So I rode my bicycle for a year in 2010 from Canada to Columbia.
And as part of that journey, I discovered that basically a billion people in the world
didn't have access to clean drinking water.
So I began this journey and did some higher level education and
then on a series of trips with my friends in the last six years.
That's all led us to this spot now we've become very interested in
small scale decentralized desalinization projects.
It's really the future of water.
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Go to El Salvador, Indonesia and Bangladesh.
We'd love for you to be on one of those trips.
Now when I teach a beach talk, I'm pretty straightforward.
This is my approach because it's very important that you understand every word
of God in the word of God.
Now I love to laugh and hang out, catch waves, ride my motorcycle, go camping,
watch movies, grab coffee just as much as anybody else.
When I teach the Bible, I accept the responsibility of it because this is
the most important book in the world and I really want you to understand it.
So every time you watch a beach talk, I want you to come ready to grow and
to learn from because my objective as your pastor is simple.
It's disciples making disciples who plant churches that plant churches.
And today we're gonna look at Genesis chapter eight.
Genesis is the first book in the Bible.
We're in the eighth chapter today.
We always read a chapter of the Bible and then I do a beach talk to go along with it.
Now this is the story of Noah and his family and how they leave the ark.
It says that God remembered Noah.
In verse one, God focuses attention on Noah again.
It says, now God remembered him and every living thing and
the animals that were with him in the ark.
And God made a wind pass over the earth and the waters subsided.
Now God remembered Noah.
This is an anthropomorphous kind of a non-literal picture of God in human
terms that we can understand.
Now certainly God never forgot Noah, sustaining him every day in the ark.
But at this point, God again turned his active attention towards Noah.
It was truly as if he remembered Noah again.
Noah had then shut up in the ark for many days and nights.
And right at the right time, God thought of him, practically speaking,
came to visit him, came to be close with him,
came to remind him that he had not been forgotten.
Just like God reminds us that we have not been forgotten.
Now God made a wind pass over the earth.
God knew how to make the waters subside.
Even a big problem like this was not a big problem to God.
The God who created the heavens and the earth, Genesis 1,1, could also do this.
Now verse two through five says, as the flood waters receded,
the ark rested on Mount Ararat, the fountains of the deep and
the windows of heaven were also stopped.
And the rain from heaven was restrained.
And the waters receded continually from the earth.
At the end of the 150 days, the waters decreased.
The ark rested the seventh day of the month on the mountains of Ararat.
And the waters decreased continually until the tenth month.
In the tenth month, on the first day of the month,
the tops of the mountains were seen.
The fountains of the deep and the windows of the heaven were also stopped.
And the rain that began in Genesis chapter seven was now stopped.
God was in control of when the rain and the other waters began.
And God was in control of when they stopped.
Now on the mountains of Ararat, in one way of thinking,
Mount Ararat was not a good place to leave the ark.
Leaving the ark at a high altitude in mountainous terrain meant a difficult
departure for everyone and everything in the ark.
However, if God's purpose was to put the ark in a place where it might be preserved
for thousands of years, he chose an excellent place for it.
The tops of the mountains were seen.
This is another indication from the biblical record that this was a worldwide flood.
It was so significant that for the time the tops of the mountains were covered,
now they weren't seen again as the waters decreased continually.
Now verse 6 to 12 says that the birds are used to test the condition of the earth.
So it came to pass at the end of the 40 days that Noah opened the window of
the ark which he had made and he sent out a raven,
which kept going to and fro until the waters had dried up from the earth.
He also sent out from himself a dove to see if the waters had receded from the face of the ground.
But the dove found no resting place for the sole of her foot and she returned
into the dark to him for the waters were on the face of the whole earth.
So he put out his hand and he took her and drew her into the ark himself.
And he waited yet another seven days and again sent the dove out from the ark.
Then the dove came to him in the evening and behold a freshly plucked olive leaf was in her mouth.
Noah knew that the waters had receded from the earth.
So he waited yet another seven days and sent out the dove, which did not return to him anymore.
Now at the end of the 40 days, this was counted from the time when the rain and
the other water sources began in Genesis chapter 7 verses 11 to 12.
God told Noah when to go into the ark, but he did not tell him when he should come out again.
The Lord told Noah when to go in because it was necessary for him to know that,
but he did not tell him when he should come out for it was unnecessary that he should know that.
