Aspire To Walk With God Gen 6:9-18,
22 Dec. 16,2007
Introduction
Do we want to walk with God? Can you and I be
known as people who walk with Him? If you answer yes, then
why would it not be true that we walk with Him? I do not
believe God permits some to walk with Him
while refusing that privilege to others. The choice is ours and We must
Aspire To Walk With God, and the
sooner the better.
1. Aspire To Walk With God . . Contrasted To Your
Contemporaries. 6:9-10
A. Contrasted To Contemporary . . Personal
Righteousness. 6:9
9 These are the family records of Noah. Noah was a righteous man,
blameless among his contemporaries;. . ."
B. Contrasted To Contemporary . . Preferred
Conduct.
6:9b
". . . Noah walked with God."
C. Contrasted To Contemporary . . Parental
Achievements. 6:10
10 And Noah fathered three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
Recently my 13 year old grandson in Florida asked one of His
teachers about starting a Bible Club before
school. The teacher told him, "I have been praying for seven years that
a student would ask me about doing
that, and you're the first to ask." His dad told him son you may get
some ridicule, or someone may make fun of
you for that action, and my grandson an swered, "it has already
started." Do you think Noah got criticism
because he chose personal righteousness that contrasted with the people
of his day? The text gives a great
compliment to Noah as it tells us, "Noah walked with God." Noah
preferred this kind of conduct. His actions
no doubt affected his parental achievements. Noah's life contrasted
with His contemporaries.
2. Aspire To Walk With God . . Conscience Of His
Judgement. 6:11-13
A. Conscience Of His Judgement Through . . Personal
Observation. 6:11-12
11 Now the earth was corrupt in God's sight, and the earth was
filled with violence.
12 God saw how corrupt the earth was, for all flesh had
corrupted its way on the earth.
B. Conscience Of His Judgement Through . .
Privileged
Knowledge. 6:13
13 Then God said to Noah, "I have decided to put an end to all flesh,
for the earth is filled with violence because of them;
therefore
I am going to destroy them along with the earth.
Why do we serve God; Are we afraid of His judgements? I do
not
think most of us serve that way, but we
can see the lifestyles of our world and know they will be judged for
such conduct. Through privileged
information Noah knew of God's pending judgement. We receive similar
warnings from God's Word, and need
to follow His desires for a pleasing lifestyle. How often do we see
people living in a way that demonstrates an
awareness of God's commands and judgements? Do you remember the words
from the New Testament,
". . . His commands are not a burden" 1 John 5:3. When a person Aspires
to walk with God His
commandments are a delight, and obedience produces harmony and joy.
3. Aspire To Walk With God . . Committed To Follow
Instructions. 6:14-18, 22
A. Committed To Follow Instructions . . Detailed In
Their Presentation. 6:14-16
14 "Make yourself an ark of gofer wood. Make rooms in the ark,
and cover it with pitch inside and outside. 15 This is
how you are to make it: The ark will be 450 feet long, 75 feet wide,
and 45 feet high. 16 You are to make a roof, finishing the
sides of the ark to within 18 inches of the roof. You are to
put a door in the side of the ark. Make it with lower, middle, and
upper decks.
B. Committed
To Follow Instructions . . Described By
The Lord. 6:17-18
17 "Understand that I am bringing a deluge -- floodwaters on the earth
to destroy all flesh under
heaven with the breath of life in it. Everything on earth will die. 18
But I will establish My covenant
with you, and you will enter the ark with your sons, your wife, and
your sons' wives.
C. Committed To Follow Instructions With . . Dutiful
Obedience. 6:22
22 And Noah did this. He did everything that God had commanded him. HCSB
When we read about the building of the ark we might overlook
the difficulty of the task. But God gave
Noah an enormous task. How would you like a similar assignment today?
God did give the details for the
design of the ark; and that made it a little easier. Noah knew why such
a ship was needed primarily through the
description God gave of the pending flood. No doubt Noah received
additional motivation for this task
knowing it included safety for his family. Noah, in a dutiful manner
did everything God commanded, and did it
commendably. To this point in Noah's life we see a man who gives the
example that challenges us to Aspire To
Walk With God. Amen? Amen!
