As It Was In The Days Of Noah
Pastor Jim Sanderbeck
Feb. 8, 2021
Gen 5:32 Noah was five hundred years old, and Noah became the father of Shem, Ham, and Japheth. (NASB)
Gen 6:8 But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD.
Gen 6:11 Now the earth was corrupt in the sight of God, and the earth was filled with violence. 12 God looked on the earth, and behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted their way upon the earth. 13 Then God said to Noah, “The end of all flesh has come before Me; for the earth is filled with violence because of them; and behold, I am about to destroy them with the earth. 14 “Make for yourself an ark of gopher wood..; (NASB)
Gen 7:5 Noah did according to all that the LORD had commanded him. 6 Now Noah was six hundred years old when the flood of water came upon the earth. (NASB)
Gen 9:9 “Now behold, I Myself do establish My covenant with you, and with your descendants after you; (NASB)
Mat 24:37 “For the coming of the Son of Man will be just like the days of Noah. 38 “For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, 39 and they did not understand until the flood came and took them all away; so will the coming of the Son of Man be. (NASB)
Heb 11:7 By faith Noah, being warned by God about things not yet seen, in reverence prepared an ark for the salvation of his household, by which he condemned the world, and became an heir of the righteousness which is according to faith. (NASB)
I first became intrigued about “As It Was In The Days Of Noah” when I listened to a prophetic word from Pastor Everett Whiteside in July of 2020. Here is a link to that word: https://www.facebook.com/everett.whiteside.9/videos/10220402442949594/ .
In this prophetic word to Pastor Whiteside, he says God pointed to the past to give us a look at the future so that we can operate effectively and accurately in the now. – [When God speaks, He doesn’t speak out of time because He is eternal. So when He speaks He directs us to the past or the future so we can grasp what He is trying to bring to us so that we are effective in the now. This is the nature of prophesy.] In this case of the days of Noah, He is giving us a futuristic view of what is coming by looking at what occurred for us in a past season. For those who live only in the now, they are unable to see or know what is coming. But for us who choose to life by faith in the Father through Jesus Christ, God provides us with instruction and information so we can be effective for Him in building the Kingdom here on planet earth. Many, even as Believers, have been overtaken by fear by various conditions [politics, pandemic, social unrest, financial breakdown, etc.] rather than trusting that God will sustain and bring victory over every circumstance. Rather than listening to the AWS (Advanced Warning System) of God which comes to us by the Word of God, the Holy Spirit and the common threads of His trusted Prophets, many have let go of His promises, purposes and plans and fallen away or shrunk back from the front lines of the battle. Has God not promised? Is God unable to fulfill His covenant? What’s changed? God doesn’t change His mind. Stretch your faith in Him!! He doesn’t promise that there will be no tribulation. He promises that He will bring you through it. It isn’t the size of the dog in the fight; it’s the size of the fight in the dog!
What does God want us to take note of and do from looking at what was going on in the days of Noah that will prepare us for the “new normal” of the days ahead? I don’t even like the words “new normal” but that is the contemporary phrase that references for us that we are in days of extreme pressure, volatility, change, and uncertainty. Well, let’s look to the Word of God for the “take note of” in my question:
- We know the earth was filled with corruption and violence.
- We know the people were going on with their lifestyles without concern or consideration of anything other than their self-centered and decadent ways.
- We know that all flesh (mankind) was corrupt to the degree that God was fed up and ready to bring forth the judgement of death to His creation.
- We know that Noah had found favor with God before the rains of judgement came because of his faith in God and that apparently set him apart from all mankind around him.
- We know that for somewhere between 70 and 100 years Noah was faithful to the command of God as he prepared to build that Ark every day; preparing for the future, while still having to live in the present.
- We know that Noah was obedient to the direction God gave Him in the construction and loading of the Ark.
- We know that the people of the day ridiculed or ignored Noah for His apparently “weird” ways and words right up to the sealing of the Ark because they did not stop or change behaviors.
- We know that Noah found favor with God after the rains of judgement came because of his unwavering faith and obedience. As with Adam and later Abram, God re-established covenant with Noah and all of his descendants.
- We know that the return of Jesus will be under conditions that were similar to the conditions at the time of Noah, and that the response to judgement will be ignored by all of mankind who are not of the same spirit (full of faith and obedient) as Noah. [May I also remind you that in the parable of the 10 virgins that they were all virgins but only 5 took the time to prepare for the coming of the bridegroom. – just sayin’. You will have to make your mind up about that one.]
Now, what might God want us “to do” by looking back at “As It Was In The Days Of Noah?” In his prophesy linked above, Pastor Whiteside referenced multiple times the phrase “preparation for sustainability.” Preparing for sustainability means that we Followers of Christ must do whatever is necessary to sustain us for whatever the future holds. What we have to do may seem “crazy,” “impossible”, or it may not seem “logical” to the soulish mind, but we must be obedient to the directives that come from the Throne of the Lord as they concern the coming days. For example:
- Leaders must get ready to lead. Leaders must increase in “understanding the times”, understanding the Word, and discerning by way of all of the gifts of the Holy Spirit.
- Leaders must be prepared to lead in all ways those who have been assigned and are under the divine order of spiritual government.
- All Believers who will must come up to a new level of experience in their personal relationship with God in prayer, in the study and meditation of the Scriptures, and in sitting in His presence to learn and to enjoy Him through the Holy Spirit.
- All believers must practice righteousness in all things. Faith is reckoned as righteousness. God is no longer winking at sin. As Pastor Whiteside said, “at takeoff a pilot has a lot of liberty to maneuver up and over or down and under a storm. They can go somewhat off of their flight pattern to the left or to the right. BUT, the closer that pilot gets to landing on the runway, the less and less leeway for maneuverability he has. In other words, as time progresses, maneuverability decreases.
- All believers must accept and join in the fellowship of those of like-minded faith because separately we do not get the full extent of support or the full counsel of God. Together, we can!
In August of 2020, the Lord spoke to me clearly on the “Do’s” of this season and this counsel of the Lord remains and will remain in effect for whatever “time” is required. I have called them the 5 P’s.
THE 5 P’s
- Participate – get out of the bleachers and on to the playing field
- Pray – intercede for one another, for his strategy to succeed while binding, blinding and bewildering the powers of darkness
- Prepare – in the natural for several months of provision and spiritual acuteness (the ability to comprehend; to understand and profit from experience) to advance the Kingdom—repent, pursue righteousness in thoughts, words and deeds
- Position – watch for His divine appointments and opportunities to interact with your sphere of influence
- Provide – obey His directives of action and for others who need sustenance, protection, spiritual covering and direction
Looking back to “As It Was In The Days Of Noah” is a prophetic directive to the Body of Christ today. Noah’s encounter with God provided a directive for his hour. Now we look back at that experience and apply it to this hour. It is up to you and I to pick up our mantles and be God’s Kingdom ambassadors—carrying His authority and power—in the earth. This is season and our spheres of influence to walk as Jesus did. Let’s stick to it and get it done. STOP, LOOK, LISTEN & PREPARE. These are days that should be filled with excitement and anticipation. We are about to see the greatest harvest of souls and the greatest release of signs, wonders and miracles that the earth has ever seen.