Part 10
When the Lord said to Noah, "Come you," Noah came. The call was effectual, and resistance was out of the question!
It is true the Lord had, in a measure, spoken to the rest of mankind by Noah's ministry, but that form of the Lord's speaking in common pleadings and invitations can be resisted to men's destruction. They could close their ears against the common, or general call, and they did, for it was true then, as it is now, "many are called, but few are chosen." Myriads go to destruction with the honest call of God ringing in their ears which they willfully reject–
"The worldlings willfully went on
Rebellious till their day was past.
They forced the lingering deluge down
And perished in their sins at last."
When that silent call comes, which we are accustomed to speak of as "effectual calling," then, if there is resistance, it is sweetly overcome. The will finds itself no longer headstrong and obstinate.
The judgment, darkened before, becomes light, and the soul, before motionless, cries, "Draw me, I will run after You."
Happy are the men to whom such a call comes from God
Himself! I ask you, my dear Hearers now present, whether you have ever had God dealing with you in this powerful, this inward, this spiritual manner? If not, I am sure you have never come to Christ. If you have received no call but such as I can give you, such as my Brothers who aid me can give you, such as the most earnest evangelist can give you, you have been called in vain and are yet in your sins. If you are, indeed, the people of God, you must know that a voice in your souls, mysteriously persuasive and overpowering, has spoken to you and said, "Come to Jesus," and you have yielded to it.
Happy are you, tonight, if you have been so called, for it is written, "Whom He called, them He also justified: and whom He justified, them He also glorified." Now, note that this call from God was of such a tenor that Noah was bound, personally, to come. It was a call to personal action. Noah must come. "Come you." It was not a call of this kind–"Now, Noah, sit where you are and you will be right. Wait, Noah. Patiently, quietly wait, and see what God will do." But, no! It said to Noah, "Come you." Noah must come and he must come to the ark, too. For him there was only one way of salvation–no more than for anybody else!
He must come to the ark which God had bid him prepare as the instrument of safety–and he must come into it. It was of no use his coming near it, but he must come into it. Within its wooden walls he must hide himself. Within its vast chambers he must find a dwelling. And so, dear Soul, when God calls you, He will make you feel that you must come to Jesus–not wait and delay, but come by a distinct act of the soul to be immediately performed! And you must come to Christ, too, for believing in anything else will destroy, rather than save you! Your faith must come and place her whole
You must come into Christ, too–so near to Him as to be in Him, to make Him your hiding place and your refuge from the storm.
You must have an inward faith which takes you into the very inwards of Christ, hides you in His wounds, conceals you within Himself. When God calls Noah it is, "Come into the ark." And when God calls any sinner to Himself it is, "Come to Christ; be hidden in Christ that you may be preserved as the Lord's choice treasure." Come, make the Lord Jesus your refuge, your deliverance and your habitation!
Now, it would have been of no use for Noah to have gone on making preparations for his dwelling in the ark. That he had done long enough. He had gathered all sorts of food for all the creatures that were to be lodged in that marvelous menagerie and now that he is bid to enter the ark, he does not say, "I must gather more hay and store up more corn and fruits." No, "Come you into the ark" finished all his labors. He must have done with preparing and actually enter the refuge. I know some of you have been thinking about your souls and praying, and reading good books, and attending meetings, and trying to get instruction.
Well, so far, so good. But that is not the way by which you will find salvation. The call of God to your soul is, "Come into the ark," or, in other words, "Come now to Jesus and distinctly and finally commit yourself to Him. Just as Noah put himself in the ark, to sink in the ark or swim in the ark–to live in the ark or die in the ark.
He committed his whole future to the ark and that is what you have to do–commit yourself and all that is about you entirely to the Lord
Jesus Christ. Considerations, resolutions and preparations must come to an end and you must in very deed "come into the ark."–
"O Jesus, Savior of the lost,
Our ark and hiding place,
By storms of sin and sorrow tossed
We seek Your sheltering Grace.
Forgive our wandering and our sin,
We wish no more to roam;
Open the ark and take us in,
Our soul's eternal home."
Neither would it have done for Noah to go round the ark to survey it again. No doubt he had examined, before, that ark of wood and been pleased to think its timbers were so sound. No insect could eat that bitter wood. It was a tree that would not rot.
No doubt he was pleased with the architecture of the vessel, for he had built it with no surveyor there but his God and, it was, therefore, well built. God was the great Master of Noah's naval yard and had given him plans and specifications. It was quite right that Noah should inspect the huge vessel up and down and see to the caulking and make sure that it was well pitched inside and out, and so on.
But now he must give up surveying and come to inhabiting. He must come into the ark to remain in it. And so must I, like you, my dear Hearers, to take an interest in the Person of Christ and in the way of salvation! It is a very hopeful sign when you survey the Ark of salvation and say, "How stoutly built, and how thoroughly well caulked it is. Never were timbers better put together, there is no fear of a leakage here! She will live out every storm that will ever beat upon her. She is a true lifeboat upon a stupendous scale."
I like to hear a sinner say, "Christ is a great Savior! I perceive that He is able to save to the uttermost and I wonder at the wisdom and the goodness of God that He has devised such a way of salvation."
So far, so good, dear Friend, but all your admiration of Jesus will not save you! You must come inside His ark! By a simple faith you must, at once, give yourselves up to Jesus to be saved in Him. No longer look at Christ externally, nor survey Him even with a grateful eye for what He has done for others. But come, now, and commit yourself to Him. There stands the door and you have to go through it, and enter into the inner chambers, or you will find no safety.
Neither would it have been of any use for Noah to go up to the ark and stand against the door and say, "I do not say that I am not going in and I do not even say that I am not in already. I have got one foot in, but I am a moderate man and like to be friendly with both sides. I am in and yet not in. If the door was shut I do not know but that it would cut me in halves. But, anyway, I do not want to be altogether out and I do not want to be quite in. I should like to stand where I could hurry in as soon as I saw the water coming up, but, still, while there is another opportunity of taking a walk on the dry land, I may as well avail myself of it. There is no hurry about it, is there?
