Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Evening Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/ev/ev19990725.htm

GENESIS: THE SOURCES OF GOOD AND CALAMITY IN OUR ORIGINS
Part II - The Source Of Calamity In Our Origins
G. Adjusting To God's Difficult Orders To Check Man's Bent Toward Violence
(Genesis 8:20-9:17)
  1. Introduction
    1. The practice of governmental capital punishment is often viewed as a crime itself since it is claimed to be a cruel and unusual means of punishment.
    2. However, against the backdrop of its origin, we see that God views it as the best alternative to otherwise mass capital punishment for the whole human race. It thus provides for the maximum amount of blessing:
  2. Adjusting To God's Difficult Orders To Check Man's Bent Toward Violence, Genesis 8:20-9:17:
    1. After the cataclysmic, emotionally wrenching Noahic Flood, Noah came out of the ark and offered a series of bunt offerings unto the Lord as an act of consecration to Him, Genesis 8:20.
    2. God accepted this offering, promising never to let history stop still in judgment by His smiting all flesh again; man was hopelessly sinful anyway, so God's mercy would not allow for another Flood, Gen. 8:21-2 2
    3. However, in order to avoid having to destroy the world by a flood like that again, God put some difficult checks and balances in the new world order to counter man's becoming so violent again, Genesis 9:1-17:
      1. While urging man to fill the earth again, God made it possible for him to do so peacefully by making the animal kingdom fear man and hence not challenge him, Genesis 9:2 with 6:11. That would automatically inhibit the spread of violence between man and beast.
      2. Because of the apparent loss of the pre-flood water vapor canopy over the earth, and the apparent dilution of food value in plant life on man, God gave man the option of eating meat along with plants, Genesis 9:3. This was a difficult challenge for animals, but it would provide more peace for man.
      3. God put a restriction on man's eating only deceased animals, Gen. 9:4. This placed value on the sanctity of even animal life, teaching man to be less violent and not to kill even animals at random, Lev. 17:11.
      4. Then, God installed capital punishment on animals and man for killing man, thereby exalting the will of God in creating man in his image and creation order on earth, Genesis 9:5-6. The very fact that this order would have be en a difficult one for law-abiding people to perform would itself work to uphold the value God placed on innocent human life, teaching man not to be ruthlessly murderous of others.
      5. After all these challenging regulations were given, and because man's heeding them would counter the random violence that had led to the Flood judgment, God gave a covenant, promising never to destroy the earth with a flood again, Genesis 9:7-17:
        1. God promised to make a covenant with man after the Flood so that he could indeed be fruitful and multiply on the earth as He desired, Gen. 9:7-11.
        2. The token of that covenant would be a rainbow in a rain cloud, Gen. 9:12-13.
        3. Its appearance would remind God of His covenant never again to destroy the entire earth with a massive Genesis Flood that came after forty days and nights of rain (Gen. 7:12), and would lead to God's inhibiting every rain cloud from leading to a world flood, Gen. 9:14-17.
Lesson: The DIFFICULT orders God placed on the world after the Flood were all NECESSARY to CHECK man's VIOLENT acts of SIN so that God would not have to flood the world AGAIN!

Application: (1) Instead of blaming GOD for the capital punishment order, we must react to the difficult order with concern over the sin within man which necessitates the order, and work even harder to save man from his sin through presenting the G ospel, Jn. 3:16; 2 Cor. 5:17! (2) Instead of feeling sad that animals cringe from us in fear, their fear should be remind us that there is sin in man, and cause us to disciple people with greater vigor. (3) Instead of feeling bad at the taking of healthy animal life for purposes of providing food, we must use this unsavory practice as a reminder of sin in the world, and promote even more the discipling process. (4) In the act of taking animal life for food, we must not partake of the flesh until the animal is deceased as people who are non-vicious, saved and destined to partake of God's glory!