Toward a Kinder, Gentler World Today's Three-minute Bible Study Print, Study and Apply Title: Toward a Kinder, Gentler World ----------------------- Date: 8/25/1999 Keywords: "flood” “Noah” “violence" Welcome to eXXit, the web site designed to help you stand strong in the face of sexual temptation. Passage: Genesis 6:5-12* 5. Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 6. And the LORD was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. 7. And the LORD said, "I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, from man to animals to creeping things and to birds of the sky; for I am sorry that I have made them." 8. But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD. 9. These are {the records of} the generations of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his time; Noah walked with God. 10. And Noah became the father of three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth. 11. Now the earth was corrupt in the sight of God, and the earth was filled with violence. 12. And God looked on the earth, and behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted their way upon the earth. Questions 1. The first several verses of Genesis chapter 6 are about the “wickedness,” “corruption,” and “violence” of the people who lived at the time of Noah. Can you see parallels between our own day and Noah’s? Evidence of corruption, wickedness, violence?   2. One man stood out from the crowd during these days: Noah. According to verse 9, what distinguished him from those around him?   Practical help Several comments are made about Noah that help us see why he was such a hero. He was righteous — and as the Bible uses the term “righteous,” that means that he trusted God. He was blameless in his time — which speaks of a lifestyle of integrity. And, he walked with God — signifying a dependent relationship with God. In Noah’s day or in our own, these are the things that please the Lord. The porn industry of 1999 highlights exactly those things that displeased God in the days of Noah — wickedness, now played out on a computer screen filled with immorality; the corruption of the purpose for which God made the human body; the violence that is such a huge piece of pornography. In contrast to that scene, envision a 1999 “Noah.” Here is a man who trusts God, who depends on God. This man rejects corruption and wickedness and violence. He has integrity. He brings a smile to the face of God and he is a bright light to a dark world. God is calling men to do as Noah did — walk with Him. Walking with God means walking away from the wickedness and violence of our age into gentleness and integrity. eXXit homepage Index of three-minute studies Copyright 1999 by eXXit *"Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, © Copyright The Lockman Foundation 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995. Used by permission."