Genesis 4:16-26

ARE THE DAYS OF NOAH HERE AGAIN?

Intro:  Before Jesus went to the cross to die for our sins; He painted a clear picture of what the world would look like as the end of time approached, Matthew 24-25.  He laid out a clear blueprint for the end of the age and told us that we could know that the end was near when certain characteristics began to be seen in the world, Matthew 24:1-8.  While these verses have a primary interpretation to events that will take place in the Tribulation Period; we will see these things beginning to take place, even before Jesus comes for His people in the Rapture.

      We may wonder what the passage we have read this evening has to do with the matter of end time prophecy. The answer lies in what Jesus said in Matt. 24:37-39 and Luke 17:26-27.  Jesus made a crystal clear comparison between the days we have just read about and how things will be just before He returns.

      Today, I want to examine the biblical record of the days of Noah.  If we will take the time to look seriously at the way the world was then and the way it is now, we will see come clear parallels between our world and theirs.  By observing the characteristics that prevailed in Noah’s day, we can determine whether or not the days of Noah are here again.  If they are, then we need to be ready, for our “redemption draweth nigh”, Luke 21:28.

      So, I want to ask the question, Are The Days Of Noah Here Again?  Let’s look at the evidence and observe the characteristics that prevailed in those days and see just where we are on God’s prophetic calendar.  Notice the following characteristics.

 

  I. 4:1-15 THOSE DAYS WERE CHARACTERIZED BY PERVERSION

·        Ill. Cain and his bloodless religion.  Cain ignored the plain mandate ordained by God Himself, Gen. 3:21.

·        This same mentality abounds in our world today – 2 Tim. 3:5 (Ill. We are living in days of widespread apostasy, 2 Thes. 2:3; 1 Tim. 4:1-3; 2 Tim. 4:3-4.)

·        Ill. Oprah and her self-help philosophy.  To her, God is merely a “force.” Sadly, the same ideas prevail in many churches today. And, what is even more sad is the fact that many people swallow this social, psychological Gospel, hook line and sinker.

 

 II. 4:20    THOSE DAYS WERE CHARACTERIZED BY PROSPERITY

·        Jabal was the first to practice the domestication of animals.  Now, men no longer had to hunt and scrounge for their food, they merely raised it. This allowed people to have more than they needed.  It was time of material prosperity and Jabal cornered the market.

·        In spite of the decline in industry in our country, we are still enjoying unprecedented prosperity.  The median income in America for a family of four is $62,732, according to the last census.  In fact, if you go to places like Wal-Mart and the malls, you wonder who works anymore.  Everyone is spending.  These are days when most people have more than enough.

 

III. 4:21     THOSE DAYS WERE CHARACTERIZED BY PLEASURE

·        A man named Jubal invented musical instruments and was the father of the entertainment industry.

·        There is no denying the fact that we are living in a pleasure mad world.  This past weekend, the latest Star Wars movie, Episode III - Revenge of the Sith, set a new four day box office record by taking in $158.5 million!  In fact, Americans spent an astounding $9.4 billion on movies in 2004!  That doesn’t take into account the billions spent on other forms of entertainment like sports, music and hobbies.

·        When we were growing up, entertainment consisted of a gun made out of two by fours, a fishing pole and a day at the creek, or just catching June bugs and lightening bugs.  Today, kids have to have Nintendo, PlayStation, Game Boys, computers, CD players, MP3 players, DVD players, etc.  We are a pleasure mad society!

 

IV. 4:22; 17 THOSE DAYS WERE CHARACTERIZED BY PROGRESS

·        A man named Tubal-cain discovered learned how to extract metal from ore and invented the smelting business.  This allowed men to produce stronger farm implements and far more formidable armaments. Verse 17 talks about the rise of cities.  The days preceding the flood were marked by scientific and engineering advancements. 

·        Ill. The ark, Gen. 6:14-16.  The plans were handed down by God, but the boat was built by men.  That kind of achievement required a tremendous amount of technological know how.  Some people believe that the people who existed before the flood were even more advanced than we are today.

