Monday: The Man Noah
Genesis 6:9
Amid all the texts about the evil of the antediluvian (pre-Flood) world, the man Noah stands out in contrast to those around him. Look at the above text, at the three particular points that the Bible mentions about him. To the best of your ability, write down what you think each of these points mean:
1. He was “a righteous man”
2. He was “blameless”
3. He “walked with God”
Image © Rolf Jansson from GoodSalt.com
There is no question, Noah was someone who had a saving relationship with the Lord. He was someone whom God could work with, someone who would listen to Him, obey Him, and trust in Him. That is why the Lord was able to use Noah to fulfill His purposes and why Peter, in the New Testament, called him “a preacher of righteousness” (2 Pet: 2:5).
Read Genesis 6:8. How does this text help us understand the relationship between Noah and the Lord?
The word grace occurs here for the first time in Scripture and clearly has the same meaning as in the New Testament references, where the merciful, unmerited favor of God, exercised toward undeserving sinners, is described. Thus, we need to understand that however “blameless,” and “righteous” Noah was, he was still a sinner who needed the unmerited favor of his God. In that sense, Noah is no different from any of us who seek earnestly to follow the Lord.
| Understanding that Noah needed God’s grace, as do the rest of us, look at your own life and ask yourself this question, Could it be said of me that I am, like Noah, “righteous,” “blameless,” and that I “walk with God”? Write down your reasons for whatever position you take and (if you feel comfortable) share it with the class on Sabbath. |
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I would hardly describe myself as “blameless.” In fact, we find that Noah wasn't too!! But what distinguished Noah from all the unrepentantly evil human beings around him was that he “walked with God.”
I always invite God every time and season in my Life !I can keep God at the center rather than off to the side somewhere until Sabbath... Do I do this perfectly? No! But I know that every time I invite God to walk with me, God will.
Remain blessed 🙏
*Welcome back elder Ashton Maurice....I/we really miss you!
Thank you Josiah.
Amid all the talk of grace and salvation, it should be mentioned that Noah was a practical man. Building a boat of any size is a project that requires planning and logistics. My father built a rowboat for our Pathfinder club when we were teenagers. It required plans, purchases, organising the workers and it took about 120 days. My father apart from being a builder, had spent considerable time near the sea and had owned boats. He knew what was required and went to work with a will to complete the task. He organised the Pathfinder boys to help with the riveting (holding the rivit), painting, and other tasks that required unskilled labour. Likewise Noah had to organise his workforce to complete the task.
The point that I want to make is that so much of our spiritual development and understanding is built around the practical side of life. We are saved by grace, but there is a practical implication of that gift. The great covenants of the Bible were not just spiritual platitudes but were an invitation to practice our relationship with God in our relationships with one another.
It is no coincidence that in Hebrews 11, the great men and women of faith are described thus: "By faith they acted ..."
Maurice- so glad you raised so many points. Many Christians think this life, even the Christian life do not have a practical side to it. I said last week about folding up our pants and rolling up our sleeves and getting dirty. If we see evangelism as just getting a bible and leaflets and going house to house to tell people about Jesus we already miss the boat. Yes, the same boat Noah built(figuratively) and the one that is building now. Those who miss the boat perished outside. Many of those people that we think don't know Jesus already know the bible better than us. People want to see Jesus in and through us by the way we treat them, the love we show to them, the way we mingle with them. Start asking solid questions- how can I help you go to the doctor, market, store, clean your house and cut your grass, mow the lawn, fetch some water for older and handicap people, stand at the side of the road and long lines and offer water and snacks to those in need, etc etc. As a body of Christ we should be doing what Christ did. Mingle with the people as we see then suffering, win their confidence then bid them follow the Christ that is in us. This method works. Start trying it. It is working for me because I believe the bible and have faith in Jesus. Many Christians are too comfortable, the covid had shaken some of us but we are settled in another comfortable seat. Some should be getting out safely and doing the Lord work.
