For more messages from Charles Stanley, including this week’s broadcast, go to intouch.org/tv.
[Music]
could you say and should it be said of
you that according to the way you’re
living your life now is in your family
well the people you work with or play
with would they think of you and say one
thing I know about him about her they
listen to God
four decades ago we started in touch
ministries to lead people worldwide into
a growing relationship with Jesus Christ
throughout the years we’ve seen God’s
greatness his love and his blessings in
such awesome ways that we just want
everyone to know him so let’s open God’s
Word and seek Him together next on
InTouch walking in the favor of God are
three somebody might ask well why would
God destroy the world after he took such
pains to make it so beautiful to begin
with and in the book of Genesis God’s
description of what he created was
awesome but think about this ten
generations after that Noah came along
so ten generations have gone by since
the creation since Adam and Eve well
what happened in all of those ten
generations well I look back for example
and think well I’ve lived through to a
little over two and I can see what’s
happened in this country in two
generations if a generation is 40 years
and that’s what we sort of consider look
what’s happened in this country it isn’t
unbelievable no one would have imagined
we’d be where we are today from where we
were eighty years ago and then of course
go back further than that and so let’s
go back to 1600 and 20 that would be
compared to where Noah was for the
creation there abouts all the way back
to 1600 think about all the changes that
have been made all the advancements
we’ve made but also all the things that
have happened that it not been good so
look at that and then look at today
that’s just 80 years but go back 400
years and so we say well why would God
destroy such a beautiful
and here’s the reason because the
wickedness of man was great on the earth
and that every intent of the thought of
his heart was only evil continually will
you watch the television listen to the
radio and listen to the people talk does
that sound a lot like this every intent
of the thoughts and of his heart was
only evil continually the Lord was sorry
that he had made man on the earth and he
was grieved in his heart that his God
was brokenhearted the Lord said I will
blot out man whom I have created from
the face of the land from man to animals
to creeping things and to the birds of
the sky for I am sorry that I have made
them and so that’s very dismal very
discouraging God said I’ve created all
of this now I’m sorry let me ask you a
question have you ever felt like when
you were praying or maybe it’s something
that you were praying about and God said
I’m sorry you’ve done that I’m sorry
you’ve done that because God doesn’t
like to chastise anybody and so in spite
of all the evil going on the next verse
says but Noah found favor in the eyes of
the Lord and these are the records of a
generation of Noah Noah was a righteous
man blameless in his time and walk with
God righteous blameless and walk with
God somebody’s as well.this blameless
mean he never sinned though that two
Hebrew words for sin and one of which
indicates that a person sins
occasionally the other one indicates
that a person is just the sinner just
this lives that count of life and so the
scripture says the earth was corrupt in
the sight of God and the earth was
filled with violence God looked on the
earth and the hill was corrupt of all
the flesh had corrupted their way upon
the earth then God said to Noah the end
of all flesh has come so one family one
man in all here and so think about this
for a moment suppose you and your family
were the
my family in Atlanta and God said to you
I’m gonna destroy everybody in this city
and in the surrounding counties
everybody you and your family they’re
gonna be the only ones left what would
you think what do you think first of all
of your friends your family and you
think well why would God do such a thing
well the reason God did what he did is
because the scripture says the
wickedness of man was great on the earth
and that every intent of the thought of
his heart was only evil continually that
is how bad yet now let’s think about
this for a moment suppose we in this
country and around the world suppose we
continue to move in the direction we’re
moving away from God with the antenna
bellhart
seeking pleasure at any cost mistreating
each other killing each other all kinds
of atrocities that yarn but suppose we
keep doing that for a couple of
generations where will we be we can’t
even imagine it but that was what was
happening in the days in which the Bible
says that Noah found favor in the eyes
of the Lord that is he looked at Noah
and he saw man who was absolutely
different and God reached down and spoke
to his heart and gave him a command
which he of course followed so I ask you
this question if God were looking for
