For 120 years a voice rang out across the fertile valleys of the antediluvian landscape. Bold, piercing and at times unsettling the call came for those that listened to prepare for a coming cataclysm. Over time a hulking shape took form behind the presence of the determined speaker as the craftsman carved the ark.
But would persistence pay off? Would the continued cries be heeded? Would the world listen to the pleas of one solitary man?
The world of those that lived before the flood seems shrouded in mystery. It is a world that is buried not only by water but also by the distance of time. Secrets have been stored in the earth itself and many wonder how the passionate warning of Noah was ignored by so many. Let’s turn in our bibles to Genesis 6:13.
After considering the crimes of humanity God explained to righteous Noah His plans saying in verse 13:
13 And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth. Genesis 6:13
God could no longer tolerate the evil that spilled out in violence across the earth. Sin was seeping in to the soil and God had to wash it away. And so He told Noah beginning in verse 14:
14 Make thee an ark of gopher wood; rooms shalt thou make in the ark, and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch. 15 And this is the fashion which thou shalt make it of: The length of the ark shall be three hundred cubits, the breadth of it fifty cubits, and the height of it thirty cubits. 16 A window shalt thou make to the ark, and in a cubit shalt thou finish it above; and the door of the ark shalt thou set in the side thereof; with lower, second, and third stories shalt thou make it. Genesis 6:14-16
The very specific plans of the ark were given to ensure the safe voyage of the remnant of humanity that would be preserved through the coming flood. God continues in verse 17:
17 And, behold, I, even I, do bring a flood of waters upon the earth, to destroy all flesh, wherein is the breath of life, from under heaven; and every thing that is in the earth shall die. 18 But with thee will I establish my covenant; and thou shalt come into the ark, thou, and thy sons, and thy wife, and thy sons’ wives with thee. Genesis 6:17,18
God had not forgotten humanity. God was not going to abandon the hope that He had given Adam and Eve when He spoke to them the promise of the Savior in the cool of the day. But God had a problem. The devil had so corrupted humanity that the descendants of Adam and Eve had all but erased the image of their creator. And if God did not act there would be no one left to believe in the seed of the woman.
This reminds me of Jesus’ prophetic statement in Matthew 24:22 as He looked down through time to both the end of papal oppression and His own return saying:
And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened. Matthew 24:22
In God’s mercy He cut short the old world before the flood and in His mercy He will soon cut short the downward spiral of humanity once again.
Finally time came for Noah and his family to enter the ark. Turn with me to Genesis 7:7:
7 And Noah went in, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons’ wives with him, into the ark, because of the waters of the flood. Genesis 7:7
Now we see that in verse 10 that Noah went into the ark seven days before the rains came on the earth. Verse 10 says:
10 And it came to pass after seven days, that the waters of the flood were upon the earth. Genesis 7:10
This is important to understand because it shows that Noah was actuated by faith and not by sight. He entered into the ark because of the command of God and not because he was fleeing from the sight of the flood. But while Noah didn’t need a dramatic display to urge him and his family on the ark the rest of the pre-flood world continued to doubt. But then God did something miraculous: something that God had promised would happen a few verses earlier. Go back with me to Genesis 6:19,20. Here God said to Noah:
19 And of every living thing of all flesh, two of every sort shalt thou bring into the ark, to keep them alive with thee; they shall be male and female. 20 Of fowls after their kind, and of cattle after their kind, of every creeping thing of the earth after his kind, two of every sort shall come unto thee, to keep them alive. Genesis 6:19,20
Somehow God promised that all of these animals would come to Noah. Have you ever tried to herd wild animals? I remember in a trip that I took to Africa to the Masai Mara which is at the top of the famed Serengetti. My family and I were making our way through the plains and low lying hills on a safari. At one point we crested a hill and we were suddenly in the midst of hundreds of thousands of wildebeests. They were impressively large and at first they kept our attention but after a while we wanted to move on to see other more exotic animals. And so the safari driver attempted to make his way through the massing herd of animals, but there were times when despite his aggressive driving they just didn’t want to get out of the way. It took some shouting and a few close calls to finally get these huge beasts to part and let us on our way.
