This week's "thought" is called "Shut
in by God" It comes from a book of daily devotions complied
from the writings of James Montgomery Boice, who served
at 10th Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia for over 30 years before his
relatively early death in 2000 at the age of 61. Boice was a gifted
and well-known Bible teacher who held degrees from Harvard, Princeton, and the
University of Basel in Switzerland, and whose "Bible Study Hour"
radio program can still be heard on air and online. This is the devotional
entry for - January 8th (today!) -- and offers three lessons we can learn from
the biblical narrative regarding Noah and his family. Enjoy.
Shut in by God
"And the Lord shut him in..."
Genesis 7:16
"Consider these three lessons.
FIRST, when the Lord shut Noah and his family up in the ark, they were
totally secure and thereby become an illustration for us of the believer's
perfect security in Jesus Christ. The rains would come. The
floods would rage. But nothing would touch these who had been sealed in the ark
by Jehovah. The Lord does not place the safety of his people in the hands
of others. He himself throws the bolt-lock. It is said of him, "What he
opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open" (Rev. 3:7 NIV)
The shutting in of Noah was the equivalent of our being sealed with the Holy
Spirit (Eph. 4:30). Like him we are not only saved; we are secure as
well.
SECOND, there is a lesson of God's great grace. The last thing we are told in
this story before the waters actually begin to come is that, 'the Lord shut him
in" (v. 16). Presumably this was done at the last possible
moment. Noah had been preaching God's righteousness, man's sin, and warning
of the great flood for years and years, but no one had believed him. They were
still refusing to believe. Yet the door to the ark remained open, and any who
wanted to could have gone inside. What great grace! What magnificent
forbearance on the part of God! Since Noah had believed and had gone in,
no one still outside could say that the possibility of belief was closed to
him. "Whoever willed" could come. So it is today. All who will may
come. Many do not, but none of these can say that the possibility of repentance
from sin and turning to Christ are beyond them.
FINALLY, there is a lesson in that there is an end to grace. Grace
is great, but it is not unending. If it is spurned, the day of reckoning eventually
comes. For one final week the door stood open. But the week ended, the door was
closed, and the flood came. The same God who opens doors is himself the door
(John 10:7 & 9). He also closes doors and refuses to open them when
the time of grace is gone. For you it is not yet past, whoever you may
be. This is still the day of grace, and though it will end, it has not
ended yet. Won't you come while there is still time? God said to
Noah, "Come... into the ark" (Gen. 7:1). At the end of the Bible we
read, "The Spirit and the Bride say, 'Come!' And let him who hears
say, 'Come!' And let him who is thirsty come; let the one
who desires take the water of life without price" (Rev.
22:17)."
Grace is the most wonderful thing! Nothing in
all the earth compares with it! And though it is God's nature to be
gracious, and the riches and glory of His grace will be (and should already be)
the source of endless praise among the recipients of it, the Bible makes clear
(as Boice rightly notes), that God's offer of grace will one day end.
Isaiah 61:2, in speaking of the ministry of
Jesus, states that He was to: "proclaim the year (or time) of the LORD's favor (grace), and the
day of the vengeance of our God." And Jesus did just that. He fulfilled this prophecy about Himself
by proclaiming the "year" (the time, season, or epoch) of God's grace
in light of the coming day of judgment. He did not preach that grace did away with
God's justice and judgment forever, but that God in His great mercy was
offering grace to all now in light of the impending Day of
Judgment which is to come.
The Gospel declaration (like Noah's message to
the people of his day) was, "Come for safety and salvation
now! Hurry! For the day is coming when the door of God's grace and mercy
will close, and the time of judgment will begin for all who have not entered
in." Peter proclaimed that message in Acts
2:38-41 on the Day of Pentecost. And Paul proclaims it as well
in II Cor. 5:20 - 6:2.
It assures us that the call of the Gospel must
always have a sense of urgency to it. For it's message is not, "Grace
to everyone now and forevermore," it is, "Now is the time
of God's favor! Today is the day of salvation! Come to Christ for mercy now,
for the day of wrath and divine judgment is coming" (II Cor. 6:2,
I Thess. 1:9-10, II Thess. 1:3-10). Yes, Scripture assures us that there
will come a day when the door of God's grace -- like the door on the
ark -- will one day be shut and all left outside (all who spurned His
offer of grace in Jesus) will experience God's great wrath.
So come now, says Scripture! Whosoever
will, come! Be sure you come to Christ before the door of God's free
offer of grace is closed to you forever.
If any of you have not yet come, I pray that by
God's grace you would, and without delay.
In the Service of the Gospel, Pastor Jeff
