Noah believed God
A Sermon on Noah from John 1:12-13 and Hebrews 11
Originally preached June 23, 1963
Scripture
12But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: 13Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
Sermon Description
In this sermon on Noah from John 1:12-13 and Hebrews 11 titled “Noah Believed God,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones gives the example of Noah and teaches that the Christian life is supposed to be markedly different than the rest of the world. Noah’s life was marked by faith and radical obedience. The rest of the world was consumed by ungodliness but Noah believed God when God warned him of coming wrath. He obeyed the word of God to build an ark and Noah’s faith contrasted the whole world. The Christian life is meant to be in contrast with the world. If the Christian has faith, they will not look like the world because that faith will change what they do with their speech, body, and mind. The Christian who is out of place because of righteousness is right where they should be. Dr. Lloyd-Jones describes the righteousness of the believer by saying that they are not perfect or sinless, but thoroughly upright and sincere. Even when a Christian sins, they strive toward righteousness. Like Noah, the Christian does not merely hear the warnings of wrath, but heeds them and hides in Christ.
Sermon Breakdown
- Noah was a just and perfect man among his contemporaries.
- Noah walked with God. God gave Noah assurance that he was pleased with him.
- Noah believed and obeyed God's warning about the coming flood.
- Noah was moved with fear - he had a realization of God's holiness, purity and judgment.
- Noah prepared the ark, God's way of salvation. He submitted to God's way.
- Noah preached righteousness to others through building the ark and warning them of judgment.
- We must believe and obey God's way of salvation in Christ to escape judgment.
- We must preach righteousness and warn others of judgment like Noah.
The Book of John
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.