First Things First – How the World Came to Be 16. Living Under the Rainbow: Judgment First, Then Mer

Genesis 9: 1 - 17 What headline would you write if you were covering the great flood of Noah’s day? “God Destroys World in Flood” or “God Gives Humans a Second Chance.” The first headline is biblically and historically accurate. Not many of us would have thought of the second suggestion about God giving humans a second chance. But it does bring us to the bottom line of the story. After the floodwaters receded, after the animals left the ark, and after Noah and his family stood on dry land again, God did give humanity a second chance. Noah and his family have the task of starting all over again. This passage is all about God. He’s the only person who speaks or acts. Noah doesn’t say a thing and he doesn’t do a thing. God establishes a new beginning, puts forth a new command, and gives a new promise. If we pay attention, we will discover vital principles regarding the possibility of spiritual renewal in every age and in any situation.

1. A New Beginning v. 1- 3 This is a repeat of what God said to Adam and Eve in Genesis 1. This is Eden all over again. God commissions Noah and his family to spread out across the earth and re-establish human civilization. Noah is to become the patriarch of a vast clan that will eventually branch out to form all the various tribes and nations on earth. Just as Adam was head of the human race in the beginning, Noah is now the head of the reconstituted human race after the flood. Everything flows from him through his 3 sons. Now God adds one significant permission: Humans are given permission to use animals for food. Evidently before the flood, everyone was a vegetarian. But now it is permissible to hunt animals for food and to raise animals for meat. Vital spiritual truth - God will not be defeated by human sin, not even by sin as gross as the immorality that brought on the flood. Your sin may seem (from a human point of view) to hinder God’s plan, it may seem to delay it for days or months or years or even for generations, but in the end, God’s will will be done. What God has spoken must come to pass. No evil done by men can thwart the plans of the Almighty. Has he not spoken? Will he not do it? Who dares to stand against him? Some may dare, but none can succeed. This truth gives us hope when we have really messed up. We may wonder, and may secretly think, that God is through with us because of our sin. “I’ve sinned too much. God will never give me another chance.” Those who say that know too much about their sin and too little about their God. Isaiah 55: 7 “Let the wicked forsake his way and the evil man his thoughts. Let him turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on him, and to our God, for he will freely pardon.” That’s precisely what I need. When I stray, when I fall, when I make a mess of my life, I need a God who will “abundantly” pardon me. With God there is always the possibility of a new beginning.

2. A New Command v. 4 - 7 Noah now learns the “rules of the game.” If God is going to start over again, Noah needs to know what rules to follow. There is basically only one rule—“Respect Life.” Everything flows from that. Since God now gives permission to eat animals for food, he adds the restriction that they must first be put to the death and the blood drained from them. It’s very difficult to eat a steak while it is still attached to a cow. The point of first killing the animal, draining the blood, and then eating it is to show respect for God who gave life in the first place.

Life for Life Murderers should be put to death. If you kill, you will be killed. If you murder, you will be put to death. If you show such disrespect for human life, then you have forfeited your right to your own life. The reason for this rule is crucial - man is made in the image of God. Everyone we know, everyone we meet, everyone in the whole world is made in the image of God. God made each one of them in his own image. He stamped all of us and each of us with his divine image. We were each created with the ability to know God, to love him, and to serve him. We were made with an inner desire to know our Creator. That separates us forever from the dogs and cats and whales and chimpanzees. Those creatures are creatures. Nothing more and nothing less. But humans are made in God’s image. That makes each one of us unique and valuable and worthy of respect and honour and protection. How dare anyone murder another person made in God’s image? If you do, God takes it seriously. He will not forget it or overlook it or excuse it or pass it off as a mistake. He won’t say, “Boys will be boys” or “She deserved it” or “Let’s all be friends.” No! God says, “If you murder, you deserve to die.” This is the biblical foundation for capital punishment. We all understand that God is the source of life. He alone has the right to give life or to take it away. But God delegates to human authority the right to take life in certain circumstances. I am not aware of any passage in the rest of the Bible that contradicts, cancels, nullifies what is said in Genesis 9. The principle laid down thousands of years ago is still in force today. Capital punishment is part of God’s judgment against those who do evil, and especially against those who take innocent human life.

3. A New Promise v. 8 - 17 The Promise: God promised never again to flood the entire earth. The Pledge: God placed a rainbow in the sky as the sign of his promise. This is the first great covenant of the Bible. It is important for several reasons: A. It is an unconditional covenant. There are no conditions to be met by us. God didn’t say, “If you obey me, I promise never to flood the earth again,” or “If you offer a sacrifice, I promise never to flood the earth again.” God asks nothing of the human race. No obedience, no sacrifice, no faith, no prayer. Nothing at all. This isn’t a 2 way street where we do something and then God does something in response. This is a promise made by God in spite of the fact that the world had just been destroyed because of sin, and in full knowledge that the world was soon to plunge back into the pit of sin. It will be Noah the man of faith who will lead the parade in the wrong direction. This is a covenant of pure grace, made in spite of human sin, not because of any supposed human goodness or human faith or human obedience. In spite of our continuing sin, God promises never again to destroy the entire human race with a flood. B. It is a covenant guaranteed with a sign. We have tended to sentimentalise this part. Rainbows are beautiful, and it’s easy to think that this is just a sweet touch. But it’s far more than that. Rainbows occur all over the world, thus making the sign available to the same extent as the flood itself. Rainbows are a startling phenomenon. When you see a rainbow, the natural urge is to point it out to someone else. Rainbows display their colours across the full spectrum of light, covering all possible shades and hues. Here is a sign perfectly fitted for the entire human race, at all times, in every location. It is a sign easily understood by all ages. When we see a rainbow, we are to think, “God promised never again to send a flood upon the entire earth.” When God sees a rainbow, it reminds him of the promise he freely made to us.

