A Construction Site Like No Other

So let's begin our worship now this evening. We're singing firstly in Psalm 98, Psalm number 98, that's on page 129.

Sorry, I think it's actually 98. What has the presenter got?

98.

98, okay.

Psalm 98, verses 1 to 4, page 129.

Psalms 98:1–4

Oh, sing a new song to the Lord for wonders he has done. His right hand and his holy arm the victory have won.

The Lord declared his saving work and made it to be known. To all the nations of the world his righteousness is shown.

Psalm 98, these verses marked 1 to 4 to God's praise.

Oh, sing a new song to the Lord for wonders he has done. His right hand and his holy arm the victory have won.

The Lord declared his saving work and made it to be known.

To all the nations of the world his righteousness is shown.

His right hand and his holy arm the victory have won.

The Lord has won.

The Lord has won.

The Lord has won.

The Lord has won.

The Lord za'ud.

Can you praise you?

The Lord has won.

The Lord has won.

His name and Jeкуins superboy and I know.

こちら of holy 점 or his holy name.

Until the Lord has been given.

The Lord has won.

His name and Jeu smolonaise on the holy 신.

There if God never has won.

The nations of the earth have seen what God has done.

Our God, your great deliverance, I wish my hand alone.

Acclaim the Lord, O all the earth, shout thou thee and rejoice.

Make new sin and be true, and to him lift up your voice.

Let's now call upon the Lord in prayer.

Let's join together in prayer.

Our gracious and eternal God, once again as we gather here in your presence, we ask that

you would draw near to us as we seek to draw near to you.

We give thanks, O Lord, for these words that we have sung, that set out how you have revealed

yourself to us as human beings and how the indications are throughout the world that

God lives.

And we thank you that that is especially the case through the testimony of your people.

We pray, O Lord, that we ourselves may continue to have that concern to make you known, and

to make you known to those around us who do not themselves seek after you.

We thank you tonight that we are able to worship you in a gathered congregation of your people.

And we give thanks for the many ways in which you have promised to regard the gatherings of

your people in such a way as would bless them and take delight in them.

And we do ask, O Lord, tonight that we may know this for ourselves.

Help us as we turn to your word to read it and to hear of its teaching.

And enable us, we pray, by your Holy Spirit to lay these things to heart.

Forbid that we should be so familiar with your word and yet not have it direct our path in this

world.

And, Lord, we ask that you would continue to bless us as a congregation as we look forward

in anticipation to these days to come.

We have already, Lord, heard of the activities that we hope to take part in and to have as part

of the congregation's outreach and witness.

And we do pray for your blessing in regard to all of these things.

We give thanks for the opportunity to do this.

And we pray that, Lord, that you would bring people to involve themselves and to offer themselves

as helpers in these various activities.

And we ask that those that we have contact with will actually come, Lord, to know of your love,

of your grace in the Lord Jesus Christ, and of the way in which in the gospel you bring

so many truths to bear upon us in our present lives.

We ask that you would continue, Lord, to bless the Smiths as they settle into their new location.

And as we anticipate Callum's induction, Lord, we pray that you would provide for this for us

and enable him, we pray, to settle into his ministry here in our midst.

We pray that you would bless the presbytery as once again we have an induction within the

bounds of the presbytery.

And we thank you for all that has come together, O Lord, to make this such a rich and exciting

anticipation on our part.

We pray that his ministry here will be greatly owned and blessed of the Holy Spirit.

We ask, O Lord, that you would graciously endow him with all that is necessary for him

to be our assistant.

And we ask at this time that his family too, wife and children, will be blessed as they settle

into a new environment, as the children adjust to a new school.

We ask, O Lord, that all of that will be smooth for them and that you would be pleased to grant

them your grace to that end.

We pray, too, for what we anticipate doing in the summer months.

We ask that you would bless our testimony as we seek to have buildings opened and explanations

given as to certain aspects of the testimony of our church.

And we pray that you would bless the provision that we make for breakfast for those, Lord,

who are unable to find a breakfast elsewhere on that morning.

We ask that you are our witness to them and all that we give out by way of leaflets or word

of mouth testimony will be blessed.

And we come to you, Lord, and ask that you would continue to prepare the way for us.

