Gen. 8:8-9

Gen 8:8-9

Noah sent a dove, too, to find dry land. We don't know Noah's reasoning, nor do we know how much time passed between the sending of the raven and dove. However, a few things can be taken from these two verses.

First, as noted, it's possible know and the others were getting a little stir crazy cooped up in the Ark The dimensions of the Ark show that there was plenty of room for everyone - only 30%of space was taken - but anyone who has been inside for several straight rainy days knows it can be taxing.

Noah still used reason in choosing the birds. A raven is a scavenger, whereas a dove is a gentler creature which would be more likely to bring back a branch or leaf of some sort. Indeed, one could argue that Noah thought about the raven on his own but decided after some prayers a dove would be better. Many times, we try on our own strength to accomplish things when  we don't have the tools, the wisdom, or other attributes of God does. We must learn to rely solely on God to accomplish what we want and yes it is His will, He will guide us to the right place.

Of course, it is also possible that Noah chose both birds without consulting God. God could have allowed him to do so to show the grace of God in protecting the birds, because we need so much of that grace in our own lives. After all, these birds would have had to fly around for days , with no land.

The dove and raven like different people, too. God accepts weaker as well as stronger, note people were kept back when David attacked around 1 Sam 30 or so because they weren't as strong, yet they still got to partake in the spoil of victory.

Consider, too, the need for rest in the Christian walk. The dove returned to the Ark knowing that Noah would be there to welcome it home. In the same way, God always has arms open wide to receive us when we are in need. Jesus tells people in Matthew 11:28-30 to give Him their burdens, because many times things are too difficult for us. But, we can also be sure of God's promise to always be there for us, and to get us through anything. If God brought you to it, He can and will bring you through it.

Finally, it's interesting that the Spirit led Moses to write that the dove had nowhere to rest her foot. One thinks primarily of birds as flying, but they also walk at times and so the foot is important. Not only was this showing there was no dry ground for Noah and the others to walk on, but that every little detail is cared about by the Lord. That includes the walking of a bird and not just the flying of it, even though flight is the main way for a bird to travel.

Gen. 8:7

God gives us great freedom within His rules because of His great love for us. He doesn't want us to be mindless robots. He wants us to be the wonderful creatures He made us to be. As long as we follow His ways, there is much we can do.

These verses demonstrate this. He never told Noah whether or not he could send a bird to see if the waters had gone down. he left that up to Noah. He had given Noah great ingenuity, knowing that Noah, if he followed the Lord, could use it for good. Contrast this with the imaginations of those in the pre-flood world which were on evil continually. Certainly, if Noah had chosen a bird which would stand little chance of surviving - let's say a turkey - God would have told him, "Noah, turkeys can't fly like that. Pick another one." But, Noah used the intelligence God gave him, too, which is crucial to understanding freedom. Just because one can do something doesn't mean one should. Noah wasn't going to waste a turkey.

This alone is an important lesson for us. We don't have to feel so limited we can't do anything. Noah could have sent any other number of types of birds out, or he could have just sat there and prayed. Of course, he was probably going a bit stir crazy after all that time so it makes sense that he used his energies to learn. In doing things this way, he no doubt discovered things about these kinds of birds mentioned here if he didn't know them before, for instance. (Remember each creature was saved after its kind, so there weren't many kinds of doves, for instance, but one pair from which many different types would come, one of them having a part in the next verses.)

First, he sent a raven. Ravens are more scavengers then some birds. It's likely that Noah understood this, and while we don't know for sure it appears from the words used that this raven flew around for longer than the dove. It seems to have eventually found land, but searched until the waters had receded and there was dry land to be had.

In the same way, we as Christians sometimes find ourselves in very difficult spots. We go perhaps a bit early to find God's plan for our lives, only to find that we need to wait. However, just as this raven kept searching,  we need to be persistent. The raven eventually found what it was looking for. Perhaps Noah sent it a bit early,  but God was the one truly in control, and He didn't let anything bad happen to this bird, giving Noah the grace to be able to make his own mistakes and discoveries without being forced to follow God. He doesn't force us to love Him - we love Him becasue he first loved us, and He draws us so we will want to follow Him.

Gen. 8:5-6

We see here further waiting by Noah and his family. Sometimes, the hardest thing to do is wait.  Noah and his family had done everything God told them to. Just as sometimes we find ourselves wondering why God is waiting, Noah and his family likely wondered what God could be up to that it was taking this long.

