Are You Building an Ark?

Perhaps a better question may be: "What kind of ark are you building?"

This year, preaching through 52 of the great stories of the Bible, I came across that epic tale of Noah and the Ark. As with every Biblical story, there is so much information available that needs to be shared, that it cannot be done in just one sermon. So, I decided to take to my blog this week and share a thought that I had as I read about Noah's adventure. And the question came to me: am I building an ark?

I read this in Hebrews 11:7, "By faith Noah, being warned by God concerning events as yet unseen, in reverent fear constructed an ark for the saving of his household. By this he condemned the world and became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith."

It was this one line that had my mind abuzz: "...for the saving of his household."

It brought up a question in my heart that I want to share with you.

What are you doing, men, for the saving of your household? What kind of ark are you building that will deliver your family from the judgment and wrath of God? Are you constructing a life that is filled with all the pleasures of this world, filled with all the delights that can be found in the temporary circumstances of time? Are you hammering out a career, with goals and achievements that might last a lifetime and leave a legacy of hard work and determination, but not securing your household for the day of God's wrath? Are you giving your wife a life filled with great delights and lasting memories and teaching your children the value of hearth and home, but not setting before them a place to shelter in the storm of God's anger?

You, man of God, have been warned concerning events as yet unseen! Shall you play at life, marking the days without any sense of the eternal obligation you have to your wife and family? There is an ark that is set already, and you must construct your life with the lumber that God has purposed. That ark is Christ and the lumber is faithfulness in service to Him. God will deliver you and your household, but only inside the ark. Only in Christ is there safety from the fury of God's wrath and shelter from the coming judgment that will set the world ablaze.

Let me give you some of the lumber. Lead your home in the study of God's word. Lead your home in prayer. Lead your family to gather with the church. Don't wait for someone else in your home to take the lead - you be the man of God who shepherds your home in Christ. Be gentle with your wife, respectful of those around you, and train your children in the ways of Christ without exasperating them. Show reverent fear of God in all aspects of life. Much of these qualities described can be found in Ephesians chapters five and six.

I am reminded of the Philippian Jailer's experience. Distressed and convicted after the earthquake that freed Paul and Silas from prison, the jailer fell at the Apostle's feet and cried out for salvation. Paul gave a remarkable statement: "Believe on the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household" (Acts 16:30). Then in verse 33, "And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their wounds; and he was baptized at once, he and all his family."

My brothers in Christ, I implore you to construct your life for the purpose of leading your household to that one place where safety is assured: faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Let your family see you building your life upon the hull of faithfulness to Christ, with the decks of forgiveness and mercy, and a ramp of hope that invites all to enter the shelter of God's grace.

Yours in Christ,
Michael