God always lets his people know what is practical for their good.
Noah opened the window of the ark which he had made in Genesis 6 describes the window
that was to be made for the upper portion of the ark.
The window was also made with some kind of covering that could be closed and open.
Now because he believed in God, therefore he removed the covering of the ark and looked abroad
expecting by and by to see not only the tops of the mountains, but also a dry and green earth once more.
True faith often goes to the window.
If your faith turns its face to the wall and expects nothing, it's not a genuine faith.
God always wants to grow our faith.
Now he sent out a bird which kept going around.
Apparently the bird did not return to the ark.
Perhaps this was because the raven is a scavenger.
It might rest or feed upon the dead or floating carcasses which could have brought back disease.
Now the dove found no resting place because a clean non-scavenging bird, the dove would
not land upon the earth until there was a dry suitable place to land.
But when the dove returned into the ark, no one knew that the waters had not yet drained
enough to leave the ark.
Charles Spurgeon made a spiritual point from the idea that the dove found no resting place.
He explained that like the dove, the believer finds no true resting place in the world.
The world is said to be progressing and advancing and improving.
We know we can't discover it.
Sin is the same way and belief is the same way and complaining is the same way and being
weary in the world is the same way.
But having faith fills us with life and fills us with courage.
Now the dove came to him, a freshly plucked olive leaf was in her mouth.
The raven never returned but the dove came back with evidence that the terrible season
of judgment through the flood was over and God had begun to renew plant life on the earth.
Now since this, a dove with an olive leaf has been a symbol of peace and goodness.
Perhaps you've seen a picture of a dove carrying an olive branch in its mouth which in the
first place a dove could not pluck out of the tree and in the second place a dove could
not carry an olive branch even if it could pluck it off.
It was an olive leaf, that's all.
Why cannot people keep the words of scripture?
The Bible mentions a leaf and make it something else.
The Bible is very clear about what the dove took back.
The dove which did not even return again to him anymore, the departure of the dove proved
that the earth was habitable again.
Now verses 13 through 19, Noah and his family and the animals leave the ark and it came
to pass in the 601st from the month, the day of the year that the waters were dried up
from the earth and Noah removed the covering of the ark and looked and indeed the surface
on the ground was dry and in the second month on the 27th day of the month the earth was
dried.
Then God spoke to Noah saying, go out of the ark, you and your wife and your sons and your
sons wives with you, bring out with you every living thing of all flesh that is with you,
birds and cattle and every creeping thing that creeps in the earth so that they may
abound on the earth and be fruitful and multiply on the earth.
So Noah went out and his sons and his wife and his sons wives with him.
Every animal, every creeping thing, every bird and whatever creeps on the earth according
to their families went out of the ark.
Now in the 600 year, Genesis 7 says that Noah entered the ark on the 17th day in the second
month of the 600th year of his life.
This is almost a full year later and in the second month of the 601st year Noah left the
ark it seems he was in the ark for a full calendar year.
Now bring out with him every living thing just as the ark was loaded with animals before
the flood it was then unloaded.
We don't read of any animals that died in the year on the ark that they may be abound
on the earth and be fruitful and multiply.
Same things from the ark would once again repopulate the earth.
Noah came out of the ark no longer cooped up and penned within its narrow limits.
He walked out, the whole world was before him wherever he wanted to go.
This was a picture of the freedom that we have with Jesus that we can enjoy and possess
all of the things that God has for us.
So God's covenant with Noah in verse 20 Noah builds an altar and offers a sacrifice then
Noah built an altar to the Lord and took up every clean animal and every clean bird and
offered burnt offerings on the altar.
Then Noah built an altar.
Noah's first act after leaving the ark was to worship God through sacrifice.
His gratitude and admiration of God's greatness led him to worship God.
Now he took every clean animal and every clean bird as if the nature of true sacrifice this
was a costly offering to God with only seven of each animal on the ark.
Noah risked extinction by sacrificing some of these animals but costly sacrifice is pleasing
to God.
The common sense would have said spare them for you will want every one of them but grace
said offer them up and give God what is due his.
The sacrifices were called to offer to God should also cost us something.
We should present our bodies as a living sacrifice to God Romans 12 1 the giving of our resources
as a sacrifice.
