“The LORD then said to Noah, "Come into the ark, you and your whole family, because I have found you righteous in this generation.” (v.1)
This invitation indicates that God was in the ark and would be with Noah in the ark, so He called Noah to come into the ark with Him. Spurgeon writes, “Notice that the Lord did not say to Noah, ‘Go into the ark,’ but ‘Come,’ plainly implying that God was himself in the ark, waiting to receive Noah and his family into the big ship that was to be their place of refuge while all the other people on the face of the earth were drowned.”
Noah spent the years before the flood in active obedience. He not only believed God would send the flood; he obeyed what God told him to do in preparation for it. During the time that the ark was being built (120 years), was a period of grace given by God to allow men to see the error of their ways and repent, but now we see that time had passed (Genesis 6:3), for Noah received instructions from GOD to enter the ark with his family, and with the animals. He was also informed that within seven days God would cause it to rain upon the earth forty days and forty nights (Genesis 7:4).
Noah, the animals, and his family had to wait in the ark seven days for the rain to come. They had never seen rain up to this time. This was a real test of faith – to wait a week after more than 100 years of preparation. Can you imagine?
Some wonder how the animals came to Noah or how Noah got them. In Genesis 6:20 God said the animals would come to Noah. God probably put a migratory instinct into them for the ark. God never has a problem getting the animals to do what He wants. Only man is more stupid than the animals. As God showed Isaiah, "The ox knows its master and the donkey its owner's manger; but Israel did not know, My people do not understand. Woe to the sinful nation, a people whose guilt is great" (Isaiah 1:3-4).
Certainly everyone must make their own decision regarding salvation, but seeing the reality of faith lived out in your house every day would be a dynamic hard to ignore. Leadership begins at home and it starts at the head of each household. May God give all of us the strength of Noah to lead through example every day despite the decaying culture around us.
The Truth: “Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved and thy house.” (Acts 16:31)
