We continue today our sermon series on great men in the Bible with Noah and the Great Flood. I never cease to be amazed about how little the general public knows about the Word of God, about basic Bible stories or something like Noah and the Flood.
It reminds of the story of a salesman who was marooned in a small town because the bridge had washed out. He turned to the waitress and said, "This certainly looks like the flood." And she said, "The what?" He said, "It looks like the flood. You know. You've read about the flood, the arc." She said, "No mister, I haven't read a newspaper in 2 days and haven't had a chance to see CNN today. I don't know what you are talking about."
The Great Flood. As we speak the mighty Mississippi River is receding from an all time flood stage. A flood that was the worse in the last 100 years. Cities were under water. Lives and fortunes have been lost and as powerful and sophisticated as we are, we are as helpless as infant children against the raging forces of nature.
Why is this happening? I want you to listen to the Word of God today, because I think the Word of the Lord has an answer. Read with me from Genesis 6:11-13; 7:1. (Read) The message today is Noah: The Father Who Saved His Family and to tell you that the parallels in this story exactly parallel America and the church and I want you to listen to it.
Father, in the Name of Jesus, anoint us to hear Your Word, in His name we pray and ask it. And all of God's children said, praise the Lord.
Begin with this thought, that God controls nature. God uses nature to speak to people who are spiritually deft and need a wake-up call. Consider the fact that Sodom and Gomorrah were annihilated by a divine rain of hell-fire and brimstone.
When Jesus and disciples were on the Sea of Galilee, the Bible says that the winds became contrary, became so vicious, that these professional fishermen, who were professional sailors, were afraid they were going to die. And the King James Version says, "And Jesus stood up and rebuked the winds and said, peace be still." But in the Greek translation it reads, "be muzzled". Jesus literally "muzzled" the winds. He had control of nature.
Nature is not an accidental expression. God controls nature. I believe the flood on the Mississippi river is a divine wake-up call for America. It is saying that God is almighty and that He has all power in heaven and in earth. And for those citizens along the Mississippi, who voted to bring the gambling boats back to the river after a hundred years, you may find that the wages of sin do cause citizens to suffer.
Just listen to God's weather report just in case you don't think God controls the weather. Nahum 1:3 says, "...The LORD has His way In the whirlwind and in the storm,..." That's control. THE LORD HAS HIS WAY. Psalms 107:29, "He calms the storm, So that its waves are still." That's control. Isaiah 19:1, "...Behold, the LORD rides on the wings of a storm..."
God uses the wings of a storm for His chariot service. God is going to announce the Second Coming of His Son Jesus Christ with a mighty display of nature. Acts 2:19 records these words, "I will show wonders in heaven above And signs in the earth beneath:...the sun shall be turned into darkness and the moon into blood before the great and notable Day of the Lord."
Then God says in the Book of Revelation, in chapter 6, "I am going to put on a supernatural display in the Great Tribulation to prove that I am God, that I am in charge, that I am the Judge of all the earth." The Word of God says, "And He shall cause the water to turn to blood." That the sun is going to scorch the earth, resulting in uncontrollable fires, and great sores, festering sores upon the backs of people. Earthquakes are going to be so sever that the islands of the sea are going to disappear. Revelation 6:15 says, "And the kings of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains," "and said to the mountains and rocks, "Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb!" ""For the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?"" (Rev 6:15-17)
Here is the point. That Noah and the flood, were the forces of nature literally consume the earth. It was not a situation were God woke up one morning and looked out over the balconies of heaven and saw the water covering the earth and said, "Oops!" No. God watched every drop of that rain fall. He knew just exactly how much water came up out of the ground. He sent it by His direct provision, as judgment against sin. He watched every man drown and called it justice for rejecting the truth of His Word. That's a message we need to hear.
We have been living in a society were everybody gets by with everything. God sent a flood to judge the wicked and a violent generation, that's shown in Genesis 6:13. He sent it at an exact time. Demonstrating absolute control. Genesis 7:11 reads, "In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, on that day all the fountains of the great deep were broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened." That verse simply says that water came out of the sky and out of the ground simultaneously.
The Bible says these people had never seen rain before. All they had known was a dew that came upon the grass. When they heard about Noah preaching about this great flood that was coming, they thought he was just spreading fear among the people. He preached the same message for 120 years and only 8 people were saved.
People laughed, they mocked at him, they jeered. They said, "Look at these crazy people building a boat 450' long, 75' wide, and 45' high. There's not water for hundreds of miles. Look at that crazy guy."
And so it is that the Church of Jesus Christ has been preaching for decades, that there is coming a day when Jesus Christ Himself shall return to earth with power and great glory. And decade after decade, generations have said, "Where are the signs of His coming? You seem to be foolish and absolutely mad." But I'm telling you that just as certainly as the day came when God close the door on the arc. So is God going to close the door on us, and say, time is no more. The last church service has been had. The last song has been sung. The last sermon has been preached. The last soul has been saved. Judgment day is here. That's going to happen. That's going to happen.
