After The Storm

How do we respond to Christ’s sacrifice for our sins? The phrase ‘God remembered Noah’ speaks to the Lord acknowledging His anger has been satisfied against sin and He can now show His lovingkindness to the objects of His grace.

After the storm we remember Christ’s sacrifice for us. As the earth absorbed God’s wrath against humanity so Christ absorbed the Father’s wrath for the sins of all God’s people.

Christ was humiliated by being arrested through the betrayal of a traitor, Matthew 26:47-50. Our Lord was humiliated by being beaten, mocked and blasphemed by the very creation that He sustains, Luke 22:63-65. He was humiliated by being subject to a crooked court held by wicked, jealous, bloodthirsty men, Matt. 26:59-61. Christ was humiliated by subjecting Himself to earthly powers He could have overthrown in a moment, Jn. 19:1-3, 9-11.
The Lord was humiliated by allowing Himself to be condemned for sin He did not commit, Luke 23:20-25. He was humiliated by allowing Himself to be put on a cross, nailed to that cross and crucified for our sin, Luke 23:33-34. Christ was humiliated by enduring the mocking, shame and insults of those who crucified Him for their own selfish sinful purposes, Lk. 23:35-37.
Christ willingly gave Himself up to the Father and absorbed the full weight of His anger against the sin of the world, Lk. 23:44-46.
Finally, our Lord took the Father’s wrath so that we would be able to withstand the storm of the final judgment.
We’ve all had personal storms of trial, trouble, difficulty and turmoil, yet these can’t compare to the storm of God’s judgment against our sin in Christ.
The cross is central to the life of the believer. We remember the cross knowing that we should have been arrested, charged, tried and condemned for the sin we did actually commit against God.

After the storm we rest in God’s favor. The theme of rest in Scripture first appears in Genesis 2:1-3. And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.

This theme of rest means more than just a ceasing from activity. In Scripture it means that all that has to be done for God’s people to enjoy His creation and delight in Him has been completed and satisfied. In Scripture rest means that you don’t have to be anxious about the state of your soul and relationship to the living God. Rest means that you can and should enjoy emotional, psychological and spiritual peace, calm, harmony and tranquility. It may be that this theme is picked up again and referred to by Moses in the account of the ark came to rest and finally the dove who eventually did not returned to Noah.

We enjoy that rest by recognizing that we are always and forever in a state of God’s complete, unmerited and permanent favor through Jesus Christ, Romans 5:1-2.
Because we this great grace from God we can enjoy our rest by rejoicing in the glory of God. We can even rejoice in our trials since we know that our troubles aren’t expressions of God’s anger, rather they are the tools He uses to shape and forge our character.
Finally we enjoy our rest by rejoicing in God Himself who has brought His enemies close to Him through the cross of Jesus Christ. We can express this extreme delight in God because we know and are convinced that in Christ we have been and will remain saved from God’s fierce settled anger against sin.
Additionally we delight in God because through Christ we have true and permanent reconciliation.
We couldn’t rejoice in God if we were always unsure of our relationship with Him.

After the storm we live renewed lives in Jesus Christ. Just like Noah was called to leave the ark into a new life of godliness so we’re called to leave our old lives behind to lead new Christ like lives. Eph. 4:20-24.

New life involves a transformed mind that’s fueled and fed by the word of God. Living new lives means putting off or stopping old, unfruitful and unprofitable ways of thinking, speaking, habits and patterns. New life means that we adopt, pursue and become known by new godly habits, patterns and lifestyles.

After the storm we resume our lifestyle of worship. Noah continued the lifestyle of worship he practiced before the flood. This is why he took seven pairs of clean animals on the ark.

Worship was Noah’s first significant. act upon emerging from the ark. Once more the Lord shows us that the prime place worship must place in our lives. For the believer worship is not an option, an occasional activity, a mere pick me up or a social networking opportunity. Worship of the triune God through the Lord Jesus Christ is both the point and substance of our lives.
We were created to worship, we were redeemed to worship and worship will be the defining characteristic of our existence throughout eternity.
No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him Rev. 22:3.
Biblical worship reminds us of God’s holiness, perfection, goodness and unlimited grace. Noah’s sacrifice of the animals brought to mind the reality that he should have been the one whose life was put upon the altar.
We keep our worship biblical by doing those things in worship we find in Scripture that draws our minds and hearts to the character, nature and works of God as expressed through the Person and work of Jesus Christ. Biblical worship must be pure. Noah offered clean animals that is animals God deemed acceptable for worship. The only pure worship offered today is worship offered through Jesus Christ. Biblical worship was costly reminding us that worship isn’t just a weekly individual action, but a sign or symbol of an entire life devoted to the worship, obedience and service of the Lord God.

Finally consistent, heartfelt, biblical, Christ-centered worship speaks to the glorious truth that God will not reject us even though He will judge the world again.

God rejected and cursed the old world because of the sin of mankind. That sin hasn’t changed. though societies change, the basic nature of people remains the same.
We know that God is able to preserve people through the death of Christ, but what does that say about the Lord and His love for you?

What measure of love, compassion and grace the Father has shown to His creation by not only sustaining it for our good, but in cursing His Son so we could enjoy it for eternity! What kind of love did God show by rejecting His Son so that He could accept us? The cross is our guarantee that as the Lord remembered Noah He will remember those who have faith in Jesus Christ.

To Him Who Loves Us…
Pastor Lance