When man became so wicked that he rebelled against God, God decided to destroy the world with a flood. But Noah, a just man, found grace in God, and he and his family were saved. The Ark was their Sanctuary.
That was then and this is now and there is still a place of Sanctuary. The Ark serves as a picture of Jesus Christ and the salvation He provides.
If you are in the Ark of salvation, you are there because God in mercy and love drew you to Himself. He looked beyond your doomed condition and reached out to you in grace and you believed on Him.
Ephesians 2:4,5 But God, who is rich in mercy for his great love wherewith he loved us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ (by grace ye are saved).
When God shut the door of the Ark, Noah was safe, on the inside looking out, and the world was on the outside looking in. There was only one door to the Ark, and there is only one way to be saved: through Jesus Christ.
When God's judgment is poured out one last time on this rebellious earth, the only thing that will matter is which side of the door you are on.
The death of the Lamb of God was brutal beyond belief. It is the power in His blood that transforms lost sinners to a redeemed saint of God.
1 Peter 1:18,19 Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold . . . but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.
Jesus offered Himself once, forever satisfying the demands of God for sin. Any one who trusts Jesus by faith can be saved from their sins.
Romans 10:13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of The Lord shall be saved.
After His death on the cross, Jesus rose from the grave, assuring believers of eternal life. He will reign throughout eternity because He is the King of kings and Lord of lords. One day every knee will bow to Him, and every tongue will confess Him as King.
You can have everlasting life with assurance of heaven. Jesus presented Himself for you. Have you presented yourself to Him?
The more time you spend with God, the more you come to love Him. The more you come to love Him, the more you are drawn to worship Him.
Anything we ever received from The Lord is the work of His grace in our lives. Being allowed to pray to Him, to worship Him and to commune with Him is amazing.
When we see The Lord as He is, we cannot help but see ourselves as we are. Some have warped views of themselves, thinking they are much better and more holy than they are. A glimpse of God will produce humility. When we get humble, then God can use us for His glory.
James 4:10 Humble yourselves in the sight of The Lord, and he shall lift you up.
Genuine worship involves the heart. In genuine worship, there is a desire to exalt The Lord, to see Him receive the glory He deserves. When we see Jesus in His glory, our worship will be about Him alone.
Elijah trusted the promise of God to feed him as he asked the poor widow woman for a morsel of bread. A God the widow knew very little about had told her to give what little food she had to a prophet she knew nothing about.
1 Kings 17:12 And she said, As The Lord thy God liveth, I have not a cake, but a handful of meal in a barrel and a little oil in a cruse: and behold, I am gathering two sticks that I may go in and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it and die.
"Give me what you have," he said, "and then fix for you and your son."
So she cooked her last meal for Elijah. The next three years Almighty God miraculously replenished the meal and oil after each meal. When we put our sticks, meal, and oil in the hands of God, He will do the impossible.
Jeremiah 33:3 Call unto me, and I will answer thee and shew thee great and mighty things which thou knowest not.
Got any rivers you think are uncrossable
Got any mountains you can't tunnel through
God specializes in things thought impossible
He'll do for you what no other man can do.
Oscar C. Eliason
Many prayer requests stream through Facebook, Twitter, and emails because people know that God answers prayer.
It is the closet of prayer that power descends upon the preacher. It is the prayer of a mother that protects her son in a war a thousand miles away. It is the prayer of the church that meets the need of the missionary in the foreign field. May we never neglect or downplay the enormous power of prayer.
Ephesians 6:18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints:
So, pray when the preachers preach, the teachers teach, the singers sing, and the witnesses witness. Pray that God will prepare hearts and touch lives. Pray for healing of the sick and soul.
Don't be discouraged if your faith-believing prayers are not answered quickly. Sometimes God says, "Yes!" Sometimes He says, "No!" Sometimes He says, "Wait!" Waiting is the hardest.
The One Who walks on the waves is the One Who holds your hand. Take your burdens to The Lord and leave them there.
Temptation means testing. God tests us in every part of our lives. When tests get hard, we pray and God's mercy and grace often pull us through. Studying God's Word and prayer prepares us for tests.
James 1:2 My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations;
How can trials and tests make us happy? They draw us closer to God. They reveal our weaknesses, strengthen our spiritual life, and gives us patience.
James 1:3 Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.
When we were born again, God wasn't through with us. There is a spiritual growing process lined with tests.
As new or old Christians, we should take the initiative to get into the meat of the Word to prepare us for future tests.
James 1:4 But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.
Romans 4:20 He [Abraham] staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God.
The promise was that God would supernaturally cause Abraham and Sarah to have a son and name him Isaac. When the promise was first given, Abraham was 75. It must have looked impossible when he was 99, yet his faith did not waver.
He might have said, "I'm just too old," or "Sara is all shriveled up like a prune." Was it a cruel joke being played on two old people to make them look stupid?
No. God gave him a promise, and he believed it. At the age of 90, Sarah gave birth to Isaac. Abraham was 100.
Real faith rests in the knowledge that God will do exactly as He promised. He is still as able to move with power as He ever was.
Abraham acted on God's promise and it was declared righteous by God. He was saved by faith, the same as any person is today.
Our faith stands upon two great pillars of truth: Jesus dying for our sins and His resurrection. If you can believe with your heart those truths, then you can be saved from Hell.
