Read Genesis 8:1-19
Questions for Littles: Who remembered Noah in Genesis 8:1? Whom else did God remember? What did God make to pass over the earth? What happened to the waters? What windows were stopped up in Genesis 8:2? At what day did the waters begin to decrease (Genesis 8:3)? What result did this have upon the ark (Genesis 8:4)? Where? For how many months did the water decrease continually (Genesis 8:5)? When were the tops of the mountains seen? How much later did Noah open the window of the ark (Genesis 8:6)? What did he send out in Genesis 8:7? What did it do? What did he send out in Genesis 8:8? What couldn’t it do (Genesis 8:9)? So what did it do? How many more days was it until he sent out the dove again (Genesis 8:10)? With what did it return (Genesis 8:11)? What did Noah know at that point? How many more days until Noah sent the dove out the third time (Genesis 8:12)? What didn’t it do this time? What day was it now in Genesis 8:13? What did Noah remove? What did Noah see? How much longer after that was it until the earth was dry enough to be safe (Genesis 8:14)? How did Noah know when to go (Genesis 8:15)? Whom did God command to leave the ark (Genesis 8:16)? What did He command them to bring (Genesis 8:17)? What did they do (Genesis 8:18-19)?In the Scripture for this week’s sermon, we saw the Lord being Noah’s safety and provision, and the Lord communicating to Noah that He is his safety and provision.
It is interesting to look at the actions that Noah takes and the dates of those actions. He shows an uncertainty about what he will find when he leaves the ark. Will he be safe? Will he be provided for? We know by the Word of God what he could only have hoped was the case when the wind passed over the earth: the Lord remembered Noah.
The Lord, of course, doesn’t forget. We do. And when we do, we realize something about someone. And we stir up our affection toward them. And we acknowledge our relationship with them and our commitments to them. So, Genesis 8:1 is telling us that the Lord is affirming and responding to His relationship with Noah. He will be Noah’s safety and provision.
Noah himself imitates the Lord in his interaction with the dove in Genesis 8:9. It is a tender image. This great, old man—reaching out his hand to bring not just back into the ark but to himself. Like Adam before him in the garden, where did Noah learn such interaction? From God Himself. “I will be your savior and provider.”
And this is, most of all, what Noah realizes in that wonderful little Genesis 8:15. When the Lord speaks to Noah, Noah realizes that he still has relationship with God—that he still has favor, that he still has grace.
And isn’t the same true for you, dear Christian? When you open your Bible to Genesis 8, and hear Genesis 8 preached, hasn’t the Lord specifically said that this Word is breathed out by Him to you and for you? And doesn’t He hold Himself out to you in Christ, saying, “I am your Shield and very great Reward”? May His Spirit plant this truth deeply in our hearts!
How has the Lord reached out to bring you home? How does He speak to you?Suggested Songs: ARP23B “The Lord’s My Shepherd” or TPH257 “Children of the Heavenly Father”
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