The Days of Noah

Friday, November 25, 2022

Then the people began to multiply on the earth, and daughters were born to them.  The sons of God saw the beautiful women and took any they wanted as their wives.  Then the Lord said, “My Spirit will not put up with humans for such a long time, for they are only mortal flesh.  In the future, their normal lifespan will be no more than 120 years.”  In those days, and for some time after, giant Nephilites lived on the earth, for whenever the sons of God had intercourse with women, they gave birth to children who became the heroes and famous warriors of ancient times.  The Lord observed the extent of human wickedness on the earth, and he saw that everything they thought or imagined was consistently and totally evil.  So the Lord was sorry he had ever made them and put them on the earth.  It broke his heart.  And the Lord said, “I will wipe this human race I have created from the face of the earth.  Yes, and I will destroy every living thing—all the people, the large animals, the small animals that scurry along the ground, and even the birds of the sky.  I am sorry I ever made them.” ⁸ But Noah found favor with the Lord.  This is the account of Noah and his family.  Noah was a righteous man, the only blameless person living on earth at the time, and he walked in close fellowship with God.   Genesis 6:1-9

I can’t remember when, or who said it, but it was the description of a platypus being …the result of a beaver-duck-osaurous being the assembled result of the committee from Hell.  As memory serves, it may have been at a committee meeting from a church (long-ago) that shall remain anonymous!

The days in which Noah lived, where everyone did what they wanted, not regarding the lives of others, with the result being chaos of the darkest nature, are pictured in Scripture as that which broke God’s heart; it was anything but what the Lord had designed.  If you compare it to the peaceful, gentle, and beautiful setting described as Eden (before sin entered the picture), you can understand why God was so upset! 

Many years ago, when our children were still in diapers, one of them climbed out of the crib during the night and found the full container of baby powder.  In the morning when we went into the nursery the container was no longer full.  But every crack, crevice, nook, and cranny of everything else in the room had baby powder to spare! 

I compare my feeling on that morning to the events of Noah’s days, and how God must’ve felt about his children messing up the environment.  In my mind’s imaginative eye, I can see God turning on his TV to the Jerry Springer Show, or some modern reality series where the woman finds out her man’s been cheating on her with her best friend’s husband, and they were planning to divorce, elope, and adopt a platypus.  No church committee can match that, except, perhaps the committee in charge of planning an orderly and dignified gay pride parade! 

If, in light of the previous descriptions, there is any wonder left in your mind about why God decided to start-over, give me a call…I’ll paint you a picture.

For You Today  

The world news program you watch today (maybe even your local news) will be filled with 95% of the anger, hatred, killing, disaster, and whatever other horrible happenings form the core of 21^st century culture.  We are living in the days of Noah.  Our prayer should always start (and end) with:  Come, Lord Jesus!

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!

Go to VIDEO (read by author)

There are about 2,000 devotional posts and 400 sermons in the Rocky Road Devotions library.  To dig deeper on today’s topic, explore some of these: 

       When It Hurts So Much   and   The Thin Line Between Black Friday and Good Friday

This devotional memoir first appeared on Rocky Road Devotions entitled Thanks Dad! August 11, 2016 (updated this date)

Images:  Title Pixabay.com and WikiCommons without citation are either personal property of the author, or in public domain.

Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©   

The Hallucination of Order

 

Thursday, May 5, 2022

The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need.  He lets me rest in green meadows; he leads me beside peaceful streams.  He renews my strength.  He guides me along right paths, bringing honor to his name.  Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me.  Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me.  You prepare a feast for me in the presence of my enemies.  You honor me by anointing my head with oil.  My cup overflows with blessings.  Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the Lord forever.  Psalm 23:1-6

The Psalm King David wrote is loved by untold millions.  What is not to love about peaceful streams, lush green meadows, and having your strength and soul restored?  Yet, human experience tells us that life is chaotic, messy, even at best.  Is David’s picture of a peace-filled life with God a realistic expectation, or a cruel hallucination…merely a form of wish-thinking, chasing after the perfect life in a chaotic universe?