Remember the anticipated holiday club as well.

We ask that you would bless Fiona as she continues to arrange, along with those who help her, make

arrangements for that.

We pray for the children who have already indicated their intention to come.

And we ask, O Lord, that that will be blessed and that you'd be pleased to grant us a sign

of your own favor and comfort in regard to all of these matters.

We pray, O Lord, for those who tonight can't be with us, those of our number who are ill at this time,

especially those who are seriously ill.

We pray that you'd bless them, whether they be at home or in hospital.

And we ask, O Lord, that you would reach out to them, minister to them by your own spirit and

give them the comfort and the preparation they need.

And help them, Lord, we pray, as they look forward to better times.

We pray that you would grant blessing to them.

And to that end, we pray for those who mourn the passing of loved ones and have had mourning

in their experience, sometimes for many years.

And, Lord, we know that sometimes that pain, even if it be lessened, it is still very much with

those who grieve.

And we do commend them to you tonight.

And do ask, O Lord, that you would comfort them, that your Holy Spirit will comfort them.

You are the comforter, the one who draws alongside your people and who brings your own

great gift of grace to them.

And we ask that you would be pleased, Lord, to give calm and quiet hearts.

To those who are hurting at this time.

Bless, too, those who are struggling with their faith due to events in their own lives or

what they see in the world.

Gracious Lord, we commit them to you and ask that you would draw near to them, to draw them

to yourself.

We pray for those who have turned their back upon the church and ask that you would bless

them, O Lord, and bring them back again to the fellowship of your people, not only in

this congregation, but other congregations, too.

We realize, O Lord, that the past two years have had a devastating effect on many people.

And we pray that those who have been affected, especially spiritually or in their mental health,

will know your blessing at this time.

And reach out to them, we pray, also.

And minister grace to their hearts.

Remember us now, Lord, as we remain here in your presence.

And as we look into your word, once again, we pray that your Holy Spirit will take the

things of Christ and show them to us.

And in all of these things, Lord, accept our praise.

We have so much to give thanks for.

So many things that we receive from you by way of gifts of your grace from day to day.

Help us not to be neglectful, Lord, to give thanks even for the things that we have in

common that we take sometimes, Lord, for granted.

And we ask that you would continue to make us thankful and dependable upon yourself for

our daily lives.

So receive us now, we pray, and pardon our many sins.

For Jesus' sake.

Amen.

Once again, we're going to praise God.

This time we're praising God from Psalm 90.

Psalm 90, that's on the Scottish Psalter version, page 350.

We're singing from verse 11 as far as verse 14.

This psalm is a prayer of Moses.

That's in the book of Psalms.

That's the title that's given to it, a prayer of Moses, the man of God.

And throughout this prayer of Moses, he has been dealing with his thoughts.

He has been upon how short his own and human life is in comparison to God and how uncertain

life can be.

And yet he comes to pray here in these verses that God would be merciful and gracious to

us.

So verse 11.

Who knows the power of thy wrath?

According to thy fear, so is thy wrath.

Lord, teach thou us our end and mine to bear.

And so to count our days, that we our hearts may still apply, to learn thy wisdom and thy truth,

that we may live thereby.

Turn yet again to us, O Lord.

How long thus shall it be?

Let it repent thee now for those that servants are to thee.

O with thy tender mercies, Lord, us early satisfy.

So we rejoice shall all our days and still be glad in thee.

And may we think of our situation, not only in terms of our church needs and our personal

needs, also our national needs, as we realize how much in our ways we have departed from the

ways of the Lord and how we can appeal to him in prayer, even as we sing these words of

the psalm.

Turn yet again to us, O Lord.

How long thus shall it be?

So these verses 11 to 14, to God's praise.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Let it repent thee now for those last sermons are to thee.

O with thy tenderness, Jesus, Lord, how sternly satisfied.

So we rejoice, shall all our days, and still be had in thee.

Let's turn to read God's Word as we find that tonight in the book of Genesis.

The book of Genesis and chapter 6.

We're going to read from verse 9 of chapter 6 through to verse 5 of chapter 7.

So Genesis chapter 6, beginning at verse 5.

Genesis 6 · chapter mention

These are the generations of Noah.

Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his generation.

Noah walked with God, and Noah had three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

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

And 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, and furnish it to a cubit above, and set the door of the ark in its side.

Make it with lower, second, and third decks.

For behold, I will bring a flood of waters upon the earth,

to destroy all fresh in which 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 and your sons, your wife, and your sons' wives 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.

Of every creeping thing of the ground, according to its kind, two of every sort,

shall come into you to keep them alive.

Also take with you every sort of food that is eaten and stored up.

It shall serve as food for you and for them.

Noah did this.

He did all that God commanded him.

Then the Lord said to Noah,

Go into the ark, you and all your household,

for I have seen that you are righteous before me in this generation.

Take with you seven pairs of all clean animals, the male and his mate,

and a pair of animals that are not clean, the male and his mate,

and seven pairs of the birds of the heavens also,

male and female, to keep their offspring alive on the face of all the earth.

For in seven days I will send rain on the earth,

for forty days and forty nights,

and every living thing that I have made,

I will blot out from the face of the ground.

And Noah did all that the Lord had commanded him.

And so on may God come with His blessing to follow a reading of His Word.

We'll sing once again, this time in Psalm 11 on page 13.

And we're singing verses 3 to 7.

A psalm that, as you know, deals with the judgment of God

and the solemnities of God's judgment

and how the righteous will nevertheless find a place in His presence.

So Psalm 11 from verse 3,

If the foundations are destroyed and all around there is decay,

whatever can the righteous do surrounded by such disarray?

The Lord is in His holy place,

the Lord is on His heavenly throne,

His eyes observe the human race,

and in His sight each one is known.

And so on to the end of the Psalm from verse 4,

from verse 3,

if the foundations are destroyed.

If the foundations are destroyed,

and all around there is decay,

whatever come the righteous do,

surround it by such disarray.

The Lord is in His holy place,

the Lord is on His heavenly throne,

His eyes observe the human race,

and in His sight each one is known.

The Lord examines all the just,

the righteous ones in cruisant taste,

that all those who love wickedness

and violence is so detest.

Upon the wicked He will reign,

His highly gold and sulfur hot,

a scorching wind will beat on them,

such punishment will be their loss.

For God the Lord is righteous still,

In righteousness He takes delight,

and they alone will see His face,

through our in heart and life of Christ.

Please join with me to the New Testament,

to the letter to the Hebrews,

and chapter 11.

Hebrews chapter 11,

Hebrews 11 · chapter mention

and tonight we're looking especially at verse 7,

which relates to the passage we read in Genesis.

Hebrews 11 at verse 7,

By faith Noah, being warned by God

concerning events as yet unseen,

in reverent fear,

constructed an ark

for the saving of his household.

By this he condemned the world

and became an heir

of the righteousness that comes by faith.

Well, for very good reason,

the major shipyards of the world

have always been set near to the sea

or else on the banks of a great river,

such as the River Clyde

in our own country,

which was famous at one time

for its shipbuilding

and the quality of its shipbuilding.

That's because, of course,

when a ship needs to be launched,

it requires a great deal of water

to be nearby

into which it can be launched.

But just imagine

what you would think or say

if you saw somebody

beginning to build

a large ship

out beside the hill

Moornack,

miles and miles

away from the shore

and out in the middle

of the moorland.

And imagine the media reports.

If somebody went to start

that kind of project,

you can imagine the media

taking an interest

and going to actually interview

the man who had started

what looked like

this silly project,

building a huge ship

so far from the sea.

And imagine how the media

would report that,

especially during the interview

if they asked him,

why are you doing this?

And he replied,

well, because God told me.

Just imagine what the headlines

would actually then be.

But that's what it was like

for Noah.

God told him to build

this massive ark

out of wood

that would contain

himself and his family

and all the animals

that God had commanded

him to take into the ark

to keep alive

during the flood

that God was going to bring

on the earth.

Just like the man

out at Moornack,

Noah would have been regarded

by many of his generation

as something of a crank,

something,

someone who was just

involved in doing

a work that was just bizarre.

Why would he do such a thing?

What was behind such a project?

How could he possibly

really be serious

in what he was doing?

