Noah After the Flood

TLDR: A guide for having a family discipleship time on Genesis 8–9 based on the ACT Bible Study Method.

Act 2: People DisobeyScene 6: Noah After the FloodGenesis 8:20—9:17Analyze the PassageStep 1: Introduce the Passage

Genesis was written by Moses sometime between 1445–1405 BC to help the Israelites leaving Egypt understand their history with God. It’s one of the five books of the Law that Moses wrote, which we also call the Torah, or the Pentateuch, which means “five books.”

Today’s true story is a pretty well known one. It’s the story of a man named Noah, a huge flood, and a very big boat. This is the sixth story of Act 2: People Disobey.

Step 2: Read the Passage

Genesis 8:20—9:17

Step 3: Summarize the Passage

Once leaving the ark, Noah built an altar and worshiped the Lord (v. 20). God promised he would never destroy the earth again as he had done (vv. 21–22).

God then blessed Noah and his family and gave them animals for food, but he warned them that animals would now be hostile (9:1–6). He then told Noah to be fruitful and multiply and increase on the earth (v. 7). God made a covenant with Noah never to flood the world again as he had and gave the rainbow as a sign of that covenant promise (vv. 8–17).

Step 4: Interrogate the Passage

Questions you and your family ask might include:

Why did Noah build an altar and sacrifice so many animals?Why did God determine never to destroy the earth again as he had?Why did God now give people animals for food?Why does not eating blood matter so much to God?What is a “covenant”?Why would God need to “remember” his covenant? Does he forget?Step 5: Wonder about the Passage

Wonder statements you and your family make might include:

I wonder how many animals Noah sacrificed.I wonder if this is why God had Noah take so many clean animals on the ark.I wonder how Noah knew what animals were clean.I wonder what it was like for Noah and his family to eat meat for the first time.I wonder if the animals became afraid of Noah and his family right away.I wonder why God chose the rainbow as a sign of his covenant with Noah.Connect the Passage to ChristStep 6: Find the World in Front of Text

Genesis 8 and 9 are a “do-over,” reminding us of Genesis 1 and 2. In Eden, God gave Adam and Eve food to eat and instructions to be fruitful, to multiply, and to fill the earth. Here, he gives Noah and his family food to eat and instructed them the same way he had Adam and Eve. The flood hasn’t changed anything; God is still a good provider for his people and he expects his people to obey him. What people had messed up through their pride and rebellion, God wants to start anew.

Step 7: Find the World of Jesus of the Text

Once again, we see the centrality of humility and obedience, both of which remind us of Jesus. Noah obeyed wonderfully, but not perfectly. Right after this, he will make a major mistake (Gen. 9:18–29). Thankfully, Jesus made no mistakes. He committed no sins. He perfectly obeyed the Father in full and genuine humility.

Translate It to Your ContextStep 8: Connect the World of Jesus of the Text to Your World

How can you be especially humble this week? Remember, humility is not thinking poorly of yourself; it is thinking more highly of God and others. It is putting God first, others second, and yourself third. What are ways that you can display humility with your friends, family, and others to show them Jesus?

How can you obey God this week, in big ways and small ways, so that people might see Jesus in you? Think about all the places you will be this week and what you will do. How can you obey God and people he has placed in authority with joy?

NEXT: Act 2: People Disobey; Scene 7: The Tower of Babel (Genesis 11:1–9)

Learn more about this family discipleship method here.