Let’s back this story up a little bit. We know from Genesis 2:5-6 that it had never rained before Adam and Eve’s sin. Instead, “A mist came up from the earth that kept everything watered.” Some speculate that this may have continued up to the days of Noah. The Bible is silent on this, but if that is true, then no one knew what rain was. If that was indeed the case, can you imagine Noah trying to convince everyone that so much water is going to fall from the sky that it will kill everyone except those on the ark. You can only imagine the ridicule Noah endured, even more so when he started building a boat on dry ground with no large body of water nearby. How was this boat supposed to float?

Here’s another what-if. What if some of those who listened to Noah believed what he said and repented? Was there room on the ark for them? Here’s a what-if that I have pondered quite often. According to Genesis 5:32, Noah was five hundred years old when his sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth, were born. That’s a long time to wait to start a family. Surely, he had sexual relations with his wife before then, which means almost certainly there were sons and daughters born before this. If that’s true, and again, there is no Biblical reference to prove it, that means some of the people who were shut out of the ark were Noah’s own children. Even if he had no other children, there would have been other family members not allowed on the ark. For one hundred years, Noah preached about an impending judgment, but no one believed him.

Genesis 7:16 says that God shut the door after Noah and his family were all on board the ark. There are several applications to that. Noah was human. Can you imagine how he must have felt when the rain began to fall, and the waters began to rise? Eventually, people ran out of places to seek shelter. I’m sure some ran to the ark and were screaming for Noah to open the door. It would have been difficult to sit inside the ark with callous indifference while family and friends were dying outside the ark. But Noah couldn’t open the door because he didn’t shut the door; God did. That brings up another great Bible truth. When God shuts a door, no man can open it. But the opposite of that is also true. When God opens a door, no man can close it. I can testify to that in my life.

In a somewhat broad stroke of the pen, Noah was saved for only two reasons. He chose to live a life of righteousness in the midst of the wickedness of his day and because of that, he found grace in the eyes of God. The same is true in our day. As we race headlong towards God’s final judgment, God’s grace is still available to whosoever will. Regardless of how bad the world gets, we can still live a holy life.

Most secular writers consider the flood of Noah’s day a myth. That’s not surprising since they really don’t want to believe anything the Bible says, because that would mean believing in God, which would also mean being accountable for sin. They have difficulty navigating around this story because numerous other historical writings tell about the flood. Are they all part of some global conspiracy?

Sitting on top of the Mount of Olives with His disciples, Jesus said, “As it was in the days of Noah.” The last day’s judgment is not a matter of if it will happen, but when will it happen. In Revelation chapter 6, the persecuted saints took that question to another level when they asked: “How long, oh Lord?” Every day draws us nearer to the time when Jesus will return. Are you ready?