righteous people today would you fall in
that category could you say that you are
living a godly life a holy life a
righteous life or would you be caught up
with a crowd that Noah was having to
deal with while he was a blameless man
the days in which he lived were full of
sin and wickedness to the point that God
said I’m sorry I made them and therefore
here’s what I’m gonna do as a result of
it so when I think about Noah and think
about how long he lived and then God
said
I can’t put up with any more of it but
he found one man that man had three
characteristics that all of us should
have in our life
and that is that we do what we listen to
him we what trust him and we obey Him so
think about this if I listen to him I
don’t know what to do if I trust him
that means I know it’s going to work out
right and if I’ll beim I’m gonna be
blessed if I don’t listen to him I am
NOT gonna trust them and I’m not gonna
obey them so what does that tell you
about people around us today
then I listening to God they’re
listening to all kind of stuff but not
to God now people say well I don’t
believe the Bible well if you look
around you and read the Word of God
you’ll start living it because God’s
already pictured for us what evil and
the wickedness and sin is all about and
the kind of effect that it has and so
God said there’s one family that I’m
going to save and that’s Noah and his
family so I want us to think about that
for a moment
and the scripture says that Noah walked
with God and he listened the yard and
therefore God saved silver civilization
through one family and that is through
the family of Noah not because he was
perfect but because he listened to God
he trusted God and He obey God so I
think about what Noah was confronted
with living in a civilization in a time
when everything around him was wicked
and violent disobedient and reckless and
God said to him no one I’m gonna destroy
the whole earth but you and your family
I’m gonna save don’t you think no would
have said well now why me and God said
to him because I see in you what I’m
looking for and I am going to save you
out of all of this so let me just ask
you this question could you say and
could it be said of you
that according to the way you’re living
your life now is in your family or well
the people you work with or play well
would they think of you and say one
thing I know about him about her they
listen to God so think about this for a
moment who do you know that knows you
who would save you he listens to God she
listens to God who among your friends
are people who know you would save you
they listen to God because they talk
about prayer and I think they’re
listening to God who would say about you
that we listen we trust we obey that
those three simple characteristics
that’s what people think about when they
know you you have a family so people
know you you work with people so they
know you you have friends and so they
know you’re pretty good when they think
about you do they think about you in
terms of godly qualities all the rest of
the world she dresses well he drives
well they live well he makes this that
and so forth though they think of you in
terms of someone who listens to God
trust God and obeys God could they say
that about you or do you want people to
say how well do you dress and how good
you look and now rich you are in where
you live and what you driving and you
just haven’t you got class about you I’d
rather be a holy person than a classy
person because class doesn’t mean
anything spiritual it fits the features
of the world but can they save you I
know that that person listens to God
they trust God because I’ve watched how
they react in situations and
circumstances and I know that they obey
God is that interesting that sometimes
the people who are supposedly my closest
friends when they are living in sin they
don’t like a company and they don’t know
why because I’ll tell you why
when those three characteristics are
characteristic of you watch this people
who are living in sin and disobedience
to God are not going to be all that
happy being around you or working with
you or being called your friend why
because you’re walking on two levels
one’s walking in darkness one’s walking
in light and the problem Noah had was he
was walking in light obeying the Living
God and all of a sudden God said here’s
what I want you to do so I want us to
think for just a moment about what went
on in Noah’s heart and mind in life when
the God told him what he wanted him to
do and we talked about the whole issue
of building the ark and all the things
that took place with that and I think
about what he had to deal with
personally knowing what God said to him
I’m gonna I’m gonna destroy everything
that you see I’m gonna save you and your
family because you’ve listened to me
you’ve trusted me and you’ve obeyed me
but everybody else is gone wonder what
they were thinking about this man who
was totally different morally
spiritually than all the rest of them so