And this is, of course,

one of the things

the Bible tells us

about Noah,

that it was by faith

that he actually built

this ark.

By faith,

Noah being warned

by God concerning events

as yet unseen

in reverent fear

constructed an ark

for the saving

of his household.

So let's ask the question,

first of all,

what induced Noah

to build this ark?

And then the second question

is what was the outcome

of his building

of the ark?

And we're told that

in the next part of the verse,

by this he condemned

the world

and became an heir

of the righteousness

that comes by faith.

So it's a two-fold outcome

because side by side

you've got salvation

for himself

and for his family

and you've also got

destruction

for the rest of life

on earth.

What induced Noah

to build the ark?

What was he thinking?

Can we get access

to his thoughts?

Can we get access

to his mind?

Yes, we can

because the Bible

actually tells us

how it was

that he came to do this.

And we're told here

in this verse

that it was first of all

because he was warned

by God

that he actually set

about doing

this great project.

He was warned

by God.

He had a warning

from God.

It wasn't just

a mere statement

from God.

We're told here

that was actually

a warning.

You might say

it was something like

what you find

ahead of tsunamis

nowadays.

The tsunami,

of course,

being massively destructive

most of the time

as we've seen,

sadly,

even during the course

of our own lifetime.

We've seen tsunamis

in places of the world

and some places

that have caused

massive loss of life

and destruction.

And there's nowadays

a warning given

in these places

that are prone

to tsunamis.

There's an alarm

throughout the cities

or towns

of an approaching tsunami.

So,

this was really

for Noah

equivalent

to advance warning

of this disaster

that was coming

on the world.

God actually

sent him a warning.

God told him

what was going

to take place

and God instructed him

how he was

to make preparation

for this solemn event.

That's what induced him

to build this ark.

And it wasn't just

a warning of any kind,

it was a warning

from God himself.

By faith,

Noah,

being warned by God,

built this ark.

He took it

at face value.

He didn't say

about it

that it was something

that he didn't really

need to be serious about

or treat seriously.

As far as he was concerned,

it was from God himself.

Not only did he have it

for his own benefit,

but we're told

in 2 Peter

about Noah

being a preacher

of righteousness.

2 Peter 2,

2 Peter 2:5

verse 5,

that's how

he is described

as a preacher there

of righteousness.

And as he lived

in his generation,

his preaching

of righteousness

would, of course,

take account

of the fact

that God

had actually foretold him

of this coming flood

that was going

to destroy life

on earth.

And so his preaching

of righteousness

would have been preaching

in relation to

that great disaster

that was coming,

imploring and appealing

to his contemporaries

to make preparation

for this

and to treat God's warning

with the utmost seriousness.

He believed it,

he preached it,

and that's what

we also have

because in 2 Peter,

it's interesting how

in 2 Peter,

we didn't read that,

we read the account

of Genesis,

of course,

but in 2 Peter,

2 Peter 3:3–7

chapter 3,

verses 3 to 7,

you have something

that really applies

these times of Noah,

this warning

that Noah was given

because he says

that I'm writing

this to you,

beloved,

stirring up your sincere

mind by way

of reminder

that you should

remember the predictions

of the holy prophets

and the commandments

of the Lord and Savior

through your apostles,

knowing this,

first of all,

that scoffers will come

in the last days

with scoffing,

following their own

sinful desires.

They will say,

where is the promise

of his coming?

For ever since

the fathers fell asleep,

all things are continuing

as they were

from the beginning

of creation.

And then he says this,

for they deliberately

overlook this fact

that the heavens

existed long ago

and the earth

was formed out of water

and through water

by the word of God,

and that by means

of these,

the world that then was

was deluged with water

and perished.

By the same word,

the word of God,

the heavens and earth

are now in existence,

stored up,

being kept

until the day of judgment

and the destruction

of the ungodly.

You see the parallel

that Peter is drawing

between what happened

in the days of Noah

and the warning that came

in the days of Noah

and what's now given to us

through the gospel.

This is our tsunami alert.

This is God

through the gospel saying,

as surely as it happened

in the days of Noah,

so it's going to happen

at the end of the world.

This is actually

what lies await

in the history

of mankind.

