Noah lived in a generation that had spun out of control. Violence and murder were rampant and unspeakable wickedness had spread wantonly.
“Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth … And the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth … So the Lord said, ‘I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping things and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them’” (Genesis 6:5-7).
God told Noah, “I’m going to destroy all flesh but I will preserve you and your family. I want you to build an ark, Noah, and gather into it all the animal species, in twos. While you are building, I will show mercy to the inhabitants of the earth for a season and then I will send a rain that will not stop for forty days and nights. A great flood will wipe out every living thing.” Then God gave Noah the dimensions of the ark — its length, wide and depth — in great detail (see Genesis 6:11-22).
Noah was given the task of building an enormous ark while living in a violent, dangerous world. He had to accept it all by faith, with no further direction for many years. I’m certain he was mocked and threatened as he tediously worked, yet he kept building and believing while the world around him danced, partied and wallowed in sensuality.
God told this man, “I’m asking you to obey me, and if you ever start to doubt, you must trust what I’ve told you.” This was so illogical and unreasonable that Noah must have become discouraged at times and wondered if he had really heard from God.
Have you ever felt God was speaking to you and then there was silence? No further direction, no sign from heaven? Be encouraged! Noah remained faithful and because of his obedience, he is listed as a victor in the “Hall of Faith,” becoming an “heir of the righteousness which is according to faith” (Hebrews 11:7). In your time of trouble, take hope that just like the great heroes listed, the victory is yours in Christ.
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David Wilkerson (1931 – 2011)
Founder of Times Square Church in New York City with over 100 different languages spoken in the congregation. Wilkerson wrote many powerful books such as: The Vision and Cross and the Switchblade. His ministry was prophetic as God called him to be a watchman to the Church in North America. He gave clear messages on repentance to the Church.Wilkerson also founded Teen Challenge where there are hundreds of centres for Christ-centered drug recovery and addiction recovery. He also organized and spoke at pastors gatherings in many countries where he gave prophetic strong messages to encourage pastors and leaders.
Recommends these books by David Wilkerson:
The Vision and Beyond, Prophecies Fulfilled and Still to Come by David Wilkerson
Knowing God by Name: Names of God That Bring Hope and Healing by David Wilkerson
God's Plan to Protect His People in the Coming Depression by David Wilkerson
David Wilkerson is an American Christian evangelist, most well-known for his book The Cross and the Switchblade. He is also the founder of Times Square Church in New York, an interdenominational church.
Wilkerson is well-known for these early years of his ministry to young drug addicts and gang members in New York City in the 1950s and 1960s. He co-authored a book about his work with the New York drug addicts, The Cross and the Switchblade, which became a best-seller, selling over 50 million copies in over thirty languages since it was published in 1963. The book was included among the 100 most important Christian books of the 20th century.
For over four decades, Wilkerson's ministry has included preaching, teaching and writing. He has authored over 30 books.
David Wilkerson is the founder and president of World Challenge, Inc., a nonprofit organization incorporated on September 22, 1971. Reverend Wilkerson, the author of over thirty inspirational books, is perhaps best known for his early days of ministry to young drug addicts and gang members in Manhattan, the Bronx, and Brooklyn. His story is told in The Cross and the Switchblade, a book he co-authored which became a best-seller. (The story has been read by over 50 million people in some thirty languages and 150 countries since 1963. In 1969, a motion picture of the same title was released.)
For over four decades, Reverend Wilkerson's evangelistic ministry has included preaching, teaching and writing. Throughout that time a distinctive characteristic of his work has been his direct efforts to reach the neediest members of the population with help for both body and soul. Even now, the almost 70 year-old minister often goes out alone or sometimes with an assistant to walk through the streets of New York City, along Broadway and Eighth Avenue or down 42nd Street and nearby "Crack Alley" on 41st Street. His mission is always to seek out the lost, the disoriented, and the addicted , to tell them of the power of the risen Christ to set them free.
David Wilkerson, born in Hammond, Indiana on May 19, 1931, was married in 1953 to Gwen Carosso. The Wilkersons' two sons are ministers, and their two daughters are married to ministers. They have 11 grandchildren. The Wilkersons served small pastorates in Scottsdale and Philipsburg, Pennsylvania, until Reverend Wilkerson saw a photograph in Life magazine of several New York City teenagers charged with murder. Moved with compassion he was drawn to the city in February 1959. It was at that time he began his street ministry to what one writer called "desperate, bewildered, addicted, often violent youth.