That is what Christianity is about Lyn. And is speaks volumes to those who would never listen to a sermon or consider a Bible Study. 😀
Sis. Lyn, our previous pastor called this "putting skin on your faith". I find that so appropriate. Without skin, the body will die of exposure to the elements; but without a body to give it form and substance, skin will die.
Bro. Maurice, I agree with your points and have thought the same. Noah had to figure out the logistics of building something never seen or imagined previously, while preaching salvation to those who did not wish to hear. He had to apply both practical and spiritual leadership skills in order to fulfill the mission God gave him. I pray that each of us would ask the Holy Spirit for the wisdom to do the same.
pragmatism is in short supply in the world today.
Noah walked with the LORD!
How did Noah learn about the LORD?
Adam told his descendants unto the ninth generation.
The garden of Eden was still visible to them with the angel guarding the gates.
Enoch, the 7th from Adam, heard the story directly from Adam and he told his descendants. Enoch walked with God, and through angels the LORD revealed to him the plan of redemption.
Enoch's son was Methuselah, whose grandson was Noah. Methuselah and his sons helped Noah build the ark and share the plan of redemption they had learned from Enoch.
Noah was 600 years old when the flood came, so he was 480 when he started building the ark. During all those years he walked and talked with the LORD, what an example for us.
I am not feeling quite comfortable with the question in the highlighted section because the author of the lesson wants to show me up he wants to expose me. Or is it the Holy Spirit who is working on my life? I am not one who is happy to reveal any of my sins however (who is?). We read where home boy Noah who is this staunch Seventh Day Adventist who shows leadership qualities, He is blameless, righteous, and walks with God, yet he was a drunk. And that scenario exposes me tonight! (I'm not a leader in church and I don't drink acholic drinks) but guess what I commit every other sin in the book. But I'm thankful to God for His goodness, His grace, mercies and forgiveness of sin! Like Home Boy Noah, I am basking into the sunshine of his love I'm forgiven! Did I exposed myself?
Question seems wrong. I think we'd be the last to know if we were righteous or blameless.
"The closer you come to Jesus, the more faulty you will appear in your own eyes; for your vision will be clearer, and your imperfections will be seen in broad and distinct contrast to His perfect nature. This is evidence that Satan’s delusions have lost their power; that the vivifying influence of the Spirit of God is arousing you.
No deep-seated love for Jesus can dwell in the heart that does not realize its own sinfulness. The soul that is transformed by the grace of Christ will admire His divine character; but if we do not see our own moral deformity, it is unmistakable evidence that we have not had a view of the beauty and excellence of Christ.
The less we see to esteem in ourselves, the more we shall see to esteem in the infinite purity and loveliness of our Saviour. A view of our sinfulness drives us to Him who can pardon; and when the soul, realizing its helplessness, reaches out after Christ, He will reveal Himself in power. The more our sense of need drives us to Him and to the word of God, the more exalted views we shall have of His character, and the more fully we shall reflect His image." SC 64-65
I agree with both of you. Questions like that either make us proud or discouraged. I don't see much good in either feeling. We are dependent on God and He is the one who can help us in our failures. He is the source of all our successes.
Given that Gerhard Hasel is dead and has been for nearly 30 years, I think this lesson is fairly old and perhaps reflects thinking in the church that goes back a ways. The heavy use of the KJV also leads me to feel that it was originally written awhile ago. Maybe some of you who are older than me can figure it out. It has a tone that just rubs me wrong. Already 3 weeks in, the emphasis seems to be on obedience. Don't get me wrong, I believe in obedience, but only through God's power. And some of what they term obedience could be seen just as much as trust, which seems more positive. Anyway, that's my rant for tonight.
Astute observation. These lessons on covenant appeared 4th quarter 1982. The original companion book (_Covenant_in_Blood_) showed up on Amazon Kindle when I bought _The_Promise_. Sample of each shows word for word similarity.
As I recall the '80s saw a bit of controversy over "new theology." I now believe it was a shifting away from "last generation theology (LGT)." The question in the lesson leads me to believe Hasel supported LGT.
