KEEPING THE ENTIRE FAMILY SAFE IN THE ARK

TRETS 3/5/2018                 KEEPING THE ENTIRE FAMILY SAFE IN THE ARK

Gen 6. 9-18, 22; 7.

The Ark of Noah was a safety haven for his entire family of seven. Noah lived in a very corrupt and polluted world upon which the judgment of God became inevitable. But Noah met God’s conditions of righteousness and holiness. His life and character pleased the Lord, therefore he found grace with God.  While God planned to destroy the earth for their disobedience, he planned a means of safety for Noah and his family. Noah was to build the Ark, and warn the people of God’s impending judgment. By instruction, He kept his family safe in the ark while the entire corrupt world perished in the flood. God is still interested in our families. His plan for us is to be safely preserved from the pollutions of this world and its impending doom. Today, Jesus Christ is the Ark of safety that can safely secure us and our families. As leaders and parents, our principal duty is to bring our family members to the Lord and to keep them consistently safe under God’s protection to the end.

Crisis and fiery judgment of Sinners without Christ

Matt. 9.36, Luke 15.17, Job 21.17-20, Isa 33.14, Rev. 20.11-15, Luke 16.19-31

Sinners are all of the same destiny before the Lord except they repent. Those that are within the church building and those that are without. Whichever way they may fall, they stand completely separated from the living God and the fiery indignation of God’s judgment looms upon them. The uniform experience of all sinners is fear and fainting of God’s judgment anytime because their sins are not forgiven. Being separated from God makes them to be living in the wilderness of life without direction and without hope of tomorrow. They are separated from God’s protection, separated from God’s provisions and separated from God’s presence. The prodigal son realized that without his father, he was completely separated from the source of life and livelihood (Luke 15.17). So also is the sinner in this world including our unsaved family members, and if they are not won to the savior before death, they will cry in eternity. This was the fate of the rich man in the days of Lazarus. In hell, he remembered his unsaved family members but it was too late for him. Sinners are under the ruin of Satan and are being tormented day by day. Though some of them may have the good of this life, yet they are impoverished spiritually which spells their doom. Why must you know the truth of salvation and hide same for your loved ones who are on their way to hell fire? Therefore, we must do everything within our power to bring them to Christ at all cost.

Conditions of Family’s Safety in Christ Gen. 7. 1-7, Gen. 18.19, Acts 20. 18-21, Rom. 12. 9-10,

God’s saw that Noah was a righteous man and his family was obedient to him. The condition of safety for Noah’s family was their obedience in entering and staying in the ark. Their trust and faith in God through the command of their father made them obey and abided in the ark. This gave them the needed safety and security from the destructive flood of God’s judgment. God also testified the same of Abraham and this extended God’s blessings to the entire family as well.

The same conditions still apply today. Firstly, We must be born again. The head of the home must know the God Almighty as his Lord and Saviour. Then he must take the pain to minister this grace to the other members of the family by preaching to them repentance from sin and faith in the Lord jesus Christ. Secondly, he must endeavor to lead a life that complement the message of Salvation by being kind to them as the Lord has taught us. Thirdly, every family member must be taught of the importance of quiet time and family devotion where the word of God is being read, established and prayed over every day (Mark 1. 35).

Continuous Faithfulness for security through Christlikeness. John 15. 1-7, John 8.31, Matt. 24.13

After giving their lives to the Lord, the family members must know that continuous abiding faith in the Lord is the only way to be permanently secured to the end. We must encourage everyone to continue in Christ as the only way to our eternal home. Always remind them that failure to abide might lead to perdition like Lot’s wife (Luke 17.32). To avoid her experience, we must consecrate our lives to the Lord as a living sacrifice (Rom. 12. 1-2), teach them to live a life that is separated from the world and render effective service to God. Doing this will make them rapture ready and make our entire family to avoid the great tribulation. Benefits of keeping our families saved includes tremendous blessing from God and eternal reign with Him in Heaven