E-pistle for March 13, 2009
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E-pistle
Dr. Dan Hite, President FreeWay Foundation March 13, 2009
Forty Days and Forty Nights
(Genesis 7:1-24)
Dr. Curt Scarborough
I. Concentration: on the Lord's words to Noah
1. "Come into the ark, you and all your household, because I have
seen that you are righteous before Me in this generation," v. 1.
2. "You shall take with you seven each of every clean animal . . .
also seven each of the birds of the air," vv. 2-3.
3. "Two each of animals that are unclean (inedible)," v. 2.
4. "I will cause it to rain on the earth 40 days and 40 nights, and I
will destroy from the face of the earth all living things that I have
made," v. 4. (The flood was a world-wide event; Jesus said so in
Matthew 24:37-39 and Luke 17:27.)
II. Meditation: on these meaningful words from the Lord
1. God provides an ark of safety for His people who, through obedient
faith, have received His righteousness, II Corinthians 5:21.
2. God provides His people with all the material possessions they need
to use in making an offering when they come to worship Him,
Genesis 8:20-21.
3. God cares about all of the creatures He has made, and His plan includes
the preservation of each species, v. 3.
4. God always sends judgment upon sinners, Numbers 32:23; Galatians 6:7.
III. Revelation: on the truths and implications of the flood
1. Noah obeyed God, gathered the animals, and entered the safety of the ark
with his wife, his three sons, and their wives, vv. 7, 13; II Peter 3:20.
2. God, Himself, shut the door of the ark v. 16 . . . sealing in all the occupants
to preserve them from the flood waters, and sealing out all those who
rejected Noah's righteous preaching, II Peter 2:5.
3. God demonstrated His justice and His omnipotent power . . . "the fountains
of the great deep (oceans) were broken up, and the windows (sluice-gates)
of heaven were opened . . . with all the high hills (mountains) under the
whole heaven were covered," vv. 11, 17-20.
4. God eliminated all ungodly persons through the world-wide flood, and He
gave mankind a second chance in a new environment, vv. 21-24.
IV. Applications: as a Christian, I need to . . .
1. Trust completely in the mercy and grace of the Lord, and influence my
family to do likewise, Joshua 24:15.
2. Rest in the blessed assurance that God will preserve my soul through the
"floods" of my life, Isaiah 59:19.
3. Warn lost persons that God's final judgment is coming, II Corinthians 5:10-11.
4. Know that the Lord is preparing a perfect place (heaven) for His "saved"
people, John 14:2-3; Revelation 21:4.
Three Doves and a Raven
(Genesis 8:1-22)
Dr. Curt Scarborough
I. Concentration: on the rising and falling of the flood waters
1. God saw and remembered Noah and every living thing in the ark, v. 1.
2. God made a wind pass over the earth and the waters subsided, v. 1.
3. The foundations of the deep and the windows of heaven were stopped, v. 2.
4. The entire flood episode lasted for more than a year, Genesis 7:11; 8:14.
II. Meditation: on the chronology of these events
1. Noah was 500 years old when God told him to build the ark, Genesis 5:32;
he spent 100 years building it and preaching, Genesis 6:6; II Peter 2:5.
2. When Noah was 600 years old, in the second month on the 17th day, the
flood began, Genesis 7:11.
3. The flood lasted 150 days at its peak (second month, 17th day until seventh
month 17th day) including the 40 days of rain, before the ark came to rest
on Mt. Ararat, Genesis 8:5.
4. Another 75 days passed before the tops of other mountains became visible
(tenth month, 1st day), Genesis 8:5.
5. Forty days later (eleventh month, 10th day), Noah sent out a raven and a
dove, Genesis 8:6.
6. One week later (eleventh month, 17th day), Noah sent out a dove which
returned with an olive leaf, Genesis 8:10.
7. In another seven days (eleventh month, 24th day), Noah sent out another
dove which did not return, Genesis 8:12 . . . another 40 days passed.
8. In Noah's 601st year, on the 1st day of the first month, the land had become
completely dry, and Noah opened the ark, Genesis 8:13.
9. On the second month, 27th day, Noah and his family exited from the ark
and offered a sacrifice in worship to God, Genesis 8:14.
10. The Lord received Noah's worship and promised that He would not ever
destroy the inhabitants of earth by water again, Genesis 8:21-22.
III. Revelation and Application: from this account of the flood
1. In His mercy and patience, God gives mankind abundant time to repent of
his sins, (He is long-suffering) Psalm 86:15; I Peter 3:20; II Peter 3:9, 15;
and God has a definite timetable for His purposes to be worked out in us
as we fulfill His destiny, Psalm 139:16.
2. The flood waters covered the earth when God opened the windows of
heaven; so also God will open the windows of heaven to flood His
obedient people with overwhelming blessings, Malachi 3:10.
3. God uses unlikely sources to reveal His will to us: the raven and the three
doves brought Noah progress reports on the receding flood waters.
4. Noah worshipped the Lord for His deliverance; today we Christians should
worship and thank Jesus for His great salvation, Titus 2:11-14.
The Fence
From "Good Stuff"
by – Ken Dooley
There was a little boy with a bad temper. His father gave him a bag of nails and
told him to hammer a nail in the back fence every time he lost control.
The first day the boy drove 37 nails into the fence. Then it gradually dwindled
down. He discovered it was easier to hold his temper than to drive those nails into
the fence.
Finally the day came when the boy didn't lose his temper at all. His father
suggested that the boy now pull out one nail for each day that he was able to hold
his temper.
The days passed and the young boy was finally able to tell his father that all
the nails were gone. The father led his son to the fence.
"You have done well, but look at the holes in the fence," he said. "When you
say things in anger, they leave a scar just like the nail holes. You can put a knife into
a person and person and draw it out. It won't matter how many times you say 'I'm
sorry,' the wound is still there. A verbal wound is as bad as a physical one."
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