think about it from what he was thinking
think about the mental conflict he had
and yet God said here’s what I’m going
to do and he knew it was a truth
how do you live and kept that kind of a
society for that period of time it took
him a while to build this Ark for one of
them two feet long and 50 feet wide and
three stories high and so forth don’t
know how long it took him but he want to
I want you to see this he had to live
with this in his heart in his mind in
his emotion they are all going to be
destroyed and my family and I are gonna
be the older ones left and you see there
was any question in his mind about it
because he learned to listen to God and
the trusts God and obey God so it wasn’t
a matter of maybe it’s going to happen
maybe God will change his mind it was a
subtle issue here’s what he ought was
going to do
and so you and I live in a time when we
see wickedness on the increase and we
think well yes but this is the United
States of America yes it is and so while
we arrest in our sense of security watch
the skip but the only security you and I
have is our personal relationship with
God that’s the only thing we have and
they’re not thinking about for example
they get all these animals in I don’t
know how God did that some other says
well how could that have happened I
don’t have an answer and I’m gonna give
you some answers I don’t know but
somehow I got over a period of time he
got all the animals in there our crews
finally finished and it’s going to start
raining and it’s not going to stop for
40 days and 40 nights now when we have a
little spell of something for about
three days we have a fit and the Bible
says not only did he come down it came
up Noah was locked in by the grace of
God because listen carefully because he
listened to God because he trusted God
because he obeyed God listen carefully
those three things can save you from
heartache troubles trials difficulties
cost your life listen to him trust him
and obey Him do what he says it was not
enough for Noah to listen to God or to
trust him but obeying and so there he
was
can you imagine what they must have felt
when they heard the cries and the calls
of their friends and it rained and kept
on raining and then all of a sudden that
big old boat moved just a little bit
because there was enough water on that
to move it 40 days 40 nights it was not
a drizzle but it was pouring rain from
above and coming out of the earth until
finally it was not a sound
the only sound was on the inside of that
boat the days went by the weeks went by
the months went by and finally after God
had accomplished what he set out to
accomplish the ark landed he had told
him when he sent out a bird you remember
and see what was going on the bird came
back
finally one came back with a leaf God
said now you can go out and one of the
first things Noah did was to build an
altar don’t you know that was some altar
big altar thanking God for what has
happened the scripture says he built an
altar to the Lord and took of every
clean animal and so forth and scripture
says that God said to him I will never
again destroy every living thing as I
have done while the earth remains
seedtime and harvest cold and heat
summer and winter day and night shall
not cease that is it’ll never happen
again that way but he didn’t say he
wouldn’t do it by fire which when you
come to the new testament that’s yds
fear and so when I think about that and
think about what God said he said I
establish my covenant with you and all
the flesh shall never again be cut off
by the water of the flood he didn’t say
not fire neither shall there be again a
flood to destroy the earth God said this
is the sign of the Covenant which I’m
making between me and you and every
living creature that is with you for all
successive generations and then here’s
what he did to remind them forever he
showed them a rainbow and when I think
about the rainbow I don’t know what do
you think about it I think about it in
two ways how beautiful in this but I
think about what God said by this sign
you’ll know that I will never do it
again let me ask you this do you listen
to God
the trustee do you obey him life isn’t
like it was then but on the other hand
it’s just like it I either obey God or I
don’t
whatever you doing whoever you are
whoever you are God requires that we
obey Him that means we must trust him
and God has offered salvation to every
person who so ever shall call upon the
name of the Lord shall be saved
if you confess with your mouth Jesus is
Lord you shall be saved if you want to
confess and repent of your sins you’ll
be saved you say well I’ve got plenty of
time no you don’t you don’t know how
much time you have you don’t have as
much time as you think you do and the
question is this don’t you think it’s
time you got honest with him about the
fact that your lifestyle is one of sin
disobedience rebellion against God he
can be sophisticated rebellion a just
pure evil rebellion but you’ve turned
