Tag: Noah

Sin Will Get No Sympathy From God

This has been a week where I’ve really been studying the Bible about sin.  It’s been a topic in the Bible studies I’m working on.  We talked about it at church on Sunday.  It’s something that touches us in some way or another and it made me think about how sin is viewed by God.

We see in Genesis, Noah found favor with God and as a result, he was told to build an ark.  Eight people were allowed on that boat—Noah and his wife along with his three sons and their wives. 

God had seen that the earth had become a cesspool.  It says in Genesis 6:5 “Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.”  God chose to save Noah and his family and start again.  Not a single other living soul was on that ark when God shut the door.  I can imagine the fear as people who had most likely never seen rain before, saw water gushing down on them and even from below come gushing up (Genesis 7). 

While we will never see God do something like this event again, we do know that God feels exactly the same about sin now as He did then…

Sin will get no sympathy from God.

When the time had come for the door to be closed, He shut it.  And when the water started pouring from every direction, He didn’t open it back up for the people who banged on the door begging to be let in.  I know it appears harsh, but sin and wickedness has its consequences.  God is a just God and reclaimed the world to be renewed.

Today, we see God’s attitude for sin hasn’t changed.  He has no sympathy for it because there is no place for sin in His kingdom.  Romans 6:23 says that the wages of sin is death.  He doesn’t ignore it.  He doesn’t let it slide.  He doesn’t excuse it.  Sin gets you death. 

BUT, He does offer us forgiveness when we come to Him.  1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”

He’ll forgive that stain of sin and wipe it clean, bringing us back to right relationship with God.  While He has no sympathy for sin, He graciously has a heart of forgiveness for His children!

As we go through our week, let’s be reminded that sin is sin and there is no room for it as a child of God.  When we do, let’s be quick to confess!

~Erin

Patience of God

I had my grandsons this last week for five days.  I love them.  They are amazing!  Andros is 4 and Kalan is 2, and they are sincerely so smart and funny!  But they WORE. ME. OUT.  Especially Kalan!  I didn’t realize just how much they are always on the go until I watched Kalan run in circles around the island of our kitchen for almost 23 minutes.  And I’m not exaggerating; it was hysterical!  He would take a turn around, go past our dog, Ruger, say ‘Scuse me’ and keep going around and around.

I don’t know where he has the energy.  However, the one thing I noticed because he’s non-stop is that my patience would start to wear thin.  He wasn’t doing anything wrong, but when a child that’s so focused wasn’t paying attention to what I was saying, I would start to get irritated trying to rein him in.

Thank goodness for a God who is patient with us!  Over and over in the bible, it says that He is slow to anger, gracious, and loving.  And that’s even after we run around and do what we want to do without paying attention to His words and commands!

Then the Lord passed by in front of him and proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth;” –Exodus 34:6

“But You, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindess and truth.” –Psalm 86:15

“’And rend your heart and not your garments.’”  Now return to the Lord your God, for He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in lovingkindess and relenting of evil.” –Joel 2:13

“who once were disobedient, when the patience of God kept waiting in the days of Noah, during the construction of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through the water.” –1 Peter 3:20

Even when the Lord was waiting for repentance from the people in the days of Noah, or when the Israelites were complaining in the wilderness, and when Jonah ran and hid (unsuccessfully), He had patience and gave time for them to repent and to turn back to Him!  He did not just immediately get mad and cut them off.  He gave us opportunity to walk our way back to Him and His ways.

I thank God for the patience that He has for us!  I’m thankful that He’s not like us where we can fall so quickly to irritation and getting upset.  I pray that this week we can see the patience of God in His love for us and model that towards those around us.

~Erin

Sweet Kalan who loves to run me ragged!

The In-Between Time: The Days Between Christmas and New Years

The days between Christmas and New Years are so strange to me.  I find that there’s a relaxing element to the hustle of Christmas preparations being done, but there is also a time of being bummed that it’s over.   Then there’s the anxiety I feel in getting Christmas packed away and my son’s birthday prepped all before going back to work after the New Year.  

