Last Sunday, Pastor Kyle preached on coming out of the pandemic stating that after over a year of society-economic lockdown, we are feel a new sense of hope, yet cautiously optimistic. Looking back on his sermon in March of 2020, he recalled that Noah spent an entire year locked down in the Ark before exiting; a year of great loss and time to reconsider what was really important. On March 13, 2020, the “stay at home” order was issued and over 600,000 American lives lost and 3.4 million lives lost worldwide to this virus. In light that we are beginning to exit the Ark (so to speak preverbally), pastor Kyle gave a message based upon Noah’s Ark-exiting application, giving us a few things to think about before returning to "Business as Usual".
The point from his march of 2020 message was that you can find favor with God when your world is falling apart, when in Genesis 6-8. Noah found favor with God because he was a righteous man, blameless in his generation and walked with God. And like Noah, it has been a hard year, but the favor of God had been upon us. God’s favor is ushered in by our faithfulness to do what God ask and says.
Genesis 8:18-22 So Noah went out, and his sons and his wife and his sons' wives with him. Every beast, every creeping thing, and every bird, everything that moves on the earth, went out by families from the ark. Then Noah built an altar to the Lord and took some of every clean animal and some of every clean bird and offered burnt offerings on the altar. And when the Lord smelled the pleasing aroma, the Lord said in his heart, “I will never again curse the ground because of man, for the intention of man's heart is evil from his youth. Neither will I ever again strike down every living creature as I have done. While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease.”
The world was reset, but sin did not cease: as God said, “the intention of man's heart is evil from his youth.” And sin is still here today, despite everything that Jesus Christ has done for us to pay the debt. After such a long time of being locked down and cooped up, it feels liberating to get back to some normal activities. It is a reminder of the goodness and grace of God after such a horrible pandemic.
A few that we can learn from Noah’s story to think about are (1) Some moves of God are so big that a simple “Thank you” is not enough - a sacrifice is warranted. It was the first thing that Noah did after existing the Ark, knowing that God was in charge of their provision, protection and prosperity. Most people in the post-COVID era are going to be thankful for getting through it and then go right back to their lives as they used to live it. As a result of this Coronavirus pandemic, many people have rethought their lives, their time and their relationship with people and the Lord. Three questions to ask ourselves are (a) Am I living sacrificially in terms of my earthly treasures? Give to meet needs. (b) Am I living sacrificially in terms of my time? Volunteer to meet needs. (c) Am I living sacrificially in terms of my talents? Use your gifted abilities to meet needs.
Pray about these three questions because as Romans 12:1-2 says, “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” Sacrifice is a form of committed worship to God in this up-ended world today. This life is about the Lord and us serving the Lord in praise for His honor and to His glory. God blesses the sacrifice of His people. Genesis 9:1 “And God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth.”
Let's continue Pastor Kyle's message on a few things to think about before returning to "Business as Usual" in the next post.
In Christ, Brian
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