your back on God you don’t need ya you
don’t need the church you’re not even
interested in anything spiritual
whatsoever and you think that somehow
someway you’re going to get through the
judgement of God and somehow you’re
going to sneak through no you’re not
there’s no escape of God’s judgment and
there is nothing to keep you from
rejoicing when you have Christ in your
life you don’t have to be afraid of
anything God put the rainbow in the sky
to remind not only knowing his family
but all of us watch this whatever God
promises that’s what he’ll do has ever
been a flood like that since no why
because God said it wouldn’t him I want
you to think about this you have
professed to be a child of God following
the Lord Jesus Christ having professed
that everybody who knows
you everybody you work with live with
everybody around you has a legitimate
right to expect you to be different not
perfect different but not just different
but spiritual because you have professed
to be a Christian to follow Jesus so the
world has a right to expect us to be
different watch this if god’s people
would make it a habit of listening
trusting and obeying i’ll tell you what
would happen the churches would be full
of people because they would see the
difference that there’s something within
us that’s different and therefore they
wouldn’t want who we have or what we
have and God gave Noah an awesome
promise and they put it in the sky to
say you can count on it he’s given us
something better than a rainbow and
according to this I can trust them in
life and trust him in death according to
this I can trust them every day
according to this otherwise I would have
to be disappointed with God
maybe discipline myself not yard I read
this I know my name is written in the
Lamb’s Book of Life and that means that
no matter what happens I’m going to
heaven one of that and nothing can
change that
nothing nothing nothing on earth can
change your relationship with God
I think about how many people who own
one of these this is the Bible how many
people own them and never open them own
one and never opened it to find out what
God’s thinking what he wants to say to
you listen I don’t know many times in my
life when I’ve opened the Word of God
that he didn’t say something to me it
may have been something I didn’t want to
hear of something I wanted to hear was
something I was a lady there but listen
listen carefully God wants to speak to
you because God loves you and proof of
that is look at the cross so its guts
demonstrated his love to us not only
with a rainbow thousands of years ago
but at the cross just a couple of
thousand years ago or so to say what I
love you I’ll save you I’ll bring you
home to spend eternity earth of me could
you give me give God any excuse for not
beginning this day whoever you are
wherever you are give me an excuse
acceptable for not listening to him
trusting him or obeying what you teach
your children same thing what about God
have you learned to trust him have you
learned to obey Him not until you learn
first of all to take time to listen to
him did you listen to him do you listen
to him expecting him to speak to you
trusting him I’ll tell you how we know
whether you trust him or not or the year
obey Him or not then that tells you
whether you’re trusting him or not so
much so I trust God no doubt in my mind
well what do you live the way you live
because you’re not trusting him when I
think about a portion of the scripture
we’re a lesson is so descriptive so
imaginable so true so characteristic of
how God works and what God desires for
us right up front in the Bible with Noah
threefold lesson I want you to listen to
me I want you to trust me and I want you
to obey me is that asking too much but I
ask you is that your lifestyle if it is
not ask yourself the question why amen
father we pray the Holy Spirit would
speak to every person seated here who’s
never trusted Jesus as Savior heard
about him thought about him believed
about him sorta but never trusted you as
Savior that today this morning they will
make that decision to ask for your
forgiveness and the surrender their life
to you
Lord most of all we want to be able to
answer this in the affirmative am i
listening yes am i trusting yes am I
obey yes
and father impress upon each of our
hearts there is no other correct answer
[Music]
not maybe not sometimes yes and I pray
that you sink this simple message into
all of our hearts because it’s a daily
message
and we need to hear it daily because
you’re speaking to us daily we bless you
we praise you we thank you for the Word
of God that gives us direction for our
life in Jesus name Amen
if you’ve been blessed by today’s
program please visit us at n tuxedo RG
in touch leading people worldwide into a
growing relationship with Jesus Christ
and strengthening the local church this
program is sponsored by in touch
ministries and is made possible by the
grace of God and your faithful prayers
and gifts