And we have

the application

of that also

in 2 Peter

because he doesn't

leave it at just

saying that

this is what is going

to happen

in chapter 3 again

and verses 11

and 14 and 15.

He then draws

the lessons

for that for us.

This is what he's saying,

since all these things

are thus to be dissolved,

what sort of people

ought you to be

in lives of holiness

and godliness,

waiting for

and hastening

the coming

of the day of God

because of which

the elements,

the heavens,

will be set on fire

and dissolved

and the heavenly bodies

will melt

as they burn.

But we,

according to his promise,

are waiting

for new heavens

and a new earth

in which righteousness

dwells.

And then he went on

to apply it further,

therefore, beloved,

since you are waiting

for these,

be diligent

to be found by him

without spot

or blemish

and at peace

and count

the patience

of the Lord.

In other words,

the way in which God

has not yet come

in his judgment

is due to the patience

of the Lord

and he says,

count

or account

the patience

of the Lord

as salvation

as our beloved

brother Paul

also wrote

to you.

What is Peter

saying there?

He's saying,

if you actually

dismiss what happened

in the days of Noah

as just myth

or just imagination

or something

that was fine

for previous generations

who didn't really

understand the world

as we know it,

then you're really

committing

a very,

very serious error

because he's saying

there's a parallel

between what happened

in the days

of Noah

and what's going

to happen

at the end

of this world.

The judgment

of God

will bring

the destruction

that's parallel

to what happened

in the days

of Noah.

We have

a tsunami warning.

The gospel

is saying to us

there is

a disaster

coming.

There is

an end coming

to the creation

as we know it.

And tonight

that warning,

that alarm

is being sounded

in the preaching

of the gospel,

in the reading

of our Bibles.

But you see,

it's not just

that he received

a warning from God,

it was actually

a warning

concerning events

yet unseen.

You see,

when a tsunami

alarm goes off,

those that are actually

in that vicinity

can't really see

anything different

to what they saw

the previous day

or the previous

few hours.

Because the tsunami

warning is based

on those who are

monitoring these

situations,

very often from

a distance,

and it may still

be very far

out at sea,

and you can't see

it with the naked

eye.

When the alarm

goes off,

you look around

you and say,

well,

what's changed?

Things are just

going on as they

were.

And this is what

the Bible is

actually telling us

about the judgment

of God as well,

building on what

happened in the

days of Noah

and Noah's

experience by faith,

being warned by

God concerning

events as yet

unseen.

Everything seems

normal.

There isn't any

sign of any

coming judgment.

But the people

of God know

that the Bible

doesn't lie,

that God

doesn't lie,

and that Bible

tonight is

our alarm.

And however much

people may not

believe that it's

coming,

that's not going

to stop it.

Not believing

the Word of God

is not going

to change

God's intentions.

It's not going

to alter

God's purpose.

And all the time

that the world

continues,

this final disaster

is gathering

pace.

Every day that

goes by

is a day nearer.

We don't know

how long it will

be.

The Bible doesn't

tell us when

the day of judgment

will come.

It doesn't tell us

how many years

we have to go

in the history

of the world

before the Lord

comes back,

before this great

disaster comes,

when the earth

and all that's in it

will be dissolved

and will disappear

and will come under

the fire of God's

judgment to be

replaced by a new

heavens and a new

earth in which

righteousness dwells.

But the Bible

is our alarm call.

It's gathering

pace meantime,

and it will burst

upon the world

as Jesus Himself

preached in His day.

with regard to

the coming

judgment of God.

So you have

the advantage

tonight,

and I have the

advantage of a

Bible.

You have the

advantage of

belonging to a

church that

believes the

Bible.

You have the

advantage of the

gospel being

preached,

where the Bible's

teaching is set out

for us as best we

can,

and seeking that

God will apply it

to our own hearts

and to yours as

well.

That Bible is

telling me tonight

what kind of person

you ought to be

knowing that this

is actually coming.

Know that you're

going to actually

face God in His

judgment whenever

it will come.

So it was

induced by having

received a warning

from God,

and it was about

things not yet

seen.

That's how it is

exactly for

ourselves tonight.

We can't see

the judgment.

Still, as far as

we're concerned,

far off.

But what God is

saying is,

it's real,

and it will

come in my

time.

