These are notes on the sermon, Noah─The Real Story, preached by Pastor Joseph Prince on Sunday, 13 April 2014, at The Star Performing Arts Centre, Singapore. We hope these sermon notes will be an encouragement to you!
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Pastor Prince addresses the controversial Hollywood movie, Noah. He shares with the congregation that the movie is biblically-inaccurate, and wants to bring the truth of God’s Word to light.
Pastor Prince calls out several biblical inaccuracies in the movie.
For example, in the Bible, God told Noah to save his entire family, but in the movie, God told Noah to kill his family, which is a complete misrepresentation of what is written in the Bible.
The wrongful portrayal of God and Noah’s relationship made God appear harsh and unmerciful towards man.
During the fifty to seventy years when the ark was being built, God ordained Noah as a preacher of righteousness. However, the world had gone so wayward that they did not respond to the preaching.
Pastor Prince highlights that, though movies are given poetic license to interpret the story further, it should never take away the basic essence of the character.
An example of proper use of poetic license is found in the movie, The Passion of the Christ. When Jesus was a carpenter, He told his mother, Mary, that His woodwork would one day be popular. Mary laughed, washed His hands, and Jesus sprinkled water on her in a playful manner. This scene depicts their beautiful relationship as mother and son.
Pastor Prince notes that this detail is not in the Bible, but is likely to have happened.
Pastor Prince highlights that the revelation behind Noah’s story is vital, as Jesus declared, “As it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be in the days of the coming of the Son of Man (See Matt. 24:37-39).” In other words, the same scenario is going to happen.
Firstly, we as believers have to understand the promise. The first promise in the Bible comes in the form of prophecy.
In Genesis 3:15, God addresses Satan (embodying the form of a snake), after the fall of Adam and Eve.
“And I will put enmity
Between you and the woman,
And between your seed (Satan’s seed) and her Seed (Jesus);
He shall bruise (crush) your head,
And you shall bruise (crush) His heel.”
—Genesis 3:15 NKJV
In conception, it is the man who provides the seed, not the woman. This was a prophecy of the virgin birth, that Jesus would be born as the woman’s seed.
In the act of Jesus crushing Satan’s head, He would crush His own heel. This is a picture of Jesus dying on the cross to save all of us.
Pastor Prince recounts the stories in the Bible of how the devil—not being omniscient—tried multiple times to stop the prophecy from being fulfilled, by using mankind to kill who he thought was the Messiah, but was always unsuccessful.
Pastor Prince goes on to explain that back in the days before the fall had taken its full effect, man could live for hundreds of years.
Adam lived for 930 years, Noah lived till 950 years old, and the longest living man is Methuselah at 969 years of age. Even though they sinned, they lived long lives. As they lived long lives, mankind eventually repopulated the whole earth after the flood.
“Now it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born to them, that the sons of God saw the daughters of men, that they were beautiful; and they took wives for themselves of all whom they chose. And the Lord said, “My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, for he is indeed flesh, yet his days shall be one hundred and twenty years.” There were giants (nephilim) on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of men and they bore children to them. Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown.”
—Genesis 6:1–4 NKJV
The Hebrew word for “giants” is “nephilim”, which means “fallen ones”.
The bolded text, “in those days”, and, “also afterward”, signify the two eruptions of fallen angels coming to the daughters of man, before and after the flood.
The word, “mighty” (See Gen. 6:4) means, mighty in size; superhuman in strength; mighty in wickedness.
The phrase “daughters of men” refer to women (born of Adam and Eve). In the Septuagint—Greek version of the scriptures in the Old Testament, the “sons of God” refer to angels.
The Hebrew word for “sons of God” is, “bene ha Elohim”. Anyone created directly by God is called, “sons of God”.
Pastor Prince expounds on how these fallen angels are not God’s angels, though they came from Him. They had taken on the form of man, and abused their position during Noah’s time.
Pastor Prince explains the differences in position between angels and mankind.
“Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them.”
—Job 1:6 NKJV
The above verse states that Satan too, was considered “sons of God”.
“When the morning stars sang together,
And all the sons of God shouted for joy?”
—Job 38:7 NKJV
The “sons of God” in Job 38:7 refer to the angels.
The devil was out to corrupt the woman’s seed so as to secure his position. With Satan instigating it, the fallen angels took on the form of man and came to the daughters of men, producing “nephilim”.
