This week’s readings begin and end with a lot of water… first waters of judgment and later waters of refreshment.
Genesis 7-8
Water, water everywhere! The story of Noah and the flood is one of the most familiar stories in the Bible. We think of it as a story for children… the ark, the animals coming two-by-two, and the rain for “forty days and forty nights.” But it is really a story for all of us. Things that strike me most are:
• God’s great patience. He waited while Noah built the ark, I think, to see if others might ask God to forgive them and be saved.
• God’s great power. The whole earth was consumed by the flood He sent.
• God’s great grace. The earth was restored. One of our symbols of peace is the dove with an olive branch in its beak. In Genesis 8:11 we read “This time the dove returned to him in the evening with a fresh olive leaf in its beak. Then Noah knew that the floodwaters were almost gone.” God and men were at peace for a while.
• God’s keeps His promises. He gave Noah the sign of the rainbow as a sign that he would never again judge the earth with a flood. Every time you see a rainbow you know God keeps His promises.
Psalm 4
My father could go to sleep anywhere and in any position… even standing up! He never once in his 83 years of life ever had a night when he could not sleep. He used to quip that all it took to sleep like him was “hard work and a clear conscience!”
The writer of this Psalm is being harassed by people who are “bad mouthing” him and trying to ruin his reputation. How does he keep his calm? He always “sleeps on it” before responding to anyone in anger; he makes sure his relationship with God is right; he learns to be satisfied with the simple pleasures God provides. But like my Dad the psalmist kept his conscience clear and he must have repeated this little prayer as he drifted off each night…
“In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, O LORD, will keep me safe.” - Psalm 4:8
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When I try to "sleep on it" I don't get a good nites sleep because it consumes my mind. Praying Psalm 4:8 will be very helpful, I tend to forget to give my problems/worries to the Lord.
ReplyDeleteIn Genesis 8:21, God seems to me to suffer human failures of getting angry (thus the flood) and feeling remorse (thus saying he will never to do this again). If so, then we really are made in his image, but I thought God was supposed to be better than that?
ReplyDeleteThe JSS comment made me pause and think. True, we are made in His image so it makes sense that God does have emotions. There are Bible passages that talk about God's anger, jealousy and regret, but most often God is described as feeling love toward us. In fact 1 John 4:7 ends with ..."for God is love." God may feel anger, regret or remorse but at his core is unconditional love. If he feels jealous because he perceives a slight or if he is mad because of minor trifles or simply because he is impatient, then we have a big problem. But if he "feels" these emotions first and foremost because he loves us, that is reassuring. God is love, but he is also just, holy and righteous. We have been given the opprtunity to avoid his anger and justice and to know that love completely even though we may not be deserving... (Romans 5:8) "But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners."
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