And meantime,

I've left you

a window of

opportunity,

a day of

grace.

I've left it in

my patience,

God is saying,

in my concern

that sinners

will be saved

and not

destroyed.

And that

brings us,

thirdly,

to see that

what induced

him was he

received a

warning,

and he

received a

warning from

God of

things yet

not seen,

but he

acted by

faith.

Now, of course,

this great

chapter is a

chapter that

lists all

those who

lived by

faith and

all those who

did things

by faith.

He saw and

believed God's

Word and

God's warning,

and he took

specific action

in regard to

that warning.

Now, we have

a Bible, as we

said, and

in faith,

the faith of

God's people,

the faith that

we exercise as

we trust in

God, as we

use His Word,

is a faith that

responds in

a certain way to

each of the

elements of

God's Word.

And the best

definition of

that is in

Westminster

Confession of

Faith, where

you find this

actually said,

by this faith,

a Christian

believes to be

true whatever

is revealed in

the Word.

Now, that's the

first thing.

A Christian

believes to be

true whatever

is revealed in

the Word, because

it's God's Word.

It goes on to

say, for the

authority of

God Himself

speaking therein.

And this faith

acts differently

upon that which

each particular

passage thereof

contains,

yielding obedience

to the commands,

trembling at the

threatenings,

and embracing

the promises

of God for

this life and

for that which

is to come.

And what is that

saying to us?

It's saying when

we believe in

God, when we

trust in God,

when our faith

is the faith the

Bible calls upon

us to exercise,

then, in relation

to the different

aspects of God's

Word, that faith

acts.

So that when that

faith comes to

the commands of

God, it gives

obedience.

When that faith

comes to be

confronted with

the threatenings

of God, such

as in the

warnings of the

final judgment,

well, that faith

trembles at the

threatenings.

It's not a

trembling, as we'll

see with Noah,

it's not a

trembling in

anticipation of

not being saved.

It's the

trembling of

realizing that

this Word is

real and that

God is real.

And when it

comes to the

promises of

God for this

life and for

that which is

to come,

the faith of

God's people

reacts specifically

by embracing

these promises.

And you can

ask yourself,

as I need to

ask myself,

as you read

your Bible,

how do you

find your

mind, your

soul reacting

to the

different elements

of God's

truth?

What is your

response as you

come across the

commands of

God?

What is your

response as you

meet with the

threatenings of

God, with the

solemn announcements

of God's

coming judgment?

What does that

do for you in

your heart?

And when you

come across the

promises of

God, the

promises that

are addressed to

us in terms of

God's own

saving grace,

how much do we

value and

appreciate and

live by, and

as the

confession put it,

embrace these

promises?

He was

induced by

having a

warning from

God of

events as

yet unseen.

He moved

by faith,

believing what

God had said

to him,

trusting in

the Word of

God.

But then you

notice this,

in reverent

fear, he

constructed an

ark.

This is a very

detailed verse,

and all these

elements in this

verse are

important.

It's not just

saying that Noah

believed the

Word of God.

It's not just

saying that he

believed what

God was

threatening to

bring and

would bring.

It's not just

saying to us

that he did

this by faith.

He did this

by a faith

which included,

as we said,

from the

confession of

faith,

trembling at

the threatenings

of God.

It calls it

here reverent

fear.

Now you know

yourselves that

the Word of

God in many

places talks

about the

fear of God.

You go to

the book of

Proverbs and

throughout the

book of Psalms

especially, you

find the fear

of God very

often mentioned.

The fear of

God is

something that

takes place in

our hearts, in

our lives, in

our minds, and

it is to do

with how we

respond to

what God has

revealed of

Himself.

And the fear

of God is

not to do

with being

terrified.

It's not a

slavish fear.

It's not a

fear that

cringes in

response to

what God has

revealed.

It's rather

fear in the

sense of

love,

awe,

respect,

respect for

what God

has revealed

and who

God is.

And if we

are marked

by the fear

of God,

obviously that

will include

godliness in

our character

and behavior,

but it will

also mean that

everything God

has revealed,

we give utter

respect to.

