But as the days of Noe were...so it is today
Perilous times had come. Evil men and seducers had waxed worse and worse. The LORD had said "My spirit shall not always strive with man...yet his days shall be one hundred and twenty years" [Gen. 6:3]. By the grace of God, Noah preached and warned to the end, but God had a set time, and would bring things to a close. He would intervene in the affairs of mankind, for they had irretrievably corrupted themselves. And that he did, sending the flood in upon the wicked [Gen. 6:5,17].
"But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the son of man be" [Matt. 24:37]. The LORD has another scheduled time for another intervention into the affairs of mankind, for they have thoroughly corrupted themselves once again. This time it will be personal. The rejected Son of God, the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, will break in upon this lost world, and that also, as at the first, at a set time [2Thes. 1:8-9]. No man knows the day or hour, no, but the "coming of the Son of man" is as certain as was the arrival of the day of the flood in Noah's time [Luke 17:26-27]. Surely, as we watch the course of events in the world today, none would argue against the truth that perilous times have once again overtaken the earth, and that evil men have once again waxed worse and worse [2Tim. 3:1,13], rejecting God Himself, and setting themselves in his place. Truly it is today as it was...in the days of Noe.
The "day of the Lord" draweth nigh. It will be at the appointed time. In Noah's day, "they knew not until the flood came and took them all away" [Matt. 24:39]. Before that day breaks suddenly upon this hopeless antichrist loving world and sweeps away the reprobate among men, the Lord Jesus Christ has promised to first come for his own [John 14:2-3]. If the one is close, how much closer the other? The book of Hebrews tells us that Noah "moved with fear, [and] prepared an ark to the saving of his house" [Heb. 11:7]. Are you prepared..? for ye know not when that day cometh.
In this little sermonette, written in 1861, highly regarded Bible expositor Charles Henry Mackintosh (CHM), in dealing with these subjects, spoke of a time as of then yet future. The conditions he speaks of had not been completely fulfilled in his day, but they are the very conditions in which we find ourselves living in today, one hundred fifty-two years later, which he aptly describes as "a more hideous deformity than ever":
***
Matt. 24:37 'But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be'
"And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth. God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth......Make thee an ark of gopher wood..." [Gen. 6:12-14]
And [God] spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly. [2Peter 2:5]
Here was man's ruin, and God's remedy. Man had been allowed to pursue his career to the utmost limit, to bring his principles and ways to maturity. The leaven had worked and filled the mass. The evil had reached its climax. "All flesh" had become so bad that it could not be worse; wherefore nothing remained but for God to destroy it totally (Gen. 6:7). Let us glance, for a little, at the condition of those, to whom Noah had so long preached righteousness.
The long-suffering of God, and the testimony of His servant had both been slighted. Present things had engrossed them. The word of God was rejected. He told of judgement; but they did not believe. He spoke of sin and ruin; but they were not convinced. He spoke of a remedy; but they would not give heed. They went on with their own plans and speculations, and had no room for God. They acted as if the earth belonged to them, by a lease, for ever. God was shut out. "Every imagination of the thoughts of their heart was only evil continually" (Gen. 6:5); and hence, they could do nothing right. They thought, spake, and acted for themselves. They did their own pleasure, and forgot God.
And, my reader, remember the words of the Lord Jesus Christ, how He said, "as it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be in the days of the Son of man." Some would have us to believe, that ere the Son of man appears in the clouds of heaven, this earth shall be covered, from pole to pole, with a fair mantle of righteousness. They would teach us to look for a reign of righteousness and peace, as the result of agencies now in operation; but the brief passage just quoted cuts up by the roots, in a moment, all such vain and delusive expectations.