"You see, if a man keeps his finger on the latch of the door, he can pop in as soon as ever he sees the first drop of rain descending, or the water coming up anywhere near him. But is there any reason for being so decided all at once? Everybody likes his liberty, you know, and does not want to be shut in before he needs to be, at any rate." No, that would not do for Noah. God said to Him, "Come into the ark," and he went in at once. Noah must not hesitate, or linger, or halt, but in he must go–right in.
And, O dear Souls, you that linger, you that are of two opinions.
If you were wise and did but know the danger of being outside, and the bliss of being inside, instead of hesitating you would want to penetrate into the ark's inmost recesses and to take your place in the very center just as I desire to go right to the heart of Christ, into the very center of His inmost love, for there, only there, shall I be perfectly at rest! Do not hesitate! Decide! Decide at once! May the Spirit of God lead you to do so. I know you will not delay if the effectual call is now being given–you will be obedient to the heavenly vision at once.
Now, go a little further. It is God that calls and Noah must, in very deed, personally and actually come. It is said, "Come into the ark." Now, notice that word, for it teaches us that in entering the ark, Noah would be coming close to His God. "Come you"–Why did it not say, "Go you?" Why, because God was inside and meant to be inside, in the ark, along with Noah and, therefore, He said, "Come you." Oh that blessed, "come"! We had it the other night, you know, when we preached from, "Come unto Me all you that labor and are heavy laden." "Come"–that is the Grace word! But, oh, it is the Glory word, too, for Christ will say at the last, "Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from before the foundation of the world."
"Come." "God is in Christ Jesus, reconciling the world unto
Himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them." And he that comes to Christ comes to God! If you find rest in Christ you will only do what the great God has done before you, for He rests in Christ Jesus! He smells a sweet savor of rest in the Redeemer's
Sacrifice. If you delight in Christ you will only do what God has always been doing, for He delights in His Son–"This is my Beloved Son," He said, "in whom I am well pleased." There is no coming to the Father but by Christ–and he that comes to Christ has come to the Father–and he has seen and known the Father. Coming to Christ is coming to God!
Now observe that what is meant here is this–dwellers in Christ are dwellers with God. To live in the ark was to live with God.
Dwellers in Christ are under the protection of God, for to dwell in the ark was to have God for a guardian. Noah did as much as say, when he passed into the ark, "God is here and I have come to live with Him. God is Master and Protector, here, and I am come to be protected by Him." O Soul, when you can say, "I trust in Christ," then you may go on to say, "Lord, you have been our dwelling place in all generations." You may "joy in God through Jesus
Christ, by whom, also, we have received the Atonement." Ah, how near to God that man is who dwells in Christ! When Christ is All in All to you, the Father Himself loves you and you may rejoice in a consciousness of communion and fellowship with Him.
Now, notice that when Noah came to the ark, he must come there to find his all in it. All the food he needs he must find in the ark.
Mistress Noah cannot go out to market any more. Her daughters can no longer go to the shops and the stores. Noah's sons cannot farm or trade, or hunt or dig for gold. Houses, lands, treasures will soon lie deep at the bottom of the flood. All Noah has is in the ark.
It is his sole possession, his all, for which he has suffered the loss of all things and rejoices to have done so. From the time of his entrance he is to find all his pleasure in the ark. There are no outdoor amusements for himself or his family.
He cannot even find pleasure in the scenery, for that is blotted out by the deluges of rain. The valleys have vanished and even the hills have disappeared as the deluge has increased. If he is to find any pleasure, he must find it inside the ark. It was a melancholy prospect, indeed, if he could look out the window–but his joy and delight lay within the chambers of the ark, for there was he saved– and there he dwelt with God! All his food, also, to supply his necessities he must find inside the ark. He had no barn nor warehouse to look to, and there was no port at which he could touch to take in cargo. Whatever need might arise, it must be met by the stores within the ark, for there was nothing outside but death.
All his work was inside the ark, too. He had nothing to do, now, except within that vessel, no fields to plow, no shops to keep, nothing to do but what was inside the ark. Now, when a soul comes to Christ, it commits itself to Him for everything. Christ must feed it–you must eat no longer for your soul anything but the Bread of Heaven. Jesus must become meat and drink to you, for, "His flesh is meat, indeed, and His blood is drink, indeed." Now you are to find your pleasure in Him–your choicest delights, your sweetest joys–all in Christ Jesus who is our hope, our crown, our delight, our Heaven.
And now, from now on, your service must be to Him only. "You are not your own, you are bought with a price," and all that you have to do in this world now lies within the circumference of Christ's will. The most common duties of life are now to be brought within the sacred circle. You have nothing to do outside in the waters of sin and self and Satan. You need neither fish in the waters of sin, nor go boating upon the waves of worldliness–you are in danger if you do. You are inside the ark, shut in with God, dead to the world and only alive in Christ Jesus, that you may be floated in Him out of the old world into "the new heavens and the new earth wherein dwells righteousness."
Thus, you see, Noah, in coming into the ark, left everything and found everything–even as by us the world is forsaken and Jesus becomes our All in All–
"Jesus, I my cross have taken,
All to leave, and follow You.
Destitute, despised, forsaken,
You, from now on, my All shall be.
Let the world despise and leave me,
They have left my Savior, too:
But my Lord will not deceive me,
And in Him my all I view."
Again, Noah must come into the ark never to go out again.
"Come you," says God, "into the ark." He is not to make a visit, but he is to be shut in. As far as that world was concerned, Noah was to be in the ark as long as it lasted. When the new world came, then he walked out in joyful liberty. But you and I, dear Brothers and Sisters, are in Christ, not to be there for a time, but to abide in Him forever and ever!
If any man thinks to get any good by a transient profession of Christ, that man is grossly mistaken! If you imagine that you can take up religion and put it down again–that you can be Believers today and unbelievers tomorrow, you know nothing of the Grace of God, for the Grace of God begets a life and that life is incorruptible and lives forever–nothing can destroy it or remove it. He that is really in Christ is like Noah in the ark–he is shut in by God's own hand. "None shall pluck them out of My hand," says Christ, and, truly, none shall ever take a soul out of the grip of Jesus Christ who is once within it.
