Noach “Noah”
Genesis 6:9–11:32
Isaiah 54:1–55:5
Matthew 6-10

Rising Above The Storm

Have you ever just sat and pondered the life of Noah and his family? They were truly amazing people! They did not have a Bible to refer to on a daily basis, nor did they have a support system of a congregation or like-minded people. They did not have the Internet to communicate with others who believed like they did and in fact they were literally the only ones in the whole world remaining faithful to HaShem and His Word.

The only thing Noah had to hang onto for over six hundred years was his faith and a word to build a boat. Think about it. Noah held onto his faith for about the length of six lifetimes of people today! Now I would call that a man of great faith!

We do not know much about Mr. Noah today. He is really only famous for one thing and that is building a boat. He has been the foundation for many sermons and probably sets the record for Vacation Bible School themes about a man and his deeds. Other than that we don’t know much about him.

Let us realize that Noah was a man, just like us. He lived in a world maybe not much different than our own. He lived at a time that violence and sin was growing worse on a daily basis. He saw the same world that we do today, just on a smaller scale. In all this Noah remained faithful to his Creator.

What caused Noah to remain so faithful to His God in those days? The same thing that is available to each of us today, which is called grace. The scripture says Noah found grace in the sight of his God. It was that grace, unmerited favor, which sustained Noah day by day. It was grace that caused Noah to wake up every morning to a day of boat building and ridicule from his neighbors. It was grace that caused him and his family to be able to live as "those people" in a world that did not have the slightest clue of what was coming their way, both spiritually and naturally.

Just what is this grace that Noah found in his day? What is this grace which is still available to each of us today? There have been countless sermons taught and books written that have brought more confusion than explanation through the years. Man’s fallibility allows him to complicate the simplicity of God's message, confuse people and keep them away from His Kingdom while entrapping them in his message.
What is this grace Noah found? Simply stated, it is an invitation to come into His camp or into His house. Last month during the Feast of Tabernacles we saw this principle put into practice. You were not allowed to enter into our encampment without an invitation. Those who had been invited had been given an invitation of grace to enter in. It was then as act of their will to accept that invitation of grace and enter in. This act of acceptance is the simplicity of what we call the gospel today.

Yes, Noah found a grace which did not begin at the time of Yeshua. He had a grace which had been available from the very moment HaShem had offered the skin of a slain animal to Adam and Eve after they had sinned. It is the same grace available to each of us today.

Noah was able to save his family from the storm of the flood because be believed and acted on the words he had been given. He made a conscious decision to accept the grace being offered to him, and that grace produced works of righteousness. His works allowed him and his family to literally rise above the flood which would affect the whole earth.

In this week prior to the elections here in America, we see a storm coming. It is a storm intended to sweep away the unrighteous from the face of the earth. It is a storm that when finished will cause those who by faith have accepted the grace Noah knew to be left behind, to survive. My question for each of us this week in light of this is very simple. Are you personally prepared to float or not to float? The answer is not based upon how you are doing in the stock market or with your 401K. It is not based upon how much food or water you have stored. It is not based upon your survival training or silver and gold buried in the back yard. It is based upon one thing and one thing only. Have you accepted the grace Noah accepted? Have you made it an act of your will to receive and act upon the grace that is able to carry you and your family through the days ahead. If the answer is yes, you have nothing to fear regarding the days ahead. If the answer is no, I have one question, how long can you tread the waters of the approaching storm?