Water and earthquakes

6/1/02 Andrew Hoseason

Gen 7:11-24

It had been many decades now since God had told Noah that he would not put up with evil forever. In fact he had set 120 years as the limit, without saying what would happen. Clearly he had something big in mind, and now it would be getting much closer.

Noah knew that God was God, so he should be served, trusted and obeyed. Noah did exactly that. He did all his business honestly and truthfully because he knew God - and his enterprises prospered, bringing him great wealth. He was true to his wife because he knew God.

And he worked to supress evil as best he could - all because he knew God. But fewer and fewer cared - in fact, by now Noah did not know anyone outside his family who really trusted God.

Then God spoke to Noah again, and this time it really blew his mind. He told Noah to build a really massive boat - more like a multi-decked barge, actually.

It was to be much bigger than any barges that had ever been built.

He was to do this because God said he was going to wipe out all people and land-dwelling animals by flooding the entire Earth. God would send to Noah some of all the types of land animals, so the new world could be repopulated after the flood.

Noah’s construction company had built some big things in his time, but nothing like this. Plans were drawn up to the dimensions God had given him, and materials purchased. The whole neighbourhood, in fact, the whole country, got to hear about it. "Noah’s folly" they called it - but at least it meant there was no unemployment in the area. Workers were happy - Noah was a good boss, and they didn’t care what old Noah spent his money on, as long as some of it went their way.

So month after month, which stretched to year after year, the barge was built. New technologies were developed, like the tree resin waterproofing system that Noah insisted on. But Noah had to be crazy! He was not even building the vessel by a river, and there was no launching ramp to any water. It was just stuck there, out in the countryside, a huge structure weighing thousands of tonnes - with winches and scaffolding and workshops all around it.

Noah said that the boat didn’t need to be taken to water - because the water was going to come to it.

Who ever heard of such a thing? When pushed he couldn’t tell when, or from where the water was going to come.

The years came and went and it was getting closer to being finished. The thousands of animals stalls and cages were going in. Subcontractors and sawmills were running overtime, and hardware supplier's had never had it so good.

Noah had employed people to work on food requirements and food production techniques. The farmers, too, were busy, producing stockpiles grain and other produce. Systems of drying and preserving food were researched and refined. As the construction of the huge vessel approached completion, mountains of food were hauled to the site.

Food hoppers, water piping and troughs were installed, along with waste disposal systems.

Some began to have second thoughts about Noah when animals started arriving. The countryside seemed to turn into a walking zoo. Animals, including many they had never seen before - and birds flying in from all directions.

It was as though they all had compasses zero-ed in on the barge out in the middle of Noah’s property. And they kept on pouring in, day after day. It was rather unnerving. There were no herds of animals. Occasionally there were seven of each type, but in most cases just two of each - a male and a female. And they were all young - no older than a year or two, so even the brachiosaurs were not much bigger than horses.

After three days, a carnival atmosphere had developed. And now the day had arrived, the day Noah said was important. and the roads were packed with people who had come to have a good laugh at Noah. But if the past week had been unnerving with all the animals arriving, it was positively weird today because today there were no more - not one!

Just then, Noah came to the great side door, as if to make a speech.

"See you tomorrow, Noah!" someone called out. Everyone joined in the laughing and jeering. When it died down, Noah spoke.

"I want to thank those who helped me so much in working on this project. I am deeply grateful. I’ve talked to many of you over these past years about why this barge has been built. I’ve told you that God is patient and kind and does not want anyone to perish, but that his patience was running out. I have urged you to turn from your rebellion against God and from your selfish ways, and to trust God and to join me when the day arrives.

"Relatives, friends and neighbours, the day has arrived! You can come and join me and my family now if you believe what God has said. I have provided enough room for you. If not, I’m sorry but I will have to say goodbye. You will never see me again."

And he went out into the crowd and shook hands with those he’d known for so many years. He tearfully hugged his brothers and sisters, who all thought he was crazy.

As Noah went through the door opening, one of the people shouted, "How are you going to lift the door shut? You’ve got the bolts and locks for when its shut, but how will you shut it?" The crowd joined in the mocking laughter.

And then slowly a hush fell over the crowd as first one person - and then another - saw it. The end of the massive door that was resting on the ground began to lift by itself, swinging up slowly with the sound of rubbing timber, until it thudded shut into its opening. In the dead quiet that followed, they distinctly heard Noah and his sons fitting the bars and catches then applying pitch to the inside.

As time went on and nothing more happened, the carnival atmosphere and jeering returned. "See ya in the morning, Noah!"

As dynamic as the movement of animals and construction of the barge had been, the most dynamic was still coming.

What was that? Did the ground move? There it was again. A mild but distinct movement underfoot. Suddenly pandemonium broke loose!

The ground shook and swayed, throwing everyone off their feet. Huge cracks snaked across the countryside. Steamy water began shooting out of the ground like massive fountains, and fire and steam could be seen pouring out of the distant hills.

Panic shot through the crowd as they bounced helplessly upon their backs and stomachs, on the ground. The sky was black now. Dust from the volcanoes mixed with water vapour far up in the stratosphere. The water became heavy and incredibly violent rain began.

And in the deepening surging waters from below ground, and, now from above, Noah’s boat began to float.

After six weeks, the endless din of pounding rain stopped.

Four months later, they felt a bump as the vessel ran aground.

But it wasn’t over yet!

Now they could feel the earthquakes again, which seemed to go on continually. For seven months they waited, in which time the land began to appear from beneath the water and the shaking gradually diminished. The world-destroying cataclysm - God’s judgement on a wicked world, was over.