A hallucination is a distortion of a real image or event.  Expecting perfect order in a chaotic universe is a disconnect with reality.  So, does that mean David’s image of God’s unfailing love is a pipe dream?  Not by any means.  One simply has to see it in correct perspective; David’s picture of what God provides is virtually proven by the chaos of our world.

Consider the provisions and the problems:

#1. Rest beside peaceful streams presupposes there are raging (chaotic) rivers.

#2. Renewed strength presupposes your personal strength can fail.

#3. Right paths announce that there are some wrong ones to avoid.

#4. Dark valleys instill fear while God’s presence brings courage.

….and the list is much longer.

Chaos, weakness, wrong choices, and fearful realities are not hallucinations, they are the reality of a fallen world.  Rest, renewal, corrected (forgiven) wrong choices, and courage to go on are just as real for the inner person. 

When the reality of life’s harshness meets the goodness of God’s grace, the follower of Jesus Christ has – as David wrote to begin the Psalm – all I need.

For You Today

You might be facing some tough decisions, chaotic storms, or a mind-numbing shortness of courage and other resources.  If so, take some time right now to give God great praise for the opportunity you are facing.  Just like David, facing Goliath the giant, you’re going to see you lack nothing you really need, because those promises never fail.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road with Jesus; have a blessed day!  

[1] Title image: Pixabay.com & Pixabay.com   Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©   

Something to Weep About

 

Tuesday, August 11, 2020

You may never have entertained this thought or been troubled about it…or, perhaps, you’re like me and have often wondered about Israel in God’s plans.  The 12 Tribes are, after all, God’s special and treasured possession.  They serve a central role in Sovereign Yahweh’s hands to bring His message of hope, and His message of judgment to the world.  However (and this is my troubling thought), as followers of Jesus Christ, embracing the cross, with an uncompromising belief that there is only one way to approach God[1], and that through placing your faith in Jesus, how does that square with God’s embracing Israel, which denies the deity of the Son?

Admittedly, when I wonder about this, I always feel a little like Peter after the resurrection when Jesus tells Peter about how the future will not be kind to him, and the impetuous disciple questions Jesus about John’s future.

Jesus replied, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you?  As for you, follow me.” John 21:22

The rebuke…it’s none ‘o your business, son…is stark, and meant to be.  Peter’s question borders on challenging God’s plans, which is to challenge God’s sovereignty.  Peter was headstrong, which is the beginning of the downward spiral leading to separation between human and God.  Peter had to learn that responding with your emotions before putting your brain to work never really ends well.

The Apostle Paul’s brain always seemed to be on the job.  For me, Paul’s answer, concerning Israel’s place in prophecy and God’s eternal plans, are enough to put my questioning to rest. 

And concerning Israel, Isaiah the prophet cried out, “Though the people of Israel are as numerous as the sand of the seashore, only a remnant will be saved.  For the Lord will carry out his sentence upon the earth quickly and with finality.”  Romans 9:27-28

Revelation[2] pictures 12,000 from each of the 12 tribes of Israel as being redeemed in the end.  That 144,000 is less than 2% of the 8.3 million population of Israel today, and 1 out of 100 if you consider an estimated 14-15 million Jews globally.

For me, this fits together with the point held by many Bible scholars, that, at the end, these are those who once rejected Christ, but now accept Him as Lord, Messiah, the anointed One of the lineage of David.  In their hearts they crown him King of Kings.

For You Today

Jesus told Peter not to worry about what plans God has for other believers, it was Peter’s job to follow Jesus, not approve of Jesus’ leadership.  This is especially important for us with plagues, natural disasters (can we say earthquake, North Carolina?), or any of the wars, famine, and other pandemics.  These are but the beginning of Christ’s new day.  Hear it from Jesus’ own testimony:

So when all these things begin to happen, stand and look up, for your salvation is near!”  Luke 21:28

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road today.  Have a blessed day!