However,  while God could have done it all very fast, He had a plan which was far better than what they had in mind. Not only did God need to erase all of the old world's evil, He wanted to refine them as well. He wanted to increase their faith,  to cause them to draw closer to Him, perhaps partly because the problems of the old world came because people had strayed so far from God.

He gives us fruits like in Galatians 5:22-23 and tells us to let the Spirit in us (those of us who know Jesus Christ as Saviour) develop them. He gives us things to focus on like in Philippians 4:8 because He knows the spiritual realm and the spiritual warfare ee will face, and is giving us His perfect plan so we can avoid the many pitfalls we will fall into if we aren't csreful.

Indeed, Noah fell prey to temptation later. We can't say with certainty that he didn't use that time to draw close to God, for all we know he could have really tried hard. However,  whichever the case, we can't always know what God's plan is, nor His timing. 

Whatever His purpose was here, then, He was going to complete it in His perfect timing. And, we can apply this period times in our lives when it would seem that everything should be ready but God still has some pieces to put in place. We need to use that time to draw close to God and let Him speak through His Word and the Spirit and show us His will more clearly, while growing in our faith, the fruits of the Spirit, and so on. Because, spiritual warefare will come, and we need to be ready with those fruits and with our minds focused on things which please God.

Gen. 8:2-4

Gen. 8:2-4

Here we see God's wrath ended and the start of a new world.

No matter how deep the sin, where there is still life there is the certainty of God's total and unconditional love. Even when that sin leads to awful consequences for the person. He still is willing to hear and answer that single, sincere prayer of repentance that leads to eternal life when one first call upon Jesus Christ for salvation, and which - when one is already saved - leads to God forgiving and cleansing them, as in the case of David after he sinned with Bathsheba. Once that person has trusted Christ as Saviour, they are a new creature in Christ, old things are passed away and all things are become new. 2nd Corinthians 5:17. The Holy Spirit then lives in them and works in them to guide them to become more loving, gentle, etc.; this is why Heaven will have no sin in it, because those who have trusted Christ as Saviour will have been transformed so they don’t have that desire to sin anymore, and they won’t have that sin nature either which we still have once we get saved.

God is willing to hear that sinner because God loves everyone, and that includes every sinner. He must punish sin, but His plan from the foundation of the world(1 Pet. 1:20) was to take that punishment upon Himself; remember Jesus is the Creator as He and the Father are one.(John 10:10)

However, just because the waters begin to subside doesn't mean they were automatically able to get out of the Ark Remember that it rained for 40 days and 40 nights, and the waters of the deep – the springs – were bursting forth in incredible force. Those waters might easily have been the entire canopy which was likely covering the earth. Then, the waters had to remain on the earth for such a long time to totally destroy the evil foundation which mankind had laid.

Noah and his family, and all the animals, continued to need to remain in the ark, though. Whenever sin occurs, there are consequences, and those affect innocent people. When those consequences occur, however, God provides protection.

Such protection doesn't mean total freedom from the consequences of others sin, of course. Sometimes it means great loss of worldly things - even of lives. After all, only our Heavenly treasures will last. Noah and his family had to leave a potentially very advanced world like outs and start from scratch, after all. However, God saw them through and they were able to rely on Him in the same way any of us can rely on Jesus if that person has called on Him by faith and trusted Him to forgive them and save them from their sins through what He did for them on the cross. This is why Jesus, in John 16:33 promises, in this world you will have tribulation but be of good cheer for I have overcome the world.

Gen. 8:1

Gen. 8:1

God is perfect. He couldn't forget Noah in the way we can. So, when we read that He remarked ed Noah,  it means God once again was going to put into effect things which would work towards using Noah for His perfect plan for mankind.

Often we may feel forgotten, as if God has forgotten us, but He hasn't really. It only seems like it to our worldly eyes. We see things without the eye for eternity that God has, though if we pray we can in His will catch a vision for what He wants to do. It is such a vision that leads people to feel called to missions, for instance.

But, if there is a time you have prayed and God is not leading you, don't worry, simply do as the Bible says in such instances and be still and know that He is God. He is working a perfect plan and as long as you remain faithful you can be part of it. Maybe not the most well known part, but notice God not only remembered Noah, He remembered every living thing that was on the ark. Each of those living creatures had an important role to play as the world began anew.

God sent a wind, too, once the heavy water pressure had done its job. All living creatures having perished,  there were 110 days between the end of the rain/springs of water and this wind. Before the waters began to go down, the earth faced an incredible set of catastrophic movements. God.tells us the old world perished, and it did. Facing such pressure and movement, nothing survived from that world filled with sin.

