NOAH FOUND GRACE!

Genesis 6:1-8.

 

(Gen 6:1 KJV)  "And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them,"

(Gen 6:2 KJV)  "That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose."

(Gen 6:3 KJV)  "And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years."

(Gen 6:4 KJV)  "There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown."

(Gen 6:5 KJV)  "And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually."

(Gen 6:6 KJV)  "And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart."

(Gen 6:7 KJV)  "And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them."

(Gen 6:8 KJV)  "But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD."

 

INTRODUCTION: Today’s message is not about the Flood and the Ark, but there are some very interesting facts about the Ark that most people would not think about.

 

It had never rained before the flood. (Gen 2:6 KJV)  "But there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground."

 

The Ark was 450 feet long – 75 feet wide – 45 feet high.

A total deck space of 97,700 square feet. (Equivalent to 20 standard college basketball courts.

It was the largest ship ever built until 1884 A.D.

It was nearly one half the length of the Queen Mary.

The Ark had more carrying space than 520 rail cars.

The Ark is one of the unanswered wonders of all time. Most men forget to take into consideration that God was the Architect of the Ark and that will answer all questions.

 

In Vs. 8 we read, “Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.” Because of man’s wickedness God had grown very angry with the human race.

 

1. WHAT IS GRACE?

 

This is the first mention of grace.

 

Definition – “the free unmerited favor of God.”

It means – “Gratis – free” – or “free gratis”.

“The application of Christ’s righteousness to the sinner.”

“A state of reconciliation to God.”

 

(Rom 3:24 KJV)  "Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:"  “Freely” denotes that it is granted without anything done on our part to merit or deserve it. It is clearly evident that if men, sinful and sinning, are to be justified at all, it must be “by his free grace.”

 

(Job 14:1 KJV)  "Man that is born of a woman is of few days, and full of trouble."  Therefore man has no capability of making himself righteous.

 

The law of “First Mention”.  “The first time a word or doctrine is mentioned in Scripture carries with it a meaning that will be carried all through the Word of God.”

 

Grace means – God gives to all what is justly due them, after the application of the righteousness of God through Jesus Christ. As a child of God you will receive what is justly yours positionally.

 

What is grace? God had condemned all the world because of wickedness. (Gen 6:5 KJV)  "And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually." God even repented to the fact He made man. His grace provided a way for God to accept man. Noah’s Ark is a picture of Christ and it is through Christ that God accepts man’s reconciliation.

What an awful state of things when only one man or one family of piety and virtue was now existing among the professed sons of God!

 

A lot of people have trouble understanding grace. Many get law and grace intertwined together. Present day religion is a kind of mixture of law and grace, although they cannot be mixed any more than can oil and water. When you introduce law you do away with grace, and vice-versa.

 

Law is that system instituted by God on Mt. Sinai through Moses, the mediator. It is the law of the covenant, a legal system.

 

Grace is an expression of God’s kindness and favor, under the New Covenant, with Jesus Christ as Mediator.

 

It is unlimited and unmerited favor. It is bestowed by divine favor apart from any human merit or effort.

 

Grace is divine help for the helpless, apart from any and all human effort. Nothing you have ever done or can do, helped to give you salvation.

 

Grace means everything for nothing. All the poor sinner needs for eternity is bestowed upon him, by God, as a gift through grace.  All of the blessings you and I receive – the future home in heaven – the bountiful blessedness of the Father’s Mansion are ours because of grace and not self merited works.

 

The Law reveals the heart of man; Grace reveals the heart of God with all His love.

 

Law shows how crooked we are; Grace makes us straight. Law reveals the dirt. Grace makes us clean.

 

I have used these following thoughts about grace many times before, but there are no better words for describing grace anywhere. (Taken from William R. Newell’s Commentary on Romans )

 

“Grace does not help – it does all. It is absolute. Man under grace is not on probation. As to his life past, it does not exist before God; he died at the Cross, and Christ is his life.

 

Grace once bestowed, is not withdrawn. The failure of (a believer’s) devotion does not cause the withdrawal of bestowed grace.

 

When a believer sins whether it be knowingly or unknowingly – grace is not withdrawn, diminished, nor is it weakened. (Rom 5:20 KJV) “Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound:" Where sin shown the brightest – grace shown much brighter.  Grace will always outshine sin.

 

To “hope to be better” is to fail to see yourself in Christ only.

To be disappointed with yourself, is to have believed in yourself.