VIDEO

Title image Pixabay.com ∞  Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation©

For another post on this text see:  Burning the Bridge of Integrity 

---

[1] Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.  John 14:6

[2] See Revelation 7:4 & 14:1-3

 

Blessing and Cursing

[1]

Wednesday, June 12, 2019

Like a lion, Israel crouches and lies down; like a lioness, who dares to arouse her?  Blessed is everyone who blesses you, O Israel, and cursed is everyone who curses you.”  King Balak flew into a rage against Balaam.  He angrily clapped his hands and shouted, “I called you to curse my enemies!  Instead, you have blessed them three times.  Now get out of here!  Go back home!  I promised to reward you richly, but the Lord has kept you from your reward.”  Numbers 24:9-11

Balak, the king of Moab, who was a sworn enemy of Israel, hired the prophet Balaam to work some magic prior to the battle that was coming.  Balaam liked getting paid for his dirty work, but when he opened his mouth, there came no curses against Balak’s enemy, Israel; instead, out came judgment against Moab, infuriating the king, who then refused to pay the prophet.

For some inexplicable reason (other than evil) ever since God blessed Abraham with the promise that his heritage would be a kingdom of God’s people forever, nations have been trying to wipe Israel off the face of the earth.  It didn’t work for Pharaoh, who seemed to have all the power, but got clobbered by the slave nation he tried to punish.  It didn’t work for the Philistines, or the city of Jericho trying to stand against God’s people.  Adolph Hitler thought he was exterminating Jews; he didn’t realize he was bringing down his house of cards on his head.  In the end he cowered and committed suicide in his bunker.  Time after time, often at great odds, Israel has survived and been the emblem of God’s promises kept.

God loves Israel with an everlasting love; Scripture calls her the apple of His eye.  Cursing Israel is something no thinking person who believes in God would ever want to do.  You might as well shake your fist towards Heaven and try to threaten the Almighty.  That’s never a fair fight and doesn’t end pretty! 

However, cursing the nation of Israel is only a microcosm of what plays out on a worldwide scale in humanity’s collective rebelliousness against Israel’s God.  Just as in Noah’s day when the entire earth had forsaken God, living in anger, chaos, selfishness, and utter disregard for the God who had created them, our culture presumes we have the answer for any problem which faces us.  We get along quite comfortably without God, thank you.  Technology is our new Balaam, prophesying prosperity, ease, and entertainment to soothe the empty places in our souls.

Someday the paid Apple or Android prophet will open the app of our choice, but instead of entertaining us, what will come forth is God’s judgment reality of conviction; no one will like it or believe it, but denial never stopped truth from being truth.  Thinking to heap blessing to our own lives by cursing God’s commandments, we will reap a whirlwind of judgment.

For You Today

Even in a day of swift judgment, those who honor God by accepting truth, believing truth, and living in truth can (and will) be saved.  Blessing, not cursing Israel or Israel’s Lord, God, Jehovah, is a matter of living in truth with His Son, Jesus, and being led by His Spirit.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day.

Go to VIDEO

---

[1] Title Image: Pixabay.com  
             Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are from The New Living Translation©

Out of Chaos

[1]

Tuesday, December 19, 2017

Those who trust in the Lord are as secure as Mount Zion; they will not be defeated but will endure forever.  Just as the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the Lord surrounds his people, both now and forever.  The wicked will not rule the land of the godly, for then the godly might be tempted to do wrong.  O Lord, do good to those who are good, whose hearts are in tune with you.  But banish those who turn to crooked ways, O Lord.  Take them away with those who do evil.  May Israel have peace!  

Psalm 125:1-5^(NLT)

“Friends, I realize that what you and your leaders did to Jesus was done in ignorance.  But God was fulfilling what all the prophets had foretold about the Messiah—that he must suffer these things.  Now repent of your sins and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped away.  Then times of refreshment will come from the presence of the Lord, and he will again send you Jesus, your appointed Messiah.  For he must remain in heaven until the time for the final restoration of all things, as God promised long ago through his holy prophets.  