Judgment day came. Water started falling from the sky. It started rising from the depths. It gushed out of the ground. Neighbors and friends started running in terror for the arc. All of a sudden that ugly looking boat was a thing of beauty. Neighbors and friends began to say, "Noah was right." They beat on the sides of the arc in panic and screamed for mercy. "Noah, open the door." But Noah could not because God had shut the door. The Day of Grace was over. The day for preaching was over. The Days of altar calls was ended. God gave them up, just as eventually He will give up every man, woman, boy and girl who REJECTS Him.
There is not a person in hell today that was sent there. They requested it. They wanted to go. They knew the Word and rejected Him and said in essence, "send me to hell." But on the arc is salvation. When you accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, you are saved and when you climb on board His arc it is a total salvation. It is not a partial salvation. There is joy unspeakable and full of glory. There is peace that surpasses understanding. Old things have passed away and behold all thing have become new. You become a new creature. You have a new name. You have a new life. I'm going there, I hope you are. It is a great salvation provided by Jesus.
Noah is the Father, who saved his family. He knew disaster was coming. Like some of us. He preached one message for 120 years and 8 souls were saved. I can hear them say each time, "Oh, I've heard that message before." But there is a message here that we need to hear. If we are to survive as a nation and we take a nation back, there must be a burning passion in the soul of every father, to bring his own family into the arc of salvation. Bring them to Jesus Christ. God places the spiritual responsibility for the family on the father. Not the mother, not the church, not the Boy Scouts, not the school house.
Ephesians 6:4 says, "And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord." The word training here is the Greek word "gymnot" from which we get gymnasium. It means to show your children over, and over and over. Like you would show them to hit a baseball or to kick a football. Show them how to worship. Show them how to read the Word of God. Don't send him to church, you take him to church. You show him the path of righteousness and when he is old, he'll not depart from it.
Why aren't father's leading the children to the Lord? Simply because they are not there. The home is plagued by the missing father. Millions of men have fathered children and simply walked away from the mothers, not taking care of mother or child. Ed Cole says it well, being born a male is chance, being a man is a choice.
What's the message? Show your son how to be a real man, get a job and go to work. Love their mother like Christ loved the church. Don't send them to church, take them to church. If you want to give them something valuable, give them your time. Tell them what the rules are and when they break the rules, discipline them in love.
In closing I want to say this, as our organist comes. Remember that God controls nature. Remember that God controlled the flood from the first drop of rain to the last. He watched everyone of the millions of people on earth drown and called it justice for the sins they had committed. The Bible says, "the soul that sinneth shall surely die." And that is a fact. The storm clouds are now gathering over DeKalb county and the door of the arc of salvation that is open today will not be so forever. God will close the door.
We will preach the last sermon, sing the last song, turn out the lights for the last time and then shall come the rapture of the church and we shall leave instantly and suddenly. And the antichrist and his demonic goons will seize control of the earth and I promise you all hell is going to break out.
Noah was a godly father, he knew the flood was coming and he did what every father here I hope will do, is that you make every effort to get your family saved. Let's take our community back by fathers winning your families to Christ first. Your first line of defense.
Folks, the first rain drops of God's judgment are now falling. What are you going to do with Jesus, who is called the Christ? He is the only salvation.
Those of you who are in this room say, "Pastor, If I were to stand before God today, I know there is sin in my life and I do want to be a part of the family in heaven and I ask you to pray with me today that God would forgive me of my sin and save me this morning. Can I see your hand, right where you are. God bless you.
How many of you fathers in this building would say, "Pastor Art there are immediate members of my family that are not saved and I want to start praying for them, that God would save them. What sense does it make to go to a foreign country to save their children and lose ours. What sense?
Your in this room and your son, your daughter, members of your immediate family are lost and you're a father. Your brother, your sister, your mom, your dad. Slip your hand up.
I want you to join me in a prayer for their salvation around this altar today. Jesus is the only hope for us and we are trying to bring His loving grace to families that are torn apart in the raging floods of this nation. As we sing, you who raised your hands, I want you to come. Let's sing the chorus of "There's Room At The Cross" #645. (sing)
There are some here who desperately need the Lord and for many different reasons didn't respond to this call. Let me tell you, every person Jesus invited, He invited personally. He invited them publicly. And Jesus said, "If you deny Me before men I WILL deny you before My Father and His angels." I'm not asking you to join this church. If I never see you again in the providence of God, so be it. But I hope to see you just inside the eastern gate and you can say, because of that sermon in the Month of August 1993, I'm in heaven today. That's why I'm here.
There are some of you who are looking at me who are as lost as you can be. You know it and I know it and God knows it. You can hear the rain drops falling. The flood is on the way and you are gambling your soul, that you'll get in before the last second. What a foolish thing to do. You're not with Jesus and there's a want to in your heart to know Him. Don't hesitate. If you are in the middle of one of these pews, step on every toe between there and the aisle and say, "I'm on my way to eternal life, move over."
Pray this prayer with me. Lord Jesus Christ, I ask you to forgive me of all my sins, cleanse me from all unrighteousness and make me Your very Own. From this day forward, I will serve you with my whole heart. You are my Lord and I am Your servant. And now because of the blood of Jesus. I am saved. I am forgiven. And I'm on my way to heaven. In Jesus name. Amen.
