EBG Preken

Psalm 110
Matteus 22:42-45
2 Petrus 3:8-14

Four fathers and a grandson
Genesis 9:20-29

This Father’s day we return to a passage in Genesis that we skipped during our In the Beginning sermon series. Noah disembarks the Ark, offers a sacrifice to God and receives a wonderful promise from God: “Never again.” The rainbow testifies to God’s remembrance of this promise.
Then Noah plants a vineyard. This scene ends with a cursed grandson. Sin stepped off the Ark as well and it does not take long before it rears its head. One author (Henry Morris) points out the similarities between Adam - the first human in the original creation - and Noah - the progenitor of the new world. “Both Adam and Noah were commanded to fill the earth and exercise control over it. Each of them is actually the ancestor of all men in the present world. Each sinned by partaking of a fruit - Noah of the fruit of the vine and Adam of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge. As a result, each became naked and then was provided with a covering by someone else. Finally the prophecy resulted in a curse which has affected mankind ever since.” (Genesis Record, 237)

Before we seek to understand the circumstances described by Noah’s sons, we need to establish an important truth: Sin has consequences. The way this story is told and the way the narrative flows doesn’t allow us to divorce Noah’s action from its sinful consequence. He planted a vineyard - not a sin. He drank of it’s produce - not a sin. He got drunk - this is a sin. He became immodest - this is a sin. Sure it was in his tent, but was it the action of a righteous man? No. The response of Shem and Japheth (going to great length to not see their father in this condition) tells us something about their family culture regarding nudity. They respected each other’s bodies and avoided exposing themselves in front of others.
Did this happen gradually? Let me explain what I mean… Could it be that Noah longed for the wine (a throw back to the pre-flood world) and planted the vineyard? Haven’t you ever thought: “I’ll only go this far. I can handle it. I will stop before I go to far. I won’t cross that line.” Whether or not that is what Noah’s thinking was, he crossed a line. He got drunk. There’s a gospel song that goes something like this: “Sin will always take you farther than you had wanted to go and it will always cost you more than you were willing to pay.” And how very true. You can choose your sin, but you can never choose your consequences. Noah failed and the price was steep.

So what did Ham do? He catches his dad in his immodesty. There does not need to be more to the story than what is immediately apparent. Many interpretations introduce sexual overtones to the narrative, but there really isn’t any warrant for this. Ham entered into his father’s tent and saw his father’s nakedness. The Hebrew verb chosen here carries the idea of “seeing with satisfaction”, which is why some interpreters have interpreted this sexually. But equally sinful would have been a pleased look that he found his father in this way. He revelled in his father’s spectacular failure and then he gossipped about it with his brothers (failing to protect his father’s reputation). What was his sin? It was tremendous disrespect.
Imagine if a friend of yours stumbles into back yard and collapses drunk and immodest. Would you just stand there and watch? Would you run and get your friends so that they can come and see this too? Or would you grab a blanket and take care of your friend?

The other two sons go to great lengths to show respect and to not look upon their father’s shame. They seek to protect his honor, despite his lapse in character. Ham sought to destroy his father’s honor because of his lapse in character. And this shows the heart attitude of these sons. Two seek to honor thy father. One seeks to dishonor.

So what about the curse? Why did Noach curse Canaan - his grandson - rather than Ham? I offer two explanations: one prophetic, one prosaic. Prophetically, God utters this curse upon Canaan, due to the people they will become. Out of Canaan will come the Philistines, the Jebusites and Ammorites. Very wicked and idolatrous people. Canaan’s descendents will build Niniveh, Sodom and Gomorrah. God pronounces a curse upon these people through the mouth of Noah. God is not flippant, because in promising to give the land to Abraham, God says his descendants will be oppressed by Egypt for 400 years - before the measure of the sin of the Ammorites has been filled. God is patient and the people refuse to repent.
Prosaically, Noach is establishing that if Ham models this disrespect, his son doesn’t stand a chance and will follow in his father’s footsteps. This is the kind of man that Canaan will become. He will never respect you or God and will become a cursed people.

