Going Deep in the Flood

Genesis chapter 6, we're going to have a special group in a couple of weeks sing the

Genesis 6 · chapter mention

Don't Sing a Bit people, people that sit out there with their arms crossed and never sing a word.

We're going to pull you out, we got you on camera, and we're going to bring you up here and see how you do.

We'll never have all of our questions answered about historical events of history that are recorded in the Bible.

We'll never get all the questions answered about any history, quite honestly.

Biblical history is extra tough because God told us what we need to know, but He didn't necessarily tell us everything we want to know, everything we're curious about.

But I want us to dive in this morning, look at some answers, go deep into the flood, and explore some common questions about the flood.

Are there clear answers about it?

Sometimes.

Let me tell you some of what I think, but more importantly, what I know and why I know it.

Genesis chapter 6, beginning in verse 11, says,

Genesis 6 · chapter mention

Now the earth was corrupt in God's sight, and the earth was filled with violence.

God saw the earth, and behold, it was corrupt, for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth.

And God said to Noah, I have determined to make an end of all flesh, for the earth is filled with violence through them.

Behold, I will destroy them with the earth.

Make yourself an ark of gopher wood.

Make rooms in the ark and cover it inside and out with pitch.

This is how you are to make it.

The length of the ark, 300 cubits.

Its breadth, 50 cubits.

And its height, 30 cubits.

Make a roof for the ark.

Make it with lower, second, and third decks.

For behold, I will bring a flood of water upon the earth to destroy all flesh in which it is the breath of life under heaven.

Everything that is on the earth shall die.

But I will establish my covenant with you, and you shall come into the ark, you, your sons, your wife, and your son's wife, with you.

And of every living thing of all flesh, you shall bring two of every sort into the ark to keep them alive with you.

They shall be male and female.

Of the birds, according to their kinds.

And of the animals, according to their kinds.

And of creeping thing of the ground, according to its kind.

Two of every sort shall come in to you to keep them alive.

Also, take with you every sort of food that is eaten and store it up.

It shall serve as food for you and for them.

And Noah did this.

It's an important passage right here.

He did all that God commanded him.

Now, the story is that God told Noah to build an ark.

And Noah was to put these animals in the ark.

It goes on to tell us that he was to put seven pair of clean animals in the ark.

And once all those were in the ark, God shut the door, as Scripture says.

And seven days later, the rain came.

And it rained and it flooded for 40 days and 40 nights.

Scripture says that the fountains of the great deep burst forth.

And the windows of heaven also came.

So, water was coming up and water was coming down.

And it stayed flooded.

Rain for 40 days and 40 nights.

The earth stayed flooded for 150 days.

After 150 days, the ark landed on Mount Ararat.

And he sent a raven out.

And then he sent a dove out.

And after the dove had been out for a while, it came back with an olive leaf.

And he knew they were getting somewhere then.

He sent it back out.

And it never came back.

And he knew then that the flood was over.

So, some questions that people often ask or at least think.

One is, was the flood really worldwide?

The Smithsonian Magazine released an article in 2000

that discussed that there was a worldwide flood thousands of years ago.

And two Columbia University geologists.

You ever heard of Columbia University?

Okay, you got the picture.

Two Columbia University geologists took core samples out of the Black Sea

and noticed that in those samples were uncharacteristic river mud.

And there was shell hash there as well.

Both of them spoke of that being salt water.

And at some point, salt water and fresh water mixed together due to a flood.

And they said with such a flood as that, that the bedrock was cut

and channels were dug as deep as 300 feet deep.

And the remains of animals were left in the bottom of that lake.

Scientists also say that salt water in that same occurrence

gushed in creating a waterfall 200 times the volume of Niagara Falls

with enough cascading water coming forth to cover Manhattan

to a depth, this article in 2000, to a depth two times the height of the World Trade Center.

And the height of the World Trade Center was right at 1,800 feet.

So in other words, 3,600 feet deep.

The rush of water for such as that would have been heard 100 miles away.

ABC News reported in 2012 that Robert Ballard,

who is the man who found the Titanic,

wanted to question these theories of these Columbia University geologists.

He is an oceanography archaeologist.

And he affirmed that there was evidence of a catastrophic flood

that changed the shorelines and that appeared to happen about,

in his words, 5,000 years ago.

Now, you read up on that, not while I'm preaching but later,

and you'll find that the science community does not like that talk a whole lot.

They don't deal with that.