How was it in the days of Noah? Did righteousness cover the earth, as the waters cover the sea? Was God's truth dominant? Was the earth filled with the knowledge of the Lord? Scripture replies, "the earth was filled with violence." "ALL flesh had corrupted his way on the earth." "The earth also was corrupt before God" (Gen. 6:11-12). Well, then, "so shall it be in the days of the Son of man." This is plain enough." "Righteousness" and "violence" are not very like each other. Neither is there any similarity between universal wickedness and universal peace. It only needs a heart subject to the Word, and freed from the influence of preconceived opinions, in order to understand the true character of the days immediately preceding "the coming of the Son of man."
Let not my reader be led astray. Let him reverently bow to Scripture. Let him look at the condition of the world, "in the days before the flood;" and let him bear in mind, that "as" it was then, "so" shall it be at the close of this present period. This is most simple — most conclusive. There was nothing like a state of universal righteousness and peace then, neither shall there be anything like it by and by.
No doubt, man displayed abundant energy in making the world a comfortable and an agreeable place for himself; but that was a very different thing from making it a suitable place for God. So, also, at this present time; man is as busy as he can be, in clearing the stones off the pathway of human life, and making it as smooth as possible; but this is not "making straight in the desert a highway for our God;" nor is it making "the rough places smooth," that all flesh may see the salvation of the LORD. Civilization prevails; but civilization is not righteousness. The sweeping and garnishing are going forward; but it is not in order to fit the house for Christ, but for Antichrist.
The wisdom of man is put forth in order to cover, with the folds of his own drapery, the blots and blemishes of humanity; but, though covered, they are not removed! They are and will, ere long, break out in more hideous deformity than ever. The painting of vermilion will soon be obliterated, and the carved cedar wood destroyed. The dams, by which man sedulously seeks to stem the torrent of human wretchedness, must soon give way before the overwhelming force thereof. All the efforts to confine the physical, the mental, and the moral degradation of Adams posterity within those enclosures, which human benevolence, if you please, has devised, must, in the sequel, prove abortive.
The testimony has gone forth. "The end of all flesh has come before me" (Gen. 6:13). It has not come before man; but it has come before God; and, albeit, the voice of the scoffers may be heard, saying, "Where is the promise of his coming? For, since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation;" yet the moment is rapidly hastening on, when those scoffers will get their answer. "The day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also, and the works that are therein, shall be burnt up." (2 Peter 3: 3-4,10)
This, my reader, is the answer to the intellectual scoffs of the children of this world, but not to the spiritual affections and expectations of the children of God. These latter, thank God, have a totally different prospect, even to meet the Bridegroom in the air*, before evil shall have reached its culminating point, and, therefore, before the divine judgement shall be poured forth thereon. The Church of God looks not for the burning up of the world, but for the arising of "the bright and morning Star."**
Now, in whatever way we look at the future, from whatever point of view we contemplate it, whether the object, which presents itself to the soul's vision be the Church in glory, or the world in flames, the coming of the Bridegroom, or the breaking in of the thief, the morning Star, or the scorching sun, the translation, or the deluge, we must feel the unspeakable importance of attending to God's present testimony in grace, to lost sinners. "Now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation." (2 Cor. 6:2) "God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them." (2 Cor. 5:19) He is reconciling now, He will be judging by and by; it is all grace now; it will be all wrath then; He is pardoning sin now, through the cross; He will punish it then, in hell, and that for ever.
He is sending out a message of purest, richest, freest grace. He is telling sinners of an accomplished redemption through the precious sacrifice of Christ. He is declaring that all is done. He is waiting to be gracious. "The long-suffering of our Lord is salvation." "The Lord is not slack concerning his promise as some men count slackness, but is long-suffering to usward, not willing that any should perish, that all should come to repentance." (2 Peter 3:9) All this makes the present moment one of peculiar solemnity. Unmingled grace declared! — unmingled wrath impending. How solemn! How deeply solemn!