Philippians 4 18 and we should give the sacrifice of praise to God Hebrews 13.
Costly sacrifice pleases God not because God is greedy and wants to get as much as he can
from us but because God himself sacrificed at great cost.
Ephesians 5 Hebrews 9 God wants costly sacrifice from us because it shows for being conformed
to the image of Jesus who was the greatest display of costly sacrifice.
Paul says we should walk in love as Christ has loved us and given himself for us an offering
and a sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling aroma.
Ephesians 5 2.
Now when we think of David who would never offer a God which costs him nothing.
Second Samuel 24 verse 22 21 and 22 Noah's promise to God and all mankind and the Lord
smelled a smoothing aroma then the Lord said in his heart I will never again curse the
ground for man's sake although the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth nor
will I again destroy every living thing as I have done.
While the earth remains seed time and harvest cold and heat winter and summer and day and
night shall not cease.
The Lord smelled a smoothing aroma.
Noah's costly sacrifice pleased God it was as if God smelled the great aroma of the roasting
meat indicating that God loves the smell of grilling or burning meat.
And then God made his wonderful promise to Noah and to man.
Of course the Bible speaks anthropomorphically here using a human analogy of a divine action
or attribute more pleasing to God than the smell of the sacrifice was the heart of Noah
in the sacrifice.
He says I will never again curse the ground for man's sake.
God promised to never again visit the earth with judgment by a flood on this scale and
to destroy every living thing.
When did this understanding that the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth.
This was a promise full of mercy.
Now we can observe a strange combination of truths.
First that the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth and second God's promise
to never again curse the ground for man's sake.
It would seem that man's evil would invite God's curse not put it away.
The strange combination is accounted for by Noah's altar and sacrifice and God's pleasure
in the sacrifice.
The Lord smelled a soothing aroma.
The sacrifice is the turning point.
Without a sacrifice sin clamors for vengeance and God sends a flood.
But the sacrifice presented by Noah was typical of coming sacrifice of God's only begotten
son Jesus and the atonement that he would provide.
We can say that after the flood Noah's story illustrated things relevant to the life of
those who follow Jesus.
Noah showed the freedom we have.
Noah showed the faith we should have.
Noah showed the heart that we should have by his sacrifice.
Noah showed the mercy that we would receive when we sacrifice.
Cold and heat, winter and summer, God promised that after the flood the earth would have
established seasons.
This speaks of the profound climatic and ecological changes in the earth ever since the covering
of water vapors upon the earth.
Now there would be seasonal and temperature variations and there should be no more general
rain so there should be a more serious disarrangement of course the seasons and the temperature
appropriate.
There will be a seed time and harvest and cold and heat and summer and winter and day
and night are to succeed each other perpetually for as long as we're here on earth.
God set it up.
Now the result of this change is found in a rapidly decreasing life spans.
There will never be 900 year old men after the flood.
The mass extinction of animals revealed in the fossil records such as dinosaurs and other
creatures probably took place shortly after the flood when the earth was changed so dramatically
and plunged into an ice age.
Now how faithfully God fulfills this covenant with all of us by giving us new life.
God is good.
Now this concludes our time looking at the chapter of Genesis today.
Genesis 8.
Now every time we finish our time together we like to take a chance to pray.
Would you pray with me now?
Just say God would you help me to live like Noah did?
Would you help me to trust you?
Would you help me to follow you?
I ask that you would show me mercy.
I ask that you would give me second chances and I ask that you would forgive me in my
life today in Jesus name I pray these days.
Amen.
Now just in the same way that Noah offered a wonderful sacrifice to God out of what he
was given to God.
We learn that sacrifice is part of worship.
That giving is part of worship.
That generosity is part of worship.
It follows what we learn in God's word.
I want to encourage you to offer your sacrifice to God as part of your giving.
Offer your worship to God through your giving.
Pray today.
Say hey God what would you have me sacrifice in my life?
Pray about it.
Go to Oceanwater.com and hit give.
Do what God says.
Thank you for your time.
We would love to partner with you.
Water is a global problem.
It's going to take as many partners as we can to help solve this problem.
We'd love for you to partner with us.
You can go to our website at www.Oceanwater.com.
That's OCNWTR.com.
We'd love that.
Thanks a lot.
We would love to partner with you.