Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/Sermons/zz20040418.htm

ANSWERING QUESTIONS ABOUT THE GENESIS FLOOD
Part I: Answering The Gilgamesh Epic Question
(Genesis 6-8 with 2 Peter 3:3-18)

Introduction: (To show the need . . . )

On Sunday night, March 21, 2004 at 7:00 p.m., Jeremy Bowen hosted a program on Britain's British Broadcasting Corporation's television network. In the program, he claimed the Genesis 6-8 account of "Noah's ark is a great myth', devoid of any scientific or historical credibility" since "the story in the Book of Genesis was a fabrication inspired by the story of King Gilgamesh, who was caught up in a flood while trying to transport his own livestock." (Chris Hastings, Media Correspondent, "Animals into the ark two by two? Not if you believe the BBC," filed on March 7, 2004)

Mr. Bowen reportedly told viewers: "It is time to forget the original story and start again. The traditional notion of the Noah story does not pass any sort of rational or historical test. Maybe it was not meant to, maybe it was made up.'" (Ibid.)

The problem with such a statement is its direct challenge to the credibility of the whole Christian faith! Jesus Christ Who we believe is God's sinless Son of God Who had to qualify to be sinless to die in our place on the cross in Luke's Gospel spoke of the Genesis flood as a FACT: He said in Luke 17:26-27 KJV, "And as it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man. They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark, and the flood came, and destroyed them all." If the Noahic Flood in Genesis 6-8 is a fabrication of the Gilgamesh Epic, then Jesus treated what was a fabrication as truth, meaning He would have thus lied! If Jesus thus sinned, He is not qualified to be our Savior, and we are still in our sins and are of all men most to be pitied, cf. 1 Cor. 15:12-19!



How then are we to ANSWER the CHARGE made by Jeremy Bowen of the British Broadcasting Corporation that Noah's ark is a "great myth" so as to DEFEND our Christian FAITH?



(We turn to the sermon "Need" section . . . )



Need: "The BBC program that asserted the Genesis flood account was fabricated from the Gilgamesh Epic' has me asking how to defend my faith, for even JESUS treated the Genesis flood as a FACT, Luke 17:26-27! How may I defend my faith in this matter?!"
  1. EXTERNALLY viewed, regardless how SIMILAR the two accounts may be, evidence abounds that the Genesis account of the flood did NOT HAVE to ORIGINATE FROM the Gilgamesh Epic:
    1. 270 accounts of a flood that destroyed all but a few people have come from Europe, Asia, Australia, the East Indies, Melanesia, Micronesia, Polynesia, South America, Central America, North America and East Africa, Ryrie Study Bible, KJV, 1978 ed., ftn. to Genesis 7:19; Whitcomb and Morris, The Genesis Flood, 1978 ed., p. 48, ftn. #3.
    2. That such an account would survive from such widely diversified ancient people groups shows an original universal flood account BESIDES JUST that of the Babylonians COULD have EXISTED!
  2. INTERNALLY viewed, the GENESIS account AND NOT the GILGAMESH EPIC renders the ORIGINAL version of the flood:
    1. Evidence from the dimensions of the boats involved proves the Genesis record is credible and the Gilgamesh Epic is false:
      1. As Genesis 7:19 and the Gilgamesh Epic claim a universal flood destroyed all humans who were not on their (respective) boats of deliverance (A. Heidel, The Gilgamesh Epic and Old Testament Parallels, 1973 ed., p. 232), the waves created by this event would have been "enormous," Ibid., Whitcomb & Morris, p. 267, ftn. #3. [Alexander Heidel became a member of the research staff of the Oriental Institute, University of Chicago, a very scholarly position.]
      2. Thus, the ship design had to be completely seaworthy, a feature the Gilgamesh Epic boat lacked and the Biblical ark possessed:
        1. Noah's ark measured 450 feet by 75 feet by 45 feet high, Genesis 6:15; Ibid., Ryrie Study Bible, KJV, ftn. to Gen. 6:15.
        2. So seaworthy is this design, Danish barges ("Fleuten") have been built with it that were "almost impossible to capsize," Ibid., Whitcomb and Morris, p. 103!
        3. Well, the Gilgamesh Epic boat is shaped as a cube with 200 foot sides (Ibid., Heidel, p. 236), so it had a much higher center of gravity, making it easy to capsize in the waves of a world flood!
    2. The Genesis 6-8 God is monotheistic and moral and the Gilgamesh Epic's gods are polytheistic and amoral , so it is the Genesis account RATHER THAN the Gilgamesh Epic that is the original one:
      1. The most ancient written records, oral traditions and archaeological evidence reveal religions around the world have declined from an initial monotheism (belief in One God) to "polytheistic pantheism and animism," Henry Morris, The God Who Is Real, p. 51.
      2. Well, the Genesis 6-8 account speaks of One God who justly judges man to be destroyed for his sins of violence (Genesis 6:13).
      3. In contrast, the Gilgamesh Epic has a group of gods "divided in their counsel, false to one another and to man" and who send the flood "for no ethical reason at all" except that, "toward the end of the story we are told, quite incidentally and by implication only, that the flood was due to the sin of mankind. Wherein the sin consisted is not indicated." (emphases ours) Thus, "the moral or ethical motive is almost completely absent" in the Gilgamesh Epic (emphases ours), Ibid., Heidel, p. 268!
      4. So, (a) the polytheism of the Gilgamesh Epic reveals it is a later version (b) and its moral inferiority reveals it is a corrupted version of the initial flood account that the monotheistic and morally upright Genesis ACCURATELY presents!
  3. In view of these findings, we look to Peter's epistles for direction:
    1. 2 Peter 3:3-6 ESV predicted apostates would one day "deliberately overlook" the creation and flood of Genesis, explaining why men charge what is so false regarding the Genesis record!
    2. Thus, God wants us (1) to know how to answer such apostates by using facts given above like 1 Peter 3:15-16 directs, and (2) 2 Peter 3:7-18 tells us God will judge the world again by fire to motivate us to live righteously in view of our future accounting to Him!
Application: (1) If we have not yet done so, to be SAVED from God's future world judgment by FIRE as He ONCE judged it for sin by the FLOOD in NOAH'S day, trust in Christ as Savior from sin, Jn. 3:16. (2) Then, (a) equip ourselves with insight like this message presents to be able to defend our faith and (b) live righteously by God's power in preparation for the future!