Also, this is not the first quarterly to be "recycled". Last quarter's study on Isaiah first appeared 2nd quarter 2004. The teacher's helps and the companion book are different. The ABSG is the same - even the same illustrations.
thanks for sharing ronald.
I love the picture and the message it depicts. God holding my hands while I'm trodding over some unpleasant path of life. Holding my hand signals, protection, guidance on the path I'm taking. I have assurance that I'm not alone. More can be said but I'm thankful that the sovereign God of the universe has taken the time to hold my hand!
I believe that God alone can label someone as righteous. It’s His prerogative. We should hunger and thirst after righteousness, and seek His kingdom first. When we do so, the promise is that it will be given.
We must move in faith and humility and embrace the fact that we are His children, abide in Christ, and claim His righteousness, but leave the labeling to God.
Studying the Bible in the morning provides great joy to me; sharing my thoughts with my fellow bible students is the highlight of my day. Every time I study I feel like a detective, going deeper and deeper, peeling back the layers to uncover new mysteries of old, familiar texts.
Studying the Word of God helps me strengthen my Walk of Faith. All of us bible students who enjoy unraveling the mysteries of the saving Grace of our heavenly Father will over time develop an ever deeper spiritual understanding and appreciation in that which we have chosen to believe. The Word of God calls all to mature their faith – 1Peter2:1-5KJV; 2Tim.2:15KJV.
So prepared, sharing the mysteries of God’s Salvation of mankind in word and deed becomes my personal 'pleasure' as I encounter those who wander in the darkness looking for a guiding, helping hand.
Gen.6:9 in the King James Version of the Bible reads ”….Noah was a just man and perfect (wholehearted) in his generations, and Noah walked with God. As I read these descriptive words about Noah, I find them to have their root in the statement that “Noah walked with God”. Yes, outside of ‘walking with God’ is the ‘world of the ungodly’ – 2Pet.2:5KJV.
This chapter of the second epistle of Peter gives a glimpse into the stark world of ‘unrighteousness’. Peter uses the word ‘pernicious’ (having a harmful effect, especially in a gradual or subtle way), describing the erosion of the strength of our faith by that which we are unaware of.
Noah’s faithful walk with God remained strong even as he was surrounded by gross evil and iniquity; it did not change his relationship with his God and was all that remaind. Yes, without God’s Grace the human race would have long perished.
Looking back over the Covenants God made with man, I think that the Father made His Covenants not only to raise humankind out of the darkness its iniquity unleased on the world, but also to commit himself to not change His mind about salvaging the world for the benefit of His lost creatures. After all, it was one of His with great power endowed heavenly beings who led astray, deceived the innocent parents of mankind before they had a chance to raise their first offspring. Even we feel pity for our children should they deserve our just punishment and continue to lovingly engage with them.
So is our Creator Father - He is just, but above all else He is committed, compassionate, and patient, merciful and kind, to assure that His Creation will exist in peace and harmony; and this is why He is still giving humankind time to come home.
I'm just wondering about the use of grace here. I compared a number of translations (translations considered reliable like NRSV and NASB and ESV) and they all say "Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord". That's a little different from grace. The only translation to say "grace" is the KJV or NKJV. So I'm wondering if the point they are making there is really accurate. Of course "favor" may convey the same idea, but not as forcefully. I don't know.
Christina- remember the KJV and the NKJV came before the NRSV, NASB and the ESV. We are told Holy men wrote the bible but it was ordinary men who convert/rewrote the bible in their native culture to suit predominately their culture. So the use of some words are more appropriate to the culture and times in which we are living in. Some said they dont understand the words thou, ye, shalt, upon, dost, liveth, etc etc. Remember, the more farther we move from the original we can be in danger of loosing the concept of what the Lord expects of us. I personally only use the KJV. It works for me. Another e.g, the KJV says blessed are the ...., other versions says happy are the ....The word blessed and happy are two different words and have two different meaning. So that's why I tried staying close to the original.
Christina, grace = "a favor not deserved". Does that help?