·        There are many inventions and advancements that could be mentioned that clearly reveal how we are progressing in the scientific and engineering fields, as well as in every arena of human life.  Advancements in the medical field, alone, are almost beyond belief!

      But, one of the greatest feats of science in recent years was the Voyager 2 mission to the planet Saturn.  This little craft was loaded down with all kinds of delicate, scientific instruments such as radio receivers, cameras, and cosmic ray detectors.  It could measure ultraviolet, infrared and visible light.  It could detect electric and magnetic fields, etc.  This thing left the earth and headed for Saturn traveling at fifty-four thousand miles per hour, (That’s twenty times the speed of a bullet, if you are counting.), and it traveled for four years across 1.24 billion miles.

      When that thing arrived at its destination, it was only forty-one miles off its target and it was a mere three seconds late. I think it is safe to say that we are living in a time of unprecedented human advancement!

 

(Note: If you look at those days, you might be lead to believe that humanity was doing quite well.  They were prosperous.  They were developing a complex culture, complete with great cities, art and the ability to sustain life.  They were advancing in the fields of agriculture, metallurgy, art, music and science.  Yet, for all their achievements, they did not know God!  Does that sound familiar?  Our society is advancing at an amazing rate; but mankind has chosen a path that leads him ever farther away from the Lord.)

 

V. 4:23    THOSE DAYS WERE CHARACTERIZED BY POLYGAMY

·        Here we meet a man named Lamech.  We are told that he married two women.  He is the first person in the record of humanity who took clear steps to undermine the home and the family.  God had set the standard, Gen. 2:18-25.  Lamech was the first to pervert it.  It was a time marked by lust, wanton disregard for God’s will and open sin and perversion.

·        Sadly, Lamech would not be the last! In Gen. 6:1-4, we are told that there was an intermingling of the godly line of Seth with the cursed, reprobate line of Cain.  This produced a generation of men called “giants” and “men of renown.”  Basically, what you have here is a generation of demon-possessed men who dominated that society for their own pleasure and profit.

·        Well, I think it is clear to see that marriage, as the Bible defines it, is under attack today.  The traditional family is being challenged by homosexuality and lesbianism.  Cohabitation is becoming the order of the day. 

 

VI. 4:24      THOSE DAYS WERE CHARACTERIZED BY PRIDE

·        Lamech declares his value to be far greater than that of his ancestor Cain.  He sets himself up as the be all and the end all of life.  He is the first real humanist.  He sees himself as number one and believes that all his actions are right.  His name means “powerful”, and he lived as if all power resided within him.  If you look at the names of Cain’s offspring in verses 17-18, you will notice that some of the names include the suffix “El.”  This is a name for God, basically referring to Him as the God of creation, or to God in a general sense.  Then you come to the name “Mehujel.”  This name literally means “Blot out that Jah is God.” 

      In other words, they paid God lip service for a while; but the day came when wanted God out of their lives.  They wanted to live as though He did not exist.

      Note: We are living in days just like that now.  When I hear liberal politicians, homosexuals, and other infidels using the name of God, I realize that the days of Noah are here.  They want to pay Him lip service; but they do not want Him involved in their affairs, or the affairs of the world at all.

·        If there was ever a day when men “did that which was right in their own eyes” it is the day in which we are living.  Men have no regard for the Word of God.  They do not fear the Lord, but they live as they want to live without thought of a Heaven to gain or a Hell to shun.

·        The battle cry of the hour is, “Don’t tell me how to live my life.  I will do as I please and answer to no one.”  People refuse to bow to the authority of God or His Word.  They walk in the pride of life and there is not fear of God before their eyes, 1 John 2:16; Rom. 3:18.

 

VII. 6:1-13 THOSE DAYS WERE CHARACTERIZED BY POLLUTION

A.  Social Pollution – Verses 5-6; 11-12 reveal the moral and social climate of that day.  It was a time when men did as they pleased without thought for the welfare or property of others.  Murder and crime were rampant in that society.  Of course, when men throw off God and His restraining influence; they will degenerate into the depths of depravity and wickedness.

