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He walked the streets surrounded by wicked people. It seemed evil thoughts dominated everything in the community all the time. Corruption was everywhere, yet he chose to remain faithful to God. He pursued righteousness in a world of unrighteous behavior.
This is the world of Noah before God revealed his plans for the ark and the flood. Noah had been tested in a thoroughly corrupt world yet he remained devoted to pursuing God. This is why Noah found favor in God’s eyes (Genesis 6:8); why God entrusted him with the building of the ark (Gen. 6:14-21); why “Noah did everything just as God commanded him (Gen. 6:22). Noah’s obedience to God was built on a life of faithfulness to God even when surrounded by a world saturated with evil.
This helps me understand Noah’s determination to finish building the ark. His desire to do everything God instructed was built within him before God revealed his plans to destroy the world with a flood. Scripture tells us about the world Noah lived in, but it does not reveal what must have been a daily struggle for him to remain faithful to God while surrounded by evil people. Noah was tested and proven faithful to complete the overwhelming task of constructing the ark.
When I read about Noah, I try to put myself in his place. Would I continue to live a righteous life in the midst of a world obsessed with evil? Would I become discouraged being surrounded by wicked people all the time? Would I find favor with God as Noah did? Would I willingly accept God’s command to build the ark?
Some day God will again destroy the earth and all its evil, replacing it with a new earth (Rev. 21:1-4). Like Noah, God is looking for his faithful in an evil world, the faithful who will answer the call to obedience. He is seeking true followers of Jesus Christ determined to accomplish seemingly insurmountable tasks for the Kingdom of God. He wants us, like Noah, to be prepared to do everything that God commands us to do.
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There’s a phrase “putting down roots” that describes someone settling down in a place. I have heard this phrase used to describe people I know who have finally settled in one place after jumping from job to job and one town to another. But do we think of this phrase in the spiritual sense as settling down with God?
To settle down with God is to focus on building a relationship with him. It means putting down roots deep into his scripture; spending focused time in prayer with God; drawing deeply from solid relationships with other believers. The challenge is to not get distracted by customs and beliefs in this world that can uproot our faith in Jesus. This is what happened repeatedly to the Israelites in the Old Testament. Psalm 106:34-35 tells us how the Israelites repeatedly disobeyed God by mingling with other nations and adopting their customs.
When we put down roots with God we secure ourselves to his eternal grace and love. The deeper our faith in him, the more we can draw on God’s strength and not our own; the better prepared we’ll be for the storms of life. Jeremiah 17:7-8 tells us, “But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit (NIV).”
After Jesus died on the cross and was buried, before Jesus rose from the dead, the disciples were hiding out of fear they might meet the same fate. All they knew was that Jesus was gone. They had yet to experience his resurrection. This was a period of fear and doubt, the time between Good Friday and Easter Sunday.
To live without salvation through Christ is to be caught between Good Friday and Easter morning. It is an eternal darkness without the hope offered by the resurrection of Christ. It is a place of constant night with only the fading light of a man-made lamp to illuminate the way. It is a state of hopelessness without any chance of salvation from sin. Yet because of God’s love for us we do not have to remain trapped between Good Friday and Easter.
Salvation is ours through faith in Christ. This Easter embrace the hope of the resurrection. Leave behind doubt and disbelief and run with Peter to see the strips of linen lying in the empty tomb (Luke 24:12). Share the joy of the women who saw the risen Lord and ran to tell the disciples (Matt. 28:8). 1 Peter 1:8-9 tells us, “Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls (NIV).”
My prayer is that the dawn of this Easter morning will dissipate the darkness of night with the radiant light of the risen Lord. May we express the joy of our salvation with the proclamation, “He has risen!”