So how do you trust that the flood was worldwide?

Because I trust the Bible.

That's why.

Notice what it says.

In Genesis 7, verse 19, it says that all the mountains were covered with water

Genesis 7:19

by as much as 15 cubits.

A cubic is a foot and a half.

So all mountains were covered with at least 22 feet of water.

Verse 20 tells us about that depth.

It continues to tell us that every living land animal and human died

and was blotted out except that that was on the ark.

Further evidence is that it was worldwide,

is found in the size of the ark.

Think about this for a minute.

Why do you save all the animals and their species

if they could have escaped because the flood was not worldwide?

But Genesis chapter 6, verse 1,

Genesis 6:1

gives us indication that the whole earth was populated.

And Genesis 7, verse 21 tells us

Genesis 7:21

that nobody was left except those on the ark when it was done.

Genesis chapter 8, verse 15 tells us

Genesis 8:15

that God promises not to destroy all living things with the flood again.

Listen, my friend.

God would not have needed to promise

to not destroy all living things in a flood again

unless he had destroyed all living things in a flood previously.

Actually, the global extent of the flood

is referred to 30 times in Genesis chapter 6

Genesis 6 · chapter mention

through Genesis chapter 9.

Genesis 9 · chapter mention

I'm telling you, my friend, it was global.

Second question sometimes people ask me is,

was the ark real?

I mean, really?

Did he really build that boat?

I know there's one in Kentucky,

but I mean, did Noah really build that boat, you know?

Well, Scripture tells us that it stopped on the mountains of Ararat.

That's in Genesis 8, verse 4.

Genesis 8:4

There have been many sightings on that mountain

or in the surrounding area of what looked like an ark,

none of which have been proven true or false.

Josephus, which was a historian contemporary

with the New Testament, first century,

Josephus wrote that a generation after the life of Christ

that Arminians would often get small pieces of the ark

to wear as an amulet around their neck.

Several other historians of that time spoke of the same thing.

There was a monastery that was built.

It's been destroyed by an earthquake since,

but it was built to mark the spot where the ark rested

and to preserve the relics there.

And there are ancient inscriptions there

of eight crosses into stones there.

Now, listen, eight people were on that ark.

Noah, his wife, his sons, and their wives.

For those who are slow at math, Noah.

An Arminian and his father searched the area in 1856

to disprove the ark.

They became enraged when they found evidence there.

They tried to destroy it, but it was too big,

and it was petrified.

And his dying confession of his find

was recorded in 1918 in an English newspaper.

In 1876, a distinguished British author

found a four-foot-long piece of hand-tooled timber

while climbing at 13,000 feet.

Ararat is 16,800 feet tall.

In 1883, after an earthquake

that caused huge quantities of rock and ice

to be dislodged from the mountain,

the British paper, Prophetic Messenger,

carried the following story.

It said,

We have received from our correspondent

of the return of the commissioners

appointed by the Turkish government

to inquire into the reported destruction

of three cities by avalanches.

The expedition was fortunate

in making a discovery

that cannot fail to be of interest

to the whole civilized world,

for among the vastness

of one of the glens of Mount Ararat,

glens of Mount Ararat,

there came upon a gigantic structure

of very dark wood

embedded at the foot of one of the glaciers

with one end protruding,

in which they believed to be none other

than the old ark in which Noah

and his family navigated the waters

of the deluge.

The place where discovery was made

is about a five-day's journey

from Trebizoran

in the Department of Van

in Armenia,

about four leagues

from the Persian frontier,

end of quote.

This report,

only a portion of which is cited here,

was picked up and commented

at that time by the New York Herald

and by the world

and by the Chicago Tribune.

In 1887,

an explorer discovered pieces of it.

He made three climbs up there,

presented his evidence

at Chicago's World Fair in 1893.

Belgian explorers got interested in it,

wanted to go see it,

but the Turkish government,

which is common in this situation,

would not allow them

to obtain permits

for further expeditions.

Six Turkish soldiers

claimed to have spotted it

in 1916.

In 1936,

an archaeologist found

hand-carved timber

on top of Ararat.

During World War II,

two American aviators

took pictures

of what they believed

to be the ark.

And an AP article

was recorded about the following

in 1948.

It said this.

It said,

The petrified remains

of an object

which peasants insist

resemble a ship

have been found

high on Mount Ararat,

biblical landing place

of Noah's Ark.