We live in

awe of this

God and His

greatness.

we take on

board all

that the

Bible tells

us about

His

attributes,

whether we

think of

His power,

His grace,

His love,

His mercy,

His judgment,

His anger,

whatever else.

The fear of

God is what

takes these

seriously and

respects God

for who He

is.

And that fear

of God,

in the book

of Proverbs,

there are a

number of

verses that

tell us

the fear

of God

is the

beginning

of wisdom.

Beginning there

means the

foundational element

of wisdom.

Remember in

Psalm 90

where we

sang these

words of

the prayer

of Moses,

the man of

God,

teach us

to number

our days

so that

we may

apply our

hearts

to wisdom.

There is

Moses himself

thinking of

the awesomeness

of God,

the majesty,

the greatness

of God,

something which

our world has

so much forgotten

or doesn't

want to know

about.

But there is

Moses,

through this

great song,

teaching his

own people

and praying

to God

to help

them to

number their

days.

In other

words,

to take

account of

the brevity

of life

as against

the longevity

and eternalness

of God

himself.

And taking

account of

the brevity

of life,

Moses is saying,

is really

to turn

your heart

to wisdom,

to be

wise unto

salvation,

to treat

the things

that God

has revealed

of himself

with the

utmost seriousness.

And when he

talks about

the coming

judgment,

that has

to have

its own

place

in the

elements

that we

believe

and respond

to.

And of

course,

there is so

much gain

mentioned

in the

likes of

Psalms

and in

the book

of Proverbs

as these

two books

mention this

fear of

God so

often,

the fear

of God

and the

knowledge

of God

doesn't just

make a person

wise and

is foundational

to their

wisdom,

it brings

many other

benefits too,

of course,

because it's

attached to

God's blessing.

The fear

of God

is the

respect,

the awe

with which

we respond

to God

and God

himself has

promised

that those

who live

like that

will experience

many blessings

from his

hand.

And then

the final

thing is

in this

part of

the verse

being warned

by God

concerning

events as

yet unseen

in reverent

fear,

he constructed

an ark

for the

saving

of his

household.

Now,

that's an

important

detail

because it

leaves us

without any

excuse if we

haven't acted

upon what

God is

actually saying

to us

or has

been showing

us in

his word.

If we

haven't

actually

turned out

hearts to

wisdom because

all the way

through this

list of

people who

live by

faith,

you will

always find

something that

they did

by faith,

something that

their faith

led them

to do.

The action

of faith

was to

actually bring

them to

do something

in relation

to what

God himself

required.

And as

far as

Noah was

concerned,

in the

case of

Noah,

he constructed

an ark.

In other

words,

faith is

always tied

and attached

to something

practical in

the Christian

life.

Faith is

itself a

believing and

a trusting in

God, but it

is never

detached from

the works that

God requires

of his people.

You find that

in James,

James chapter

James 2 · chapter mention

2 especially,

where you find

an emphasis on

faith attached

to certain

works that show

and demonstrate

faith itself

to be real

and that show

the people

of faith

to be the

kind of

people that

God himself

has brought

to know

himself.

So here is

he built

an ark,

he constructed

an ark.

Faith

always has

attendant

action or

consequent

action

wherever that

faith is.

And that's

true of every

Christian here.

Everybody here

tonight who

trusts in

God, that

faith by

which you

relate to

God and

which you

are united

to God,

that faith

in some way

or other is

put into

action in

your life.

None of us

is perfect.

There are

many things

we leave

undone that

we should

have done,

many things

we do

that we

shouldn't

have done.

We pray

God's

forgiveness

in regard

to the

imperfections

of our

lives.

And

nevertheless,

we acknowledge

the fact

and we

want to

follow through

on this,

that faith

is always

attached to

works.

There will

be something

practical in

your life

that you

do on a

regular basis

that shows

you're a

Christian,

even coming

to church,

being with

the Lord's

people in

worship,

reaching out

to people

in their

need,

praying for

people even

if they don't

see you

doing it.

But these

are the

actings of

faith,

the actings

by which

faith shows

itself to

be from

God and

attached to

the benefits

that God

brings to

you in

your life.

You remember

the account

we have in

Luke chapter

Luke 15 · chapter mention

15 of

the son,

the son

that's usually

called the

prodigal

son.

