One of my best friends has a new grandson named Noah. Whenever I meet a new Noah, I think: like the original, may he find favor in the eyes of the Lord. Out of his whole generation, God chose Noah to accomplish his redemptive purpose, to save and protect life. Noah had a huge responsibility. If you want to tell your flood story in heaven, remember Noah will be there! What do you do after you survive a world-wide flood?
Noah planted a vineyard. We already knew he was faithful and found favor. Noah could build an ark and gather animals. But did we know he was an “ish Adamah” which means a man of the soil. This is the only time the expression is used in the Bible. Honestly, I had never noticed it before. It reads in Hebrew a bit like our oil patch expression: “Land man.” Noah was a man of the land. At one level, all humankind has been formed from the earth. Two days ago, Christians around the globe put ash on their foreheads to remind themselves, in part, that from dust we were formed and to dust we will return. Ashes to ashes, dust to dust.
Apparently, Noah’s grapevines flourished. Out of his vineyard, he produced wine. He drank enough to become drunk, and became drunk enough to disrobe. One of his sons, Ham, saw him in that state and told his brothers. Shem and Japheth carried a garment backwards and dropped it over dad. Noah found out what Ham had done, made him a slave to his brothers, lived a lot longer and eventually returned to the earth.
Wait, what? What is this story about? Remember Adam and Eve, made out of dirt, did not feel dirty in their nakedness until after they had sinned. Only then did they run for cover from God. After pronouncing their punishment, God made garments to cover them. Now Noah, a man of the dirt, falls asleep naked, and one son sees him. To be honest, I’m not sure what Ham did, but it must have been bad. He, too, experienced a consequence for his sin against his father. Ham and his descendants would serve his brothers and their offspring as slaves. Eventually, Abraham would be born in the line of Shem and his descendants would subdue the Canaanites.
Like Adam and Eve, we have sinned. This season of preparation for Easter reminds us we came from dust and we will return to dust. But God sent his perfect Son to give his life so that we might be covered by the garment of his righteousness and grace. This is our hope. We are the new Noahs. Like the original article, we people of the soil have found favor in the eyes of the Lord. He sees us, knows us, and really loves us. Since we live in the favor his Holy Spirit gives us, let us keep in step with the Spirit today. Not drunk with wine, we are filled with the Spirit of God. Live into that fullness today.