I draw three conclusions from this text for Father’s Day:
> Fear the Lord and avoid evil. Proverbs 1:7 (Responsibility)
> Honor your own father. 1 Timothy 5:8, Proverbs 22:6 (Modeling)
> Always Punish disrespect and rebellious attitudes. Proverbs 1-11; Hebrews 12:5-11 (Follow through)

We need to keep a careful eye on our own holiness and walk, because our children watch our behavior and learn from you. That’s why we should model what we want our children to be. If I want my child to honor and respect me, I need to honor and respect my own father. And when my child does not evidence these traits and he disobeys, Scripture teaches me to punish in love, so that they learn to honor and respect. If they never learn to honor and respect you, they will never learn to honor and respect God.

Be a good dad and start in your own heart.

So Show it
Sermon 7: Hebrews 11:8-19

This morning’s sermon picks up where we left off with our Genesis series last week. The movement of the first eleven chapters of brings us to a genealogy in chapter 11, whose only purpose seems to be to introduce Abram - the friend of God. Genesis chapter one: Adam walk with God in the garden. This intimacy was lost. In chapter 5 it is rediscovered by Enoch, who walked with God in such a way that he is raptured - saving him from the wrath that was coming. In chapter 6 Noah is found to be righteous and he walked with God. He builds an ark and together with his family survives the flood. But in all of these chapters the reader is left with a question: “How do you walk with God?” What this walk looks like and how it is accomplished is not explained in the first eleven chapters. Enter Abram. This man receives 15 chapters in Genesis and is quoted by both Paul and James in their consideration and explanation of faith. He is called the friend of God in James, but God called him that first (Isaiah 41:8).
Last week I pointed out that Abraham wasn’t perfect and we already catch him in a lie in chapter 12. Walking with God isn’t about being perfect. It’s about faith - even when faith is uncomfortable.

Four Scenes (Hebrews 11:8-19)
We’ve already covered this chapter in this series, but I want to learn about faith from the four scenes the author of Hebrews picks from the life of Abram and Sarah.

He follows without knowing where (8)
Abram is called by God in Ur of the Chaldeans (Genesis 11:32; 15:7) to leave his country and his people and separate from his father’s household (Genesis 12:1-6). Abram is a descendant of Shem, but he doesn’t appear to be worshipping God and there is no mention of a righteous walk. God chooses Abram and not the other way around. However, Abram exercises faith by heeding the call and obeying God. This is the point made by the writer of Hebrews.

He abides without certain comforts (9-10)
Now Abram was wealthy - we read this in Genesis 13 - and yet he never puts down roots to build a city. This was the common practice in those days and despite not building a city, Abram is able to fight and defeat the city-kings of the East (with a force of 318 trained men) when they take his cousin Lot as spoil after defeating Sodom. Yet despite his wealth, reputation, and strength he never builds a city and remains in tents. He remained a stranger in this land God has promised him and the writer of Hebrews gives us the why: his hope was the city that God would design and build. He didn’t run ahead of God’s plan and time table. His faith was patient - even if it meant going without certain comforts.

He expects without precedent (11-12)
Hebrews shifts the focus to Sarah, who through faith conceives at the ripe age of 90. A lot happened in the meantime, including the incident with Hagar - which certainly wasn’t an act of strong faith. According to Genesis 21 Sarah conceived at the time that God had ordained. This is where Abram exercised faith and it was counted to him as righteousness (Genesis 15:6). He believed that God would keep His promises and he lived his life accordingly - even if there was not precedent of a 90 year old woman bearing children. Yes, there was doubt and manipulation along the way, but in the end - and they waited 25 years - Abraham and Sarah believed that God does what He says He will do. After these three scenes in Hebrews the author pauses with an incredible conclusion: God was not ashamed to be called their God. (11:16)

He trusts without knowing the outcome (17-19)
And then God asks the impossible of Abraham: sacrifice the son of promise (Genesis 22). And Abraham obeys and follows through. According to Hebrews he considered that if God could give him his son when His wife was too old to conceive, God could raise him from the dead too. There was not precedence for believing their either! So God intervenes as the knife comes down, but it was faith that compelled him to obey without knowing what God was planning or why God would ask this of him.