You come to Christ to be married to Him! You take Him to have Him and hold Him from this day forward, for better for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health–and death, itself, shall not part you. "Who shall separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord?" Noah, according to the Lord's command, must come in at once. "And the Lord said unto Noah, Come you into the ark"–come at once, "for yet seven days, and I will cause it to rain upon the earth 40 days and 40 nights. And every living substance that I have made will I destroy from off the face of the earth."
There was a door to the ark and that door was open. Indeed, we are not told that it had ever been shut since it had been made. There it stood, wide open. We never hear of anybody that ever went in and was driven out. We never hear of a single beast or bird, or even a creeping thing that there was but ever went in was cast out. So long as the door was open whoever came was welcome, but longsuffering was drawing to an end. The time was now come for Noah to go in and the time was also near when the door must be shut.
And so, when the Spirit of God comes to persuade men sweetly in effectual calling, it is always in the present tense.
The Lord never called any man by effectual Grace to believe in Christ next week. He calls them to believe in Christ directly, and one of the ways by which the effectual call may be judged is its presentness and its pressing character. It is "now, now, NOW!" Oh, may the Divine Spirit be pleading in some heart at this hour, saying, "Come to Jesus now, before the next word has left the speaker's mouth. Put your trust in Jesus before this service ends and you shall go your way to your chamber and to your bed justified and saved." The Spirit of God sweetly puts it, "Now is the accepted time, now is the day of salvation." Even as He did with Noah, who never dreamed of delays, but, when bid to come, came then and there–
"Come to the ark, the waters rise
The seas their billows fear!
While darkness gathers over the skies,
Behold a refuge near.
Come to the ark, all, all that weep
Beneath the sense of sin.
Without, deep calls unto deep
But all is peace within.
Come to the ark, before yet the flood
Your lingering steps oppose!
Come, for the door which open stood
Is now about to close."
And now notice, once more–and that is a sweet part of it–that the Lord said, "Come you and all your house into the ark." How good it is of the Lord to think of our children! That He should save us, oh, we must always bless Him for that! But that He should have a word for our wife, a word for our son and a word for our daughter– this is overflowing mercy! I have heard of a man who was unkind enough to say that he married his wife, but he did not intend to marry all her family. And it sometimes happens that your love to a person is a good deal tried by that person's relatives and friends– but when the Lord Jesus Christ takes to His heart the master or the mistress of a house, He is willing to take all the household!
He came to the jailor's house at Philippi and He looked on him with love, but He did not stay with Him only, He blessed all his household–so blessed them that they were all brought to believe in the Lord–and they were all baptized then and there! There have been other households upon which the Lord has looked in the same way. "Come you and your house," is it not? Am I reading correctly? Look at the passage! Look at it! It is not merely, "Come you and your house." We will read it again. "The Lord said to Noah, come you and all your house into the ark." "ALL." Oh, that blessed comprehensive word, "ALL!"
Then Ham was not left out! Japheth the elder, as he is called in Genesis 10:21–I know not much for him or against him, but he had faith enough to enter the ark and he was saved like the rest. Shem, the second of the household, if I may judge from his descendants, was always a religious young man, devout and attached to the worship of the true God. He also entered the ark and was saved. As for Ham, the scoundrel of the family, it might have been feared that he would not come in–but notwithstanding all that the Scripture tells us against him, he was assuredly saved in the ark.
And here was the mercy–that to Japheth, the elder, and to Shem and to Ham, the promise extended! "Come you and all your house into the ark." My dear Brother, when you are converted, yourself, it is a blessing that you have so far a hold of the Gospel, but go on to grasp more of it! "What must I do to be saved?" asked the jailor.
And Paul replied, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you shall be saved, and your house." Many cannot get to the second part of the promise. They seem satisfied if they, themselves, are saved. But oh, for that faith which takes all that the Gospel is prepared to give and pleads with God that not only I may be saved, but my house, yes, and ALL my house, without exception!
II. Here is the call, then. The Lord called effectually Shem, Ham, Japheth and their wives, so that they all came into the ark. Of that we are going to speak for a few minutes on the second head, which is THE OBEDIENCE. Noah came into the ark and his wife, and his sons and their wives. Their obedience was unquestioning. We do not find them asking anything at all about the reason for the command–they came as they were bid. They passed through the doorway and they were all in the ark.
Fathers and mothers, brothers and sisters, sons and their wives, daughters and their husbands, and all of you, oh that the blessed
Spirit would put you, now, into such a frame of mind that you should at once yield to the Divine precept which says, "Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved!" Have you not asked enough questions? You have had some of them answered, but every answer has only helped you to invent another dozen! Oh, those questions! Those quibbles! Those debates! Those doubts! They are ruining thousands! Have you ever heard of the man who sat at the table and could not eat till he knew the pedigree of the bullock from which the joint was cut? And then he must know how it was cooked and comprehend the influence which fire has over flesh to make it eatable!
Next he must understand anatomy and know how the stomach acts upon the food and what the gastric juice is made of, and how food is assimilated. Unless he could get plain answers to every enquiry, he would not eat. He said, "Plain answers, mind, plain answers to all my questions, or I will never put a mouthful between these lips again." Now, there was a poor countryman who came out of the field and saw the meat and potatoes, and he ate them all up while the man was asking the questions! And very wise he was, too. I suppose it was his hunger that made him so sensible. May the Lord give you a hunger after the Gospel! And when you have it, may He grant you Grace to feed upon it and receive it into your soul. May you take what is set before you by infinite love and leave quibblers to their own folly.
I, myself, have a lot of questions, for the questions I have been asked by skeptics I have put away along with a lot more of my own which are far more difficult than theirs. I mean to bring them out one day, but not until I get to Heaven and carry all I can with me!
We shall have light enough there to see! It is like reading in the dark down here. We will leave these questions till we get into the blaze of Glory and, perhaps, they will then answer themselves!
Noah and his wife and his sons and their wives did not worry themselves about mysteries, but obeyed the plain command and went into the ark and were saved. They went in at once, but I will not dwell upon that. The whole eight of them passed in at once!
To get eight people to agree to go anywhere is a difficult thing.