Pastor Prince highlights a similar picture in Greek mythology, where there are creatures known as, “demi-gods”, one being “Cyclops”.
Pastor Prince points back to Genesis 6:4.
God promised Noah to never again flood the earth, and the devil thought he could repeat his plan of sending fallen angels to repopulate the earth to crush the woman’s seed.
After the floods, the second eruption of fallen angels came to the daughters of men, and produced the “Anakims”; “Rephaims”—all from the stock of the nephilim. God raised Israel to exterminate these giants.
Pastor Prince goes on to explain how the devil, knowing the significance of Israel, utilized these giants to occupy lands and stop the promise from coming to pass.
“And the angels who did not keep their proper domain (original position), but left their own abode (body), He has reserved in everlasting chains under darkness for the judgment of the great day;”
—Jude 1:6 NKJV
The word, “abode” appears only twice in the Bible (see 2 Cor. 5:2).
“As (like) Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities around them in a similar manner to these, having given themselves over to sexual immorality and gone after strange flesh (perverse sexuality), are set forth as an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.”
—Jude 1:7 NKJV
The phrase “strange flesh” refers to the perverse sex fallen angels had with the daughters of men, which eventually produced wicked giants of enormous size (nephilim).
“Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. So the Lord said, “I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them.”
—Genesis 6:5–7 NKJV
Pastor Prince explains that at this point in time, Noah and his family were the only people who were pure human.
“But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.”
—Genesis 6:8 NKJV
This is the first mention of grace in the Bible (see Gen. 6:8). The name, “Noah” means “rest”.
Rest finds grace in the eyes of the Lord. Jesus had no sin, but was full of grace—why? He was full of rest.
“This is the genealogy of Noah. Noah was a just man, perfect (tamim—unblemished) in his generations. Noah walked with God.”
—Genesis 6:9 NKJV
“For if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them down to hell (tartarus) and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment, and did not spare the ancient world, but saved Noah, one of eight people, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood on the world of the ungodly.”
—2 Peter 2:4–5 NKJV
The word “hell”, in this verse, is used only once in the entire New Testament. Usually, the word “hell”, is typified as “sheol” or “gehenna”, but in this verse, it is “tartarus”. It means that the fallen angels (during Noah’s time) were judged early, and bound in chains.
Pastor Prince shares that fallen angels exist in the form of demon spirits today, attempting to imitate the chain-bound angels. Those evil spirits attack our minds, instigate us to do wrong, bring problems into marriages, and cause afflictions in our bodies.
If you are under attack, get up and bind that spirit! When you use the powerful name of Jesus against these spirit-caused problems, you command the spirit to leave your circumstance.
Pastor Prince shares that in the Chinese annals of history, the floods were recorded.
The Mandarin word for boat, when broken up into individual characters, has the words, “vessel”, “eight”, and “people”. It paints a picture of eight people in a boat, which accurately depicts Noah and his family in the ark—Noah, Noah’s wife, their three sons and their wives.
Pastor Prince shares a word of wisdom for parents, to build the ark before any drop of rain falls. For the saving of your household, watch what your children see and hear—do not wait till it is too late to change them.
Make sure your children’s hearts are filled with the words of God. Children are not too young to understand that Jesus loves them. Speak to them as though they understand what you are saying, because their spirit is listening and receiving.
“By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.”
—Hebrews 11:7 NKJV
Noah was not righteous because of his character, he was righteous because of the blood of the Lamb (Jesus). Noah believed in the same blood sacrifice, and was pronounced righteous by faith.
God had to send the flood because of his grace and mercy—so he could preserve the human race, and fulfill the prophecy that the Messiah would come and crush Satan’s head.
Pastor Prince shares examples of instances where the mercies of God and His protection are displayed.
The word, “perfect” in Hebrew is “tamim”, which means “unblemished” (see Gen. 6:9)
The term is used for the sacrificial lamb that is without blemish. Noah was a picture of the unblemished lamb, representing that he was untainted by the blood of fallen angels.
This is the reason why God chose to preserve them, and it is the grace of God that kept them safe in the ark.
“And Noah begot three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth. The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence. So God looked upon the earth, and indeed it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth. And God said to Noah, “The end of all flesh has come before Me, for the earth is filled with violence through them; and behold, I will destroy them with the earth. Make yourself an ark of gopherwood, make rooms in the ark, and cover (kaphar) it inside and outside with pitch (kopher).”