To be discouraged is unbelief – as to God’s purpose and plan of blessing for you.

To be proud, is to be blind! For we have no standing before God, in ourselves.

 

All that we have in God is by His grace and our faith in Christ Jesus. God has given His grace through His Son. Salvation can be ours by accepting that grace through faith in His Son.

 

The grace of God is not limited.

 

1. The Riches Of Grace. (Eph 1:7 KJV)  "In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;"

(Eph 1:8 KJV)  "Wherein he hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence;" This is a wealth that has no limit.

 

1. Abounding Grace. (Rom 5:15 KJV)  "But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many."

 

1. HOW DID NOAH FIND GRACE?

 

(Heb 11:7 KJV)  "By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith."

 

1. Grace Always Comes By Faith. Vs. 7 says, “By faith Noah…”.

 

When we read the phrase, “Noah found grace”, it is not implying that Noah stumbled onto grace one day while walking around. It means that God’s grace was made known unto him. (Titus 2:11 KJV)  "For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,"

 

Noah did as every other recipient of grace had done, he believed God and it was counted unto him for righteousness.

 

1. Grace Is Available To All Who Believe.

 

Noah was not a recipient of God’s grace because of his family name.

 

Noah did not find grace because he was a good person.

 

Noah did not find grace because he was worthy of God’s grace.

 

Noah did not find grace because he was looking for it. Had he been looking for it he wouldn’t recognized it when he found it, because grace is an attribute of God.

 

(Titus 2:11 KJV)  "For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,"

 

1. Grace Is Given To Every Believer Though Unwarranted.

 

You may not be a recipient of grace, but it has been made available to you.

 

You may have rejected grace, but it has been offered to you.

 

If you do not have grace it is because you have chosen it to be so.

 

Grace has appeared unto all men. That means that all mankind can be a recipient of grace.

 

III. WHY IS GRACE NECESSARY?

 

(Gen 6:5 KJV)  "And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually."

(Gen 6:6 KJV)  "And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart."

(Gen 6:7 KJV)  "And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them."

 

The next verse says, “Noah found grace.” Had it not been for God’s grace Noah would have been destroyed with all the wicked. This vindicates God's justice in his displeasure against the world, and shows that he had examined the character of every person in it, before he pronounced it universally corrupt; for there being one good man he smiled upon him.

 

Grace is necessary because God’s justice demands that He punish all sin by death in hell. There is no other means by which sin can be dealt with. God made the law Himself and set the boundaries by which the law would be administered. Grace permits God to forgive sin. It doesn’t mean that He ignores sin. Nor does it mean that He minimizes sin. It means that grace provides the means for man’s sin to be forgiven, else no one could have forgiveness.

 

Grace provides a substitute. When Christ died on the cross taking all sin on His body was enacted – that substitutionary act provides grace to be given to the sinner.

 

For some people grace is hard to understand.  There are those who explain grace as being extended to only a few that have been pre-selected by God as recipients of His grace. To find that one will have to go outside of the Scriptures. This doctrine is known as Calvinism and is not a biblical doctrine. It has sent millions to hell.

 

 

1. WHAT DOES GRACE DO FOR US?

 

1. Grace Brings Salvation. (Eph 2:8 KJV)  "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:"

(Eph 2:9 KJV)  "Not of works, lest any man should boast."

 

(Rom 4:3 KJV)  "For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness."

 

Abraham believed God and was justified. So did Noah, he believed God and it was counted to him as righteousness; so did Jeremiah; Jeremiah believed God and it was counted to him as righteousness; so did Isaiah; so did Ivan Casteel; so did Roger Bellomy; so did Kirk Lewis, on and on. Today if you are a Christian it is because you believed God and it has been counted to you as righteousness.

 

1. Grace Brings Good Standing Before God. (Rom 5:1 KJV)  "Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:"

(Rom 5:2 KJV)  "By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God."

 

Notice the phrase in Vs. 2, “this grace wherein we stand…” Without grace we stand condemned to hell for punishment of our sin. (Rom 8:1 KJV)  "There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit."  Because of His grace we can stand before Him uncondemned. Without grace we could not stand before God without being consumed with His wrath. His grace allows us to be in good standing with His righteousness.

 

1. Grace Brings Us To A Holy Reconciliation.

 

(Rom 5:20 KJV)  "Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound:"

(2 Cor 12:9 KJV)  "And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me."