By Pastor Greg
Let me read something to you this morning that perhaps you have never heard before. You may find that it sounds a bit familiar. "You know the city Shurrupak, it stands on the banks of the Euphrates. That city grew old and the gods that were in it were old. There was Anu, lord of the firmament {earth}, their father and warrior Enlil their counselor, Ninurta the helper, and Ennugi, watcher over canals; and with them also was Ea. In those days the world teemed, the people multiplied, the world bellowed like a wild bull, and the great god was aroused by the clamor. Enlil heard the clamor and he said to the gods in council, 'The uproar of mankind is intolerable and sleep is no longer possible by reason of the babel {everyone talking at once}.' So the gods agreed to exterminate mankind. Enlil did this, but Ea warned me in a dream. He whispered their words to my house of reeds, “Reed-house, reed-house! Wall, O wall, hearken reed-house, wall reflect; O man of Shurrupak, son of Ubara-Tutu; tear down your house and build a boat, abandon possessions and look for life, despise worldly goods and save your soul alive. Tear down your house, I say, and build a boat. These are the measurements of the barque {boat} as you shall build her: let her beam equal her length, let her deck be roofed like the vault that covers the abyss; then take up into the boat the seed of all living creatures."
This is an excerpt from The Epic of Gilgamesh, part of the
Chaldean Flood Tablets that were found in the ancient southern Iraqi city of Ur
(Which, by the way, is where Abraham was born. See Genesis 11:28). This story sounds somewhat similar to the
familiar story of Noah (Read Genesis 6:5-22).
In this Genesis record of the flood,
God was angry at humanity’s sin, not irritated at all the noise as Gilgamesh
describes. Plus the dimensions of the
Ark are much different. Gilgamesh
describes a cube six stories high, a box that would have never floated. A box has no buoyancy. But the Ark in Genesis was much
different. Depending on what measurement
you use for a cubit (which is the distance between the fingertip and the elbow;
about 18 inches), the Ark was at least 450 feet long, 75 feet wide, and
45 feet high; that’s over 1.5 million cubic feet inside, equal to about 569
railroad cars. But, in spite of the
differences in the two stories, they both depict a great flood that would
destroy all living things.
The story about Noah and the Flood is
one that is hotly debated. Many people
feel it’s nothing more than a fable designed to teach some lesson about
morality. Sadly, you’d be surprised who
the skeptics are. It is not limited to
just the Atheists and Agnostics. Many
Christians do not view this as an actual event.
They can’t seem to get their minds wrapped around the concept that the
whole earth was covered by water. They
can’t seem to grasp how 1 million different species of animals would fit on the
Ark. Some Christians and most non-Christians
cannot comprehend the possibility, so they discredit the story. I’d say these people need to find themselves
a bigger God.
If the crust of the earth were leveled
(mountains lowered and ocean depths raised), the land would be covered with
water over a mile and a half deep[1]. A theory among some geologists is that at one
time only one large continent existed on the earth. But something happened that split the earth’s
crust apart and separated that land mass into the continents we have today[2]. It’s as if the land was broken apart from
beneath the surface of the earth, and drove the continents apart (compare
Genesis 7:11). And here’s something
interesting; if you look at the ocean floor, you will find deep trenches that
bear the scars of this catastrophe. The
Mariana Trench, for example, just off the coast of Japan, is almost 36,000 feet
deep. It’s as if the crust of the earth
split apart.
In regards to the animals, of the 1
million different species, only about 35,000 would have needed to be rescued from
the water. And if we disregard the
variety of breeds, that number drops to about 16,000[3]. For instance, 4500 years ago there was not
the broad variety of dogs we have today.
Creation experts like Ken Ham and John Woodmorappe have averaged the
size of these animals and concluded that these 16,000 different animals would
have filled about 37% of the Ark, leaving plenty of room for food and Man.
There are many other objections people
have raised. What about feeding all
these animals for the 371 days they were on board? What about cleaning up after them? How did Noah get all these animals to come? What
about the fish and other aquatic life?
People raise these doubts all the time.
And you know what? They need to
have their minds opened to conceive a bigger God. We’ve all heard of hibernation, have we
not? And fish have been known to move
from fresh water to salt water and back again.
Why, even at the National aquarium in Baltimore they have tanks that
display fresh and saltwater fish in the same tank. So instead of thinking whether this flood or
the Ark could have happened, maybe we just need to allow our minds to conceive
a bigger God.
As I thought about the Genesis account
of the flood, one thing struck me; if it was nothing more than a fable, then
why include it in the Bible in the first place?
Why did the patriarchs of the Old Testament feel this story was
necessary? And why did Jesus mention
this story as if it were fact (Matthew 24:37-39)? I’ll tell you why, because it demonstrates
the immeasurable mercy of God.
In His mercy, God plans for a means to
escape the flood. God uses one man to
preserve life. As God looked upon the
wickedness of humanity He saw one man who was righteous. And because of his righteousness, that one
man rescued God’s creation from destruction; a destruction by water. In the same way, God is preparing another
time when the earth will be destroyed, only this time by fire (see 2 Peter
3:3-7). And in the same way He is, or
has, prepared a means to escape this destruction; this time of judgment. And just as in Noah’s day, a Man was found
that could rescue humanity, not from destruction by water, but destruction by
fire. That Man is Jesus Christ.
In God’s immeasurable grace, He has
sent His own Son to rescue all who believe.
He has provided a means to escape judgment. But sadly, just as in Noah’s day, people
ignore the signs and disregard the impending judgment. These are the people who will find themselves
standing on the outside wishing they had heeded the warnings; wishing they had
accepted the outstretched hand of Christ and allowed Him to be their Savior.
Those safe in the Ark were spared the
wrath of God. Those resting safely in
the arms of Jesus will be spared the wrath of God as well. And His wrath of destruction is coming. Where will you be when it comes?
Prayer of Confession and Faith
Read John 3:14-17
Father, I am a sinner bitten by
sin and destined to die. But today I
believe the promise of Jesus; that if I turn to Him and believe in my heart, I
will be saved and granted Eternal Life.
Jesus, I call upon Your name. Cover my sin and heal me; transform me, and
move me from darkness to light. I accept
You as my Savior and my Lord. I pray
this in Your name. Amen
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