Jump Start # 3367

Genesis 7:16 “Those that entered, male and female of all flesh, entered as God had commanded him; and the Lord closed it behind him.”

I recently took a friend to the Ark Encounter in Kentucky. It is outstanding. It is massive. Life-sized ark. Lots of facts. Lots of information. Lots of things most of us never thought about such as how did they feed the animals or deal with waste. It’s a must trip that everyone ought to take.

One of the information signs estimated the human population at the time of the flood. No one knows for sure, but based upon some genealogies in early Genesis, at a population growth rate of 1.2%, the low estimate was over 730,000 people. At a growth rate of 1.4%, the upper estimate was 19 billion people. Those numbers are staggering.

Then it hit me. There are people on both sides of that ark door that will be in Heaven. Of course, on the inside was Noah, and his family. He’s listed in Hebrews 11 as one who gained approval. But on the outside of that ark door, killed by the wrath of God, would be innocent children and babies who never sinned. Inside the ark and outside the ark, but together in Heaven. Now, that’s a thought I have never really pondered before.

Consider for a moment:

First, there are many who would worship the Lord if they could but they are prohibited. Parents who do not believe keep their children away from God. A spouse who pressures his or her mate to stay home and away from the Lord and His people. Tragically, these situations are like a spiritual prison. Beyond their control they live in darkness because of others. Their lives would be so different if the Lord was invited into those homes. Many grow up with no direction and the only examples they see are the wrong examples. Anger, hatred, gossip, indecency are as common as food on the table. Habits of lying and dishonesty are praised and bragged about. A culture of wrong is all some children see.

Second, the Lord knew about the children outside the ark. His love would invite them even though at the same time His wrath destroyed their parents. Love and wrath together, something we have a hard time with. For us, it’s one or the other, and it’s never at the same time. As the children outside the ark died, their pure souls would be lifted heavenward. They were not forgotten. They were not ignored. God knows.

Third, this isn’t the only occasion where wrath and love come together. At Sodom. At the destruction of Jericho. Even, the second coming, illustrate this mix of love and wrath. Heaven and Hell. Saved and lost. The modern church has no tolerance for a wrathful, just God. Hell has evaporated from most sermons. And, as they define love, it’s become do and be whatever you want. The honor of the Lord has been ignored.

What a responsibility to raise our children to know the Lord. What a shame it is to keep them from the Lord.

Both sides of the ark door—yet together in Heaven.

Roger