All right, before we turn to
our study in Hebrews, I want to set the plate. I want to take
you to Genesis chapter 6. And I'm going to ask you to mark
your Bibles because we're going to jump back and forth a couple
of times, not often, but a couple of times between Hebrews and
Genesis. But I want to look at two verses
to start right off with. Now remember, we're looking at
a host. of witnesses. The Lord has inspired
Paul, writing to the Hebrews, to give us a list. As it says
in chapter 12, we are compassed about by a great cloud of witnesses. And what are they witnesses of?
Of faith. Belief. Not just in the Lord Jesus, but
in the Word of God. See folks, Jesus is God, right? So the word of God is from Jesus
himself, is it not? So as we read in the Old Testament
scriptures, we're reading about Christ and Him there just as
well as we are in the New Testament. We're talking about faith in
Him, faith in God, believing God's Word. And it says, and
let me repeat this for you from Hebrews 11. Don't turn there
yet. Now, faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence
of things not seen. Now, we're going to read about
one of those saints here this morning, but I want you to see
a little bit about him before we do that. Look at verses 5
and 8 of Genesis chapter 6. And God saw that the wickedness
of man was great in the earth. Has it ever been anything else
since the days of Adam and Eve? The wickedness of the people
in the earth has always been great. Any wickedness against
God is great. He can't even look upon sin.
But he saw that the wickedness of men was great in the earth,
and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was
only evil continually. And he repented, and it repented
the Lord that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved
him at his heart. And the Lord said, I will destroy
man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man
and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air, for
it repenteth me that I have made them. And here's what I want
you to see. Look at this. Check this out.
Polly, do you know you found grace in the eyes of the Lord?
Every single one of us has. Here, let's look at what it says
about one of God's people right here, but Noah. So the Lord is
talking about all the men that walked this earth there in verses
5 through 7, and then he tells us about this one. But Noah,
one, found grace in the eyes of the Lord. Noah found grace
in the eyes of the Lord. Did you know that Noah is the
first time the word grace is used in scriptures? Here in this
story of Noah? I mean, we know that God's love
towards anybody is graciousness. I'm not saying grace is not spoken
of. I'm saying this is the first
time God uses that word. Just to remind us. I know you
already know this, but just to remind us, what does grace mean?
unmerited favor. Adam didn't do anything to deserve
God's love. In fact, Adam was trying to hide
himself from God in the garden, wasn't he? He was trying to hide
himself. He was trying to cover his own nakedness, wasn't he? That's what self-righteousness
is all about. Trying to hide ourselves from
God, trying to hide ourselves from His wrath through something
we have done. The whole world, including Noah. Including Noah. People don't want to... People...
Oh, wait a minute now. Don't you talk about Mary that
way. You know, Mary was just as much of a sinner as Noah was.
You say that to a Catholic, boy, they'll come unglued on you.
Don't you talk about Mary that way. She's holy. No, she's not.
In the flesh, she was no holier than any one of us. In the spirit,
They're absolutely correct, for you and I, in the Spirit, are
as holy as God Himself, because of what Christ has done. So we
see here that Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord. And
this being the first time the word is used as it is recorded
in Scripture, the first time we meet with this blessed word
in the Bible. And it comes at a time of universal
corruption. That's what we just read, verses
5 through 7. Everything, universal means all
of it. The whole world was full of the
corruption of man. And God looked down and he saw
there were none that seeketh after him. So I'm going to destroy
it all. We're going to look a little
deeper into that in a moment. When God said that the wickedness of men
was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts
of his heart was only evil, that's what we read in 6-5, no doubt
Noah was included in all the wicked that walked this earth.