Apparently hidden for centuries,

it came to light

last summer

when unusually warm weather

melted away,

an ancient mantle

of ice and snow.

While various persons

from time to time

have reported objects

resembling a house

or ship

on the mountain,

Turks who have seen

this new find

professed for it to be

the only known object

which could actually

be taken

as the remains

of ship.

George Green

was a geologist

that took pictures

of an ark-like item

in 1953

and brought them back

to try to find funding

for an expedition.

He was unsuccessful

with that

and his pictures

perished with him

in a crash.

Listen to this.

Late last year,

Popular Mechanics

and the New York Post

spoke of that same area,

what is now called

the Dura-Pinor Formation.

And this formation is,

and I quote,

a 538-foot geographical feature

made of laminate

believed by some

to be petrified remains

of Noah's Ark.

Researchers now believe

they found evidence

of human activity

near the boat-shaped formation

in the mountains

from between 550,

excuse me,

5500 and 300 B.C.

This phenomenon

is surrounded by soil

that is filled

with marine materials

and seafood remains.

This formation

is not at all far

from the peak

of Mount Ararat.

My friend,

I know it's real

and I know where it landed,

not because of these reports,

though.

I know where it landed

because I trust

the Word of God.

I trust the Bible.

What about all those animals?

What about that?

Scripture says

there were two

of every kind of bird,

animal,

or ground creature.

There were seven pairs

of the clean ones.

It says,

according to their kind.

So,

what does it mean

by kind?

Does it speak

of the modern classification

of families,

of animals?

If that's the case,

that's about 700.

700 families of animals.

Or does it speak

of species?

If so,

there's so much debate

about how many species

there are.

One world-renowned

taxonomist

estimated slightly more

than a million species.

A million species

of animals,

however,

a vast majority

of them

didn't have to be

on a boat to survive.

The ocean holds

most of them.

It's been estimated

that there are

35 species

that were needed

to be on the boat.

With a pair

of each of those,

that makes

for 70,000 animals.

Now,

when you think animals,

you may be thinking

about giraffes

and elephants

and such as that.

But the reality is

the average size

of a land animal

is about the size

of a sheep.

And you can fit,

not that I want to,

but you can fit

240 sheep

in a double-decker

railroad car

comfortably.

They've asked the sheep

and they told them

they were comfortable.

You can fit

70,000

sheep-sized animals.

Remember,

that's the average

of all,

so that includes

elephants

and mice.

Wouldn't bother me

if God wouldn't

allow them to survive,

but anyway.

You can fit

70,000 sheep-sized animals

in about 300

of those rail cars.

The boat

as described

in Scripture

could fit

569

of those rail cars.

Yet it would only

require 300

to put 70,000

animals

which would take up

really about half

of the boat,

leaving the rest

for people,

food,

water,

storage,

any needed provisions.

Now,

is that the way

it all went down?

I don't know.

Creation science

tells us

that when Scripture

mentions kind,

that is speaking

of the family level

of modern taxonomy,

that would make

for only 16,000.

So,

not only should you

consider the floor

space,

though,

remember

that if you put

animals in cages,

you can stack cages.

And so,

you can put much more

than just floor space.

Now,

I'll just be honest

with you.

I don't know

about all those

specifications.

My point is this.

I know it could have

worked.

And those that have

studied it more

than me

and understand it

better than me

can tell you

more of that.

it would have

worked,

especially

with the sovereign,

guiding hand

of God

upon it

all the time.

And the reason

why I know

that it could

is because

I trust

the Word of God.

I trust the Bible.

One more question.

What about

the dinosaurs?

There are a lot

of opinions,

and the Bible

does not state it

clearly.

I remember

years ago,

there was a youth

group that went

to a camp

and I just went

up for one night.

I was their pastor

and I just went up

for one night

for worship.

I like to do that

when possible.

And the whole week

was about creation.

And that night,

they sang a song

called Behemoth,

which is mentioned

in Job chapter 40.

Job 40 · chapter mention

Behemoth was a dinosaur

and a dinosaur

was he.

And I was trying

to think of how

that song went,

but every time

I thought of it,

I thought Behemoth

was a dinosaur,

a dinosaur was he.

He climbed up

in the sycamore tree

to see what,

so it's,

so I got my songs

mixed up,

so I'm not going

to sing it for you,

but now science

tells us

that dinosaurs

were reptiles,

some kind of reptile-bird

combo kind of deal

is what I've heard,

but they are

egg-laying reptiles.

