Saturday, February 9, 2013

RAINBOW

God Put a Rainbow in the skies


When it looked like the sun wouldn’t shine anymore,

God put a rainbow in the skies. [old song]

1. Water sustained the ark.

"But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be." Matt 24:37-39

"By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith." Heb 11:7

Water saved Noah not of itself, but by sustaining the ark built in faith, resting on God's word. The flood was for Noah a baptism, as the passage through the Red Sea was for the Israelites (1 Cor. 10:1-4). By baptism in the flood Noah and his family were transferred from the old world to the new.

2. God’s covenant with Noah is still in effect.

"While the earth remains, Seedtime and harvest, Cold and heat, Winter and summer, And day and night Shall not cease." Genesis 8:22

"The rainbow shall be in the cloud, and I will look on it to remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth." And God said to Noah, "This is the sign of the covenant which I have established between Me and all flesh that is on the earth." Genesis 9:16-17

"For this is like the waters of Noah to Me; For as I have sworn That the waters of Noah would no longer cover the earth, So have I sworn That I would not be angry with you, nor rebuke you. For the mountains shall depart And the hills be removed, But My kindness shall not depart from you, Nor shall My covenant of peace be removed," Says the Lord, who has mercy on you. Isaiah 54:9-10

"For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive by the Spirit, by whom also He went and preached to the spirits in prison, who formerly were disobedient, when once the Divine longsuffering waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water." 1 Peter 3:18-20

"The other view is that Christ went "in spirit" in the person of Noah and by him preached to those who were afterwards held in prison on account of their disobedience." —People's New Testament (Johnson’s Notes)

3. Covenant details.

"So God blessed Noah and his sons, and said to them: "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth. And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be on every beast of the earth, on every bird of the air, on all that move on the earth, and on all the fish of the sea. They are given into your hand. Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. I have given you all things, even as the green herbs. But you shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood. Surely for your lifeblood I will demand a reckoning; from the hand of every beast I will require it, and from the hand of man. From the hand of every man's brother I will require the life of man." Genesis 9:1-5

"In it were all kinds of four-footed animals of the earth, wild beasts, creeping things, and birds of the air. And a voice came to him, "Rise, Peter; kill and eat." But Peter said, "Not so, Lord! For I have never eaten anything common or unclean." And a voice spoke to him again the second time, "What God has cleansed you must not call common." Acts 10:12-15

The meaning of this vision is clear. Peter is hungry. He sees a sheet lowered down, containing all kinds of animals, reptiles, and wild beasts. Many of these are ritually "unclean" and the Law forbids any to eat them. The voice says: "Get up, Peter; kill and eat!" Peter answers: "I have never eaten anything considered defied or unclean. " This can only mean that the commands of the Law about "clean" and "unclean" foods have been canceled (Mark 7:19). Peter, as a Jew, would not associate with Gentiles (John 4:9). The purpose of the vision is to show Peter that God intends him to go with the messengers. See Eph. 2:13-18.

"Therefore do not let your good be spoken of as evil; for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. For he who serves Christ in these things is acceptable to God and approved by men."  Romans 14:16-18

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