ADULT SEARCH THE SCRIPTURE LESSON 3
THE FLOOD AND IT’S AFTERMATH
MEMORY VERSE: And the LORD said, I Will destroy man
whom I have created fromthe face Of the earth; both man, and boast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of theair;
for it repenteth me that I have madethem. But Noah found grace in the eyes
ofthe LORD (Genesis 6:7,8)
TEXT: Genesis chapters 6 to 11
The fall Of man in Eden through disobedience resultedin total depravity and corruption which madeentire human race liable to God s wrath and judgment. Despite the punishment He brought upon individuals for their wrongdoing, man continued his descentwickedness and corruption. The universal WickednessOf man came to a point where God decided to destroy the earth because He saw that the Wickedness Of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination ofthe thoughts Of his heart was only evil continually (Genesis 6:5). However, He found Noah, the onlyrighteous person in his generation, with whom he entered into a covenant. And the LORD said untoNoah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I Seen righteous before me in thisgeneration" (Genesis 7: 1). Eventually, flood destroyed everything on earth, including all humans who did not respond to Noah’s invitation into the ark Of salvation and deliverance.After the flood, man had the opportunity for a newbeginning as the family of Noah began to repopulatethe earth. But sadly, man's sinful nature resurfacedand humanity failed God again. This time, rather thandestroy man, the Lord divided and dispersed them uponthe face of the earth. That was the beginning of nationsand different languages in the human race.
DECADENCE AND JUDGMENT OF THE UNGODLY (Genesis 6:1-22; 7;1-24; 18:20,21; 19:13,28,29;Numbers 16:1-5; 25-35; Job 11:20; 21:30; Psalm 9:17)
As humans began to reproduce and increase in theearth, the sin nature which Adam transmitted to all hisdescendants began to manifest through various degreesof wickedness till the Lord looked down and saw nothingbut sheer corruption (Genesis 6:5). He was disappointedand He decided to destroy all the wicked from the earth.A particular aspect of man's depravity that grieved Godwas his perversion of the marriage institution. Within ashort time, there was population explosion with mancrossing the divinely set boundaries in marriage. "...Thesons of God saw the daughters of men that they werefair; and they took them wives of all which theychose" (Genesis 6:2).The sons of God mentioned in the passage referredto the godly line of Seth, while the daughters of menwere the ungodly line of Cain. Their Intermarriageviolated the principle Of separation between the carnaland the spiritual; between the godly and the ungodly;and between light and darkness. The term -sons or God'is used forgodly men and angels in Scripture (Job 1:6 2:1; 38:7; Hosea 1:10; John 1:12; Romans 8:19;Philippians 2:15; 1 John 3:1,2). But in this context itdescribes men, not angels, because there is no genderdifference mentioned of angels in the Scripture, andJesus indicated that angels do not marry. He answeredthe Pharisees, "Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures,nor the power of God. For in the resurrection theyneither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are asangels of God in heaven (Matthew 22:29.30). The Lord said His Spirit would not continue to strivewith men. That means the wickedness of men hadreached a point where the Holy Spirit was so grievedthat He had to stop convicting the people, and judgment had become inevitable. Sinners and backslidersnot take the forbearance of God for granted. There is a point where a person crosses God's redline and mercy gives way to judgement. “And God said unto Noah, the end of all flesh is come before me, for the earth is filled with violencethrough them, and behold I will destroy them with the earth" (Genesis 6:13). But in the midst of this perversion, Noah found grace in the eyes of the LordLike Enoch, Noah was a righteous man who "walked with God" before the flood (Genesis 5:24; 6:9). Thelifes of these two men prove that the wave of corruptionblowing in these last days is not an excuse forungodliness or backsliding. No matter the prevalenceof corruption in the society, the believer can still bepreserved and kept pure. Noah heard from God andreceived instructions from Him, despite the noise anddin of evil around him. Contemporary believers can enjoy such close communion with God if only they separate from the world and devote their lives