The silence is overwhelming, it pierces my ears
I hear a light wind rustle through the evergreen trees
The snow gently swirls downward in the cold air
In this temple of God’s creation, I feel his gentle hand upon me
I feel his gentle grace, his love surrounding me
It is a moment of solitude away from a turbulent world
A world where a storm rages within humanity
A world where people deny your existence, yet secretly hope you truly exist
Outside the noise and confusion of that worldly place
I find this escape into your creation
It fills me with your spirit of hope, love and truth
Against the cold chill of this world
I see your light piercing the darkness; it warms my soul
Your light gently touches my face, it tells me to trust you and your way
The trampled snow ahead seems the way to go
But God you tell me this is not so
“The path I’ve put you on is full of troubles and struggles.”
He points toward the deep snow, pure white
I do not know where this unmarked path goes
But I do know its ultimate destination
There we will bask in the presence of God’s glory
But for now I must press on, clinging to his hope, trusting him
Letting my faith in God guide me along this uncharted path
“He who forms the mountains, who creates the wind, and who reveals his thoughts to mankind, who turns dawn to darkness, and treads on the heights of the earth — the Lord God Almighty is his name.”
— Amos 4:13
A dear friend shared this in an email during a particularly trying week. With her permission, I now share it with you.
These verses encourage us to T.R.U.S.T. Him: His unfailing love and His mighty power…
T—TELL HIM EVERYTHING!
Psalm 86:5-7…You, Lord, are forgiving and good, abounding in love to all who call to You. Hear my prayer, Lord; listen to my cry for mercy. When I am in distress, I call to You, because You answer me.
Ps. 34:17-18…The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; He delivers them from all their troubles. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
Matt. 20:29-34…As Jesus and His disciples were leaving Jericho, a large crowd followed Him. Two blind men were sitting by the roadside, and when they heard that Jesus was going by, they shouted, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!” The crowd rebuked them and told them to be quiet, but they shouted all the louder, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!” Jesus stopped and called them. “What do you want me to do for you?” He asked. “Lord,” they answered, “we want our sight.” Jesus had compassion on them and touched their eyes. Immediately they received their sight and followed Him. (Lord, we cry out for insight in the current need for decision-making!)
R—REMEMBER HIS PAST FAITHFULNESS!
Ps. 77:5-14…I thought about the former days, the years of long ago; I remembered my songs in the night. My heart meditated and my spirit asked: “Will the Lord reject forever? Will He never show His favor again? Has His unfailing love vanished forever? Has His promise failed for all time? Has God forgotten to be merciful? Has He in anger withheld His compassion?” Then I thought, “To this I will appeal: the years when the Most High stretched out His right hand. I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember Your miracles of long ago. I will consider all Your works and meditate on all Your mighty deeds.” Your ways, God, are holy. What god is as great as our God? You are the God who performs miracles; You display Your power among the peoples.
U—(Be) UNAFRAID!
Deut. 20:1-4…When you go to war against your enemies and see horses and chariots and an army greater than yours, do not be afraid of them, because the Lord your God, who brought you up out of Egypt, will be with you. When you are about to go into battle, the priest shall come forward and address the army. He shall say: “Hear, Israel: Today you are going into battle against your enemies. Do not be fainthearted or afraid; do not panic or be terrified by them. For the Lord your God is the one who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies to give you victory.”
S—STAND FIRM!
Ps. 20, especially vs. 6-9…Now this I know: The Lord gives victory to His anointed. He answers him from His heavenly sanctuary with the victorious power of His right hand. Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the Name of the Lord our God. They are brought to their knees and fall, but we rise up and stand firm. Lord, give victory to the king! Answer us when we call!
T—TAKE HIM AT HIS WORD!
Ps. 86:11-12…Teach me Your way, Lord, that I may rely on Your faithfulness; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear Your Name. I will praise You, Lord my God, with all my heart; I will glorify Your Name forever.
Isaiah 30:19-21…People of Zion, who live in Jerusalem, you will weep no more. How gracious He will be when you cry for help! As soon as He hears, He will answer you. Although the Lord gives you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, your teachers will be hidden no more; with your own eyes you will see them. (Praying for vision to determine “who” or “what” those righteous teachers are this week.) Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.”
Praying and trusting with you.