But here they were, all agreed and all ready to start. And they all went into the ark then and there. It is wondrous that Mistress Shem did not say that she could not leave all her acquaintances and forsake her father and all her relations at once. How could she tear herself away? Good Mistress Japheth might have felt bonds which hold her to her bosom friends. But so it was–the effectual call went through all the family–men and women, and they took up their separated position, coming out of the world at once when the command came. O, blessed Spirit, give such a call as that to whole families! All these eight people came away once and for all. They could each say–
"Farewell, vain world, I must be gone!
You are no home, no rest for me.
From now on my heart must dwell alone,
And have no fellowship with thee.
Farewell, poor world, for you must die!
Even now the floods begin to rise.
I die to you without a sigh,
Save that I mourn your blinded eyes."
There was a closed door between the family of Noah and all the rest of the world. They went in to be the minority and turned out, before long, to be the majority! Oh, that men would be willing to be the minority in a wicked world and to be counted fools! People say, "If you join that Church, you just shut yourself out from all society. Nobody will ever know you anymore. You might as well be dead and buried." But, truly, when a soul gives itself to Christ, it feels itself to be dead and buried to the world and says to it, "Adieu, we are, from now on, strangers." The regenerate pass straight away from communion with this world to hold all their communion inside the ark–to have all their fellowship in connection with the Lord Jesus Christ!
Now to Noah and to his wife and to all the family, this was the most important event that ever happened to them. When all of them passed out of the world together to find their refuge where God had provided it–it was a great day with Noah's household! What a glorious day it is with men and women when they come to Christ!
Their birthday is noteworthy, but this is better! They were only born to sorrow and death at first–now are they born to Heaven and eternal life! Their wedding day? This is better! They were but joined to a mortal in bonds that death will sever, but now they are married to Christ in everlasting wedlock!
Moreover, simple as the act of going into the ark may seem, it was one of the most remarkable events in human history. When Noah and his family entered into the ark, it was a more important day than when empires rise or fall, for there would have been an utter end of the human race if it had not been for their decided action on that memorable day! So, when men give themselves to Christ, they do not know what mighty things they are doing for their posterity and for those immediately around them. Time and eternity quiver with the force of their deed! These converts will be a blessing to the town in which they live, a blessing to the society in which they move! The salvation of that woman will be the salvation of her grandchildren and of their children and so forth!
Who knows, when a man is born to God, but that there shall spring from him in future years a godly seed that shall become ministers of Christ and missionaries of the Cross? It is a grand event when a family is saved! I heard some music in the street just now and it seemed to me to be playing in good time to keep tune with the joy we ought to feel when father, mother, sons and daughters enter the ark of Christ and find salvation there! Oh, if households enter into Christ, the very bells of Heaven may ring again and again and again with a joy that has many joys within it!
Now let us go into details. The first fact is that Noah went in. This was right! Noah was the leader. The husband is the head of the household, or ought to be, and he should go to Christ first. Whether his wife comes in, or Shem, or Ham comes in, whoever will come in, or stay out, Noah goes in first, for he would obey the Lord.
Head of the house, are you in the ark? Are you in Christ? You are a father. You have sons grown up around you, are you decided? You wish your family to grow up in the fear of God–I hope you do! But how can you expect it if you are not saved? If Noah had not gone into the ark, I should not expect to read that Shem and Ham and Japheth went in.
O you that are heads of households, your position is very responsible! You will have to bear much blame if your children go astray. Unless your example is decided for the Lord, they will be able to say at the Last Great Day, "Our father was half-hearted and how could we be expected to give our hearts to God?" Next, his sons are mentioned. "Noah went in and his sons"–three fine fellows. A happy father is he who has sons that will go with him in the things of God. Sons are called in Hebrew, "builders," because they build up a man's house. May the Holy Spirit build them into the Church! I would to God there were more young men joining the Church–that more sons were decided!
You cannot expect, can you, to see the sons' wives brought unless the sons are on the Lord's side? But, I am sorry to say, they are often opposers and, when the women are brought to Christ, there are the husbands standing back and even acting as a hindrance to the religion of their wives! God grant it may not be so in any case here! O son of Noah, go into the ark with your father! O child of a godly parent, follow your father to Christ, that you may follow him to Heaven! Let Abraham's son be an Isaac and Isaac's son be a Jacob, and Jacob's son be a Joseph–and so may it go on from generation to generation!
The next person who is mentioned is the old lady–namely, Noah's wife. I give her that name because she was, no doubt, somewhere about 600 years old and she was assuredly an eminent woman. We usually describe persons who have grown sons by that name in our family circles. The wife of the father of three sons comes into the ark. I think of her as of a queenly dame with her sons and their wives. I see her coming boldly forward with a quiet grace and firmness to go with her beloved husband–to sink or swim with him.
She is casting in her lot with him not only because he is her husband, but because he had cast in his lot with God. Oh, beloved woman, advancing into years, with a grown family about you–if you have not come to Christ, I trust you may–that in your family the saved ones may be as Noah and his sons and his wife.
Last came the son's wives and what a happy circumstance for them! I was thinking, as I turned over the subject, how painful it would have been if one of the boys had not come in. And then how grievous it would have been if one of the wives had not come. If Noah had been obliged to know that one of them should be left out and he had to have the dreadful selection, whom do you suppose he would have left out? I cannot imagine! I have heard of the Irishman with his seven or eight children, and someone was willing to adopt one. But the question was–which was it to be? One is to be taken out of the family and they are not to see it again. It is to be brought up and taken care of by a stranger–the father and mother could never agree which it should be.
I hope, dear fathers and mothers, you will never agree to have one of your children lost. Make it your daily and nightly prayer, your incessant effort, your hourly desire that not only Shem and Ham and Japheth may be brought, but their wives, too–till not one shall be left behind–but the whole family shall be saved in Christ Jesus!
Now, all this was done by the sweet, effectual calling of the Divine Spirit. And let us pray tonight, each one, that the same call may be given to all our friends, kinsfolk and all assembled here– that we may be all in Christ, both now and on the Last Great Day!
Amen.
Ge 7:15 • The Parable of the Ark
ERMON 3042
The Parable Of The Ark
"And they went in unto Noah into the ark, two and two of all flesh, wherein is the breath of life."
