Genesis 6:9-22 - This is the account of Noah and his family. Noah was a righteous man, the only blameless person living on earth at the time, and he walked in close fellowship with God. Noah was the father of three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
Now God saw that the earth had become corrupt and was
filled with violence. God observed all
this corruption in the world, for everyone on earth was corrupt. So God said to Noah, “I have decided to
destroy all living creatures, for they have filled the earth with violence.
Yes, I will wipe them all out along with the earth!
“Build a large boat from cypress wood and waterproof
it with tar, inside and out. Then construct decks and stalls throughout its
interior. Make the boat 450 feet long,
75 feet wide, and 45 feet high. Leave an
18-inch opening[f] below the roof all the way around the boat. Put the door on
the side, and build three decks inside the boat—lower, middle, and upper.
“Look! I am about to cover the earth with a flood that
will destroy every living thing that breathes. Everything on earth will
die. But I will confirm my covenant with
you. So enter the boat—you and your wife and your sons and their wives. Bring a pair of every kind of animal—a male
and a female—into the boat with you to keep them alive during the flood. Pairs of every kind of bird, and every kind of
animal, and every kind of small animal that scurries along the ground, will
come to you to be kept alive. And be
sure to take on board enough food for your family and for all the animals.”
So Noah did everything exactly as God had commanded
him.
This is not a children’s story. If you back up and see the larger
implications, it is a disturbing story that goes basically like this; God is grieved that humanity has become so
violent that He decides to wipe them out except for one good man and his family. In other words, God will become violent to
deal with violence. This is hard for
some to hear, but the implication made by this story (and others in the Old
Testament) is what keep many people from even giving faith in God a
chance.
But the God I have come to know in an intimate way is
not violent. I’m guessing many of you
would give witness to the same. The God
I know has answered my violence with a call to lay down my weapons. God has taught me the way of peace although
my heart often still tries to go to war.
God has forgiven my warring ways and showed me the more excellent way of
Love.
What happened?
Has God changed? Did the violent
Hebrew God of Noah give up His warring ways and “become” the loving, gracious,
and forgiving God that I (and millions of my brothers and sisters) give
witness? That argument has been made
many times but every time it is championed, it ultimately is ruled heresy. “God is and always has been the same” is the
conclusion every time. So if God has not
changed, what HAS changed?
It is our collective understanding that has changed,
not God. The people who told the story
of Noah spoke of God as they understood God.
There was a terrible flood and they sought to understand why such a
horrible thing happened. I understand
their thinking because, despite what I know, I sometimes want a divine reason
for horrible things like floods (and pandemics) happening. But Jesus has taught us that God is not the
perpetrator in these natural acts of violence.
God is WITH US in the midst of them.
If there was “one righteous man in all the earth”
right now, it would not be me. If Noah’s
story were playing out in 2020, I would not be invited onto the ark. But God has saved me nonetheless. God is not who the tellers of Noah’s story
say God is, PRAISE THE LORD!
Prayer: God,
may my understanding of who are always be growing, expanding, and deepening.
Amen.
Prayer Focus:
Pray for those in the path of the violent storms this summer
Song: This is a
repeat, but I can’t not use it for today:
“Praise the Lord” – Crowder
