Day 50: Living Obediently
Read: Genesis 7:1–5
Growing up, when I was asked to do things by my parents, I was notoriously bad about finishing things halfway. If they asked me to clean my room, it would appear clean when they walked in. However, when they went to check in my closet or under the bed, they would find absolute chaos. I remember again and again, my mom would remove all the things hidden under my bed and say, “Molly, if you’re going to clean, you have to do it the proper way.” She knew that hiding the problem didn’t take care of it. Over time, I learned that if I wanted to claim that my room was clean, I had to do all that was asked of me.
Genesis 6 shows that Noah was faithful to build the ark just like God asked him to, even though he faced ridicule. As we enter Genesis 7, the flood was about to begin. Noah was told by God in Genesis 7:1 to enter the ark, and multiple scholars agree that when God told him to go in the ark, He didn’t command Noah, but invited him to come in. God’s invitation for Noah to come into the ark points to His love and care. This was a beckoning to bring Noah into God’s grace and a provision for humanity to continue on. Noah’s was chosen due to his righteous behavior, and not just because he won some sort of lottery to avoid the flood. Chapter 7 really emphasizes Noah’s reputation and honorable character.
Verses 2 and 3 show that even before the law was given, there were already types of animals that had been set as clean and unclean. Clean animals could be eaten and sacrificed to God, and the unclean animals were allowed to live on the earth but would have other functions. God took great care in making sure that the animals that needed to come on the Ark would be the right amount and that they would live for the duration of the time that water consumed the earth.
In this chapter, verse 5 says Noah did all that the Lord commanded him. He didn’t do things halfway with the ark. We never see him complaining or handling what he had been commanded to do poorly. Rather, he humbly served God and followed the commands that were laid out before him. His godliness is a model for our own lives and we can look at his example of following after truth and love.
As believers, are we quick to do everything that God asks us to do? It’s a heart attitude that is so much deeper than just obeying a few commands. Take a moment to pause and see if there are currently any areas where you aren’t fully obeying the Lord right now. There is freedom in obedience, because God always knows what we need.