By Bryan D. Gill, D.Min.
Director of the Office of Faith, Learning and Vocation, Samford University
A FAITH THAT PLEASES GOD
Genesis 6:5–9, 17–22; 8:20–22
Living by faith begins with a righteous relationship with God. When we submit to God as the Creator and we are the creation, we are in a right relationship with God. We are required to have faith and obedience. God is pleased with our faith and obedience because it leads us to praise Him.
When we swap roles and place ourselves in God’s position, we become the object of our own praise and therefore commit idolatry. Psalm 22:3 tells us that God is holy, and He inhabits the praise of His people. Noah found favor in God’s eyes because of his faith and obedience.
To live by faith means living in a right relationship with God. (6:5–9)
Honestly, I wish I knew more about Noah. What was he like? Why did God choose him? What did he do specifically that pleased God? I would love to know the dialogue between him and God. Was there doubt? Did Noah laugh? I need details!
All we know is that God found him to be a righteous man and asked him to build an ark and Noah obeyed. Genesis 6:9 tells us he walked with God. We know he revered God because this was no small task he agreed to do. And we can believe Noah talked with God regularly since he recognized His voice.
As much as I would like to know more, the details about Noah are intentionally left out of the Bible because this story is not about Noah; it is about God saving the world through one righteous man.
This is a foreshadowing of God saving the world through another righteous Man, Jesus.
To live by faith calls for obedience. (17–22)
If you read chapters 6–9 of Genesis, you see a pattern. God asks Noah to do some risky tasks and Noah obeys. In chapter 6, God tells Noah why He has chosen him and gives him detailed instructions on how to build the ark. In verse 22, we see that Noah “did everything that God had commanded him.”
You can see this pattern repeated in Genesis 7:5, 8:18 and 9:19. God commands, and Noah obeys. No matter how wild the commands seemed or how risky the tasks were, Noah trusted and obeyed God.
The trust Noah had for God didn’t just appear when God gave him instructions on how to build an ark. This trust was built by walking with God over time and seeing His faithfulness. When we walk with God, the risky things don’t seem so risky because we trust Him.
To live by faith is to honor and worship God. (8:20–22)
When Noah and his family came out of the ark, the first thing he did was build an altar and offer a burnt offering to God.
This was an act of worship that pleased God. Everything worked! Noah’s family survived, the animals were alive, the waters had receded and they were once again on dry land.
Noah could’ve puffed himself up and patted himself on the back for successfully executing a world-saving mission. But he didn’t. He worshipped God instead.
When we have a righteous relationship with God, we are obedient to Him.
This right relationship minimizes our own ability and magnifies God’s faithfulness. We praise God for the works He accomplishes through our obedience.
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