Genesis 9: 1-17 - Timothy Keller- Noah

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Timothy Keller- Noah- Genesis 9: 1-17

The story of Noah and the flood is about second chances and new beginnings; God is ready to give us another chance. God calls us into three great relationships: with the earth, with all the people on earth, and with the Lord of the earth. God never calls anyone into a covenant relationship unless it is a saving relationship.

Three relationships- Earth (ecology), people of the Earth (justice) and  with the Lord of the Earth(grace.)

Earth- Verses 2 and 3 by themselves have you thinking that God may have been saying do whatever you want.  10 says the covenant is with us and every living creature.  16 says all living creatures, every creature on the earth.  13 says between God and the earth.

A covenant relationship is a saving relationship.  You’re in trouble because of evil and sin and God is going to save us from sin through a relationship.  He’s doing that with us and animals and the earth.  It’s our sin that we will commit, not animals, not trees.  NEVER AGAIN WILL I CURSE THE EARTH BECAUSE OF MAN.  Nature doesn’t work well in general because of our sins, humans exploit nature. 

Romans 8- There is no one perfect balance in nature.  God is committed to saving nature, renewing it.  God calls us into a personal relationship with nature as well. 

God is renewing everything.  He brings heaven down to earth to renew it through Jesus Christ.  All other religions are totally different.  God comes to US, he saves us.              

Psalm 19- The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.

2 Day after day they pour forth speech;  night after night they reveal knowledge. They have no speech, they use no words;  no sound is heard from them.

Creation is speaking to you.  Why do people look at nature and say God must be real.  Because they are speaking to you.  It’s our jobs to make sure the birds keep singing, the waterfalls keep flowing etc.

Psalm 96  Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad; let the sea resound, and all that is in it.

12 Let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them;  let all the trees of the forest sing for joy.

13 Let all creation rejoice before the Lord, for he comes, he comes to judge the earth.

Justice with all people of the earth-  Genesis 9:5 And surely your blood, [the blood] of your lives, will I require; At the hand of every beast will I require it. And at the hand of man, even at the hand of every man's brother, will I require the life of man.

Every single person rich or poor, smart or dumb, black or white, strong or weak is the same in God’s eyes.  Do not strike anyone for any reason or God finds that as an attack on himself.  Every life is precious to God. 

Human life is valuable.  If all there is to life is nature then none of our lives mean anything.  If there is a God all of our lives are incredibly valuable.  No one is better than another.

This world matters.  We should be indiscriminate in giving practical help to people, whether they believe or not they are valuable to God.  We need to help EVERYONE.  Have no superiority.