Pastor David Morrison

Genesis 6:22 (NLT)

- It took about 120 years to build this boat. People live to be much older in those times.

- Seven days before the flood, Noah and his family entered the Ark with a pair of every type of animal.

Genesis 7:15-16 (NLT)

- It rained for 40 days and nights, and the water rose to cover the highest mountain. And they covered the earth for 150 days.

Genesis 8:1 (NLT)

- Throughout the Bible, we find examples of God's presence described as a dove. For example, during creation, the dove hovered over the waters in preparation for the new creation.

- Over a year on the Ark, Noah and His Family and the Animals lived!

Genesis 8:15-17 (NLT)

- Noah made a sacrifice to the Lord. God made a covenant with Noah that He would never again destroy the earth like this and placed a rainbow in the sky.

The story of Noah and the Ark is one of many stories that point towards a need to fix the problem of sin and evil in the world.

1 Peter 3:18-22 (NLT)

- Many people will say, "How could God allow all those to be killed by the flood?" This Scripture seems to provide evidence that Christ provided a chance for redemption. The flood wasn't the end of their story.

Come on, y'all, the story of God's plan for redemption is all over the story of Noah and the Ark!

- Not even a flood can destroy sin.

- God uses one righteous man to save the human line.

- The method of this salvation is carried on pieces of wood fashioned together.

- The Dove hovers over the waters as creation is restored.

Genesis 7:13-16 (NLT)

- God closed the door on the Ark, this giant floating boat - so that nothing or no one could enter it. They waited over 300 days for the destruction process to be complete and for the water to recede.

Genesis 8:15-18 (NLT)

- We know that when Jesus was crucified on the cross, He was placed in a tomb, and a giant stone was rolled in front of it so that no one could enter or exit. But the efforts of the most muscular men could not stop what God was doing.

Luke 24:5b-6a (NLT)

- That stone that sought to trap the body of Jesus, one final effort by the enemy to defeat the Son of God, and one final effort from the power of sin to remain in control, was broken when that stone was rolled away!

Noah didn’t stay in the Ark. There was a brand-new world in front of him and a command to go, subdue, and fill the earth. Noah could have stayed in his safe Ark… He could have stayed in the boat and used it as his shelter… But that’s not what he was created for!

Sometimes, we try to follow Jesus and want to be saved, but with an open door, we try to stay in the tomb and pretend we are dead still.

That's not what you are created for! If Jesus has saved you, He hasn't just saved you for eternity. Jesus is calling us to step out of the BOAT...

Step out of the boat!

Leave the safety and comfort of the past behind. Your life has a calling. God has a purpose for it. That won’t be accomplished by waiting.

After His resurrection, Jesus told His disciples to go into all the world and preach the good news. They can do this because the same Holy Spirit that hovered over creation and Christ at His baptism dwells in us when we are in Christ.

This call to step out of the boat begins with accepting God’s free gift of salvation and continues when we say, “I surrender to you."

Will you step out of the boat today?

Today is your day to leave the past behind and start walking like you have been forgiven.