371 days after the door was shut, they opened it and came out along with the animals. They were in a new, harsher world. The buzzing of insects filled the air. Plants were sprouting here and there from under the mud alongside the occasional bone of a dead animal. Many of the hillsides were already draped in vegetation; some of the faster-growing tree varieties were already quite tall. Countless dead things lay buried in the miles of mud and sand, already hardening, becoming fossils beneath their feet. But apart from those who had ridden on the boat with them, there were no people - and no animals.

Noah trusted what God said about the flood, even when no-one had ever seen such a thing. Because he trusted God, Noah built his barge, and in so doing he and his family became the only ones who were not destroyed.

The great flood shows us what God thinks of sin. We need a refuge just as Noah and his family did. The refuge God has made available for us is Jesus Christ, who died to take away our sin. Just as Noah trusted God, we must make sure we trust in him so that we can be free from the judgement of God on those who rebel against him.

The water spoke to those people. The same water still speaks to us, or rather, it effects do, in the constant reminder of the fossils.

Let us now consider another piece of scripture.

Text: Matthew 24:37-44 - [37] As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. [38] For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; [39] and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. [40] Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. [41] Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left. [42] "Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. [43] But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. [44] So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.

Six thousand years ago, there was another countdown and another warning. Before the flood of Noah, the population of the world numbered in the billions. We all know how Noah and his family rode out the year-long Flood on the ark. But Jesus used the countdown of the Flood to warn his hearers of another countdown, the countdown of his Second Coming on Judgment Day.

The Bible tells us that the people of Noah's day were destroyed because of their wickedness.⁴ But that is not the point of comparison that our Lord makes here. Rather, he compares the normalcy of their day-to-day lives with the normalcy that will prevail before his Second Coming. People were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage! Who can fault that? The fault was not that people were doing these things, but that they were so caught up in the routine of daily living that they took no thought for their spiritual lives.

The thing that kept them away from repentance was not so much the magnitude of their sins, but their worldly indifference that kept them from even seeing their sins. They were so wrapped up in the rat race that God was the last thing on their minds.

It wasn't that Noah's neighbours had no warning. They had plenty of warning. They had 120 years to get it together while Noah, his family, and his hired help were building the vessel of salvation. They could see him at work and must have questioned him about it. According to the New Testament, Noah was "a preacher of righteousness"⁵ We can easily imagine him telling people about God's coming judgement, about the need to repent before the Flood came, and about the God who was more than willing to save them too. But we can just as easily imagine that Noah's preaching fell on deaf ears. They likely mocked him as a fool or as a demented fanatic. Remember, it never rained before the Flood.

How foolish he must have sounded as he implored them to save themselves from a deluge greater than anything they could imagine.

He would have been hard pressed to say anything that would have jolted them out of their rut.

The day that rain started to fall was certainly a surprise to them. At first, they were mildly concerned. Then they grew mildly anxious as water crept toward their homes. Anxiety soon turned into fear as they climbed to the highest ridges. In a short time, it would all be over. The sight of the ark floating on the water and them drowning in it surely must have made them cry out in despair, "Noah, you were right! If only we had believed you!" But their unbelief sealed their fate. So it was true even back then: "People don't do a thing when they hear a warning."

According to Jesus, his Second Coming will be just as sudden and unexpected as the coming of the Flood. Since our eternal destiny depends on whether or not we are found to be trusting in Christ when he returns, he gives us a clear "heads up," that is, a clear warning, saying, "THEREFORE, BE ALERT, FOR YOU DO NOT KNOW ON WHAT DAY YOUR LORD IS COMING."

What shall we, then, do, people of God? We will not let ourselves become like the rest. We will not be like those who "don't do a thing when they hear a warning." We know that God always keeps his promises. We know that the countdown may hit zero at any moment. We know that when our Lord returns, he will separate all people into two groups, the saved and the unsaved. We know it will be just as he said: "TWO MEN WILL BE IN THE FIELD; ONE WILL BE TAKEN AND THE OTHER LEFT. TWO WOMEN WILL BE GRINDING WITH A HAND MILL; ONE WILL BE TAKEN AND THE OTHER LEFT."

As for us, we will be found in faith. So the Lord will receive us to himself and leave the others behind. Then, we will finally be able to say, "Going home at last! Going home at last! Thank God almighty, we are going home at last!"

Look, Jesus is coming in the clouds with power and great glory!

Rejoice, beloved, rejoice! In an instant, he calls for us and lifts us to himself. He gently puts us at his right hand and calls us his "sheep." "Come," he says to us, "inherit the kingdom I have prepared for you!" Suddenly, we feel new life course through our veins. Our bodies feel new. No, they are new! I look at you and say, "I can't believe how beautiful you look!" And you say to me, "I can't believe that you have hair (on your head)!" We all move about with ten times the vigour and energy of our youth.

Then we see HIM. His body is glorious beyond words as we behold the wounds in his hands, in his feet, and in his side. He speaks. He says to you and to me, "Receive, my children, "the crown of life!" As he places it on our heads, we experience an overwhelming sense of joy. His love enlightens our souls as we see our Creator in all his majesty!

But there's more. Loving faces greet us. They know our names even as we know theirs. We shed tears of joy at this blessed reunion!

Yes, for the first time in our lives, we know what it means to be fully alive. And, then, it hits us. This is not a dream. This is life. This is real life. This is life as God intended it to be. And this life is forever and ever, and ever, world without end. ₁