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13 And it came to pass in the six hundred and first year, in the first month, the first day of the month, that the waters were dried up from the earth; and Noah removed the covering of the ark and looked, and indeed the surface of the ground was dry. 14 And in the second month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, the earth was dried. 15 Then God spoke to Noah, saying, 16 "Go out of the ark, you and your wife, and your sons and your sons’ wives with you. 17 Bring out with you every living thing of all flesh that is with you: birds and cattle and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth, so that they may abound on the earth, and be fruitful and multiply on the earth." 18 So Noah went out, and his sons and his wife and his sons' wives with him. 19 Every animal, every creeping thing, every bird, and whatever creeps on the earth, according to their families, went out of the ark. ~ Genesis 8:13-19
Today we return to our study of Genesis 8 where we are invited to see and understand the unsinkable promises of God. The story of Noah is quite interesting and very exciting until we get to Genesis 7. At that point, the story seems to get bogged down in the details of the animals and the precise dates. It is easy to skim over such details but that would be a great mistake. We expect and want God to work in the big headlines of life, but He is best found in the subscript of the text.
In v.13 of today's passage we read, "And it came to pass in the six hundred and first year, in the first month, the first day of the month, that the waters were dried up from the earth; and Noah removed the covering of the ark and looked, and indeed the surface of the ground was dry."
It was the 601st year of Noah’s life and it took a lot of courage for Noah to leave the ark. This meant leaving behind a certain measure of safety and security that he and his family had come to know over the year they were in the ark. This new step meant trusting God for a totally unknown future. This is what makes our journey with God in this world so worth it though. When we give Him enough time to bring about His plans for our lives, we are left amazed. Think of it, this was the first day of the first month of that year for Noah. It was the exact same day 1657 years earlier that Adam was created and it was the same day about 2400 years later that the Savior of the world would be born in an insignificant town known as Bethlehem. Such design left for us to discover the Designer of it all.
In v.14 of today's passage we read, "And in the second month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, the earth was dried."
When God gives dates in the Bible, it is significant and we must take note. Today's plot took place 57 days after Noah opened the covering of the ark and it was the 380th day after Noah and his family entered the ark. Noah and his family had spent over a year waiting and watching as the world was destroyed by water. All of that time, they were in that ark as the waters rose and as the waters receded.
In v.15-17 of today's passage we read, "15 Then God spoke to Noah, saying, 16 'Go out of the ark, you and your wife, and your sons and your sons’ wives with you. 17 Bring out with you every living thing of all flesh that is with you: birds and cattle and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth, so that they may abound on the earth, and be fruitful and multiply on the earth.'"
Just imagine the excitement that the family must have felt as they got word it was time to leave the ark. We do not know how God spoke to Noah, whether in a dream or directly, or whether in some other way, but Noah was given divine guidance that he and his family could leave the ark, just as he received divine guidance to enter it. And just as they filled the ark with animals, they’re told now to empty it out.
As the animals departed, God also gave them a divine command; that they should be fruitful and multiply on the earth. This is the exact same command that was given back in Genesis 1. God created all of the animals at the beginning and the same spark of life that was put into them then carried through to the time of Noah and it carries through even until today. There is a spark of life in all of us and that spark transmits from us to the next generation.
Were it not for the Ark of Noah, there would be no life on earth apart from the oceans. And any animal which wasn’t on the ark is extinct because its life spark died with the flood. And, if the world were billions of years old like evolutionists claim, then the problem would only be exacerbated. From the trillions of moments which have happened since the first life of spontaneous generation supposedly occurred, Evolutionists only explanation for development is evolution, not more generation. When we consider evolution, we are left shaking our heads. It takes far more faith to believe in evolution than it does to believe in the God of the Bible.
In v.18-19 of today's passage we read, "18 So Noah went out, and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives with him. 19 Every animal, every creeping thing, every bird, and whatever creeps on the earth, according to their families, went out of the ark."
Probably in a state of awe and wonder, Noah and his family obeyed the divine command and they left the ark. The earth was certainly completely different than it was when they entered. The vapor canopy surrounding the earth was gone and the skies looked different. The landscape would have been totally reformed from what they had known. The climate would have been different. Everything was new and everything was a mixed bag of a new adventure.
Sometimes God calls us to do things that are hard and may even seem impossible. We are called to leave the known for the unknown, and when we have to leave the ark that has taken us this far and step out on our own, that's difficult. At times, it is scary and unnerving because once we leave the familiar confines we have always known, we can never go back there again. To leave the ark meant embarking on a new life with new dangers and new opportunities. That takes courage and resolve and a decision not to look back or to second-guess oneself.
This is why God makes so much of our faith in Him. Faith means taking the next step and then trusting God with the results. It is a paradox of life that even though the ark was smelly and cramped, we may be afraid to leave it because it represents the only security we have known for some time. Sometimes we pray for a change in our circumstances, but when the moment comes, we are so overwhelmed with fear that we are paralyzed and unable to move. It is then that faith is given its chance.
We are told in Hebrews 11, by faith Noah built, entered and left the Ark. Both entering the ark and leaving it were very difficult for Noah and his family, I am sure. But, this is what life is really about; getting over those moments when we are paralyzed by the unknown. Some of us are stuck because we know it’s time to move forward but we are afraid to take the first step. We must remember that we do not walk through this life alone. And, the more we respond to the revelation that God gives us, the better we will recognize Him in those most unwanteds of life. It is in the darkest of times that we see Him best. The rule of thumb in following God must be that His presence and His proximity will always be my protection whether I can see Him or not.