“Joshua Fought the Battle of Jericho” is a popular song for kids in church. One of the stanzas kids shout out is, “And the walls came tumbling down.” Indeed, Joshua 6:20 tells us that when the Israelites heard the trumpets they shouted and “the wall fell flat.” But there is one verse that makes me wonder if the entire wall was actually flattened.
In Joshua chapter 2, we read about how Rahab hid the men that Joshua sent to spy on the city. In 2:9, Rahab expresses her faith in God by telling them she knows “the Lord has given you this land.” She strikes a deal with the spies who tell her to tie a scarlet thread in her window and they would spare anyone in her house. But it is not this deal that gave me pause in this chapter.
If you read the chapter carefully, you’ll notice that 2:18 tells us something amazing, “…her house was on the wall. She was living on the wall.” Anytime a Biblical writer repeats a phrase they want you to take notice. Think about this for a moment. Verse 6:20 tells us the wall around Jericho fell flat and 2:18 tells us Rahab’s house was on the wall.
We know in verse 6:22-23 that the two spies “went in” Rahab’s house and spared her as well as her family. The wall fell flat except Rahab’s house which was on the wall. Imagine Rahab’s family huddled in that house as the Israelites shouted after the trumpets blared. Picture the tremendous noise and vibration as the wall crumbled around them. All they had was the scarlet cord in the window to tell them they would be spared from God’s judgement.
With the wall gone, the Israelites took Jericoh and destroyed everyone and everything as God commanded. Just as death passed over Israelite homes with blood over their doorway in the Passover in Exodus, destruction passed over Rahab and her family because of a blood-colored cord in their window. It was Rahab’s faith in God that brought salvation to her home.
As Revelation 11:15-18 tells us, someday the seventh trumpet will sound and judgement will be at hand for those opposed to God. Just as Rahab was spared, only the blood of Jesus Christ over the doorway of your life will save you from destruction. On that day, you will feel the noise and vibration of the world crumbling around you, but will be reassured by Rev. 12:11, “And they overcame because of the blood of the Lamb and because of their testimony, and they did not love their life even when faced with death.”
When we don't have faith in God's purpose, we can act like the boy in Judy Viorst's children's book.
In her children’s book, Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, Judith Viorst tells a story about little Alexander and his bad day. From the moment he wakes up, nothing goes his way. “I could tell it was going to be a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day,” he says on the first page. Sure enough, from there on, a series of bad things happen to him from not getting a window seat in the car to the Dentist finding a cavity. Alexander’s solution is to move to Australia, but his mother reminds him at the end of the book that some days are like that – even in Australia.
Like Alexander, sometimes we wake up with the attitude that it’s going to be a bad day. Why? Because we decide things that don’t go our way are bad. We get frustrated at the obstacles we face and angry about unfulfilled expectations or lost dreams. Left unchecked, this attitude can taint our view of life and put us into a downward spiral. We become like the beaten down woman in Paul Simon’s hit song “Slip Slidin’ Away” who says, “a good day ain’t got no pain” and “a bad day’s when I lie in bed and think of things that might have been.”
Yet how often do we lie in bed and think of what might be if we focused on God’s purpose instead of our own expectations. Romans 8:28 tells us, “And now we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.” If you “trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding,” (Proverbs 3:5 NIV) then your expectations will center on God’s purpose for your life. You will be better equipped to understand that God has a purpose for everything, even the terrible, horrible, no good very bad things that happen to us.
In 2 Cor. 11:24-26, Paul describes the many bad days he experienced in his ministry. “Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my own countrymen, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false brothers.” Even though Paul experienced many horribly bad days, he continued to trust that God had a purpose for everything. He remained focused on spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Jesus told us that those who follow him will have bad days. “If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not know the One who sent me.” (John 15: 20-21 NIV) How well do you know Christ? How much faith do you have in Romans 8:28 that “God causes all things to work together for His purpose”, not ours. Do you trust that God is in everything, even the horrible stuff? The way we view each day can say a lot about how we view God in our lives.
