A MATTER OF LIFE AND DEATH

By Bridgette Morris

But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord. Genesis 6:8

The world in ruin. The beauty of earth destroyed by violence and the insolence of sinful humanity. Life taken for granted. Innocence spoiled by greed, sin, and filth. It’s not a pretty picture, right? That was the situation in Genesis 6 when God decided it was time to start over and cleanse the world. It was a death sentence for all people. But in the midst of this turmoil and devastation, we see the word “grace” used for the very first time in the Bible. This is a big deal.

The Lord offered the gift of grace to Noah, which in this case was salvation from death. It was Noah’s choice to accept it, build the ark, and save his family from destruction. Although spending years building a huge boat probably looked like insanity to all his neighbors and friends, and maybe he even felt crazy some days, who wouldn’t accept a free gift of life? That’s grace. And without it, Noah and his family would have been destroyed like everyone else.

The grace that was offered to Noah is the same grace God offers us today. It may not be as dramatic a setting—God promised to never destroy the earth again by flood and isn’t exactly telling us to build giant floating zoos—but apart from Him our souls are destined for an eternal death. All of us are sinful and not worthy to be in God’s presence. Even Noah, a righteous and blameless man, still needed a savior. Thankfully, Jesus died on the cross, taking our place, paying the price, and paving the way for grace to be available to all. Now we can all experience the grace of God extending His hand to pull us out of the deadly flood. It is totally undeserved and totally unearned. God’s goodness confronts our sin and answers it with goodness. We just have to choose whether or not to accept it.

Noah accepted it and obeyed God by building an ark. We don’t know if that decision was a no-brainer for him or if it was incredibly difficult. But, it meant the difference between life and death for him and his entire family.

I hope you'll take the time today to fully appreciate and wonder at the life-saving grace God extends to us as believers through His Son. It’s the difference between eternal life and eternal death. I encourage you to listen to the song "Amazing Grace" today as a reminder of this tremendous gift: "I was once lost, but now I'm found / was blind, but now I see."

Prayer

God, thank You for extending grace to me even when I didn’t deserve it. You are a good and merciful God. I accept Your grace, and I am so grateful for what Your Son, Jesus, did for me on the cross. I choose to listen to Your voice today and believe what You say, obeying every step of the way. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Memory Verse

The unfolding of your words gives light; it imparts understanding to the simple. Psalm 119:130 (ESV)