Lesson: (1) The evidence COUNTERS the charge that the Genesis flood account was fabricated from the Gilgamesh Epic. (2) Since (a) Scripture PREDICTED men would thus "deliberately overlook" the evidence to the contrary, (b) we are to know HOW to ANSWER such charges (c) and live RIGHTLY as Noah did in his day in VIEW of God's FUTURE judgment!

Conclusion: (To illustrate the sermon lesson . . . )

 As I was completing this sermon's final draft this last Friday at about 9:30 in the morning, I received a call from Suzanne Pombar in our Church who had a question about a passage in Hebrews 11:7.

For some time, she had been amazed at Noah's being called of God to build the ark during the 120 years in which God gave man time to repent. She was astounded at what he accomplished in view of what must have been a very difficult thing for him to do: (a) Noah would likely have been ridiculed as no one had seen a huge flood and lots of rain as he predicted would come, (b) and the time taken to build the ark and the patience demanded to do so w ould have tested his faith in God and His Word to him to the limit!

I replied, "Suzanne, you don't know this, but I have decided to start a two-Sunday sermon series on Noah and the Ark in answer to a BBC program in March that sought to discredit the Bible's flood account!"

Suzanne was amazed! "Really?" she asked, and then she went on to tell briefly of amazing things God had been doing in her life in her family's experiences in just the last few weeks to build her faith in God and His Word in accord with the example of Noah!



When I hung up the phone after my conversation with Suzanne was over, I typed out this illustration, believing God had directed me to supply it to you TODAY!

I must conclude that God wants us to realize that His Word to NOAH to BUILD the ark was TRUE, and when the FLOOD then ARRIVED after 120 years, Noah's FAITH was VINDICATED before his generation!

Accordingly, God calls US in OUR generation like He is calling the Pombars and like He called Noah of old to TRUST His Word that He will judge the world AGAIN as He did in NOAH'S day -- only THIS time with FIRE! Thus, we are to (1) believe in Christ as Savior, (2) we are to answer those who ask us a REASON for our belief in the CREDIBILITY of the Bible's Noahic Flood account, using information that we have given in this message and we can glean elsewhere from credible sources, and (3) we are to OBEY God in VIEW of our future accounting to Him!