Gen. 9:1
God doesn't
just speak to Noah here. This has been forgotten by some, because we tend to
focus on Noah specifically. However, when He spoke to all of them, it showed
several things.
First, the
command to replenish the earth went to all of them. Noah and his wife, like
Abraham and Sarah, could have had a miracle baby. (His wife was almost surely
past childbearing age even for the longer life spans of pre-flood people, who
may perhaps have had babies in their 100s or 200s.) But, his children were used
by God not because they were part of the original promises God made to Noah,
but because they had seen Noah's -and, presumably, his wife - as good examples
of God and chosen to follow God. It is not our heritage or anything about us
personally that can get us saved, but merely our faith in Jesus Christ and
trusting Him to forgive us of our sins, calling on Him by simple faith to
forgive us and repenting of our sins and trusting Him to change us inside,
living in us through the Holy Spirit.
Second, as has
been noted elsewhere, good examples are vital in showing God's love and His
holiness. They chose to follow God before because they saw Noah doing so.
It is, of
course, possible to do so without that example. King Hezekiah brought a
repentance revival to his kingdom, in fact. The Shunemmite woman starting in
2nd Kings 4:8 is a great example of how to lead like that, and forms the
outline for this free blog book on how to do it. However, God shows in His Word
how it works best.
Finally, as
with all His people, God knows what we will do, and He knew the mistakes these
men would make just like all others. It is shameful that people invented a
supposed “curse” involving Ham when in fct God *blessed Ham along with Shem and
Japheth. Not only did God bless Ham, but the only person Noah mentions after
Ham does something wrong later is Canaan. And, it's said that it is very likely this wasn’t
a curse on Canaan that Noah pronounced, but a prophecy, with Noah saying, “Canaan’s
really not going to turn out well because of this sin that Ham has trouble
getting rid of.”
But, more on
that later. The point here is, these people who spoke of this curse for their
own selfish interests not only misused Scripture, they insulted God by claiming
that one man had a right to override the blessing God had placed upon Ham here.
Only God has the right to determine what is best for each of us.