Acts 3:17-21^(NLT)

The recent political move towards officially recognizing Jerusalem as the capitol city of Israel is seen by some as a tragic international blunder.  We have self-debilitated the U.S. as a non-biased mediator.  How then will there ever be peace between Israel and the rest of the world?  Yet, how could Israel have peace without the powerful backing of U.S. military might? 

These questions seem to war against each other until you pit them against the larger picture of Biblical prophecy.  There will never be a genuine and lasting peace in Israel until Messiah returns.  And through His prophets God has decreed that event will be accompanied by the worst chaos and division against Israel and all for which she stands; she will be standing against, and be bitterly hated by the rest of the world’s powers.

This seems a rather fatalistic, chaotic view of the future, and sadly pessimistic concerning even the possibilities of attaining peace.  Indeed there are those who hold to the view that we are supposed to bring in the Kingdom by achieving peace.  This takes the position that Messiah won’t come back until we banish war and evil, and finally get the leaders of the Middle East to behave themselves.  With several thousand years of history pointed in the opposite direction, achieving genuine shalom in Jerusalem seems a mighty long way off!

The view I hold derives from the Scripture-based interpretation of mounting tension and division – a polarizing of world powers until there is cataclysmic world conflict which culminates in a final battle near Jerusalem – a place called Armageddon.  I believe this because of the dark nature of Adam’s race, which is the tendency we have to engage our human nature with evil purposes; we end up loving war and conflict.  Shedding blood is the legacy we have from Cain and Abel; there are predators and there is prey. 

And still we pray for the peace of Jerusalem, remembering that peace will never come until the blood runs as high as horse’s bridles all through the valley of God’s judgment:

The grapes were trampled in the winepress outside the city, and blood flowed from the winepress in a stream about 180 miles long and as high as a horse’s bridle.  

Revelation 14:20^(NLT)

For You Today

Through the madness of this world’s terrorism attacks, struggles of nations against nations, and even the natural disasters which dispassionately snuff out the most innocent of lives, Christians are to continually pray for peace, act on behalf of those who are weak, yet seeking peace; we are to bear the Good Tidings of the Gospel everywhere under any conditions.  It is God’s hand that will, as He did in the week of creation, bring peace out of the chaos!

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road…have a blessed day!

Go to VIDEO

---

[1] Title Image: Courtesy of Pixabay.com

Seeing and Following the Light - part 3

[i]

Friday, February 10, 2017

Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.  Proverbs 29:18^(KJV)

In the last two days we’ve seen that vision or God’s revelation is what keeps us from wandering through life, and that kind of spiritual famine destroys God’s purposes and plan for our lives. 

Now let’s take a look at the antidote for a lack of light for a follower of Jesus Christ!

CHAOS CAN BE WHIPPED BY OBEDIENCE. 

In most cases a negative statement implies the positive opposite.  If there is no vision or revelation, seeing restraints, there is chaos.  The inverse then is that discipline towards God will end the chaos and bring peace. 

Many of the Bible's heroes were men who were visionary, ready to see the discipline of God in their lives.  Jacob learned the hard way.  His life was chaos, as he tried to trick his way to wealth and position.  But the vision of a ladder climbing up to God's heaven changed him, and put him on a path of learning and loving God.  Jonah got enough chaos for a lifetime inside God's submarine.  He repented and ran to the discipline of preaching in Nineveh.  Peter messed things up on an incredibly regular basis; yet he went to the mountain with Jesus, and the vision of Moses and Elijah made him fall on his face in belief.  Paul's life was angry and chaotic.  He persecuted the church relentlessly.  And then he met Jesus.  His statement was what whipped the chaos in his life, Lord, what do you want me to do?

Applications of this text are many for each of us today.  But there are some that are universal, and we can start there: 

1.     YOU NEED VISION IN YOUR HEART 

Without obedience to God, the discipline of love towards the Father in Jesus, life is nothing but chaos.  The only way to take a step towards God is via the cross.  Accept Christ now if you have never done so.

2.     YOU NEED VISION IN YOUR HOME

Every one of us has a home.  Is it marked by God's control, discipline?  Is Christ really the unseen guest at every meal? 

