SPECIAL DAYS: First Sunday in Advent

November 29, 1998 - LESSON: Matthew 24 (selected)

SERMON TITLE: What Does Noah Have to Do with it, Anyway?

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INTRODUCTION:

  1. Code Red
    1. On a summer evening , Bruce D. Weaver and his wife of , Newcomerstown, OH. drove in the car to pick up their son from Vacation Bible School.(1)
    2. The sky was growing dark and there was a storm watch in effect, but no rain was falling yet.
    3. Mr. Weaver knew that the theme for Vacation Bible School had to do with Noah's ark and the flood, so he joked with some of the adult leaders about going to great lengths this year with special effects.
    4. He soon discovered the weather that evening was no joking matter.
      1. By the time he arrived home with his wife and son, the wind was blowing fiercely and lightning bolts were coming down all around us.
      2. They hurried inside the house and began to shut windows.
      3. Within a few moments they were without electrical power.
      4. Mr. Weaver and his wife tucked their son into bed, trying not to betray their concern regarding the severe weather conditions outside.
      5. He stood beside a window on the west side of the house and looked at the sky, watching intently for a funnel cloud.
    5. Suddenly the telephone rang.
      1. It was their neighbor informing them that a "code red" had been issued for their area.
      2. He confirmed that meant a funnel cloud actually had been sighted somewhere near them.
      3. He asked him why the siren in their small town was not sounding.
      4. He informed them that the siren could not be sounded because of power outage.
      5. He further explained that he had heard on his police scanner instructions for everyone who could hear the scanner to call their neighbors to inform them of the "code red."
      6. Mr. Weaver was thankful for his concern and he was thankful that the funnel cloud sighted damaged neither his family nor anyone else in their area.

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    6. Later that evening, Mr. Weaver thought about his neighbor's concern for he and his family and he reflected upon his concern.
    7. We all have concerns about our families.
      1. They are similar to those expressed by Mr. Weaver.
      2. We are grateful for the good times
      3. We struggle with the hard times.
  2. Jesus also had a concern for his family.
    1. His immediate family of mother and brothers and sisters.
    2. Also his wider family.
      1. One day as recorded in Matthew 12:46-50, Jesus was speaking to the crowds, his mother and his brothers were standing outside, wanting to speak to him.
      2. Someone told him, "Look, your mother and your brothers are standing outside, wanting to speak to you."
      3. But to the one who had told him this, Jesus replied, "Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?"
      4. And pointing to his disciples, he said, "Here are my mother and my brothers! For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother."
      5. We by virtue of our relationship with Christ are part of his family.
      6. He is deeply concerned about us.

MAIN BODY

  1. This is why Jesus issued his own "Code Red."
    1. As Jesus came out of the temple and was going away, his disciples came to point out to him the buildings of the temple. Then he asked them, "You see all these, do you not? Truly I tell you, not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down."
    2. Later the disciples came to him and asked:
      1. When he was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying,
      2. "Tell us, when will this be,
      3. and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?"

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  2. The disciples were intensely interested in what Jesus was attempting to reveal to them.
    1. It would be much worse than a tornado.
    2. Not only was Jerusalem going to be destroyed and its people dispersed, but also the world as they knew it was going to be replaced with the world as God had envisioned it.
    3. Jesus warned them that
      1. Matthew 24:36: "But about that day and hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.
    4. One of the more important suggestions that he makes is found in verse 37:
      1. 37 For as the days of Noah were, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.
  3. We have to ask ourselves, "What does Noah have to do with this, anyway?"
    1. What was it like in the days of Noah?
      1. People were eating and drinking.
        1. Nothing wrong with that.
        2. It is necessary for sustaining a healthy and productive life.
      2. The people were marrying and giving in marriage.
        1. That sounds OK as well.
        2. Reproduction is necessary for the continuing of human life.
    2. There was a serious flaw in the lives of the people of Noah's day.
      1. They did not know!
      2. How could they not know?
    3. Noah was building a huge boat.
      1. That was sure to get attention.
      2. Especially as there does not appear to be anyway that this is going to be useful.

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    4. Noah was preaching.
      1. (2 Peter 2:5 NRSV)
        1. ...even though he saved Noah, a herald of righteousness, with seven others, when he brought a flood on a world of the ungodly.
        2. There is your clue.
        3. They were ungodly.
      2. This is what God saw when he examined the world of Noah.
        1. (Genesis 6:5-6 NRSV) The LORD saw that the wickedness of humankind was great in the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of their hearts was only evil continually.
        2. [6] And the LORD was sorry that he had made humankind on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart.
      3. God gave them 120 years
        1. (Genesis 6:3 NRSV) Then the LORD said, "My spirit shall not abide in mortals forever, for they are flesh; their days shall be one hundred twenty years."
    5. They still didn't get it.
      1. Their hearts were evil.
      2. Their hearts were hard.
      3. They would not believe.
      4. They had developed a desensitivity to God and time.
  4. We enter the season of Advent.
    1. Advent is important for our preparation of Christmas.
    2. Whose birth do we celebrate?
      1. Emmanuel, God with us.
      2. Jesus, He shall save his people from their sins.

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    3. The child, whose birth we celebrate is more than a child.
  5. We can reconstruct some of the pre-history of Jesus.
    1. Remember that Jesus lived before he was born.
      1. (John 1:1-2, 14, NRSV) In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
      2. [2] He was in the beginning with God...
      3. And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father's only son, full of grace and truth.
    2. He had fought against the prince of darkness and had defeated him.
      1. There was war in heaven.
        1. (Revelation 12:7-9 NRSV) And war broke out in heaven; Michael and his angels fought against the dragon. The dragon and his angels fought back, [8] but they were defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven.
        2. [9] The great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the Devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world--he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.
      2. Jesus watched Satan fall
        1. (Luke 10:18 NRSV) He said to them, "I watched Satan fall from heaven like a flash of lightning.
    3. In coming to earth the battle was rejoined.
      1. (Matthew 4:1-3 NRSV) Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. [2] He fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was famished. [3] The tempter came and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread."
      2. (John 14:30 NRSV) I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming. He has no power over me;

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    4. Jesus defeated the enemy once and for all time.
      1. (John 12:31 NRSV) Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be driven out.
    5. Though he was defeated there was still a work to do.
      1. Jesus comes so that he can come again.
      2. (Matthew 24:33-37 NRSV) So also, when you see all these things, you know that he is near, at the very gates. [34] Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place. [35] Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. [36] "But about that day and hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. [37] For as the days of Noah were, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.
      3. Humanity has not yet reached the depths of the days of Noah.
  6. We do not have to be like an ancient people who were overwhelmed by a flood.
    1. We have our own floods to deal with.
      1. Flood of commercialism.
      2. Flood of immorality.
      3. Flood of violence.
    2. We can know.
    3. We can be sensitive of our own spiritual condition.
    4. We can be sensitive to time.

CONCLUSION:

  1. A man was seated on a park bench when a small lad about 5 years old sat down and started winding what appeared to be a prized possession - a Mickey Mouse watch.
    1. "What a neat watch! Does it tell you the time?" The stranger asked.
    2. "No, you gotta look at it," said the boy.
  2. You gotta look at it.

1. Bruce D. Weaver, Newcomerstown, OH.

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