Thorns on the Roses Notice that nowhere does God say, “I will never send a storm again.” Nowhere does God promise that life will be free of storms, trials, troubles and difficulties. Most rainbows appear only after the storm has come and gone. If there were no storms, there would be very few rainbows. The message to us is obvious. God never promises a life free from pain and suffering. He never promised us a rose garden. The roses have thorns. That’s life in a fallen world. There are floods and fires and tornadoes. We’re all aware that this isn’t a safe world, that we all live on the front lines, and that evil is all around us. No one is immune from disease. Bad news is only a phone call away. The rainbows come after the rain, not before. Weeping endures for a night, joy comes in the morning. We know that all things work together for good, and we know that the “all things” must include tears and suffering, unanswered questions, and moments of anger, terror and sadness. Even when we quote the famous words of Joseph, “You meant it for evil but God meant it for good,” we must realise that you can’t get to the last phrase without going through the first phrase. I take from this a familiar truth. God never gives us more than we can bear. The human race can’t bear another worldwide flood so God won’t send one. The rainbow proves his promise. But there will still be many storms along the way, tears aplenty and much sadness. If we look up, we will see God’s rainbows, the signs and tokens of his love, here and there along the way, reminding us that the storms of life do not mean that things are out of control. The rainbow teaches us that everything is under God’s control.

In Wrath Remember Mercy The prayer of Habakkuk comes to mind. The prophet considers the suffering of his own people. Although they have sinned greatly and their judgment is deserved, he prays that it will come to an end. He frames his thoughts in a few simple words: “In wrath remember mercy.” That is a good summary of this passage. In wrath God remembered mercy. In wrath God always remembers mercy. When he judges, it is to purify and to discipline, not to destroy. Sooner or later, his mercy will be seen. It is after the wrath is over that his mercy is most clearly displayed. The more I think about it, the more I like the headline, “God Gives Humans a Second Chance.” That’s what Genesis 9 is all about. That’s what we need. Come to think of it, I like it because that’s what I need. I need that second chance every day. Judgment. Yes. And wrath. Yes. And times of hardship and difficulty. Yes, for all of us. But mercy. Yes! A second chance. Yes! And the rainbow after the rain. Yes! In wrath God always remembers mercy. Hope for Backsliders The judgment and the mercy both come from God. It’s not as if the devil sent the flood but God sent the rainbow. No. God himself sent the terrible judgment of the flood. He is the one who sent the rain. He is the one who decided that the world of that day should perish. He is the one who after the flood showed his mercy in giving the human race a second chance and in making the promise and guaranteeing it with a rainbow. Without the judgment the mercy would not appear as merciful. The rainbow is beautiful always, but the promise is more glorious because of the flood that preceded it. 3 times God says, “Never again!” He really meant it. Never again will there be a worldwide flood. Mercy is still mercy but mercy shines ever brighter, like a diamond set against black velvet, when seen against the backdrop of God’s righteous judgment. A backslider is a Christian who has drifted away from the Lord. You love the Lord but the cares of this world and the temptations of life have put you in a bad place, far from the conscious presence of God. Today you are under the cloud of judgment, guilt, and deep inner unhappiness. Things are not right and you know it. Perhaps you feel so frustrated that you wonder if things can ever be different. Here is good news. If you will return to the Lord, the clouds will part, the sun will shine, and overhead you will find the rainbow of God’s mercy. Why live in the “far country” of sin when you as a child of God can feast at the Father’s table?

Good News for Sinners There is good news for sinners. Your sin, no matter what it is, has already been judged. The Day of Judgment happened 2,000 years ago when Jesus died on the cross for you. His blood is so powerful that it paid in full the price for all your sins. Your sins were judged at the cross. Today is the day of mercy. It is no coincidence that when John saw the vision of heaven in Revelation, he saw a rainbow encircling the throne of God. That symbolises the completeness of God’s mercy. The blood of Jesus has transformed the throne of God from a throne of judgment into a throne of mercy. If you come to Jesus, you will not be turned away. His blood will save you. The rainbow promise guarantees that God’s mercy is for you. For all of us who labour under heavy burdens and deep personal sorrows, this promise is for us, too. Look up and you will see the rainbow, the sign that God has not forgotten you. Amen.