Growing up in church we were all told the story of Noah and the ark. A way that God saved the one family he found to be righteous in a world of sinners and terrible people. Supposedly things were so bad that God wondered why he created mankind and came up with a plan to destroy all his creation other than Noah and his family.
I accepted this story without question for many years. Yet when I actually sat and thought about the whole story I had questions and doubts, wondering if it was really a true and if so, why God would choose to do this terrible thing.
I have come to find that many stories in the bible are just that, stories. I relate many of the old testament stories to the parables of Jesus in the new testament. Nothing wrong with stories, and just because they are stories in no way negates the truth and importance of the meaning behind the story. Stories and parables are used to make real life truths easier to understand.
I have come to see the story of Noah and the ark as a shadow of things to come. It was a parable about Jesus coming to save the world and restore fellowship with the Creator.
When we read in the bible that God is love, it is hard to make sense out of a story that the God of love would destroy people that he loves. We also know that our works are not what brings us into fellowship with the Father and whether we produce good works or bad works, our Father still loves us. So, to say God destroyed the earth because of evil works goes against the whole principle of salvation through grace.
Many people will point to the story of the flood and use it to discredit God or to say there is no God at all. Others will say the story is in the bible and the bible is inerrant, so it happened just the way it is written. For me, I have come to terms that the written word is not inerrant. It is a collection of writings by human beings over many years, telling how they view God, how they try to live for God and how God deals with his creation.
I have come to believe that the only inerrant Word of God is not a book but a person. Jesus is the Word of God and his Spirit lives within us. Rather than have a completely closed mind as to any other interpretation other than what we have been taught by religious institutions, we can let the Spirit of God within us teach us and we can learn to be open to new things under his guidance.
Did the flood really happen? Was the earth completely covered with water and all life destroyed? I personally do not think so. God loves us and created us for fellowship with Him. Our works do not earn us anything with God because he loves us and accepts us unconditionally.
Yet the flood did have real meaning. The sinful nature we had was washed away with the flood waters of his grace. Our unrighteous deeds were destroyed by the flood of his love. Jesus our ark made a way of escape so that we might live in his Kingdom for the rest of our existence, enjoying his presence and his love within us.
This post was part of the September 2018 Synchroblog on the topic of the flood. Here are the other contributors to this month’s topic. Go and read them all!
- The Flood Story – K. W. Leslie
- A Flood of Insightful Hope – Jordan Hathcock
- There will Never Be a World Wide Flood Again but Was There Ever One in the First Place? – Done with Religion
- Did the Flood of Genesis 6-8 really happen, and if so, did God really send it? – Jeremy Myers
- The Flood as a Foreshadowing to the Cross of Christ – God is Not like Thanos from the Infinity War – Scott Sloan
Thanks for your post. Yes, Jesus is the ark of God’s salvation. However, that the Bible is not inerrant is the point where we differ. Though humans wrote the books of the Bible over many years, they were inspired by the Holy Spirit. Translations of the Bible may contain errors, but the original manuscripts are inerrant.
Thanks.
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Thank you Jenom, I think we differ on what the Word of God is. The Word of God is Jesus (John 1:1) and he is inerrant. The written word tells us about God and leads us to Jesus. Thank you for your comment. We all have different views yet we follow and love the same Father.
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[…] There will Never Be a World Wide Flood Again but Was There Ever One in the First Place? – Done with Religion […]
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[…] There will Never Be a World Wide Flood Again but Was There Ever One in the First Place? – Done with Religion […]
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Wow! This article appeared in my inbox today. Such an interesting discussion of the topic. I love it. https://redeeminggod.com/flood-genesis-6-8/?utm_source=RedeemingGod.com+Online+Discipleship&utm_campaign=e1b02ecaae-Redeeming_God_Daily_Blog_Post&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_56d6e24044-e1b02ecaae-78018285&goal=0_56d6e24044-e1b02ecaae-78018285&mc_cid=e1b02ecaae&mc_eid=9e83c11960
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Jeremy did a good job with that article.
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Interesting. It seems there is plenty of evidence of a flood of huge proportions. Did it cover the whole earth? Who can say? But many cultures in many different parts of the world have a flood story in their traditions and interestingly enough the Chinese symbol for salvation is a boat with eight people in it. I think I have to agree though that God was not this malignant being seeking the destruction of evil man, but a loving God who rescued some folk to continue life and gave that incredible symbol of the rainbow as His promise of good. He is about life and love and redemption, not about punishment and destruction.
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Thanks Jem. Obviously my views are only a theory, yet I do believe many things were more of a parable than actual events. Whether the flood was one or not is up for debate. Either way I think the main thing is that Jesus shows us what God is like and he is a God of love. Thanks so much for reading the articles and for your comment. Your continued support is appreciated.
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