Genesis chapter 6.
This chapter opens telling us how people had multiplied on the earth and this is the effect of the blessing that was given in Genesis chapter 1 verse 28 "Then God blessed them and said, "be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth and govern it. Reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, and all the animals that scurry along the ground". But the verses continue and tell us of the corruption that man has caused on earth, turning the blessing into condemnation. At the end of verse 3, I believe that this has to have some significance in that as it is reminding us that our time is short on earth but eternity is forever. It is revealing to us that we only have a short time to find God and accept the love, grace, mercy and forgiveness that he has for us. In the time that we spend here on earth God shows us great patience in waiting for us to return to him. The challenge is your time almost up to find God and experience all he has for you? This was a challenge for me as I know that I wasn't fully keeping Christ at the center of my heart with language I used or how I behaved, but this was my wake up call to fall deeper in love with God.
The end of verse 6 stuck out for me and it reads "it broke His heart". This caused a feeling for me that I had been punched in the stomach as it revealed to me once again the heart that God has towards each one of us and reminded me of why God created us. It speaks on many occasions in the bible that God created us for relationship with him, to have that life to the full. God's heart was broken with the people because they had chosen the path that wasn't following what God wanted for them, they were full of hatred and evil. This caused me to realise that I had been breaking the heart of God by not being committed to spending time with him on a daily basis so that I could be fed by him and live more like him each day. This challenged me and I'm now trying to get this back into my daily life as I want to be loving Christ with my whole life and giving him all the glory as he deserves it at the end of the day. I will still never be perfect while I am here on this earth, but I can still be called a child of God if I am consciously spending time with him and keeping him in the center of it all.
Verses 7 tells us the extent to how much sin breaks the heart of God and this wasn't just at this time, but it still breaks the heart of God now. Verse 8 talks about how Noah had found favour with God even though there was corruption surrounding him. This gives us the assurance that despite the situation the world is in, or the situation your in; you can still live in a way that will find favour with God.
The description of Noah in verse 9 is amazing and this was the mark that he left behind and what he was known for. Noah was described as "righteous" and "the only blameless person living on earth at this time" and walked in close relationship with God. But the most important thing is to remember that Noah was just a man, but justified by the grace of God through the faith that he had. Noah gave God the glory and the love that he deserved, obeying what he was asked to do. He was conscious of living in a way that would glorify God. This challenged me to think am I someone who walks closely in relationship with God and to be someone who lives consciously to glorify God in all that I do. Noah made his mark, are you making yours?
Verses 11-22 is God giving Noah the instructions of how to build the boat. This was no ordinary boat that Noah was being asked to build and it was someone who was obedient and had a strong faith who could complete the command.
Verse 18 "but I will confirm my covenant with you" God made a promise to Noah that he would keep him safe and deliver him. This is something that is exciting as God loves so much that he promises to deliver us from evil when we trust in him and love him with our whole lives. He is our salvation and we are kept safe by being in relationship with him.