Wild animals just don’t listen to humans that have other plans. But animals listen to God. Animals listen to their creator. They know the voice of the Lord and so the bible tells us that just as God promised all the animals of the earth came to Noah to enter the ark. Go down with me to Genesis 7:8,9:
8 Of clean beasts, and of beasts that are not clean, and of fowls, and of every thing that creepeth upon the earth, 9 There went in two and two unto Noah into the ark, the male and the female, as God had commanded Noah. Genesis 7:8,9
What a procession that must have been. Like a grand parade the animals formed a line to enter into the ark: lions, bears, wolves and sheep only to be followed by elephants, rhinos and horses. They must have stretched for miles as they heeded God’s command. What a sight to behold and I am sure that the bewildered antediluvians beheld it. They couldn’t help but feel the ground shake as the buffalos stomped along. They couldn’t have missed the birds of all kinds that flocked to the ark.
How could anyone have missed such a dramatic display? And yet when the dust settled and when every beast of burden and everyone lowing lamb was safely on the ark the inhabitants of the pre-flood world somehow did not follow after them. Somehow they quieted their awe and ignored their foreboding. Somehow those people continued to doubt and decided that they weren’t going to enter the ark.
When the plodding procession finally filled the ark there were only eight people to manage the world’s greatest indoor zoo. You see when people are hardened in sin they will ignore even the most supernatural evidences of God’s leading. The world has ignored God’s intricate creation: from the cellular machines that build life to the delicately balanced interdependent ecosystems.They have dismissed the wonders of space with the vast exercise of the laws of God and the exact parameters that permit life on this planet. They have ignored the providential leading of God’s ancient people with the supernatural interventions of plagues and miracles and finally they have denied the first advent of the world’s redeemer.
Just as in Noah’s day very few people will respond to present truth. But the door of the ark is still open. Every plank has been hewn and every pin has been placed. And it is still there for God’s people to enter. Ellen White says in Patriarchs and Prophets, p102:
Before the Flood God sent Noah to warn the world, that the people might be led to repentance, and thus escape the threatened destruction. As the time of Christ's second appearing draws near, the Lord sends His servants with a warning to the world to prepare for that great event. Multitudes have been living in transgression of God's law, and now He in mercy calls them to obey its sacred precepts. All who will put away their sins by repentance toward God and faith in Christ are offered pardon.
And then she adds:
Of the vast population of the earth before the Flood, only eight souls believed and obeyed God's word through Noah. For a hundred and twenty years the preacher of righteousness warned the world of the coming destruction, but his message was rejected and despised. So it will be now. Before the Lawgiver shall come to punish the disobedient, transgressors are warned to repent, and return to their allegiance; but with the majority these warnings will be in vain. Patriarchs and Prophets, p102.
Will you be part of the few that enter in to the ark of salvation? Turn with me in your bibles to Luke 13:22-24. In this passage we find Jesus in the middle of His ministry. The bible says:
22 And he went through the cities and villages, teaching, and journeying toward Jerusalem. 23 Then said one unto him, Lord, are there few that be saved? And he said unto them, 24 Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able. Luke 13:22-24
God’s word is available throughout the whole world. And yet very few people will enter into the strait gate. Very people will enter in through the door of the ark. Don’t wait for some dramatic display before you listen to the pioneers of our faith. The apostle Peter pleads saying:
7 But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men. 8 But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. 9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. 2 Peter 3:7-9
God doesn’t want anyone to perish but unfortunately many will. This is why Jesus says that many will seek to enter, and shall not be able. The natural man does not receive the things of God. And as much as God wants the whole world to be saved most people will not respond to the salvation that God provides.
This isn’t just what Jesus says in Luke. We had a very similar wording of this in our scripture reading today in Matthew 7 where Jesus says:
…narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it. Matthew 7:14
I know that it is hard to accept that only a minority of the people in this world will receive salvation. But this concept is interwoven throughout scripture. We have already seen how only eight people chose to go on the ark. As we go forward in time we see that God chose Israel out of all the earth to be His people and God explains that it wasn’t because they were a large nation. Moses explains in Deuteronomy 7:7:
7 The Lord did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all people: Deuteronomy 7:7
As we continue forward in time we see that even within Israel there was a remnant. The apostle Paul quoting Isaiah says in Romans 9:27,28:
27…Though the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea, a remnant shall be saved: 28 For he will finish the work, and cut it short in righteousness: because a short work will the Lord make upon the earth. Romans 9:27,28
Finally as we come to the last days and the deception that is coming on the world the bible says that all the world wondered after the beast. Very few will resist the devil’s deception.
Will you hear God’s call in the last days? Will you respond to the God’s last warning for this world? Will you enter in through the narrow gate? Will you be among the remnant of God’s people? God is calling you today just as He did to those that lived before the flood. Time is short and few will respond. Will you hear God’s call?
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