If it wasn't true, then why would he need grace? If there was anything
at all that was righteous of Noah in the flesh, why would
he have needed to be found? Why would he need to find grace
in the eyes of God? Why would God need to be gracious
to him? Noah found grace, but it was not in the eyes of, not
in something of him that he had done. It was not something that
he could have earned. He did not find grace in his
own eyes. He found grace in the eyes of
the Lord. That means that the Lord was
being gracious, and God opened the eyes of Noah to see it in
God himself. Let me give you an example of
how the Lord uses this in some other scriptures. Thou hast found
grace in my sight, saith the Lord to Moses, and I know thee
by name. That's in Exodus 33, 17. He said
unto Mary, fear not. The angel said unto Mary, fear
not, for thou hast found favor, thou hast found grace with God. That's in Luke chapter 1, verse
30. Go thy way, he said unto Ananias
concerning Paul, for he, Paul, is a chosen vessel. a vessel
of mercy, a vessel of grace unto me. That's in Acts 9, verse 15.
In verses 3 of Ephesians 1, listen to these words. Blessed be the
God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with
all spiritual blessings. Folks, that means grace. Do you
catch that? That may not be the word grace,
but it's definitely grace when God is blessing somebody for
something. He blesses us, and here it goes
on to say it, in heavenly places in Christ. He blesses us for
Christ's sake. That's grace. All spiritual blessings
flow through Christ. that goes for the Old Testament
saints as well as the New. Now let's consider our text in
Hebrews chapter 11, if you would. And we're not going to be able
to cover all of what we see here in this verse. We're going to
look at verse 7, Hebrews 11, verse 7. We're going to have
to come back and do a Part B next week. But look with me here at
Hebrews 11 verse 7 by faith Noah Being warned of God of things
not seen yet So we know that God came to Noah and we'll look
at that in a moment when we go back to Genesis again Hopefully
you marked your Bibles God came to Noah and he warned him about
what was going to happen and So we see here, this is what
it's talking about. By faith, Noah, being warned
of God of things not seen yet, moved with fear. He heard the
word of God. And God had given him a heart,
just as He has given you and I a heart. When we say, I believe
this word, it's because God has given us the gift of faith, just
like He gave Noah. That's what it's saying there,
by faith. In other words, because Noah believed God, when God had
came and warned him of the things not seen yet, he moved without
fear. He went about his daily walk,
doing the thing that God had told him to do, because he knew
something was going to happen. Folks, we know that God is going
to come again, don't we? And I know some of you folks
who are getting closer to that door, maybe, are thinking to
yourself, Lord, well, just like our brother Mike said out here
on the porch, don't forget my number. Waiting on the call. I'm waiting on the call, Lord.
Just call me today. I'll be just fine with that.
Folks, the Lord is coming again, either in person in the clouds
and chariots of fire when the last saint is called out of darkness
or he may just take you today or he may just take me today.
We'll be in the presence of the Almighty Creator of all things. That's what this is talking about.
It's talking about believing Him. Noah believed God when God
told him of things that had not happened yet. And therefore,
he prepared. He was moved with fear and prepared
an ark to the saving of his house. By the witch, he condemned the
world and became heir of the righteousness, which is by what? By faith. Believe in God. Believe in God. Noah was warned. He was warned of God, of things
that he had not seen as of yet. Turn back to Genesis chapter
6. Look at verses 1 through 3 with
me. Genesis 6 verses 1 through 3, And it came to pass, when
men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters
were born unto them, that the sons of God saw the daughters
of men, that they were fair, and they took them wives of all
which they chose. And the Lord said, My spirit
shall not always strive with men. That's what he told Noah. My spirit will not always strive
with men. For that he also is flesh, yet
his days shall be as hundred and twenty years, speaking of
Noah. Now, look over, if you would, at verse 7. And the Lord said, I will destroy
man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man
and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air, for
it repenteth me that I have made them. Noah's faith was the response
of his heart. It was the response of his heart
to God's word. God told Noah that his Holy Spirit
would not always strive with men, that his long suffering
is for an appointed time only. Folks, I'm here to tell you this
morning, God will not always strive with men. Yes, we can
be thankful for his long suffering, suffering with the wicked. But
he only suffers with the wicked for this reason. He has chosen
people throughout this time, throughout the world that he's
chosen to save. And he can't end all of his creation
until those have come. His son laid down his blood,
shed his blood for them. They must be saved. All that
the Father giveth me must come unto me is what his word says.
