Genesis 8:15–17, 20–22; 9:1–3, 8–13

GOD OFFERS NEW OPPORTUNITIES
Genesis 8:15–17, 20–22; 9:1–3, 8–13

Even the best human beings, including believers, are frail and faulty creatures. None of us is as consistent, competent or caring as we may wish to be. Some have made disastrous choices that have left their lives (and perhaps the lives of others) in shambles. They may despair, feeling life has nothing left for them. God desires that all people, regardless of past circumstances, turn to Him and discover fresh, new ways to live full, purposeful and productive lives. He provides new opportunities for His people to carry out His will.

Opportunities to Worship (8:15–17, 20–22)
The end of the great Flood of Noah’s day occurred when Noah’s ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat. For 377 days (nearly 54 weeks), God had preserved Noah, his family and the representative animals on the ark. Then God commanded Noah to leave the ark. Noah’s continued obedience to the Lord, not the circumstance of dry land (v. 13), dictated when Noah should leave the ark. He did not leave until God instructed him to do so. The animals were released so that the planet’s animal population could be replenished. 

The end of the Flood opened a new era and a new world for Noah and mankind. When the ark came to rest on Ararat, it was more than simply a physical landing on dry ground; it was a new beginning, a world with a clean and fresh start, filled with opportunities to do God’s will. 

The new life of mankind on earth began with an act of worship. Noah built an altar and offered burnt sacrifices to the Lord. The first human act after the Flood was to worship by sacrifice. Noah the ark-builder became Noah the altar-builder. This first reference in Scripture to an altar indicates that God’s people are a worshiping people who give, as a sacrifice to the Lord, what belongs to Him. Today three offerings are designated by Scripture as sacrifices: (1) the believer’s body (Rom. 12:1–2), (2) the believer’s vocal praise to the Lord (Heb. 13:15) and (3) the believer’s sharing his or her material possessions with others (Heb. 13:16).

After Noah made his sacrifices, God established His covenant with Noah and mankind, promising never to judge the earth again by water. God guaranteed the stability of earth’s environment, the regularity of the seasons of the year, the regularity of the weather and the regularity of time. In effect, the covenant was established to ensure the stability of nature. As long as there are days on the earth, the providential “laws of nature” are certain to continue. As Noah did, we please God by worshiping Him as we have new beginnings. 

Opportunities to Work (9:1–3)
God’s covenant with Noah stipulated that Noah and his sons were to engage in the activity of human population rebuilding. Noah was a kind of second Adam in a cleansed and re-created environment. These words point to the sanctity of life and of marriage. 

Like Adam, Noah was given dominion over the animals. The apparently harmonious order between animals and humans that existed prior to the rebellion in Genesis 3 would no longer hold true. Instead the animals would fear humans. This was in reality a gift from God to protect humans. Furthermore, unlike Adam, mankind now was allowed to eat meat and no longer simply a vegetarian diet as Adam had. Man may eat meat as long as it is not eaten with blood. 

In this post-Flood environment, God also gave Noah and his sons opportunities to exercise authority over all other earthly creatures. We, like them, are to accept gladly the work opportunities God gives to us.

Opportunities to Trust (9:8–13)
God’s covenant with Noah provided Noah and his family with another opportunity to trust God. This covenant (which God established and administers) was a covenant with all earthly creatures. It was cosmic and universal. It was a binding relationship between God and earthly creatures in which God charged Himself with the sole responsibility for keeping His oath. His promise was that a flood will never again destroy the earth as it had done in Noah’s lifetime. 

God attached a sign to the covenant as an all-embracing token of His faithfulness to His word. The rainbow became a perpetual reminder to our omniscient God that as our world-Protector, He will never flood the world again. The rainbow serves to remind us of our faithful, trustworthy, promise-keeping God. We can confidently trust Him in all His promises.