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by
Bob Russell
“the foolishness of
God is wiser than human wisdom” (1 Corinthians 1:25).
He requested that I preach on Noah and the
flood as a part of a series he’s doing on “Heroes of the Faith.”
Since I didn’t have a suitable “road sermon”
on Noah, it was back to the old grind of writing a new message.
I titled it, “Noah — The Man Who Dared to
Be Different.”
That sermon included a thought I’d read in a
devotional recently: “Sometimes faith looks stupid . . . until it starts to
rain.”
An end to patience
Genesis 7:7-9 describes how pairs of animals
came to Noah and entered the ark. Noah didn’t have to trap them; they
instinctively came to him.
How do geese intuitively know where to go for
the winter?
How do bears know it’s time to gorge on food
and then sleep through the winter while their body organs slow down? It’s just
instinctive.
A select few animals in Noah’s day somehow
sensed an impending disaster and instinctively came to him.
The people there had to be astonished (and
nervous) when they saw the odd sight of two of every species voluntarily
parading into the ark.
That peculiar sight must have given the
scoffers second thoughts.
The Bible says Noah preached righteousness.
What if all his rants about the need for repentance from sin and God’s
impending judgment were true?
Genesis 6:3 quotes
God as saying, “My Spirit will not contend with humans forever . . .”
Even God’s mercy has limits, and His patience
with the wickedness and violence in the pre-flood world had reached an end.
Once the animals and Noah and his family were
safely in the ark, the Lord closed the door, and it started to rain.
The opportunity for salvation was over; the
time for panic had begun. Faith sometimes appears stupid, until it starts to
rain.
Scoffing at truth
Remember a little over a year ago when
skeptics scoffed at Vice President Mike Pence because of his belief in the
sacredness of marriage?
When Pence publicly stated that it was his
policy not to spend time alone with any woman other than his wife, the
late-night comedians and political pundits had a field day mocking his
“prudish” position.
Several months later, the “Me Too” movement
gained momentum. Dozens of prominent public figures were accused of sexual
harassment in the workplace.
Many who had played loose with their marital
vows lost credibility — some influential positions too — because of
inappropriate behavior.
Suddenly the vice president’s convictions
didn’t seem so foolish after all. Faith looks stupid until it starts to rain.
Simon Peter wrote, “God
waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In it, only
a few people, eight in all, were saved through water, and this water symbolizes
baptism that now saves you also — not the removal of dirt from the body but the
pledge of a clear conscience toward God. It saves you by the resurrection of
Jesus Christ” (1
Peter 3:20-21).
When Noah and his family entered the ark, it
must have looked silly to the skeptics at that time.
When you decide to
accept Jesus as your Savior and enter the waters of baptism, it might look
foolish too. However, “the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom”
(1
Corinthians 1:25).
Ridicule fades
Then they’ll ask, “Would you pray for me?”
Some parents may think you’re too strict with
your kids because you don’t let them go to unchaperoned parties.
But when their child gets arrested for a
serious offense, they wish they had given their children more oversight.
No one was ridiculing Noah when the flood
came.
They now realized the old prophet knew what
he was talking about.
Sometimes faith appears stupid until it
starts to rain.
Bob
Russell
At
just twenty-two years of age, Bob became the pastor of Southeast Christian
Church. That small congregation of 120 members became one of the largest
churches in America, with 18,000 people attending the four worship services
every weekend in 2006 when Bob retired. Now through Bob Russell Ministries, Bob
continues to preach at churches & conferences throughout the United States,
provide guidance for church leadership, mentor other ministers and author Bible
study videos for use in small groups.
https://www.biblicalleadership.com/blogs/when-faith-looks-stupid-until-it-rains/
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