to Him. As the wickedness of man increased on earth, God’sjudgment became imminent. Before the destruction,Noah was instructed to make an ark for the salvation ofhis house and other animals. He moved with godly fearand obeyed by faith (Hebrews 11:7). Meanwhile hepreached and called the people to righteousness, butthey spurned the warning and refused to take heed (2 Peter 2:5). In due course, "In the six hundredth yearof Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenthday of the month, the same day were all the fountainsof the great deep broken up, and the Windows ofheaven were opened. And the rain was upon the earth forty days and forty nights" (Genesis 7: 1 1 , 12). The floodcame and the wicked were swept in its tidal waves todeath. It is very dangerous to Ignore the warnings Ofpreachers sent by God. Without further delay, sinnersshould come to Christ for salvation. In the present dispensation, the ark signifies our LordJesus Christ. Like Noah, believers must preach the gospel to every creature with zeal and earnestness. "He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned" (Mark 16: 16). It isworthy of note that Noah entered the ark with his wife,his sons and his sons' wives. God's promise of salvationis for us and our household (Acts 16:31). Believersshould emulate the examples of Abraham, Joshua, Rahab. Cornelius, Lydia, Philip the evangelist andCrispus. who ensured their household came to knowthe Lord (Genesis 18:19; Joshua 2:12, 13; Acts 10:24; 16: 15; 18:8; 21:9). Joshua said "...but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD" (Joshua 24:15).
DELIVERANCE AND BLESSING OF THE GODLY[Genesis 8:1-22; 9:1-29; Proverbs 10:2; Isaiah 26:20; 2 Peter 2:7)
"And God remembered Noah, and every living thing,and all the cattle that was with him in the ark: andGod made a wind to pass over the earth, and the watersasswaged" (Genesis 8:1). God delivered Noah fromperishing with the wicked. He knows how to deliver therighteous while the wicked are judged for their sins.Believers will not partake in the coming judgment uponthe world of sinners. They will be taken away in therapture before the wrath of God is poured on the earth. Noah and his family were preserved, so long as theyremained in the ark. Our continued security asChristians is for as long as we abide in the Lord JesusChrist. When the water assuaged, Noah checked up toknow if it was safe to come out, but he waited until theLord told him to "Go forth of the ark" (Genesis 8:16).In all situations, a believer must wait on God for guidance(Proverbs 3:6). After the deliverance from the flood, Noahbuilt an altar and sacrificed unto the Lord out of theclean beasts (Genesis 8:20).Furthermore, God made a fresh covenant with Noahand repeated the blessing which was pronounced uponAdam at the beginning. And God blessed Noah andhis sons, and said unto them, Be fruitful and multiply and replenish in theearth (Genesis 9:1). He promisenever to destroy the earth again with a universal floodand that the regular seasons of life would never fail. The rainbow Was set as a sign of the Noahaiccovenant and obedience to God remained the condition to enjoying these benefits. As God has pronounce fruitfulness, abundance and multiplication physically,so He expects every believer to be fruitful spiritually, Fruitlessness and stagnation are never His will. We are to multiply disciples and churches as we spreadlight of the gospel. The statement, "These are the three sons of Noahand of them was the whole earth overspread" (Genesis 9: 19) is very instructive. The survivors of the flood were only eight and they repopulated the earth becauseof them continued to reproduce. This is an indication that the law of multiplication does not require largenumbers. If believers adopt this model of reproducingthemselves, as a strategy for evangelism and churchplanting, there would beunprecedented growth inour churches. Invariably, it is not the small number of workers or members in our churches that keep us fromgrowing, it is the failure of each member to reproduce. After the flood, Noah engaged in profitable labour as a farmer. Though he enjoyed God's favour, he neededto work."And Noah to be an husbandman, andhe planted a vineyard (Genesis 9:20). Everyone shouldlearn to work instead of depending on charity from thechurch or other believers (2 Thessalonians 3: I O). Thereare people who have great physical challenges and Still overcame all odds to make a living for themselves ratherthan being burdensome to others. It