God always gives us new beginnings, too. His mercies are new every morning. He doesn't want us to leave to live as old selves, hence He promises if anyone is in Christ he is a new creature old things are passed away behold all things are become new. This promise is for each believer, just as each believer receives the Holy Spirit instantly upon calling on Jesus to forgive them. This wind, then, could be said to be a type of the Holy Spirit, signifying the start of something new, just as each person who receives the Spirit is born again.

This is a great part of Scripture, seeing how God shows pictures of Himself and how He loves each of us and works in our hearts and lives.

Of course, Scripture should be taken literally as well with historical details like this. The wind was a great help in Noah's situation because God needed to direct the ark to a place where the ship could eventually land. God has a plan for each of us, and He will direct our lives to the point where, when we choose to let him, that plan can be fulfilled.

Gen. 7:12-24 (and how to show the Bible is true and not Islam)

Here we have a summary of what happened,  from Noah and the others entering the ark to the flood itself and what resulted. A few things can be seen from this.

First, there is a great post from Answers in Genesis which explains the intense breaking apart and realigning of continents to show what Noah's world looked like.The world underwent enormous changes becasue of the destruction - consider that the waters prevailed on the earth for months at very high pressure, breaking down everything and sweeping so much away. This is why fish bones have been found on Mount Everest, for instance.

Yes, god is merciful and full of grace toward His people. He gave *everyone* a chance to be saved, and who is to say that there weren't people who died for their faith in what Noah had been told by God to do. We don't see any record of others in the time just before the Flood, but it is possible. There were also children, too young to understand, whose souls were saved because they couldn't perceive with their minds to make the decision to trust in Noah. (It is, as stated, also possible that all flesh had been corrupted by Nephilim, but that is discussed in previous posts and there is no need to go over that again here.)

There is also the fact that Jesus warns us that the days of his second coming will be just like the days of Noah. There is so much destruction because of the flood and the water springing up from the ground that the entire planet was different afterward. In the same way, the entire planet will be changed when he returns, and in the days and years before because of the Tribulation. Looking at  Revelation we can see many traumas to the planet through the earthquakes, something - a comet or meteor - hitting the water, and the death of so many sea creatures. Just as God we made it before though, he can do so again, with the world changed back to the way it was meant to be with no animals killing each other and human swords beaten into plowshares. Jesus will rule and reign, and we who have trusted him and Savior shall rule and reign with him. Amen.

I wanted to take some time to repeat something considered in another blog I've done calling for prayer and repentance because it is fundamental to our faith and to those we come in contact with. Becasue we face something else which could have hurt the masses who refused to heed God's warning, and that is a different belief system. It's possible the world had one or more belief systems that was totally contrary to the work Noah was doing.

it should be noted here that what the people believed in opposition to Noah didn't matter in the face of eternity. And, similarly, we have people today - Muslims but also others - whohave different beliefs about Jesus and who He is. However, make no mistake about it, God's Word is true, just as it was in Noah's day.

So, this will address witnessing to Muslims, but it is appropriate for any group which doesn't believe in the deity of redemptive work of Jesus Christ.

The Bible is true. It is for every tribe, every nation, every tongue. It is for people of any creed, becasue god loves each of us even though we are sinners.

Let me begin by teaching you some Arabic, because I doubt many readers know the language. There is a word, walad, which means a child through physical relations. There is another word, ibn, which means a child that is the same substance the exact likeness of the parent.

Jesus Christ is the Son of God in the Arabic ibn meaning. He is God in flesh, as we see in many places, John 10:30 being one of the key points but also all of the I am statements and other things. His disciples, and eventually quite a few of the Pharisees, knew he was God.

Yes the Pharisees, they didn't want to admit he was God but they knew he was claiming to be God and quite a few came to trust Him as Savior after the resurrection as we see in Acts chapter 2 and beyond. The Old Testament claims he is God, as we see in John  12:10 and other places; that first says that they shall look on me whom they have pierced. This is God talking, telling us that in the future the Jewish people would look on him and recognize that He, Jesus Christ, is the promised Messiah. Then, they shall realize that the one they were following is not God but the Antichrist. The Jewish people who trust in the Messiah during the Tribulation will be saved and enter the Millennial Kingdom.

That of course is a totally different topic. For now let me also explain that one of the problems Muslims have is with the Trinity. Well, that word is not in the Bible but God had is. The Godhead is used in Colossians 2:9, where we see that Jesus Christ is God because in him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily.

