The Faith of Noah
BY CORNELIS PRONK
Hebrews 11:7 Abel, Enoch, Noahthese are the three examples from the first world that are given in Hebrews 11 as great men of faith. Of these three, Noah is the greatest. Scripture portrays him as standing on the threshold between the old and the new worlds.
Verse 7 says this of him: "By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith."
Noah emerges from a civilization that has made itself ripe for judgment, a society that had made great advances in culture, but had forgotten God and His law. It was a world of great wickedness. Yet, Noah lived by the faith that is "the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen". By that faith he was enabled to do great things.
Godly man. In Genesis 6:9, we learn that "Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations," and that he "walked with God". That does not mean, of course, that Noah was sinless. It means that he was a godly man who lived an exceptionally upright life. Noah walked with God.
Like Enoch before him, he enjoyed such intimate fellowship with God that he received direct and special revelation from Him.
One of those revelations concerned the future of the human race. In Genesis 6, we read how God warns Noah that He is going to destroy mankind because of its great wickedness. A devastating flood will wipe out the whole world as it then existed.
God didn't just warn Noah about the coming disaster. He also told him how to escape the judgment. Noah had to build an ark three hundred cubits long, fifty cubits wide, and thirty cubits high. It was going to be a tremendous structure, about the size of a modern battleship.
What was Noah's reaction to this divine warning? Our text says: "By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark."
Moved with fear. First Noah was moved with fear, or as some translate it, he was filled with reverential awe. No wonder! From what God had told him, Noah knew what God thinks of sinHe hates it. He simply does not and cannot condone it. And so, He was going to punish man for it in a most awful way.
We find a similar fear with other saints in Scripture. Isaiah, David and Habakkuk in the Old Testament, and the shepherds and John on Patmos in the New Testament, they all experienced great fear when they were suddenly confronted with the holiness of God.
Theirs was not the cringing fear of a slave, however. It was childlike, reverential fear, a sure fruit of saving faith.
Prepared an ark. Such reverential and childlike fear always leads to obedience. We see that so clearly with Noah. It says that he "moved with fear, prepared an ark". That means he faithfully obeyed God's instructions concerning the building of an ark as the divinely appointed means of escape.
That is true faithtaking God's warnings as well as His promises seriously. God's warnings make us tremble, while His promises give us hope. Faith believes what God has revealed in His Word that first of all we are all sinners who are subject to everlasting punishment in hell.
Do you realize that you are a lost sinner before God? This realization is necessary. We need to be aware of the awfulness of sin. We have to realize that we deserve only God's wrath. Every truly awakened sinner is brought to the point where he cries out with David in Psalm 51:4: "Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest."
Thankfully, for such self-condemned sinners there is hope. The Bible speaks not only about our sin, but also about the Savior from sin. Christ Jesus, He is the true Ark, whom God has appointed to be the only way of escape.
Things not seen. Noah knew that. Unless I build that ark, he said to himself, I will perish along with the rest. So he started on the gigantic project. By faith he built the ark. Yes, by faith alone, for if he had gone by sight, he would not even have dared to start. God had warned him of things not seen as yet.
Imagine what that meant! To build an ark though they had never seen a drop of rain! Year after year Noah and his sons labored on the project amid the ridicule of his neighbors. Not only did he continue with the work, he even preached to that wicked generation. Peter says that Noah was a preacher of righteousness. But the people ignored his warnings or laughed him to scorn.
The building of the ark, according to our text, accomplished God's purpose two ways. It saved Noah and his family, and it condemned the rest of the human race.
World condemned. When the ark was finished, God commanded Noah and his family to enter it. Then, after God Himself had shut the door, He released the floodgates of heaven and the fountains of the deep were broken up. From above and from below the water burst forth, flooding the whole earth.
Imagine the horror of the people! They had refused to listen to Noah's preaching. Now it was too late! Now they tried to enter the ark, but in vain. The door was shut. Thus, by building the ark Noah "condemned the world," our text states.
Because they had not listened to his warnings, they had also condemned themselves. They had no excuse.
Neither will you have an excuse, if you refuse to repent of your sins and flee to Christ as the only Ark of safety. Today you may still hear the Gospel. The door of the Ark is still open, wide open. Enter that Door now by confessing your sins and asking the Lord for His grace. He will accept you, for He has promised, "Him that comes unto me, I will in no wise cast out."
And those of you who by grace
already believe in Jesus Christ as your Saviour, do not be discouraged if you run into many difficulties because of your faith. This is to be expected. The Hebrew Christians were also having a rough time. That is why the writer of this letter brings up these examples from the Old Testament.Heir of righteousness. Look at these men of faith, he says. They had much greater obstacles than you have. Yet they persevered in their faith. Why? Because they knew it was worth it. Noah kept right on building the ark, because he believed God rather than men. As a result, the Bible says, he "became heir of the righteousness which is by faith."
The righteousness here referred to is that perfect righteousness of Christ which God imputes to all who believe on His Son with a saving faith. In saying that Noah became heir to that righteousness, the apostle means that by his obedience Noah showed that he was righteous, just as Abraham did when he offered up his only son Isaac.
Believe the Bible when it says that the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of Wicked world. We are now living in a time when there is also great wickedness in the world. Even in the Christian community, there is hardly any fear of God. It will not be easy for us to keep walking with Christ on the narrow road, to remain faithful to His Word in every respect. But like Noah, we must not yield to the worldly influence around us. Believe the Bible when it says that the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men. Judgment Day is coming!
Remember, Noah's faith was not a dead faith without works, but a living faith that worked by love and obedience. May God grant such faith to all of us, to the honor of His Name and the salvation of precious and immortal souls. o
Rev. Cornelis Pronk is the radio pastor of the Free Reformed Church of North America, 950 Ball Avenue, N.E., Grand Rapids, MI 49503.
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