And, then, with what profound interest should we mark the unfolding of the divine purposes! Scripture sheds its light upon these things; and such a light, too, that we need not, as another has said," vacantly stare on passing events, as those, who know not where they are, and whither they are going." We should accurately know our bearings. We should fully understand the direct tendency of all the principles now at work. We should be well aware of the vortex, toward which all the tributary streams are rapidly flowing on. Men dream of a golden age; they promise themselves a millennium of the arts and science; they feed upon the thought, that "tomorrow shall be as this day, and more abundant." But, oh! how utterly vain are all those thoughts, dreams, and promises.
Faith can see the clouds gathering thickly around the world's horizon. Judgement is coming. The day of wrath is at hand. The door will soon be shut. The "strong delusion" will soon set in, with terrible intensity. How needful, then, it is, to raise a warning voice — to seek, by faithful testimony, to counteract man's pitiable self-complacency. True, in so doing, we shall be exposed to the charge which Ahab brought against Micaiah, of always prophesying evil: but no matter for that. Let us prophesy what the word of God prophesies, and let us do this simply for the purpose of "persuading men."
The Word of God only removes from beneath our feet a hollow foundation, for the purpose of placing instead thereof, a foundation which can never be moved. It only takes away from us a delusive hope, to give us, instead, "a hope which maketh not ashamed."***
It takes away "a broken reed," to give us "the rock of ages." It sets aside "a broken cistern, which can hold no water," to set in its place "the fountain of living waters." This is true love. It is God's love. He will not cry "peace, peace, when there is no peace;" nor "daub with untempered mortar." He would have the sinner's heart resting; sweetly in His own eternal Ark of safety, enjoying a present communion with Himself, and fondly cherishing the hope, that, when all the ruin, the desolation, and the judgement, have passed away, it shall rest with him in a restored creation. CHM
--------------------------------------------------------
*Rapture and Second Coming: Separate Events - Lewis Sperry Chafer
**The Morning Star And The Dawning of Day
***The Blessed Hope - Titus 2:13
Perilous times had come. Evil men and seducers had waxed worse and worse. The LORD had said "My spirit shall not always strive with man...yet his days shall be one hundred and twenty years" [Gen. 6:3]. By the grace of God, Noah preached and warned to the end, but God had a set time, and would bring things to a close. He would intervene in the affairs of mankind, for they had irretrievably corrupted themselves. And that he did, sending the flood in upon the wicked [Gen. 6:5,17].
"But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the son of man be" [Matt. 24:37]. The LORD has another scheduled time for another intervention into the affairs of mankind, for they have thoroughly corrupted themselves once again. This time it will be personal. The rejected Son of God, the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, will break in upon this lost world, and that also, as at the first, at a set time [2Thes. 1:8-9]. No man knows the day or hour, no, but the "coming of the Son of man" is as certain as was the arrival of the day of the flood in Noah's time [Luke 17:26-27]. Surely, as we watch the course of events in the world today, none would argue against the truth that perilous times have once again overtaken the earth, and that evil men have once again waxed worse and worse [2Tim. 3:1,13], rejecting God Himself, and setting themselves in his place. Truly it is today as it was...in the days of Noe.
The "day of the Lord" draweth nigh. It will be at the appointed time. In Noah's day, "they knew not until the flood came and took them all away" [Matt. 24:39]. Before that day breaks suddenly upon this hopeless antichrist loving world and sweeps away the reprobate among men, the Lord Jesus Christ has promised to first come for his own [John 14:2-3]. If the one is close, how much closer the other? The book of Hebrews tells us that Noah "moved with fear, [and] prepared an ark to the saving of his house" [Heb. 11:7]. Are you prepared..? for ye know not when that day cometh.
In this little sermonette, written in 1861, highly regarded Bible expositor Charles Henry Mackintosh (CHM), in dealing with these subjects, spoke of a time as of then yet future. The conditions he speaks of had not been completely fulfilled in his day, but they are the very conditions in which we find ourselves living in today, one hundred fifty-two years later, which he aptly describes as "a more hideous deformity than ever":
***
Matt. 24:37 'But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be'
"And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth. God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth......Make thee an ark of gopher wood..." [Gen. 6:12-14]
And [God] spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly. [2Peter 2:5]
Here was man's ruin, and God's remedy. Man had been allowed to pursue his career to the utmost limit, to bring his principles and ways to maturity. The leaven had worked and filled the mass. The evil had reached its climax. "All flesh" had become so bad that it could not be worse; wherefore nothing remained but for God to destroy it totally (Gen. 6:7). Let us glance, for a little, at the condition of those, to whom Noah had so long preached righteousness.