The Godhead is simple. We worship one God, just like them. However, God in the Bible is a personal God, a loving God who desires a personal relationship with His creatures. Yes, He hates him but He loves the sinner. He does not want to always be condemning. That is the error that Muslims make, they don't realize that Jesus Christ is God in flash and that he loves them and WANTS a relationship with them so he can forgive their sins and make them new inside.

So, what is the Godhead? It is simple. I am a male. I am hungry, so I plan to have a small snack of a few strawberries. I am also a blogger right now. So, I am a male blogger who is hungry for some strawberries. Does this make me three different people? Of course not, I am one person who is relating to you in three ways. In the same way, God manifests Himself in three persons - God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The page is in a different context, refuting another false doctrine, but this is an excellent site to explain how all three are equal persons in the Gosdhead and still God is one God.

Sure, people have claimed to be Christians and done bad thigns, but if I claim to be King of Norway and do a bunch of horrible things does that have any impact on the real King of Norway? Of course not. God promises to punish those who do wickedly in His name. Meanwhile, the Koran promises blessings to those who do wickedly in Allah's name.

But, which is God? Jesus Christ, God in flesh, is the Creator and sustainer of this universe. You can find many other great sites showing more about why the God of this universe, a personal, loving God who sees all as equal and who desires a relationship with each of us if we'll only turn to Him to forgive us of our sins, is the true God. Here is a good one. Also, here is a great end times site by someone who knows the Islamic faith and midnset intimately.

But, remember, too, to use the King james Bible, becasue it has thigns that make it much clearer for Muslims to realize that Jesus is God. For instance, the word "Begotten" in John 3:16 means more than just "only," it means a perfect likeness. Just like that Arabic ibn. Also, another great example is found in Genesis 22:8. "God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering." Notice the wording - it's not saying God will provide one Himself, it says "God will provide Himself." Meaning God himself will be that lamb, as John 1:29 says, "Behold the lamb of God which taketh away the sins of the world."

God himself provided the way for all people to be saved. he is calling on those of every tribe, tongue, people, and nation to repent of their sins and call on Him. You are only a single, sincere prayer of repentance to Jesus Christ away from eternal life. Simply admit you're a sinner - and we've all sinned and come short o the glory of God - believe that Jesus Christ, God in flesh, died for your sins and rose from the dead, and call on Jesus, choosing to trust Him to save you and come into your heart and make you new inside.

Then, you can grow in Him and talk to him anytime, anywhere, about anything. I recommend going to Godlife.com - though their verses aren't KJV it's a good study and you can contact someone in the online missions team who will answer questions, pray with you, etc.. A great site with the simple Gospel message is Jesus2020.com  or in Spanish, http://jesucristo2020.com/

Gen. 7:11

Genesis 7:11

The first thing one notices here is that the water didn't just come from the rain. It came from the fountains of the deep as well. This shows us several important facts.

First, this isn't the only verse in the Bible to talk about springs in the oceans. Job 38:16 does as well. Scientists didn't know this until very recently, millennia after Genesis was written. Earth scientists can learn much from the Bible, and those who trust it will always find it truthful. The Bible doesn't tell us everything about science, but where it does it is always accurate.

Even with the rain falling 40 days and nights, and the water coming from the springs, the flood covered the world partly because it was less mountainous than it is now. Again, scientists say that Mount Everest for instance is rising even today - of course not counting the tragic earthquake in Nepal which also knocked a few inches off the top of Mount Everest, it was so strong. Tectonic plate activity could easily have caused the land to push up the mountains. And, other things came into play as well. For instance, it is quite possible that those large craters some say came from  large meteors crashing into Earth could have caused some of those springs to erupt and sent much water cascading over a large part of the land.

Hence, we can see that the flood is historically accurate. Answersingenesis.org has many good features and books and articles on things such as the Grand Canyon, and how all of the water coming in rapid succession could have caused yet to form.

Another fact we see is a spiritual application. Yes God judge from above, but sin comes from below. Sin will always lead to destruction, it's just that it doesn't always come right away. But most importantly God always provides a way of escape and forgiveness. We can't escape every consequence of sin, but we can be forgiven and God can cleanse us from every sin. &, he will when we trust Jesus Christ, God in the flesh, to forgive us of our sins by calling on him by faith and confessing and forsaken our sin. By trusting in Jesus Christ as personal Savior, we can be sure he will cleanse us and make us new on the inside.