Noah. Could you imagine? I've thought
about this often. It's hard to think of this, because
you and I have seen rain, but could you imagine that all you've
ever seen, have you ever been back east to Kentucky or Tennessee? Have you ever seen how thick
the dew is in the morning back there? I mean, you get a little
bit of it out here, we get a little bit of it, but not like they
do back there. If you go out in the fall or the spring in
Alabama, and you walk out there, I don't care what kind of shoes
on you, you're gonna get wet feet. Unless you've got just
rubber boots on, you're going to get wet feet, because it gets
wet quick. The dew is just, it's something
unbelievable. Well, that's the way the world
was at one time. The whole world was fed by the mist of God. It hadn't rained yet. So here's
Noah. And it's hard for you and I to
picture this, because we've seen rain. But folks, there are some
folks at one time who had never seen it. You're crazy. You're
absolutely nuts. God ain't gonna come and destroy
the world with rain and flood. What does that word even mean?
Well, that means the clouds will open up and dump water and the
waters beneath the earth will open up and everything will flood.
You're crazy. Our Lord warned Noah of this
coming. He is warned of these things,
has he not? Do we not have his warnings right
here? Today, folks, is the day of salvation. Today. Salvation belongs to all who
trust Christ. But if you will not trust Christ,
then you must be forever damned. What a merciful God. He has given
us His word in a book, in book form, to warn us of the wrath
to come. The impending wrath, the eternal
wrath, the inexpressibly horrible wrath, His infinite wrath, throughout
all time, that should scare you. Look over Romans chapter 3. Look
at verse 23. Our Lord tells us in Romans 3
verse 23, For all have sinned and come short of the glory of
God. All have sinned and come short
of the glory of God. Now turn over to chapter 6 of
that same book. Romans chapter 6. Look at one
verse over there with me if you would. Again, verse 23. For the
wages of sin is death. But the gift of God adheres to
those who belong to the Lord Jesus, those for whom he laid
his life down. But the gift of God is eternal
life through Jesus Christ our Lord. There you go. That relieves
God's people of our fear of damnation. The wages of sin is death, but
the gift of God is eternal life. Look at one more. Turn back to
Romans chapter 1. Try to keep it in the book of
Romans there so you can change verses real quick. Back in Romans
chapter 1 we see over verse 18, For the wrath of God is revealed
from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness. These are
warnings God has given to the people who walk this earth. Of
men who hold the truth in unrighteousness. What does the book say? It is
written, the soul that sinneth, it shall die. That's in Ezekiel
1820. Noah's generation, Sodom, Korah,
and his followers all stand as beacons of warning to sinners.
Isn't that what Noah was going about doing? Warning sinners. Warning the world. The wrath
of God is coming. Divine judgment is coming. In
Luke 13, 5, we read these words, repent, except ye repent, ye
shall all likewise perish. Is that not the warnings that
God is sending out into the world? It says that Noah, being warned
of God, moved with fear. Let me tell you something, folks,
he was not moved by fear for himself. He was moved by fear
for those he loved. Do we not all have some that
we love dearly who don't know this Lord? The Sovereign Almighty
Creator of all that is? He who by Himself, through His
love, saved His people? Noah was moved by fear for his
loved ones, for the world, He didn't hesitate to preach righteousness
to those around him. You don't have any. There's only
one righteousness you can trust in, and that's the Lord Jesus.