—Genesis 6:10–14 NKJV
Pastor Prince shares that though Noah built the ark, the ark was God’s idea, and He took care of everything, including the animals.
For example, God only brought one pair of every kind of animal to the ark, and through the years, the different genes naturally developed different species and breeds that repopulated the earth.
God “remembered Noah and all the animals” (see Gen. 8:1), where the Hebrew word for “remember” is “zakar”, meaning “God remembers”. When God remembered Noah and all the animals, He met all their needs.
Pitch (see Gen. 6:14) is asphalt, alike the tar used for roads—which is the glue used for making of the ark.
In the context of this verse (see Gen. 6:14), the word “cover” is “kaphar”, and the word “pitch” is “kopher” in Hebrew.
Pastor Prince notes that the use of the Hebrew word “kopher” holds significance, as it is different from the usual Hebrew word, “zepheth”—typically used for the word “pitch”.
The Hebrew word “kopher” is the term used for atonement, and for covering your sins. The words, “cover (kaphar)” and “pitch (kopher)” mean that it protects not just from the outside, but all around us. This is a picture of Jesus Christ, who covers us inside and out!
The ark is a picture of Jesus Christ. The ferociousness and divine fierceness of God’s anger hit the ark, but not one wave of judgment reached Noah.
Jesus said on the cross, “all thy waves and thy billows roll over me” (see Ps. 42:7). It came on Him, but it never touched us. He took it for us!
“And this is how you shall make it. The length of the ark shall be three hundred cubits (450ft long), its width fifty cubits (75ft wide), and its height thirty cubits (45ft high).”
—Genesis 6:15 NKJV
The number, 300, in the Bible stands for victory.
“You shall make a window for the ark, and you shall finish it to a cubit from above; and set the door of the ark in its side. You shall make it with lower, second, and third decks.”
—Genesis 6:16 NKJV
Why did God ask Noah to build windows only at the top?
God does not want us to be occupied by all the bad news over the world. He wants us to look up to Him. Keep your eyes on Jesus and He will provide for us.
The sole door in the ark alludes to Jesus being the only door to salvation (see John 10:9).
The location of the door—on the side, represents how Jesus was pierced in His side by a Roman soldier.
The reason for 3 storeys pertaining to the ark refers to our makeup—we are spirits—we have a soul and mind; we live in the body. Salvation is for spirit, soul and body.
“And they went into the ark to Noah, two by two, of all flesh in which is the breath of life. So those that entered, male and female of all flesh, went in as God (Elohim) had commanded him; and the LORD (Yahweh) shut him in.”
—Genesis 7:15-16 NKJV
Pastor Prince emphasizes the importance of the names of God in the Bible, as it imparts a revelation of who God is to us.
The name of God, in this verse (see Gen. 7:16) is “Elohim” in Hebrew. “Elohim” means “creator”. The name, “LORD” means “Yahweh” in Hebrew. “Yahweh” is the name used for covenant relations.
Pastor Prince shares an example from the story of David and Goliath. David declared, though Goliath may have come with a sword, a spear and a javelin, he came with the name of the Lord (Yahweh), proclaiming that the Lord (Yahweh) would deliver Goliath into his hands, and all the earth would know there is a God (Elohim) (see 1 Sam. 17:45–46 NKJV).
The name, “Jesus” in Hebrew is, “Yeshua”—which means “Yahweh saves”. He saves you from the devil, and even your own self.
God is the one who shut Noah and his family in the ark. When God closes the door, you are safe inside, and no one can drag you out to the waters of judgment.
Pastor Prince shares a word of wisdom for parents, telling them to place their children in Jesus’ hands—He will take it and multiply it with His wisdom and grace.
“And behold, I Myself am bringing floodwaters on the earth, to destroy from under heaven all flesh in which is the breath of life; everything on that is on the earth shall die. But I will establish My covenant with you; and you shall go into the ark—you, your sons, your wife, and your sons’ wives with you.”
—Genesis 6:17–18 NKJV
This is the first time in the Bible where the word “covenant” appears. There is significance in the first mention. God made a covenant with Noah—whereby once a family member is saved, the rest will eventually be saved. However, they have to come into the ark.
When you are saved, it gives God the ability to come into your family and bless each one of them—it is because of you! God, in His mercy, will create situations that make it easy for them to believe in Christ.
You are eternally secure in Christ—even if you fall, you fall in the ark, not out of the ark.
“Then the Lord said to Noah, “Come into the ark, you and all your household, because I have seen that you are righteous before Me in this generation.”