So show it James 2:21-24
When it comes to faith, James makes the point that the life of Abraham teaches us that faith isn’t stagnant. As one preacher put it: “there’s dead faith (17) and devilish faith (19) too and neither are going to get you very far.” Did Abraham work for His salvation? No, that’s not the point James is making… James uses Abraham’s life to establish that Abraham did more than say he had faith… he showed it. His life was a walk with God. Again: not perfectly, but believed God does what He says. And we are called to do the same… believe God. Have faith. Hold on. So...
Where He leads… I will follow.
Where He places me… I will remain.
What He promises… I will believe.
When He asks the impossible… I will trust.

“Christ teaches us not to save ourselves, but sacrifice ourselves. There is no such thing as belonging to Christ and living for yourself.” -- A.W. Pink

God intervenes
Sermon 8: Genesis 10-11

God’s instruction Followed (10)
Genesis 10 is called the Table of Nations by scholars. This is not just another genealogy, but describes people groups and where they settled. Perhaps this chapter is better described as an Atlas of the Ancients - the sons of Noah. People scattered and filled the earth.

God’s intervention Unfolded (11:1-10)
The tower of Babel is significant. Chapter 10 gives you the impression people obeyed God, but chapter 11 explains that under Nimrod’s leadership everyone decided to stay in one place and make a name for themselves - not God. Let us make our own connection to the heavens. God intervenes and confuses their languages.
Note: they say, "come let us…" and God mimics this in verse 7. God comes down to see this building project of rebellion.

God’s introduction of His Friend (11:11-27; 12:1-4, James 2:23)
This last genealogy picks up Shem’s line, which brings us down to Abram, who God calls in 2013 and who is a major feature of Genesis (covering 15 chapters: through 25:12). Oswald Chambers: “Abraham is not a type or an example of the holiness of sanctification, but a type of the life of faith— a faith, tested and true, built on the true God.”
We read about the intimacy between God and Adam in the garden. We hear about Enoch's walk with God and Noah’s righteousness. But Abraham is the first documented life with enough details to give us an impression of what walking with God looks like.

Faith, hope and Suffering?
Sermon 6: 1 Peter 2:19-25

Open Doors is an organisation that supports the persecuted Church and informs Christians throughout the world about the plight of persecuted Christians. The organize one Sunday a year and ask Churches to pray for the persecuted Christians: Sunday for the persecuted Church.
I support this effort and set this Sunday apart for us to do exactly that.
This morning’s outline is simple and with follow Peter’s discussion of suffering for Christ’s sake in 1 Peter 2:19-25. My outline is simple: It starts with A CHALLENGE 2:11-12, A CONVICTION 2:19-20, and A CALLING 2:21-25.

A Challenge 11-12
Peter calls his reader’s beloved and then points them to consider their walk and God’s calling for them to be strangers (he’s already called them that in chapter 1)... act like it. What is the challenge: let the unsaved see you walk, so that they might glorify God. This is quite the challenge and here is the aim… evangelism. Living life in front of a watching sea of unbelievers.

A Conviction 19-20
Here is the central matter… suffering is evidence of grace. We don’t think like that. But the persecuted Church teaches us to bring things into a proper perspective. Suffering for Christ may not be fun, but it does give you Joy. You don't suffer alone, because the Holy Spirit comforts us when we suffer. Jesus said it and Peter repeats it: blessed are the persecuted… it is a blessing and not a curse. Grace and not defeat.

A Calling 21-25
Walk like Jesus. Where did Christ's walk take him? To the cross. Should we expect anything less if we are following in his footsteps? Pick up your cross, Jesus said.