Genesis 7:15
CHRIST always taught by parables. Hence the popularity and the power of His teaching. The masses never were and perhaps, never will be, able to receive instruction in any other way than by parabolic illustrations. He who would be a successful minister must open his mouth in parables. He who would win the hearts of the multitude must closely imitate his Master and preach in parables which all men can understand. I believe there are few living men who are able to devise a parable. Those who do possess this rare ability are very scarce, indeed. Nor do I profess to belong to the honorable confraternity. I have sometimes endeavored to fashion a parable and though I found it easy, at times, to manufacture a figure, yet a parable I can by no means make. I am happy to say it is not required of me to do so, for God's Word, if it is rightly used, is suggestive of a thousand parables! And I have no reason to fear that I shall be short of subjects for preaching when I am able to find such parables as I do in God's Word.
I shall preach to you this evening a parable. It shall be the parable of the ark. While I do so, you must understand that the ark was a real thing–that it was really made to float upon the waters and carry in it Noah and his family and "two and two of all flesh." This is a fact, not a myth. But I shall take this real fact and use it as a parable. Making the ark represent salvation, I shall preach to all who are within sound of my voice the parable of the ark. The ark, which saved from the floods of water, is a beautiful picture of Jesus
Christ as the means of salvation, by whom multitudes of all flesh are preserved and saved from perishing in the floods of eternal
Perdition!
First, then, in working out this parable I shall remark that THERE
IS BUT ONE MEANS OF SALVATION.
The ark of gopher wood in the one case, and the Person of Christ in the other case, sets forth the one only means that was ever planned or provided by God. The whole world was drowned except those happy ones who were found in the ark. The mightiest beast and the tiniest insect, the stately elephant and the loathsome reptile, the fleet horse and the creeping snail, the graceful antelope and the ugly toad–every living substance that was upon the face of the ground was involved in one common doom–save those only who were preserved alive in the ark! The noblest animals, endowed with the finest instincts, were all drowned, despite their powers of swimming (if they were not fish), save those only who were sheltered in the ark. The strongest-winged fowls that ever cut the air were all wearied in their flight and fell into the water, save those only that were housed in the ark. The proudest tenants of the forests–those that ranged fearlessly in the broad light of day or those that prowled stealthily under the cover of night. The strongest, the mightiest–all were swallowed up in the vast abyss, save those only that were commanded of God to hide themselves within the shelter of the ark.
Even so, in the application of my parable, there is only one way of salvation for all men living under Heaven. There is only one name whereby they can be saved. Would you be saved, rich man?
There is no way but that whereby the povertystricken pauper is also to be saved! Would you be delivered, man of intelligence? You shall be saved in the same way as the most ignorant! "There is none other name under Heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved," but Jesus Christ, and Him crucified. There were not two arks, but one ark–so there are not two Saviors, but one Savior.
There was no other means of salvation except the ark–so there is no plan of deliverance except by Jesus Christ the Savior of sinners! In vain you climb the lofty top of Sinai–fifteen cubits upwards shall the waters prevail! In vain you climb to the highest pinnacles of your self-conceit and your worldly merit–you shall be drowned– drowned beyond the hope of salvation for, "other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ." Would those in my congregation be saved? They must all be saved by one way! Do they object to Christ as the plan of salvation? Then they must be damned, for there is no other hope for them! Do they think this too hard? Do they think the revealed plan of salvation too humbling?
Then they must sink, even as the sons of Adam sank beneath the mighty flood and all flesh was utterly consumed by the overwhelming billows. There is but one way! Enter into the ark!
Take refuge in Christ, for only thus can you be saved! But, "how shall you escape if you neglect so great a salvation?" By what means shall you secure your souls, or your bodies? What plans can you devise for your security? Your refuges shall prove to be refuges of lies! The wind, the rain, the hail and the tempest shall destroy them. There is one Savior, and there is only one.
II. Proceeding with my parable, I must direct your attention to THE SIZE OF THIS ARK, for this may be comforting to you.
If you read the 15 th Chapter, you will find that the ark was of immense size. "The length of the arkshall be three hundred cubits, the breadth of it fifty cubits, and the height of it thirty cubits." It is an old objection of infidels that there was not room enough in it for all kinds of creatures that lived on the face of the earth, but we know, on Divine authority, that if there had not been room enough in it for all the different kinds of creatures which were then alive, they would have been drowned. Yet of every kind some were safely housed so that room enough was found for them all. This is not very logical, perhaps you will say, but it is conclusive enough for us if we believe in Revelation. Yet there really is no reason for anyone to make the objection and we have no room to entertain it, since the most eminent calculators have proved to demonstration that the vessel called the ark was of immense size and was able, not merely to hold all the creatures, but all the provender they would require for the year during which it floated on the water!
I use this idea, without stopping to expound it further, to trace its analogy as a beautiful picture of the plan of salvation. Oh, what a capacious plan! The ark was a great ark, which held all kinds of creatures–and our Christ is a Great Refuge who saves all kinds of sinners! The ark was an immense vessel–in it floated a multitude of animals which were saved. Christ's salvation is an immense salvation and in it there shall be delivered a multitude which no man can number! The narrow-minded bigot limits salvation to his own contracted notions and he still says, "There shall none be saved except they walk arm-in-arm with me." Poor little miserable soul! He cuts his coat according to his own fashion and declares that if men do not all cut their coats in the same way, they cannot be saved. But the Bible preaches a great salvation! It says there is a multitude that no man can number who shall stand before the Throne of God. Here is assembled a multitude of sinners, but if you all feel your need of a Savior, there is room enough for you in Heaven! Here is a multitude of hearers, but if every one of you should come to Christ, with real penitence in your hearts and true belief in Him, you would find that there was room enough for you all! That saying is still true, "And yet there is room." There is not room enough for a Pharisee, for a man who does not feel himself a sinner, or for a hypocrite. No, nor for a formalist, but there is room enough for every convicted sinner under God's Heaven! Our Redeemer is able to save to the uttermost all that come unto God by Him. He is able to save all of you! If the Father, who has sent Him, draws you, and you come unto Him, doubt not that there is room for you! Do not think, Beloved, because we preach election, that we preach the election of a few! I find that this is a common mistake. Someone will say to me, "I don't like your Calvinism, Sir, because it says that there are a few elected and that nobody else will be saved."
