Building a Legacy Worth Leaving A Study in Hebrews 11 Harry W. Lewis

Session Five: Standing Firm Against Opposition  Character of the previous men: – Walked by Faith – Pleasing to God Believed God existed – Righteous like Abel (Genesis 6:9; 7:1) – Walked with God like Enoch (Genesis 6:9) – Found Grace (Genesis 6:8)

Session Five: Standing Firm Against Opposition  Cultural Circumstances in Noah’s Day – Wickedness of man had come to full fruition (Genesis 6:5)  God’s Intention: destroy mankind(Gen 6:6) – He set a limit of 120 years – Except for Noah: he was a righteous man living in an unrighteous world – He was going against the norms of the day

Session Five: Standing Firm Against Opposition  The Effects of the Fall in Genesis 3: – Downward spiral of righteousness – Cain killed Abel – Seth was born – Two genealogical lines began: Cain’s and Seth’s One unrighteous One righteous

Session Five: Standing Firm Against Opposition  Inter-marriage of the genealogical lines Genesis 6:2): – Sons of God – Daughters of men  Two viewpoints – Angels marrying the daughters of men – Sethites marrying Cainites

Session Five: Standing Firm Against Opposition  Nephilim: giants  Note the initiation of the marriage: – Sons of God: Sethites  Resulted in total depravity of mankind in general  Noah was the exclusion: he found favor with God (Genesis 6:8)

Session Five: Standing Firm Against Opposition  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, …. Matthew 24:37-38

Session Five: Standing Firm Against Opposition  God’s choice of Noah: – First because he was righteous: Known in his generation as righteous Ostracized for it – Second, he was to be a witness for God Trusted by God with His plan to destroy the world (Genesis 6:13) Given His plan to build an ark (Genesis 6:14) Noah was obedient (Genesis 6:22)

Session Five: Standing Firm Against Opposition  The Ark: – 450 feet long – 75 feet wide – 45 feet high  Noah’s challenge: – It had never rained (Genesis 2:6) – The ark would have created curiosity and probably ridicule

Session Five: Standing Firm Against Opposition  The Culture: – Did not change from its depravity – No converts: only Noah and his family entered the ark  Noah moved with Godly fear (Heb. 11:7) – Built the ark – Prepared for the animals – Entered the ark

Session Five: Standing Firm Against Opposition  Noah’s Legacy: He had a persevering faith: – He stood against the culture of his day – He saved his family from the flood – He was declared righteous and condemned the world – He had the privilege of walking with God – He was the father of mankind after the flood

Session Five: Standing Firm Against Opposition