I love the story of Noah and the ark. For one, it's a fascinating - albeit heartbreaking - tale of humanity, plainly showcasing their constant struggle between choosing good and choosing evil. I can just hear the incredulity of Noah when God tells him to build a boat in the middle of the desert, and the jeers and mockery of his neighbors when he complies. I can feel the wonder of every witness when animals start coming in throngs to the ark of their own accord, and the terror of those stuck on the outside once the doors are shut and the rains start. I sense the frustration of everyone on board the ark, after being cooped up on a boat for a solid year. I listen to Noah's heartfelt cries of worship after the Lord finally delivers him and his family in the mountains of Ararat.
The tale of Noah is one of real people, real emotions, real situations. But it also has a lot of symbolism in it. One of my favorites can be found in Genesis 6, when the Lord is describing to Noah how he should build the ark. He tells Noah to cover the ark with pitch inside and out. Many people don't think much of this sentence - in fact, when I was younger, I would always skim over all the "boring" directions for building the ark and go directly to the "interesting" part.
But, like everything with God, there's more to this than meets the eye. The Hebrew word for pitch is kopher. Kopher, however, does not just mean pitch. It also can mean a ransom, the price of a life, or atonement. And so, Noah's ark becomes not just a piece of wood, but a symbol of what Jesus would do for us thousands of years later.
Jesus came to save us. He came to redeem us. He came to be our kopher, our atonement. But He can only save us if we allow him to cover our lives, inside and out. Imagine if you were Noah building that boat. The pitch was the only thing keeping the water from seeping into the ship and killing everyone on board. Don't you think, then, that he was probably pretty liberal in applying that pitch to the ark?
In the same way, Jesus is the only thing standing between us and eternal death. And yet, so many people just sprinkle him on their lives. They use as little of Jesus as possible, only applying Him as needed. My friends, your spiritual life is no time for frugality. Jesus wants to give of Himself without restraint; why are we so hesitant to take of Him without reservation? Cover your lives inside and out with Jesus. Let Him be your kopher, your ransom. Don't make the mistake that Noah's neighbors did by scoffing at God's generosity and mercy, and only realized their mistake after it was already too late.
The tale of Noah is one of real people, real emotions, real situations. But it also has a lot of symbolism in it. One of my favorites can be found in Genesis 6, when the Lord is describing to Noah how he should build the ark. He tells Noah to cover the ark with pitch inside and out. Many people don't think much of this sentence - in fact, when I was younger, I would always skim over all the "boring" directions for building the ark and go directly to the "interesting" part.
But, like everything with God, there's more to this than meets the eye. The Hebrew word for pitch is kopher. Kopher, however, does not just mean pitch. It also can mean a ransom, the price of a life, or atonement. And so, Noah's ark becomes not just a piece of wood, but a symbol of what Jesus would do for us thousands of years later.
Jesus came to save us. He came to redeem us. He came to be our kopher, our atonement. But He can only save us if we allow him to cover our lives, inside and out. Imagine if you were Noah building that boat. The pitch was the only thing keeping the water from seeping into the ship and killing everyone on board. Don't you think, then, that he was probably pretty liberal in applying that pitch to the ark?
In the same way, Jesus is the only thing standing between us and eternal death. And yet, so many people just sprinkle him on their lives. They use as little of Jesus as possible, only applying Him as needed. My friends, your spiritual life is no time for frugality. Jesus wants to give of Himself without restraint; why are we so hesitant to take of Him without reservation? Cover your lives inside and out with Jesus. Let Him be your kopher, your ransom. Don't make the mistake that Noah's neighbors did by scoffing at God's generosity and mercy, and only realized their mistake after it was already too late.
Genesis 6:11-14
Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight and was full of violence. God saw how corrupt the earth had become, for all the people on earth had corrupted their ways. So God said to Noah, “I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. I am surely going to destroy both them and the earth. So make yourself an ark of cypress wood; make rooms in it and coat it with pitch inside and out.
Wow, that part about "kopher" was really interesting! Makes me understand why Matt wants to to study Biblical Greek!
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