First of all, the movie is not the biblical story. According to one researcher it was taken from the Jewish, Gnostic religion, Kabbalah. It's not Christian or even traditional Judaism, so I decided not to spend my time and money on it. Just know that if you go see it you're not watching the Noah of the bible.
I started my "research" in Genesis 6 by re-reading the biblical story, then I bought a book on the subject. I'd recommend it. It is As It Was In The Days of Noah by Jeff Kinley and as it advertises on the cover, it's "riveting".
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| Noah's Ark |
However, my point of interest was not the worldwide flood or even the ark, but the man, Noah. The Old Testament story says little about him but for two simple little statements..."But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord." Gen. 6:8 Then it went on to say..."Noah walked with God." Gen. 6:9 These two statements are remarkable and warrant further investigation. Most people want to know how did Noah, "find grace (favor) in the eyes of the Lord" and how did he "walk with God"? The answer to these questions are perhaps the most valuable information a person can find in this life. They are especially surprising in the life of a man who lived in Noah's time. As a Christian I have met many people who I believe find "favor" in God's eyes and who I'm convinced "walk" with Him daily. In the "days of Noah", however it was much different. There were not enclaves of people who agreed with each other, prayed for each other, ate together, communed together, worshiped together on a regular basis and therefore strengthened the faith of one another. Noah and his family were basically alone in their faith, in a world that was described by Jeff Kinley as being in a "worldwide sin-frenzy".
Noah's life did overlap his father, Lamech who was a godly man and who I'm sure encouraged his son's faith and probably helped him with the building as long as he could. It also overlapped Methuselah, his grandfather who was the oldest man in recorded history at 969 years old when he died. Methuselah probably wasn't able to give much assistance in the building of the ark, but I'm sure he sat by, watched his grandson and encouraged him in his task and in his faith. So Noah wasn't entirely alone. (By the way, Methuselah means "when he is gone, it shall be sent" or "his death shall bring it". The exact year that Methuselah died, the flood came.) Noah came from a godly family and the faith he demonstrated was strengthened by their faithfulness to God. It had been passed down to him and he in turn passed it on to his sons. But in the end, he became the only one left in a wicked world who "walked with God" and he stood strong. His strength to work on the ark for 120 years had been built like an oak tree, layer upon layer. God had been building a man to do His work on this earth.
I'm sure Noah had his moments of weakness, moments when his body ached, when the scoffing of his neighbors chipped away at his resolve, moments when he hadn't heard from God for a while and doubt began to worm it's way into his mind. But going through these things and coming out on the other side, with his faith intact, only served to strengthen him.
He had been called to what we would see as a ridiculous, almost crazy task. God asked him to build a cruise ship sized boat on a plain in the middle east where it had never even rained before. The cost to him and his family was immense, in every way, physically, mentally, and economically. He literally had to give his life to a job that seemed useless and well,.. .insane! But Noah was convinced of God's call and purpose for him. In a word, he believed God. Only a person who "walks with God" daily can have that kind of resolve. He believed God not because of something he had read or of some off repeated mantra but because he communed with Him on a daily basis. He worshiped Him and asked for His protection and provision and waited to see Him come through for him. He lived with his unseen God every day of his life. That kind of living takes faith out of the realm of the imaginary and brings it into hearts and minds and out through hands, feet, and mouths. Noah's faith had been hardened like a muscle and in the end prevailed because what God said he would do, He did. God vindicated him and saved his family from destruction.
Because of that faith, Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord. In Hebrews it says, "By faith... he built the ark for the saving of his household" and "condemned the world (around him) and became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith." So it wasn't the building that saved him, the cleaning up after two of every kind of animals, in a floating barn, during the worst storm in history for 40 days and nights, or even his faithful preaching to hateful, debauched neighbors for 120 years, but his continued trust that God would do just what He said He'd do. That is the importance of the story of Noah. This is what we need to glean from it and what we need to guard from Hollywood or any others who would try to distort it.
Personally, I don't think I could do it. Never mind the building which would been impossible for me. The tending of the animals would in itself put me off. Can you imagine the noise and the smell? I can barely tolerate the noise of the birds on a spring morning or the smell of the cat box in the winter. But then God hasn't given me Noah's job and the one He has given me is so puny compared to his. My "walk" with God is so much easier than his was and I'm grateful for that. Having said that, I do face challenges to my faith and I continue to pray for some of that "oak like" muscle to face them every day. After researching Noah, I think God's up to that task.
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