The long-suffering of God, and the testimony of His servant had both been slighted. Present things had engrossed them. The word of God was rejected. He told of judgement; but they did not believe. He spoke of sin and ruin; but they were not convinced. He spoke of a remedy; but they would not give heed. They went on with their own plans and speculations, and had no room for God. They acted as if the earth belonged to them, by a lease, for ever. God was shut out. "Every imagination of the thoughts of their heart was only evil continually" (Gen. 6:5); and hence, they could do nothing right. They thought, spake, and acted for themselves. They did their own pleasure, and forgot God.
And, my reader, remember the words of the Lord Jesus Christ, how He said, "as it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be in the days of the Son of man." Some would have us to believe, that ere the Son of man appears in the clouds of heaven, this earth shall be covered, from pole to pole, with a fair mantle of righteousness. They would teach us to look for a reign of righteousness and peace, as the result of agencies now in operation; but the brief passage just quoted cuts up by the roots, in a moment, all such vain and delusive expectations.
How was it in the days of Noah? Did righteousness cover the earth, as the waters cover the sea? Was God's truth dominant? Was the earth filled with the knowledge of the Lord? Scripture replies, "the earth was filled with violence." "ALL flesh had corrupted his way on the earth." "The earth also was corrupt before God" (Gen. 6:11-12). Well, then, "so shall it be in the days of the Son of man." This is plain enough." "Righteousness" and "violence" are not very like each other. Neither is there any similarity between universal wickedness and universal peace. It only needs a heart subject to the Word, and freed from the influence of preconceived opinions, in order to understand the true character of the days immediately preceding "the coming of the Son of man."
Let not my reader be led astray. Let him reverently bow to Scripture. Let him look at the condition of the world, "in the days before the flood;" and let him bear in mind, that "as" it was then, "so" shall it be at the close of this present period. This is most simple — most conclusive. There was nothing like a state of universal righteousness and peace then, neither shall there be anything like it by and by.
No doubt, man displayed abundant energy in making the world a comfortable and an agreeable place for himself; but that was a very different thing from making it a suitable place for God. So, also, at this present time; man is as busy as he can be, in clearing the stones off the pathway of human life, and making it as smooth as possible; but this is not "making straight in the desert a highway for our God;" nor is it making "the rough places smooth," that all flesh may see the salvation of the LORD. Civilization prevails; but civilization is not righteousness. The sweeping and garnishing are going forward; but it is not in order to fit the house for Christ, but for Antichrist.
The wisdom of man is put forth in order to cover, with the folds of his own drapery, the blots and blemishes of humanity; but, though covered, they are not removed! They are and will, ere long, break out in more hideous deformity than ever. The painting of vermilion will soon be obliterated, and the carved cedar wood destroyed. The dams, by which man sedulously seeks to stem the torrent of human wretchedness, must soon give way before the overwhelming force thereof. All the efforts to confine the physical, the mental, and the moral degradation of Adams posterity within those enclosures, which human benevolence, if you please, has devised, must, in the sequel, prove abortive.