—Genesis 7:1 NKJV
This is the first time the word “come” is used in the Bible. God beckons us to come to Him—who is the ark. Come to Jesus just as you are.
“Then God spoke to Noah, saying, “Go out of the ark, you and your wife, and your sons and your sons’ wives with you.”
—Genesis 8:15–16 NKJV
Jesus is the first one in the ark, and the last one out of the ark—a picture of Him going before us today.
“Then the ark rested in the seventh month, the seventeenth day of the month, on the mountains of Ararat (curse reversed).”
—Genesis 8:4 NKJV
Pastor Prince shares the significance of numbers in Genesis 8:4.
In the time of Jesus’ crucifixion, He rose again on the seventeenth day of the seventh month. This coincides with the same day that the ark rested on Mount Ararat.
In Hebrew, the word “bless” is “barak”. The word “curse” is “arar”. However, the name “Ararat” means, “curse reversed”!
“So Noah went out, and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives with him. Every animal, every creeping thing, every bird, and whatever creeps on the earth, according to their families, went out of the ark.”
—Genesis 8:18–19 NKJV
The word “every” assures us that not one was lost in the ark. Jesus is our ark—in Him, we are saved, and cannot perish. It is not about how good we are, but how good Jesus is.
Pastor Prince notes that the seven clean beasts brought onto the ark for sacrifice unto the Lord were the only exception.
When Noah offered sacrifices unto the Lord, it reminded Him of His Son, the one perfect sacrifice that would end all sacrifices. The Lord then told Noah that He would never again curse the ground.
“I set My rainbow in the cloud, and it shall be for the sign of the covenant between Me and the earth. It shall be, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the rainbow shall be seen in the cloud; and I will remember My covenant which is between Me and you and every living creature of all flesh; the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh.
—Genesis 9:13–15 NKJV
The rainbow is a sign of God’s promise. The Hebrew word for “bow” is the same word found in “rainbow”—it signifies that God will never use the bow to shoot judgment at us again, but “hangs it in the sky”.
“For this is like the waters of Noah to Me;
For as I have sworn
That the waters of Noah would no longer cover the earth,
So have I sworn
That I would not be angry with you, nor rebuke you.”
—Isaiah 54:9 NKJV
The above verse comes after the sufferings that Jesus went through in Isaiah 53.
God does not have to promise nor swear on Himself, but He did it to show us that He would indeed, never again be angry with us or condemn us. On the cross, Jesus absorbed all the judgment and condemnation, which is why today there is none left for us.
Pastor Prince shares some photos from Israel, where the tombs of giants are located.
In closing, Pastor Prince emphasizes the importance of having your family in the ark, and to pray for your children’s protection from the wiles of the devil, despite their young age. God knows how to protect His people. He reminds us to trust in God, live for Him, and glorify Him.
“Father in heaven, in the name of Jesus, I pray for everyone under the sound of my voice. Everywhere that’s watching this right now, I’m praying for them and their families. I pray for their children as well. I pray, Father in heaven, because they believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, I pray that the entire house will be saved—that you’ll bring across their paths Lord, a laborer of Your word, a preacher, a sharer, that they will share the Gospel so that they might believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. Regardless of how rebellious or how hard they seem to be against Christ now, we know, Father, that the louder they shout, the closer they are. We pray, Father, for the salvation of entire families, under the sound of my voice. As You have promised, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shall be saved, and thy house. And until then, Father, in the name of Jesus, we rest in the ark—we rest secure in the ark. Regardless of what goes around us, give us grace not to look out at what is happening around the world, and be consumed with all the negativism around the world, but help us and give us grace to look up to You as our provider and our protector. And this week, the Lord bless you, and the Lord keep you, preserve you and your loved ones from all dangers, accidents, from every sickness and disease, from all the powers of darkness and the evil one, through His own shed blood. The Lord make His face shine on you, be gracious to you, may you find yourself at the right place at the right time, enjoying the free favors of God. The Lord lift up His countenance on you and your family, and grant to you and yours His shalom peace, wholeness, and wellness. In Jesus’ name, and all the people say, amen. God bless you!”
We hope these sermon notes blessed you! If they did, we encourage you to get the sermon and allow the Lord to speak to you personally as you watch or listen to it.
© Copyright JosephPrince.com 2014
These sermon notes were taken by volunteers during the service. They are not a verbatim representation of the sermon.
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