covenant in order to be saved.  God told Noah to make a huge boat called an ark.  He told Noah what materials to use and the measurements of how it was to be built.  He told Noah to save 2 of each animal within the ark and to supply food for every person and animal on the ship (Genesis 6:9-22).  So, when God makes a covenant, He gives us all the details we must follow exactly to be saved.

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As you will see, since Noah obeyed God’s covenant exactly, he and his family was saved from the flood waters!  When Noah was 600 years old, the flood waters came upon the earth.  The Bible says it rained for 40 days and 40 nights consecutively. Also, the springs of water from the ground was gushing upwards.  This had to be a terrifying sight!  All men, women, and animals died on the earth due to the flood, but Noah and his family were safe in the ark.

 

The flood lasted on the earth for a very long time. The Bible says, the earth was covered with water for 150 days (Genesis 7).   After the 150 days, the flood waters began to go down.  The ark came to a stop on the mountains of Ararat.  This is amazing to know, because this means the flood waters were extremely high!  They were so high the mountains were covered by them!

                                       

After Noah, his family, and the animals left the ark and walked on dry land, Noah worshipped the Lord.  He built an altar and made animal sacrifices there (Genesis 8).  Remember, whenever God blesses us, we should honor Him in worship.  This is part of giving thanks to Him for being good to us.  Don’t forget to tell God thank you for the good things He has done for us in prayer and songs (1 Thessalonians 5:17; Philippians 4:6-7; Hebrews 13:5)!  Worship Him, because He is the provider of all our blessings (John 4:24; James 1:17).  

 

After the flood was over, God told Noah’s family to restock the earth with people.  Halso made a new covenant with Noah, that He would not destroy the earth any more with a flood.  God invented the rainbow as a sign of this covenant to never destroy the entire earth with a flood again.  Noah went on to live another 350 years after the flood.  He died at the age of 950 years old (Genesis 9).

 

What did we learn from the story of Noah?  Mankind can get so evil that God will destroy them all except for the righteous.  This will happen at the last day, when Jesus returns.  The earth will be destroyed with fire and not water this time (2 Thessalonians 1:7-10; 2 Peter 3:10).  However, the righteous, Christian people will be taken to heaven where they will be in the joys of heaven forever (1 Thessalonians 4:14-17).

 

Also, God gives mankind a covenant to obey to be saved.  If Noah did not obey God’s Word, then he would not have been saved.  God gives us a covenant today called the New Testament.  We must obey these Words from Jesus to be saved from the destruction of mankind on the judgment day (Hebrews 12:24; Revelation 20:11-15).  We must obey God’s covenant exactly to be saved.  Noah had to build the ark to the exact specifications that God gave him to be saved.  If he didn’t, the boat would not have floated long enough to survive the flood.  For example, if he would have built a canoe, the family would not have survived.  A canoe is a boat, but it is not strong enough to take the beating of the global flood that a big boat like the ark could take.

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This shows us that we cannot take away or add to the things God has told us to do.  If so, then we are in disobedience to God and will lose our salvation on the judgment day (Deuteronomy 12:32; Revelation 22:18-19; Galatians 1:8-9).  You cannot decide what you want to obey and what you do not want to obey.  We must obey all things God has commanded to be saved (Matthew 7:21-23)!

 

In conclusion, please keep in mind that obedience to God is key to our salvation.  Without obeying God’s Word, we will not be saved.  Please let nothing or no one sway you from your determination to be the best person you can be in God’s sight!  God knows how to destroy the wicked and save the remnant of the righteous!  Be a part of that remnant! This is a decision you will never regret!

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- Anthony L. Norwood