No, Sir, but it does not say any such thing! It says they are a multitude that no man can number who have beenelected! And who knows but what you are one of them? Calvinism gives you ten thousand times more reason for hope than the Arminian preacher who stands up and says, "There is room for everybody, but I do not think there is any special Grace to make them come. If they won't come, they won't come, and that is the end of it. It is their own fault and God will not make them come." The Word of God says they cannot come, yet the Arminian says they can. The poor sinner feels that he cannot, yet the Arminian declares positively that he could if he wanted to. And though the poor sinner feels sometimes that he would if he could, and groans over his inability, this blind guide tells him it is all nonsense! Whereas, it is, in truth, God's own work. You must feel it and you may plead against yourself on account of it, but you shall comefor all that. He will not plead against you, but He will put strength in you. There is more hope for you in the pure Gospel of the blessed God than there is in those fancies and fictions of men which are nowadays preached everywhere, except in a few places where God has reserved unto
Himself a people who have not bowed their knee to the Baal of the age!
III. In the third place, note that THE ARK WAS A SAFE
REFUGE.
Noah was commanded to make an ark of gopher wood and, lest there should be any leakage in it, he was commanded to "pitch it within and without with pitch." The ark had no harbor to go to and we never read that Noah called up Shem, Ham and Japheth to work at the pumps, nor yet that they had any, for there was not a leak in her. No doubt there were storms during that year, but we do not hear that the ship was ever in danger of being wrecked. The rocks, it is true, were too low down to touch her bottom, for, "fifteen cubits upward did the waters prevail, and the mountains were covered." Rising 27 feet above the loftiest mountains, she had no quicksands to fear–they were too deep below her keel. But of course she was exposed to the winds. Sometimes the hurricane might have rattled against her and driven her along. Doubtless, at another time, the hail beat on her top, and the lightning scarred the brow of night, but the ark sailed on, not one was cast out from her, nor were her sailors wearied with constant pumping to keep out the water, or frequent repairs to keep her secure. Though the world was inundated and ruined, that one ark sailed triumphantly above the waters! The ark was safe and all who were in her were safe, too.
Now, Sinner, the Christ I preach to you is such a refuge as that.
His Gospel has no flaw in it. As the ark never sank, and the elements never prevailed against it, so Christ never failed. He cannot fail. All the principalities and powers are subject to Him.
Those who are in Christ are sheltered from every storm. They shall never perish, neither shall any pluck them out of His hands.
Remember that God gave the pattern and Noah perfected the work of the ark before a single fountain of the great deep was broken up, or one drop of the desolating storm fell from the vengeful clouds.
And it is not less true that our glorious Lord was set up in the counsels of eternity, a perfect Christ before the clouds of vindictive wrath began to brew on account of man's iniquity! And His mighty work of mediation was finished before your poor soul was invited to take shelter in Him. Oh, I think as the angels looked out of the windows of Heaven upon the swelling tide and saw how securely the ark rode upon its surface, they never doubted that all who were inside were as safe as the ark itself–and is there any reason to doubt that those who are in Christ are as safe as Christ? "They that trust in the Lord shall be as Mount Zion which cannot be removed, but abides forever." They that trust in the Lord are blessed! They are like trees planted by rivers of water–their leaf shall not wither and whatever they do shall prosper. If you once come to Jesus and trust in Him, there is no fear of your sinking! There will be storms, tempests will beat around you–these you will be sure to have–but you will be too high up ever to strike on the rocks. If you are once on board the Good Ship of Salvation, you will be lifted up too high above the floods to be swallowed in the quicksands. With cheerful heart I can "commend you to God, and to the word of His Grace."
Christ will preserve you!
Believers, could you give up to anybody the Doctrine of your Security in Christ? No, I know you could not. Touch one of my Brothers or Sisters in the Lord who attends this Chapel on that point and you will soon get your answer. I have sometimes heard disputes outside the chapel door, when some who do not believe that Truth of God, have been disputing it, and I have felt confident that I might leave its defense in your hands. There are mighty men of valor among you who are not ashamed to uphold the whole counsel of God, even as I am constantly anxious to declare it!
IV. Now I go to another part of the parable. The creatures in the ark, of course, needed light–but it is a singular thing that THERE
WAS ONLY ONE WINDOW IN THE ARK.
In the 16 th Chapter we read, "A window shall you make for the ark." I have often wondered how allthe creatures could see through one window, but I have not wondered what was meant by it, for I think it is easy to point the moral. There is only one window whereby Christians ever get their Light of God. All who come to Christ and receive salvation by Him are illuminated in one way.
That one window of the ark may fitly represent to us the ministry of the Holy Spirit. There is only one Light which lightens every man who comes into the world, if he is lightened at all. Christ is the Light and it is the Holy Spirit of truth by whom Christ is revealed.
Thus we discern sin, righteousness and judgment. No other conviction is of any real value. As we are brought under the teaching of the Spirit, we perceive our guilt and misery–and our redemption and refuge in Christ! There is only one window to the ark. "Why," says one, "there are some of us who see light through one minister and some through another." True, my Friend, but still, there is only one window. We ministers are only like panes of glass and you can obtain no light through us but by the operations of the same Spirit that works in us. And even then, the different panes of glass give different shades of light. There you have your fine polished preacher–he is a bit of stained glass, not very transparent, made to keep the light out rather than to let it in! There is another pane. He is a square-cut diamond. He seems an old-fashioned preacher, but he is a bit of good glass, and lets the light through.
Another one is cut after a more refined style, but he is plain and simple, and the light shines through him. But there is only one light and only one window! He who reveals to us "the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ" is the Holy Spirit. We have only one Instructor if we preach the Truth of God. One Brother may be preaching this night in the Church of England, another may be holding forth the Word of God among the Independents and others among the Baptists, but they have only one Spirit if they are taught of God. There was only one window to the ark and though there were first, second, and third stories to the ark, all saw out of one window. And the little saint who is on the first story, gets light through the one window of the Spirit. And the saint who has been brought up to the second story, gets light through the same window. And he who has been promoted to the loftiest story has to get light through the same window, too! There is no other means of our seeing except through the one window made to the ark, the window of the Holy Spirit! Have we looked through that? Have we seen the clear blue sky above us? Or have we known that when our eye of faith was dim and we could see nothing at all, still our Master was at the helm and would preserve us through all our darkness and difficulties?