3.     YOU NEED VISION IN YOUR DAYS 

Going to work, school, play, running errands or just relaxing....do you go to the Father for instruction?

4.     YOU NEED VISION IN YOUR CHURCH 

All our goals, programs, and all we do at church should have the discipline and worship of Christ as its target. 

There is a story of a bloodhound that started a hunt chasing a huge buck.  When a fox crossed the dog's pathway, the hound picked-up a new scent and chased after the fox.  Then a rabbit crossed the trail, so the hound chased it a while.  Later, the hound caught the scent of a mouse, and was diverted to chase even it to its lair.  The hound began the hunt on the trail of a magnificent buck, and ended up watching a mouse hole. 

God put each of us on this planet for the purpose of serving and loving Him.  As our Creator, it is His sovereign right because He wrote the owner's manual.  And there are many things that will dim the light of our vision and cause chaos.  Our job is not chasing mouse holes, but growing in the grace and love of our Lord Jesus Christ.

For You Today

Have you ever caught yourself watching mouse holes instead of waiting upon the Lord?  We all do that at least occasionally; the point begs an answer, what should you do about it?

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road…have a blessed day!

Go to VIDEO

NOTES

---

[i]  Title image: By Anant Nath Sharma (www.thelensor.tumblr.com), via Wikimedia Commons

In the Chaos That is Life

[1]

Tuesday, December 22, 2015

Devotion VIDEO here

For Christ himself has brought peace to us. He united Jews and Gentiles into one people when, in his own body on the cross, he broke down the wall of hostility that separated us.  Ephesians 2:14^(NLT)

A professor I studied with at Duke was a “Gen-X’r”[2].  He didn’t give tests, but rather moved the class along with mini-projects, breaking into small groups for interaction; he builds a sense of community so the whole class can work on a learning curve together. 

(Not exactly the Little House on the Prairie school marm teaching the three R’s!) 

To a 1940’s-born Baby Boomer it is chaos. 

Give me a book, three quizzes, a mid-term and a final and I’ll get an “A”.  Force me into small groups and I break into a cold sweat.

There has always been a gap between generations.  I’m certain I gave my parents more gray hair than they deserved.  When it was my turn to be the parent, I was the one on the receiving end.  When my son was a pre-teen he would get lazy about cleaning his room (big surprise!).  Elizabeth would drop a hint or two, but never get any results. 

Then, inevitably, one day while our son was at school, the white tornado would visit his room, restoring order and reclaiming a view of the floor surface.  When Jason would come home in the afternoon you could hear it all over the house:  Oh NO!  She trashed my room again! 

One person’s orderliness is another’s chaos!

So what does chaos have to do with Paul’s letter to the Ephesians?  There’s a connection between Paul and Moses.  Listen to the first and second verses of the creation account in Genesis:

In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth, the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters.   Genesis 1:1 - 2^(NRSV)

That expression formless void in Hebrew is bo'-hoo, and it means to be empty[3].  Formless, empty and covered in darkness; this is the very essence of chaos.   (That also pretty much describes my room when I was a teen).

Paul uses the word peace a couple of times in his letter to the Ephesian church.  This word is eirēnē, and it means to join (as in knit back together that which was broken apart).  When healthy bones are broken due to an injury, often they knit back together stronger than before the break. 

On the one hand we have chaos – void, empty and dark – a kind of brokenness; on the other hand we have peace – brokenness being healed, knit back together.  This is the kind of peace of which Paul spoke.

Peace and chaos – words and worlds that collide!

For You Today

The conclusion of Advent, our waiting, is only a few days away.  Could it be that God wants to use this time of anticipation to knit something together for you…bring healing and strength to some brokenness?

You chew on that out on the Rocky Road today…and have a joy-filled and blessed day!

---

[1] Title image:  By Yinan Chen, via Wikimedia Commons

[2] The people born between 1965 and 1976 are referred to as “Generation X”; they are 51 million strong. 

[3] Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Dictionaries© 2003, QuickVerse