            That is where we are today.  Think about this: In America, a murder is committed every thirty-four minutes, a female is sexually assaulted or raped every two minutes, and a house is robbed every nine seconds.  And, things are just going to get worse!  We have told a generation that there is no God, there is no Heaven and there is no Hell.  If there is no God, then there is no standard of right and wrong.  If there is no God, then man is the product of random chance and evolution and he can do as he pleases.

B.  Sexual Pollution – It was a time of unequal yokes in marriage, 6:1-4 and tolerance of evil and wicked lifestyles, 4:19-24.  In fact, the bloodline of humanity had become so tainted and polluted; that only Noah was considered pure in his generations, 6:9. 

      Chastity and morality have gone the way of the horse and buggy.  Sex is no longer reserved for the marriage relationship as God intended.  Now, sex is for the classroom and the locker room. Virginity is no longer seen as a precious gift to be cherished and preserved for one’s life mate; it is seen as a commodity to be traded for affection, acceptance and pleasure.

      Just look at our society and it is easy to see that we are a people obsessed with sex!  Consider the rise in recent years in teachers having sex with their students.  Look at the increase in child molestation.  Look at the rise in pornography in our society.  Things that used to be done in back rooms and talked about in whispers are displayed openly for all to see. Smut that used to be hidden away in the darkness is now flaunted on the billboards, televisions and movie screens of America. An innocent search of information on the Internet can become an eye-opening experience, if you aren’t very careful.  Traditional values and morality are under increasing attack in these days. Homosexuality and Lesbianism are not merely tolerated; they are promoted as “alternative lifestyles” and woe to the person who dares to speak out against it!  There is no doubt that we are living in dark days and they are getting darker by the hour!

C.  Spiritual Pollution – Verse 12 tells us that men had “corrupted His way upon the earth.”  Men had turned from the worship of the true and living God to embrace the occult.  They worshiped Satan and his lies while they shunned the truth of the Lord.

      The same is true in our day.  People are caught up in the supernatural.  Look at the increase in psychics and in interest in angels.  Just go to any large book store and you will quickly see that witchcraft, astrology, spiritism, psychic phenomenon, demonic religions and Satanism have penetrated our culture to a frightening level.

      But, what should we expect?  Man is a religious being and he will worship something.  When God is removed from a culture, He will be replaced with satanic counterfeits.  It has always been that way and it always will be, Rom. 1:18-28.

 

(Note: The Cainites set the moral and spiritual temperature of that age.  They controlled public opinion and they decided what was in and what was out.  The Sethites, on the other hand, seemed to have very little voice in that society.

      It is much the same way to day.  The world, which for the most part has turned its back on God, sets the moral and spiritual tone of our society.  They pay lip service to the Lord and deny Him the love, devotion and worship He deserves.)

 

Conc:  Have the days of Noah arrived again?  Can you see the signs of the times?  I get the feeling that if we were to get into a time machine and travel back to Noah’s day, we might just see the similarities between that day and our day.

      Now, I do not want to close this message on a negative note.  Oh no!  Even in that dark day, God still had His man and God was still working in a big way.  He was still moving in grace to redeem the lost in that world just as He is in this one.  God was still working to bring things to a conclusion that honored Him, just as He is in this day.

      You see, Jesus said, “And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh,” Luke 21:28.  When He said that, He was referring to those who would be living during the Tribulation.  He is telling those people that He is coming again, and when He does, He will make things as they ought to be.  He will straighten out the messes in this world and make it right again.  Let me just remind you that before He comes in power and glory to establish His kingdom here on the earth; He will first come in the clouds and call up His bride to meet Him there.

      I think this world is ripe for judgment.  If that is true, then it is just about time for us to make the trip to glory.  If I were you, I would be sure that I was saved and ready.  I would cut as many of my ties with this world as I could.  We are leaving and it could be very soon!  He’s coming and we are going!  Are you ready?