Now, if you will read the chapter (Gen 6) attentively, you will find it said, "ROOMS shall you make in the ark" (Gen 6:14).
When I read that, I thought it would serve for a point in the parable, seeing that it may teach my dear friends that they are not all to be put together–in the ark, rooms were made. Those who lived in one room did not stand or sit with those who lived in another–but they were all in the same ark. So I have sometimes thought–"There are our Wesleyan friends, some of them love the Lord. I have no doubt they are in the ark, though they do not occupy the same apartment as we do. There are our Baptist friends who love the Lord–we welcome them in our room. Then there are our Independent friends, those also love the Lord. They are in another room and our Presbyterian and Episcopalian Brothers and Sisters–in all these various sections are some who are called of God and brought into the ark–though they are in different rooms." But, Beloved, they are all in one ark. There are not two Gospels. As long as I can find a man who holds the same Gospel, it does not matter what order of church government he adopts if he is in Christ Jesus– it is of little consequence what room he is in so long as he is in the ark. If he belongs to those of whom it is written, "By Grace are you saved, through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God," I will call him Brother.
We cannot all expect to be in one room. The elephants did not live with the tigers and the lions did not lie down with the sheep.
There were different rooms for different classes of creatures–and it is a good thing there are different denominations, for I am sure some of us would not get on very comfortably with certain denominations. We would need more liberty than we could get in the Church of England. We would want more freedom than we could get with the Presbyterians. We would need more soundness of Doctrine than we could get with the Wesleyans, and we would want a little more brotherly love, perhaps, than we could get with some of the Strict Baptists. We could not entirely agree with them all. And happy is he who can sometimes put his head into one room, and sometimes into another, and can say to all who love the Lord Jesus Christ, "Grace be with you all, so long as you are but in the Ark."
VI. But though there were many rooms in the ark, I want you to notice that THERE WAS ONLY ONE DOOR.
It is said, "And the door of the ark shall you set in the side thereof." And there is only one door into the ark of our salvation, and that is Christ. There are not two Christs preached–one in one chapel and another in another. "If any man preach any other Gospel unto you than that which you have received, let him be accursed."
There is but one Gospel. We take in the righteous out of all sections, but we do not take in all sections! We pick out the godly from among them all, for we believe "there is a remnant according to the election of Grace" in the vilest of them. But still, there is only one door–and "he that enters not by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber."
There was only one door to the ark. Some animals, like the giraffe, whose heads are higher than those of other animals, might have to bow their necks to go in by the same entrance as the waddling ducks which naturally stoop, even as they enter a barn.
And so the lofty ones of this world must bend their stiff necks and bow their proud heads if theywould enter into the Church by Christ. The swift horse and the slow-paced snail must enter by one door. So too the scribes and Pharisees must come in the same way as the publicans and harlots or be forever excluded. All the beasts
God had chosen went in by the one door–and if any had stood outside and said, "We shall not enter in that way," they would have been standing outside till the flood overtook and destroyed them, for there was only one door. There is only one way of salvation and there is only one means of getting into it–"Believe on the Lord
Jesus Christ, and you shall be saved." But "he that believes not," whoever he may be, must "be damned." There is no hope of any other way of salvation! He that comes in by the door shall be saved–and Jesus says, "I am the door."
VII. Proceeding in the parable, you will notice that THIS ARK
HAD SUNDRY STORIES IN IT. They were not all of one height– there were lower, second and third stories.
This is, to me, a figure of the different kinds of Christians who are carried to Heaven. There is my poor mourning Brother who lives in the bottom story. He is always singing– "Lord, what a wretched land is this!"
He lives just near the keel, on the bare ribs of the ark. He is never very happy. At times a little light reaches him from the window, but generally he is so far from the light that he walks in darkness and sees very little, indeed. His state is that of constant groaning–he loves to go and hear " the corruption preachers." He revels with delight in the deep experience of the tried family of God. He likes to hear it said, "We must, through much tribulation, enter into the Kingdom of God." If you paint the Christian life as a very gloomy one, he will like your picture, for his is gloomy, indeed. He is always poring over texts such as this, "O, wretched man that I am!"
He is down in the lower story of the ark. But never mind–he is in the ark, so we will not scold him, though he has little faith and very much doubt. "With lower, second, and third stories shall you make it." There is one of our Brothers who is up a little higher and he is saying, "I cannot exactly say that I am safe, yet I have a hope that my head will be kept above the billows, though it goes hard with me at times. Now and then, too, the Lord bestows 'some drops of Heaven' upon me. Sometimes, I am like the mountains of Zion, where 'the Lord commanded the blessing, even life forevermore.'"
He is in the second story, but he is no safer, though he is happier, than the man on the ground floor! All are safe so long as they are in the ark! Yet, for my part, I like the uppermost story best. I had rather live up there where I can sing, "My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed: I will sing and give praise." I love the place where the saints are "teaching and admonishing one another in Psalms and hymns and spiritual songs."
I confess that I am obliged to go down to the lower story sometimes, but I like running up the ladder to the third deck, yet I am no more safe when I am in the top story than I am when I am in the bottom one. The same wave that would split the ship and drown me, were I in the lowest story, would drown me if I were in the highest. However high some of us and, however low others of us may be, the same vessel bears us all, for we are one crew in one boat–and there is no dividing us. Come, then, my poor desponding
Hearer, is that your place, somewhere down at the bottom of the hold, along with the ballast? Are you always in trials and troubles?
Ah, well, fear not, so long as you are in the ark! Do not be afraid.
Christ is your strength and righteousness. The ark was, in each and every department, a secure shelter to all who were shut in!
