Go for wood

 

Never again. Those words imply that something happened before, or happened a certain way, but it will not be that way or happen that way again. Throughout the Bible, there are such events that tie into God’s story of redemption. As the season of Lent begins, our sermon series will focus on these events found in the Old Testament connected with the work of salvation completed in Jesus.

 

In the book of Genesis, the Bible records that the world became wicked and violent, to the point that every inclination of the human heart was fixated on evil. The most merciful thing God could do to preserve humanity and creation was to start over. God tells a man named Noah, “Go for wood.” Noah needs to go for wood to build an ark because God was sending a flood to wash away humanity’s wickedness.

 

 

     Genesis 9:8-17 (CEB):

 

     God said to Noah and to his sons with him, “I am not setting up my covenant with you, with your descendants, and with every living being with you—with the birds, with the large animals, and with all the animals of the earth, leaving the ark with you. I will set up my covenant with you so that never again will all life be cut off by floodwaters. There will never again be a flood to destroy the earth.”

 

     God said, “This is the symbol of the covenant that I am drawing up between me and you and every living thing with you, on behalf of every future generation. I have placed my bow in the clouds; it will be the symbol of the covenant between me and the earth.

 

     When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow appears in the clouds, I will remember the covenant between me and you and every living being among all the creatures. Floodwaters will never again destroy all creatures. The bow will be in the clouds, and upon seeing it I will remember the enduring covenant between God and every living being of all the earth’s creatures.” God said to Noah, “This is the symbol of the covenant that I have set up between me and all creatures on earth.”

 

 

This is the Word of God.

For the people of God.

Thanks be to God.

 

 

     God tells Noah to go for wood because He is going to wipe out all life that dwells on the earth. Noah was considered a righteous man because of his faith in God, so God was going to restart the earth through him and his family. And Noah was faithful to the task. For over 200 days, Noah and his family survived in the ark, with each other and two of every kind of land-dwelling creature.

 

     Once Noah and his family emerged from the ark on dry land, God declared that Noah, nor any other person would have to go for wood again to build an ark. We will be examining God’s promise to Noah in the aftermath of Noah’s ark experience.

 

     In verse 8 and again in verse 11, God says He is establishing a covenant with Noah and his family. This covenant does not exist on the will of Earth or its inhabitants. It is not because of humanity’s goodness. The covenant that was given to Noah, his family, and the rest of the creatures was propped up because of God’s goodness. God decided that “never again” would there be a need to go for wood.

 

     Again, God did not do this because humanity was now good. Sin has corrupted every human heart. As a matter of fact, in this same chapter, we will see the wickedness continue. This is a covenant based on God’s mercy. But this covenant is given beyond Noah to all living creatures, both past and present. We see how much God values all of creation, including us.

 

     As a reminder, God places a mark on creation. This is not because God is forgetful. He always remembers. When God sees the mark, it is not for Him to recognize that He needs to pull back the rain, thunder, and wind. It is a mark reminding all of us that God will “never again” have anyone go for wood.

 

     What is the mark God uses? A bow. I know the NIV says, “rainbow.” But the Hebrew word means “bow” like the instrument of war. A rainbow is shaped like a multi-colored bow in the sky. However, notice which way the bow is pointed. It is not aimed at the earth, but directed at heaven. God is not going to shoot arrows at Himself, it is a promise without end.

 

     How does this apply to us? How does this connect with the wider story of salvation through Jesus? Matthew Henry wrote, “Sin which drowned the old world will burn this.” It was our wickedness and violence that brought the flood waters to the earth. God acted in mercy to preserve all of creation from our sinfulness. After the waters receded, God promised never again would anyone need to go for wood to build another ark. His flood waters of judgment would never wash away all creation again.

 

     But the truth of this passage is that sin always leads to destruction, and the Bible assures us that a day is coming when God’s holy fire will ultimately destroy sin, evil, darkness, and death once and for all. It is a good thing God promised “never again” about the need for an ark. An ark made of wood would not keep anyone safe. The Bible tells us people will take to the mountains to shield themselves from His judgment, but there is no escape.

 

     And remember, God wants everyone to be saved. But an ark was only big enough to save Noah, his family, and two of every creature. That is a limited capacity. The number saved at the time of the flood was a very small percentage of life.

 

     God wants everyone to be saved. This means that God has put no cap on the number of survivors at the final judgment. And the good news is God has made a way so that is possible! Jesus died on the cross to make a way for all sinners to be saved through faith in Him! “For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.” (John 3:17) An ark is not needed because the blood of Jesus can wash away our sin, and if we place our faith in Him then the Holy Spirit will purify our hearts with holy fire. In other words, we do not have to go for wood because Jesus was nailed to it.

 

     That day of God’s judgment is coming. There is nothing any of us can do to stop it. There is nothing of this earth or us that can save us from it. And if we are not right with God, that should terrify us. If hearing this stirs up fear, it should be because we are being convicted with the knowledge of our sinfulness. But we do not have to leave here today in that fear. God does not want us to live in fear of His judgment. Our conviction is pointing us to our need for Jesus. We can choose to shed our fear and exchange it for a crown of victory.

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