The testimony has gone forth. "The end of all flesh has come before me" (Gen. 6:13). It has not come before man; but it has come before God; and, albeit, the voice of the scoffers may be heard, saying, "Where is the promise of his coming? For, since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation;" yet the moment is rapidly hastening on, when those scoffers will get their answer. "The day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also, and the works that are therein, shall be burnt up." (2 Peter 3: 3-4,10)
This, my reader, is the answer to the intellectual scoffs of the children of this world, but not to the spiritual affections and expectations of the children of God. These latter, thank God, have a totally different prospect, even to meet the Bridegroom in the air*, before evil shall have reached its culminating point, and, therefore, before the divine judgement shall be poured forth thereon. The Church of God looks not for the burning up of the world, but for the arising of "the bright and morning Star."**
Now, in whatever way we look at the future, from whatever point of view we contemplate it, whether the object, which presents itself to the soul's vision be the Church in glory, or the world in flames, the coming of the Bridegroom, or the breaking in of the thief, the morning Star, or the scorching sun, the translation, or the deluge, we must feel the unspeakable importance of attending to God's present testimony in grace, to lost sinners. "Now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation." (2 Cor. 6:2) "God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them." (2 Cor. 5:19) He is reconciling now, He will be judging by and by; it is all grace now; it will be all wrath then; He is pardoning sin now, through the cross; He will punish it then, in hell, and that for ever.
He is sending out a message of purest, richest, freest grace. He is telling sinners of an accomplished redemption through the precious sacrifice of Christ. He is declaring that all is done. He is waiting to be gracious. "The long-suffering of our Lord is salvation." "The Lord is not slack concerning his promise as some men count slackness, but is long-suffering to usward, not willing that any should perish, that all should come to repentance." (2 Peter 3:9) All this makes the present moment one of peculiar solemnity. Unmingled grace declared! — unmingled wrath impending. How solemn! How deeply solemn!
And, then, with what profound interest should we mark the unfolding of the divine purposes! Scripture sheds its light upon these things; and such a light, too, that we need not, as another has said," vacantly stare on passing events, as those, who know not where they are, and whither they are going." We should accurately know our bearings. We should fully understand the direct tendency of all the principles now at work. We should be well aware of the vortex, toward which all the tributary streams are rapidly flowing on. Men dream of a golden age; they promise themselves a millennium of the arts and science; they feed upon the thought, that "tomorrow shall be as this day, and more abundant." But, oh! how utterly vain are all those thoughts, dreams, and promises.
Faith can see the clouds gathering thickly around the world's horizon. Judgement is coming. The day of wrath is at hand. The door will soon be shut. The "strong delusion" will soon set in, with terrible intensity. How needful, then, it is, to raise a warning voice — to seek, by faithful testimony, to counteract man's pitiable self-complacency. True, in so doing, we shall be exposed to the charge which Ahab brought against Micaiah, of always prophesying evil: but no matter for that. Let us prophesy what the word of God prophesies, and let us do this simply for the purpose of "persuading men."
The Word of God only removes from beneath our feet a hollow foundation, for the purpose of placing instead thereof, a foundation which can never be moved. It only takes away from us a delusive hope, to give us, instead, "a hope which maketh not ashamed."***
It takes away "a broken reed," to give us "the rock of ages." It sets aside "a broken cistern, which can hold no water," to set in its place "the fountain of living waters." This is true love. It is God's love. He will not cry "peace, peace, when there is no peace;" nor "daub with untempered mortar." He would have the sinner's heart resting; sweetly in His own eternal Ark of safety, enjoying a present communion with Himself, and fondly cherishing the hope, that, when all the ruin, the desolation, and the judgement, have passed away, it shall rest with him in a restored creation. CHM
--------------------------------------------------------
*Rapture and Second Coming: Separate Events - Lewis Sperry Chafer
**The Morning Star And The Dawning of Day
***The Blessed Hope - Titus 2:13
1 comment :
Amen! I have loved ones who have fallen for the lie/deception of Dominion and Replacement Theology. These two errors seem to go hand in hand. The common thread to all apostasy seems to be the notion that the Bible is NOT the literal Word of God, but rather is open to interpretation. Those who stand for truth (God's truth, NOT mans) are now becoming the minority within the church body. Noe and his family were a small remnant saved by God's grace; I fear that is going to be the case as well at the "coming of the Son of Man."
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