"Ah," says one, "but I am down there, Sir, always at the bottom, and I am afraid the vessel will sink." Do not be so silly! Why should your heart beget such fears? I knew a man who went up the Monument and when he had got half way, he declared that it vibrated and was about to fall, and he would come down. But the Monument has not fallen. It is as safe as ever and if 50 like he, or fifty thousand, went up, the Monument would be just as firm! But some poor nervous Christians are afraid Christ will let them sink. A wave comes against the side of the ship, but it does not hurt the ship, it only drives the wedges in more tightly. The Master is at the helm–will not that assure your heart? It has floated over so many billows–will not that increase your confidence? It must, indeed, be a strong billow that will sink it! No, there never shall be such an one! And where, do you think, is the power that could destroy the souls who are sheltered in the Ark of our salvation? Who can lay anything to the charge of God's elect, since Christ has died and God the Father has justified us? Happy assurance! We are all safe, so surely as we are in the Ark of the Covenant. The ark floated triumphantly on amidst all the dangers and when it finally rested on Mount Ararat and God spoke to Noah, saying, "Go forth of the ark, you, and your wife, and your sons, and your sons' wives with you.
Bring forth with you every living thing that is with you," the inventory was complete and all were safely landed. So, too, will Christ present the perfect number of all His people to the Father in The Last Day–not one shall perish!
VIII. This brings me to notice, in the last place, THE
DIFFERENT KINDS OF ANIMALS THAT ENTERED INTO
THE ARK. Listen to the statement–"Of every clean beast you shall take to you by sevens, the male and his female: and of beasts that are not clean by two, the male and his female."
This great ark was meant to save both clean and unclean beasts!
In like manner, the great salvation of our Lord Jesus Christ is intended for sinners of all kinds, the clean and the unclean. There are some people in the world whom we may well reckon in the former class. They are in every way respectable. Their conduct in society is beyond reproach–exact in their commerce, they were never known to erase a figure in their account books–they would not defraud their neighbors, nor would they be so negligent of their fair fame as to do a disorderly action. Their character is so amiable that their mothers might regard them from childhood as almost without a fault. They have grown up to mature years without the hideous taint of immorality–their practice has been always akin to piety. Their zeal for the Law of God has been truly commendable so that Christ, Himself, might have looked on them and loved them, although He would have tenderly and pitifully admonished them as He said to the young man who came to Him, "One thing you lack." Yes, but the desolations of the flood are so universal that there is no escape except in the ark. The clean beasts must go into the ark to be saved–and there is not a soul among you so good, nor a character so clean–but you have need of Christ, whether you know your need or not! You may be ever so good and excellent but you will need a Savior. There is something about your character that is not clean. Your lives require purification which you can never find except in Christ.
But then the unclean beasts went in likewise. Here is the opposite class. Are there not some of you, (we know there are), whose education from early childhood has been vicious–certainly not virtuous? From your earliest recollections you have gone into the paths of open profanity. You have dived into the kennel and have steeped yourselves up to the very lips in the gall of bitterness. You have been drunks, swearers, Sabbath-breakers and injurious. You have indulged in all kinds of iniquities. You are just the sort of persons we should liken to unclean beasts. Yes–then the ark was built on purpose for you, too! The most moral man will stand no better when he comes before God than you will. He must be saved just as you are. You must both be saved by the one common salvation, or not at all. There is but one Savior for all who are saved–there is but one Redemption for everyone of you who really is redeemed. There is but one ark for the clean and the unclean!
"Ah," says someone, "I suppose, then, the unclean beasts come from the courts, the alleys and the filthy slums of the metropolis."
Oh, no, not particularly so! We can find the unclean as plentifully in St. James's as in St. Giles's. There are some in what you call "the higher circles" who, from infancy, have reveled in vice. Soon did you learn to break the rule of your parents' authority. You laughed at your mother's tears, you sneered at your father's counsels–you drank up iniquity in your schooldays, as the greedy ox drinks up water. You made a boast of your wild riots. You tell of your wickedness, now, with an air of impertinent triumph. You brag of having sowed your wild oats. So infamous has been your career, in spite of good example and education, that I suppose, "Newgate" could hardly produce a class of unclean beasts more to be loathed than you are!
Well, now, to each class of sinners I preach. If you feel and deplore your uncleanness, there is mercy for you, unclean as you are. I beseech you, come into the Ark and you will never be turned out! If God shall compel you to come as He did those creatures, He will never, never drive you away. The ark was for the unclean as well as for the clean–for the swine as well as for the sheep–for the poisonous asp as well as for the harmless dove–for the carnivorous raven as well as for the turtle-dove. All creatures came in–some of every sort. You swinish sinner, one of Satan's hogs, come in and you shall be safe! And you lamb-like sinner, gentle and mild, come in, for there is no other Ark for you, and you will be drowned unless you come in by the same door into the great Ark of salvation!
Let us divide these creatures once more. There were creeping things and there were flying things. On the morningwhen the ark door was opened, you might have seen, in the sky, a pair of eagles, a pair of sparrows, a pair of vultures, a pair of ravens, a pair of hummingbirds, pairs of all kinds of birds that ever cut the azure, that ever floated on wing, or whispered their song to the evening gales. In they came. But if you had watched down on the earth, you would have seen come creeping along a pair of snails, a pair of snakes and a pair of worms. There ran along a pair of mice. There came a pair of lizards and in there flew a pair of locusts. There were pairs of creeping creatures as well as pairs of flying creatures.
Do you see what I mean by that? There are some of you who can fly so high in knowledge that I should never be able to scan your great and extensive wisdom–and others of you so ignorant that you can hardly read your Bibles. Never mind! The eagle must come down to the door and the ant must go up to it. There is only one entrance for you all–and as God saved the birds that flew, so He saved the reptiles that crawled!
Are you a poor, ignorant, crawling creature that never was noticed–without intellect, without repute, without fame, without honor? Come along, crawling one! God will not exclude you! I have often wondered how the poor snail crawled in, but I daresay he started many a year before! And some of you have started for years and still you keep crawling on. Ah, then, come along with you, poor snail! If I could just pick you up and help you on a yard or two, I would be glad to do it. It is strange how long you have been near to the Ark, but not yet in–how long you have been near the portals of the Church, but never joined it.
Remark again, they all got in. Do not fear if you are, in your own esteem, a crawling reptile–you may have thelowest possible opinion of yourself–still come! Nobody forbids you to come,