You remember

how the

detail of it

includes that

he left

home,

he wanted

everything that

was going to

fall to him

after his

father's death,

couldn't wait

for that,

so he wanted

that straight

away and he

took it all,

the father gave

it to him,

off he went

with it.

And of course

you know the

account you have

there very well,

he began then to

squander all that

he had taken from

home and then it

all too soon ran

out.

And so he joined

himself to a

citizen of that

far country and

he had the most

menial task of

looking after pigs,

feeding them,

he didn't have

anything by way

of sustenance,

so sometimes he was

forced to eat the

same food that pigs

were eating.

One day he was

there in his

abject poverty

and he said,

how many servants

of my father

have bread enough

and to spare

and here I am

perishing with

hunger.

I will arise,

I'll get up from

this place and I'll

go back to my

father.

But then you see,

you read,

and he arose

and he came to

his father.

It wasn't just

something that

happened in his

mind.

It wasn't just a

resolution on its

own that he never

acted out.

It wasn't something

that he came by way

of a conviction of

something he ought

to do.

It was something he

thought upon doing

and then immediately

he said about doing

it.

And that's the same

as God is saying to

you and to me

tonight.

Don't just think

about being a

Christian.

Don't just think

about being saved.

Don't just desire it

for yourself.

Good all the desire

is if you're not

here saved tonight,

if you're not in

Christ, if you haven't

yet accepted the

Savior as your

Savior, don't just

leave it at thinking

about it.

Because this passage

is saying to us,

this verse is saying

to us, that actually

Noah by faith

constructed an ark.

Have you constructed

your ark?

Have you taken all

the thoughts,

all the concerns,

that the Bible

has itself placed

in your heart,

all the desires

that you have there,

the kind of life

that God requires

of you?

Have you taken all

of that, believing

that this is God

speaking to you

through his word,

and actually taken

that and put it

into practice?

Have you accepted

Christ?

Have you received

the Christ that's

offered in the

gospel?

Have you closed

in with Jesus

as he offers to you

the safety in advance

of this coming

disaster of the

judgment?

These are the

questions, you see,

that come practically

to mind as I put

this to myself

and in preaching

it as I put it

to you.

Because that's

really the kind

of thing that we

ought to be thinking

even now.

Where am I in

relation to this?

What have I done

with the advantage

that I've got

in the gospel?

How long will God

have to wait for me

to respond positively

and believingly

and thankfully

and gratefully

for the Savior

that's offered to me

in the gospel?

You heard the

warning sign

many times.

It's still blaring

out in our ears.

Every time we come

to the Bible,

every time we come

to the gospel,

God has lovingly

and patiently

set this for us

in our lives

so that we could

hear this warning

and respond in time.

Will this be the

last time you

heard the warning?

Don't persuade

yourself that

because you heard

it many times

that you'll hear

it again tomorrow.

And many people

in this world

today will not

be in this world

tomorrow.

They may not even

be in this world

tonight

because their

life will end

and they will

enter eternity

and they will

need to face

God and give

an account to

God of what

they have done

with his life.

Don't waste it.

Don't delay

over these matters.

Be serious

about your

relationship

with God.

And just like

Noah,

when you hear

the tsunami

warning sign,

the alarm

has gone off

as you're

hearing it

again tonight.

In reverent

fear,

taking it

seriously,

close in

with Christ,

receive the

Savior,

as he's

offered in

the gospel

before,

for you or

for me,

it'll be too

late.

So that's

what induced

Noah to

build the ark.

And more

briefly,

what was the

outcome of

his building

the ark?

Well,

we're told,

by this he

condemned the

world and

became an heir

of the

righteousness

that comes

by faith.

The two

things are

related there.

He condemned

the world

and he first

of all goes

to the saving

of his

household and

then by it

he also

condemned the

world.

Well,

faith,

our faith

in Christ

always brings

salvation into

our possession.

Not because

God rewards

us for our

faith,

but because

this is God's

method.

He invites us

to come to

Christ,

invites us

to put our

trust in him,

invites us

to receive

that salvation

that's in

him and the

promise is

that we

will be

saved.

Believe in

the Lord

Jesus Christ.

The jailer

was told by

Paul,

and you