I Peter 3:20 ” Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.”
Peter speaks about Noah and reminds us that it doesn’t matter what age and time we live in; every generation is a life of preparing. Our purpose as a child of God is to prepare for the coming of the Lord, for ourselves and others.
Peter recounts the time Noah lived. The time between the commissioning of the ark to its completion spoke to Peter, and it speaks to us in our time. From the commissioning to the finish was 120 years. This was a space of time for mercy. God could have spoken the ark into existence and told Noah to get on board. In just minutes the earth could have been destroyed, but God waited 120 years. This is a clear picture of grace. The wicked can be turned around. If it weren’t possible the rapture would have already taken place. It’s still a time of preparation, of building, working and warning. God is longsuffering. The world is savable.
Hebrews 11:7 says “By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith.” The vessel was being prepared; calling and warning were going on. He spoke of what was to come. God would have made the dimensions of the ark big enough for everyone. The ark of Calvary is big enough for anybody. Sin may be on the increase, but the ark of salvation has an open door. Jesus said the gates of hell would not prevail against his church. The lost will go to hell for hesitating while there is still room at the cross. Don’t ever think there is no work to be done. There was preparation on our behalf. There were warnings that came to me. Jesus called my name. I called upon his and got on board. It’s so good to be on board.
Noah and his family worked together during this interval of time. We saw the daylight of grace the day we were born. It was 2,000 years ago, but the ark is still preparing. From the 1st century to now, it could have been finished anytime. It’s still open though, and we have preparing to do. Noah was a preacher of righteousness. He worked on the ark while the scoffers laughed and made fun of him. Everyday we have the task to work on the ark by letting people know the judgment is coming. Noah and his family worked together amid all the rejection of the invitations to join in. That’s our work. God wants us to keep at it until he says it’s time to stop.
Noah didn’t let the world carry him away; he stuck with it. He waited to see it through. I’m sure they laughed and said “why build a boat where there is no water?” They didn’t listen, but Noah did not let the reproach stop him. He continued to live right. He didn’t follow the crowd. He saw it through to the end, and God fulfilled his word. Before God spoke the judgment he spoke to the animals and told them to board the ark. They along with Noah and his family got on board to safety.
God promised to save and take care of us. He has fulfilled it. We have a wonderful future. The timing is up to God. Until he decides to unleash his wrath we have work to do. The church is not going down. We’re seeing the end of the 120 years, so to speak. We’ll work till Jesus comes and do it with all our heart to reach the lost. It’s sooner than we think. When the trumpet sounds there will be no more preparing.
Don’t give up. Someone may be just around the corner waiting to be saved. Our desire should be for others to be with us when the days of preparing are over. We want others to be safe inside the ark with us.
Adwolfe Freewill Baptist Church 