is thereforeinexcusable for people who are healthy and strong to beg for daily needs or engage in theft of other people'sproperties.However, the privilege of a new beginning that Noahand his descendants enjoyed after the flood was soonmarred by sin. Noah became intoxicated with wine andexposed his nakedness. Then, his immodest behaviourbecame a cause for one of his sons to be disrespectfulto him. "And Ham, the father Of Canaan, saw thenakedness of his father, and told his two brethrenwithout" (Genesis 9:22). When Noah became sober andlearnt of what had happened, he placed a curse upon Canaan, the son of Ham. The fall of Noah serves as warning to believers whoconsider themselves 'veterans' in the faith. Noah hadwalked with God for centuries, resisting and overcomingthe temptation of a corrupt world. God Himself boretestimony that he was the only righteous man in hisgeneration. But sadly, he fell into drunkenness in hisown tent. "Wherefore let him that thinketh hestandeth take heed lest he fall" (1 Corinthians 10; 12).Ham did not do well by gazing at his father snakedness and did worse by talking about the indecencybefore Others. God forbids nudity and pornography. Wemust also avoid any style of dressing that reveals delicateparts of the body. Care must be taken lest wemakeOthers stumble. It is also important that believers stay away from locations and programmes where nudity ison display. Honour to parents is also enjoined in theBible (Exodus 20: 12; Deuteronomy 5:16; Ephesians 6:2).The other two sons Of Noah — Shem and Japheth — wereblessed because they covered the nakedness of theirfather. If any believer is overtaken in a fault, othersshould join hands to ensure restoration instead ofspreading the sad Story.
DESCENDANTS OF NOAH AND DISPERSAL OF MAN (Genesis 10: 1-32; 11:1-32; Deuteronomy 32:8; Job 5:12,13; Psalm 33:10; Luke 1:51)
God fulfilled his promise to Noah and his sons and they became Fruitful…of them was the whole earthOverspread". Through Shem, Ham and Japheth, "arethe families of the sons of Noah, after theirgenerations, in their nations: and by these were thenations divided in the earth after the flood" (Genesis10:32)."And the whole earth was of One language, and ofOne speech" (Genesis 11:1). But the people chose tounite against the will of God. Instead of replenishingthe whole earth as God had commanded, they decidedto build a city and a tower, whose top may reach untoheaven and make themselves a name, "lest they bescattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth (Genesis 11:4). The people embarked on a selfish project contrary to the purpose of God, but He confounded their language and they were unable to carry out their enterprise. Although man's rebellion at Babel was condemnableGod commented on the power of unity amongpeople. He said "nothing be restrained from them which they have imagined to do". There are great lessons from this. One, believers have an awesome powerat their disposal if they unite in prayer. Two, unity and cooperative effort in evangelism will produce more fruits. Three, if we are united in building our churches, theywill be completed quickly. Four, we must be united indefending the truth and standing against error, insisting that scriptural standards be followed always. Five, thebattle against the devil will be won in favour of theChurch ofGod if believers unite in prayer and holy living. The confusion of language and scattering of thepeople at Babel resulted in the formation of nations. As the sons of Noah multiplied and developed into differentraces of people on earth, so the wickedness of man intensified and multiplied. God then decided to reveal HispIan of raising a particular nation through whichthe Messiah would come. Again, God needed a manwho would be the fountain head of that prospectivenation. The closing verses of our text are devoted to tracing the family tree of Abraham, the man whom God chose.
Questions for review:
1, Why did God decide to destroy man with a flood?
2. How can believers walk close to God and keep
hearingfrom Him in this corrupt generation?
3. In the face of looming destruction awaiting
theunrepentant, what should backsliders and sinners?
4. What is the condition for benefitting from God's
covenant?
5. What virtue can we learn from the unity of the
menwho attempted to build the Tower of Babel?
6, Noah found grace with God before the flood overthrewthe world. How can we find grace with God before Hisimminent judgment?7. What constitutes the 'ark of salvation' today?