There are other times in our lives that we feel this roller coaster of emotions in the “in-between time.”  For instance, the days between finding out you’re pregnant to your tummy actually rounding; the days between a college application and an acceptance letter; the days between a job interview and a return phone call…even the days between Sunday to Sunday for church services.  Each of these examples is like the days after Christmas, which are all involving excitement, disappointment, relief, worry or anxiety, and hopefully the return of excitement. 

The Bible is filled with examples of people experiencing the “in-between days.”  Noah had days of waiting in between being told to build an Ark and the day the flood began.  Ruth had days of waiting between leaving with Naomi and being married to Boaz.  Saul had days of waiting between being blinded on the road to Damascus and being able to see again…and share the Gospel.  Even the disciples and the Mary’s experienced the in-between days emotions when Jesus was crucified and later raised from the grave.  

Whether we’re in our own examples of in-between days or reading of Biblical examples, we are able to determine that God is teaching us to wait on Him.  Here are several scriptures that show us there is guidance in the Bible about our waiting during the in-between times: 

The Lord is good to those who await Him, to the person who seeks Him. ~Lamentations 3:25 (NASB)

Wait for the Lord; Be strong and let your heart take courage; Yes, wait for the Lord. ~Psalm 27:14 (NASB)

Therefore, be patient, brothers and sisters, until the coming of the Lord. The farmer waits for the precious produce of the soil, being patient about it, until it gets the early and late rains. ~James 5:7 (NASB)

Gathering them together, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father had promised, “Which,” He said, “you heard of from Me.” ~Acts 1:4 (NASB)

There are countless examples of waiting in the Bible….and many teaching moments where the Lord wants us to know about waiting.   In the days immediately after Christmas and leading into New Years, I’m reminded that I’m not alone in the rollercoaster of emotions of the “in-between” time.  

I’m praying that we are all patient this week while we are in those “in-between days.”

~Emily

Noah and the EMP

The power went out unexpectedly at the radio station that I listen to while I was driving home.  With clear skies, I wondered what could possibly have knocked out the power.  Ironically, when the host came back on he said something to the effect of every time the power goes out he thinks maybe an enemy country has launched an EMP attack (electromagnetic pulse attack) on America.  

An EMP would literally change almost every aspect of our lives.  No more electricity, non-working ATMs, no more internet, cell phone inoperable, no vehicles working…chaos.

There is global technology that could make it happen.  Our enemies could use this as a weapon.  We may or may not be ready for the impacts of an EMP event.  While some think it’s a conspiracy theory, the reality is that based upon our technological advancements, an EMP attack is a possibility. 

The knowledge that there are those in the world with this technology at the exact same time that there are others who disbelieve this is a possibility, makes me think about those nay-sayers during Noah’s time. 

Starting in Genesis chapter 5 though chapter 10, we see Noah following the guidance from God to build a ginormous ark. The story unfolds with Noah and his family getting animals onto the ark, as well as the time on the ark during the unrelenting rain and subsequent global flooding.  

Here’s a beautiful story of the faithfulness of Noah.  Yet while Noah was committed to the directions from God, there were countless doubters, troublemakers and nay-sayers.  They showed up day after day, in disbelief of the prophecy, causing issues for Noah and his family. 

By no means am I comparing the anger of God to flood the earth with a potential enemy EMP attack.  Nor am I comparing the faithfulness of Noah with those who might believe in an EMPs possibility.  However, I am interested in how there are people in both scenarios who are in doubt and create chaos for others.  

In both scenarios, the doubters have an opportunity to prepare for the coming chaos.  One could say that preparation could come in the form of your own boat building…or having a collection of extra canned goods. 

The reality is that the preparations in both instances should be focused on knowing God.  When we know Christ as our Savior, when we are prayerful, when we study the Word, and when we assist others in their walk with Christ…that is when the preparations are meaningful and impactful.

It doesn’t have to be a global flood or an EMP that upends a life.  It could be a loss in revenue, a new bill, a divorce, a death, or countless other things. The preparation for every single event of chaos includes a stronger relationship with Christ.   

When the power went out, the local radio host was joking about an EMP, but it’s a reminder of just how quickly everything could change for society. How prepared are we when it comes to our faithfulness to God’s direction? 

~Emily

“Your faithfulness endures to all generations; you have established the earth, and it stands fast.” Psalms 119:90