It was by faith that Noah built a large boat to save his family from the flood. He obeyed God, who warned him about things that had never happened before. By his faith Noah condemned the rest of the world, and he received the righteousness that comes by faith. Hebrews 11:7 NLT
I remember when I was a child my parents diligently taught us to obey immediately without asking them questions. They instructed, “You know we love you. You trust us, right?” I would assure them that I did, and they would then remind me that anything they asked of me was for my good. They told some eyebrow-raising stories about children who needed to move instantly when their dad shouted, “Move!” because a large object was about to fall off a roof or “Don’t move!” because a rattlesnake was slithering near an ankle. At first, I was horrified, but after enough stories I eventually did a little eye rolling.😊 But I took them seriously enough I tried hard to obey immediately and ask questions later. My kids will tell you I took it seriously enough that I told a few stories myself.
When God told Noah to build the ark, a large boat, can you imagine the questions he must have had? “What’s an ark?” “What’s rain?” “What’s a flood?” Genesis 7 tells us that until after the flood the earth was watered by mists and underground springs. The first rainbow was after the flood. Then there’s the animals. “ALL the animals? Goats AND Giraffes? Hamsters AND Hippos?” Then, of course, there were all the “how” and “why” questions.
The Genesis account doesn’t explicitly tell us why Noah didn’t ask all the questions that humans seem to multiply. It’s not because our intelligence is so advanced that we think differently now. Noah had something we too frequently don’t enable ourselves to access. Genesis tells us that he was a very godly and righteous man. He was “blameless,” not that he was perfect at all. Every nail he drove in building the ark didn’t automatically go in straight. He was a human man living in a broken world. But he believed IN God and believed God. When God spoke to Him, Noah believed and immediately believed. His godliness gave him access to the wisdom of God. His intimacy gave Him the ability to recognize the voice of God when He spoke.
Noah was wise enough to realize that, though he didn’t have complete knowledge about what he was doing or even complete understanding about why he was doing it, he realized he knew enough to get started. If he took the first step, God would show him what he needed to do next. That’s how it happened. God directed him one step at a time. Noah believed God about things he had never heard or known before and did exactly what God said and he got exactly the results God said he would. He saved his family and was used by God for great purpose.
- Answers are never the ANSWER. Obedience always is.