Old and New and the Same
Sermon 7: Genesis 9

As we approach this last chapter about Noah, let’s not forget that these are the words of his sons. Our perspective is not Noah’s, but that of three young men (well, they were over 100 - not so young) that witness God’s dealings with their father.
Noah is polarizing. Unsaved people mock this story and dismiss it, Christians are split on this story and they sanitize it. But God includes three chapters about his dealings with this man - we get more details about Noah’s life than we do about Adam’s.
Noah and his family disembark the ark and build an altar to worship God. One of the questions I often hear is what happened to the ark? It’s a huge ocean liner that ended up on the top of a mountain range. Why can’t we find its remnants?
The answer to my thinking is simple: they stepped off the ark into a world of destruction, where building materials were scarce. I imagine the ark was repurposed.

An Old Command 9:1
God blesses Noah and his sons and repeats His command from chapter 2: be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth. Just as with Adam: go and fill the earth. And they did. We all are descendants from Noah. We descended from the man that survived the flood. It is a common record in every culture on earth. We are survivors of a cataclysmic flood that dramatically changed this earth.

A New Change 9:2-7
God changes man’s relationship to the animals: he changes our diet and gives us BBQ. Humor aside, God clearly expands man’s diet in verse 3.
Sidenote: much of today’s push toward vegetarianism and a vegan lifestyle is more about undoing God’s decree than it is about the kind treatment of animals.
This makes way for a very important stipulation God gives about man. He clarifies that man is not the same as animals and killing animals is not the same as killing a man. In poetic style the old command and the new change come together (verses 6-7): Man bears the image of God and they are to fill the earth.

A New Covenant 9:8-17
God makes an unconditional covenant with all of creation: you will never again have to fear judgment through a global flood: to destroy the earth. Can you imagine the fear that could have gripped their hearts the first time they heard thunder or the next time it rained? What if one of the brothers insulted the other and they felt raindrops on their head. Fear would have gripped them. God in His grace promises that they do not have to fear and he gives them a sign. At that moment, the brother can look up and see God’s reminder.
The rainbow is a wonderful sign that teaches us to remember, but that is not actually what God says in verse 14-15. God says the bow is there for Him to remember His promise. We tend to look at the bow and think that it is merely a bow, but the word used here is “war bow”, as in a bow and arrow… a hunter’s weapon. The rainbow is God’s reminder that hostility against man has ceased… He has hung it up. Spurgeon noted that God hung the bow pointed away from man and it’s arrows now point to Himself. This could be a veiled reference to Christ’s atoning work.
What is most disconcerting, however, is that the LGBT community has taken this sign and repurposed it be their emblem.

An Old Complication 9:18-29
And then we read that something else stepped off the ark. Sin survived the flood also… it hitched a ride in their hearts (cf. 8:21). Noah plants a vineyard and gets drunk. Why? Well… why do you sin? It was a lapse in judgment, poor decision making, most likely a series of bad decisions. It is sad to read this, but the Bible presents us with the unvarnished truth. I am not going to comment too much this morning, because I will revisit this passage in four weeks - on Father’s Day. Suffice it to say sin has not been eradicated. Despite God’s sweeping judgment, man still sins. Man still rebels. Man does not obey. Man does not walk perfectly with God.

There are parallels with Pentecost… an old command to love, a New Covenant in Christ’s blood, a new sign in the coming of the Comforter, a new beginning in the Church, and the same problem: sin. But now it is different… Christ has come. God turned the bow of His wrath upon Himself and He took the punishment for our sin. We do not have to serve sin and we now have the indwelt Holy Spirit, who helps us walk with God. And He is the down payment for the glorious inheritance that awaits us. We still sin, but it’s not the same… we look to the cross, knowing that the payment for our sin has been made. We look inward to the Holy Spirit, who compels us to walk worthy. And we look forward to the day of Christ’s return.