That was the message. It's the message every time. The wrath of God is coming. And
if you're not as righteous as God himself, it'll be poured
out on you. If you don't have a substitute
like God's people have, Those who were chosen in Christ, if
you don't have a substitute who took the wrath for you, you're
going to have to experience it. He was moved by fear for his
family, his neighbors, those who were yet rebels to God. And
he feared for the souls of men. Had Noah been like most regular
men, maybe he would have said this. Maybe he would have said,
God is merciful. He loves everybody. He's not
really going to send men to hell. Or maybe he would have said this,
there will be a time enough to repent later. I'm kind of busy
right now. I'm going to go home and take
care of something. I need to help my dad do something. I need
to do this. Isn't that the way of the world? No, if he was the way of the
world, he could have said it this way. I'm not bad enough
that God would send me to hell. But no, no, it was not senseless. He was not so foolish. He was
moved with fear. Perhaps you're thinking, why
frighten us, John? You know that fear will not save
a sinner. I do. That's true. Fear is not
going to save you. It is the goodness of God that
leads any to repentance. Did you hear that? It's the goodness
of God that any would be led to repentance. Only the love
of God in Christ Jesus can melt a sinner's heart. Only the love
of God in Christ Jesus can draw us unto Christ, can constrain
us to believe. But one will never be drawn to
Christ by the cords of love until one is driven from their carnal
security by the fear of God and His impending wrath. How am I going to know about
the love of God if I don't know about the reason he hates what
I am in the flesh? How am I going to see the depth
of his love for me if I don't see the depth of his hatred for
sin? Noah is held before us as an
example of faith in Christ. His name means rest or resting
place. Here the Holy Spirit is telling
us that Noah found rest for his soul by faith. In Genesis 6,
we're told that all the world was lost, cursed of God, and
sentenced to suffer the wrath of God because of man's sin and
his apostasy from God. Yet God was justly angry with
all men and determined to rid the world of wretched flesh.
And He did it by the flood of His wrath. But in wrath, in wrath,
in His anger, in His justice, He remembered what? He remembered
mercy. What did we read in verse 8?
Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord. One. One for whom
God had made a covenant and determined to fill that covenant in, God
was gracious to. All men deserve God's wrath,
but one man was chosen. All men were justly condemned,
but one man was justified. All men went astray from God,
but one man was called. All men were lost, but one man
was saved. All men were unbelievers, but
one man had faith given to him, and Noah found grace. Not merit,
but grace in the eyes of the Lord. There is always going to
be a remnant according to the election of grace. Now let's
consider just a couple of quick points before we bring this to
a close. First off, Noah received a divine gift. His gift is faith,
just like ours. It's a gift and the operation
of God's grace upon him. And that's what we read in Ephesians
chapter two, verse eight, isn't it? For by grace, we are saved
through faith. So the faith that Noah had is
the same gift that you and I have. It's the same true saving faith.
And it's something that is bestowed upon and chosen, redeemed sinners
by God's saving grace. Faith in Christ is not the cause
of God's salvation, but you know it's a part of it because it's
true faith. Next, we see that it was a divine
revelation. Noah's faith was the result of
God's revelation and his purpose of grace towards him. Turn back
again to Genesis, if you would, for just a moment. In Genesis
chapter 6, look at verses 13 through 14. Genesis 6, 13 through
14. And God said unto Noah, the end
of all flesh has come before me. For the earth is filled with
violence through them. And behold, I will destroy them
with the earth. Make thee an ark of gopher wood. Room shalt thou make in the ark,
and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch. Look at verses 18. But with thee
I will establish my covenant. Isn't that what I just said a
moment ago? Here you go. The Lord's Word telling us right
here. He has established his covenant in Noah. He couldn't
destroy Noah. If he destroyed Noah and all
of his family along with the rest of the world, then there
wouldn't be any covenant left, would there? Did not God the
Father give God the Son of people? Did not God the Son say, I will
save this people? Did not God the Spirit say, I
will call and give life to this people? That covenant has to
be fulfilled, folks. It's a covenant of God. And here
our Lord tells us plain as a plain as a bold picture But with thee
with noah, I will establish my covenant and thou shalt come
into the ark Thou and thy sons and thy wife and thy sons wives
with thee now look over verse 22 thus did noah According to
all that god commanded him so did he Faith arises from, is
built upon, and believes God's revelation. Faith is no more
and no less than believing God's word. God told Noah what he was
about to do, and Noah believed him. And lastly, we see Noah's faith
as an example. His faith is held before us by
God the Holy Spirit and is an example of how sinners are saved
through faith. We are told that a picture is
worth a thousand words. Well, here is a picture of faith.
God help us to see it and obey the example that he has set before
us. As Noah fled into the ark, which he had prepared, we must
flee into the ark Christ Jesus. If we would be saved, the only
way sinners can obtain that salvation, which is in the Lord Jesus Christ,
is by faith. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ,
and thou shalt be saved. Amen. Next week, we're going
to take a closer look at the ark, part B of verse 17.