And reptiles

never stop growing.

They don't have

the growth inhibitors

in them

that humans have,

nor that most animals have.

Reptiles grow rapidly

early in their life,

and then their growth slows,

but they never stop growing.

Now,

why did these different

form of reptiles

named dinosaurs

grow so large

before the flood?

Because living things

lived much longer

before the flood.

Methuselah lived

969 years.

I don't believe

it's a different measurement

of the year.

I believe the man

lived in there

almost 1,000.

How big

does a reptile grow

if it lives

1,000 years?

Well,

about like a dinosaur.

Let me give you

an example.

So,

they tell me

that snakes

live

20 to 30 years,

okay?

I don't think

a snake

ought to live

two minutes

after you see it,

personally,

okay?

They live way too long.

Komodo dragons.

You know what

a Komodo dragon is?

It's a 40-year-old

dinosaur is what

I believe it is,

but anyway,

they lived to be

about 40 years old.

If you want to know

what one would look like

that would live

1,000 years,

you can look

at the dinosaur.

Therefore,

it appears

that Noah put

small ones on the ark.

When the flood came,

the larger ones died.

Why

do we not live

as long as people

did before the flood?

Well,

there's an interesting

passage of Scripture

that theologians

are split right

down the middle on.

I mean,

guys,

I trust

and I read a lot.

They're split

right down the middle

on this.

It's in Genesis

Genesis 6:3

chapter 6,

verse 3,

and it says this.

Then the Lord said,

my spirit,

this is before the flood,

my spirit shall not

abide in man forever

for his flesh.

His days will be

120 years.

Now,

theologians are split

on what that,

leave that passage

up for a moment.

They are split

on what that passage

means.

Some believe

that it means

that from the time

God told Noah

a flood was coming,

that he needed

to build a boat,

that he had

120 years

to do it.

Meaning that

his spirit

would not abide

in man forever

his flesh.

His days shall be

120.

He only got 120 years

later before the flood's come.

As well,

theologians look at it

and say that in reality

what he's saying is

that people's lives

are going to be limited

to 120 years.

They're not going to live

longer than that.

And if that's what it means,

and theologians are quite

split on that,

you can see that happen.

Lifespans drop rapidly

after the flood.

It's not immediate.

It's gradual.

But it is amazing to see.

Not right now,

but later.

Look at the genealogy

in Genesis chapter 5.

Genesis 5 · chapter mention

And then look at the genealogy

in Genesis chapter 11

Genesis 11 · chapter mention

at the end of chapter 11.

And you'll see folks

go from 900 and 600

and 500 years

down to 205 years.

By the time you get

to the end of Genesis,

Joseph only lived 110 years.

Moses lived 120 years.

We don't hear beyond that

beyond that fact.

And there's very few exceptions.

As a man who collected

Guinness Book of World Records

when I was a kid,

I know that the oldest person,

at least at that time,

30 years ago,

was 143 years old.

But nobody had a birth certificate

made of stone.

And nobody really knew

exactly how old they were.

So I believe, as some do,

that the reason why

people don't live as long

as they did before the flood

was because the atmosphere

changed after the flood.

When the, as Scripture says,

the windows of heaven

were poured out,

I believe we lost some kind

of atmospheric protection

of sorts.

The incubator of the earth

where it hadn't rained before,

but yet stayed watered.

That canopy of sorts

were torn away.

And the purity of that

was gone that previously

allowed people to live so long.

Therefore, the constant

growing reptile

would no longer live

1,000 years.

Its growth would be limited

to a much shorter lifespan.

How big would a lizard be

if it grew for 900 years?

Well, you can find their fossils

in the Natural History Museum

in New York City.

That explains dinosaurs,

at least to me.

I don't pretend to know

all the answers,

and I've already told you

that I am science-deprived.

But I know and trust

the one who does.

And I trust him

even with the matters

that are not directly addressed

in the Bible.

And do you know why?

Because the Bible tells me

that I can trust him.

Proverbs 3, 5, and 6 says,

Trust in the Lord

with all your heart

and do not lean

on your own understanding.

In all your ways,

acknowledge him

and he'll make your paths straight.

I don't know what questions

you have today

about the flood

or about life.

But I can promise you one thing.

You can trust the Lord Jesus.

You can rest in him.

I want to be clear.

We don't have to agree

on all this.

The details are not

all given to us.

Let me tell you

what we need to agree on

or what you need

to agree with me on.

And that is the authority

of the word of God.

2 Timothy 3, 16 and 17 says,

All scripture is breathed out

by God

and profitable for teaching

for abuse and correction

and for training in righteousness

that the man of God

may be complete,

equipped for every good work.

In other words,

we can trust his word.

And the cool thing is

he'll use his word

to work and move in us.

Hebrews chapter 4, 12 and 13 says,

Hebrews 4 · chapter mention

For the word of God

is living and active,

sharper than any two-edged sword,

piercing to the division

of soul and of spirit,

of joints and of marrow,

listen,

and discerning the thoughts

and intentions of the heart.

And no creature,

including you and I,

are hidden from his sight.

All are naked and exposed

to the eyes of him

to whom we must give account.

God sees us.

He knows us better

than we know ourselves.

And God uses the word of God

to show us

what the most important thing

we must do in life.

The Gospel of John,

somebody texted me yesterday

and said,

I want to begin

to read scripture daily.

Where should I start?

And I said,

start in the Gospel of John.

It's good stuff.

I love to watch

how Jesus worked and moved

and how he interacted

with folks.

And John gives you

the theology behind

why he did what he did.

It's good stuff.

John wrote that account,

the Gospel of John.

And when he got toward the end,

he said this in John chapter 20,

John 20:30

verse 30 and 31.

Now Jesus did many other signs

in the presence of the disciples,

which are not written in this book,

but these are written

so that you may believe

that Jesus is the Christ,

the Son of God,

and that by believing,

you may have life in his name.

I don't know what questions

you have this morning.

Whether it's about the flood,

or it's about life,

or it's about life,

but I can tell you

who has the answers,

and I can tell you

who you can trust in,

and I can tell you

who knows you better

than yourself,

and I can tell you

who gives you

the Word of God

so that you may believe

in the Son of God

and that by believing in him,

you may have life

in Jesus' name.

I have no hope

greater for you today

than you know

the Lord Jesus personally

in your life.

And if there's never been a time

when you've confessed

your sins to God

and asked him

to forgive you of your sins

and to come into your life

and to cleanse you,

I want you to know

Jesus Christ will save you today

if you'll surrender

your life to him,

if you'll trust him

as your Lord and Savior,

if you'll say,

God, I know I'm a sinner.

I know I desperately need

the salvation

that's going to only

come from God.

He'll wash away your sins.

He'll remove them,

and Peter talks about

the flood being like

a baptism.

It cleanses,

and I thank God

the blood of Christ

cleanses us

when we surrender

our lives to follow him.

Not only will he remove

your past spiritually

from your life,

but beyond that,

he'll empower you

with the Holy Spirit of God

to live your life

abundantly for him.

If you've never given

your heart and life

to the Lord,

you come today,

I'd love to guide you in that.

Maybe you're here this morning

and you have done that,

but you've never acknowledged

that publicly

through baptism.

You've never told

anybody about it,

and Jesus tells us

by his example

and by his commission

that we're to follow that up

with baptism.

We'd love to guide you

in that process.

Maybe God's drawing you

to this church.

You want to be a part

of a church

that believes the word of God,

that rests in the word of God,

where you can invest your life

and they can invest in you.

If God's leading you

in that way,

you come.

Probably beyond that,

I know there's people in here

who have questions

in your life.

It may not be at all

about the flood.

It may not be about

some particular passage.

It's just stuff in life.

Struggle with the questions

that you have.

I want you to know today

God knows more

about your questions

and he knows the answers

beyond anything

that you can imagine.

And you can trust him.

You can rest in him.

And so I encourage you

this morning

to lay that down

before the Lord.

You need a pastor

to pray with you,

I'll be happy

to pray with you.

You need to come to this altar

and lay it down

before the Lord.

Lay your questions

down before the Lord.

He can handle it.

I promise you.

He'll work and move

in your life.

You can do that

right where you sit as well.

I just want you

to be obedient

to what God tells you to do.

I'll never ask you

to do more than that.

And I hope you're

never satisfied

with less than that.

Just do what God

tells you to do.

Let's pray together.

Lord Jesus,

I love you and thank you

for your love for us.

God,

will you guide us right now

to simply be obedient

as you speak to our hearts

and lives, Father.

In Jesus' precious name,

amen.

Stand together if you will.

We're going to sing.

More importantly,

you obey God

as he speaks to your heart

and life.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.