By Bo Sanchez and Mon Reyes

When it comes to Noah, we have a big problem: Many people read Noah’s Ark as a children’s story. Think about it. A boatload filled with animals. A floating zoo.

It sounds like a cartoon.

That’s why people don’t see the depth of its message.

Noah’s ark was not written as a children’s story.

It was written for adults—with a very serious message.

Once again, because we’re reading the Scriptures, we must ask what these extremely wise, ancient storytellers were trying to tell us.

Sin: Never a Private Affair

Through this story, the author says, “Sin is never a private affair.” Because it affects everyone through: (1) consequence and (2) influence.

Picture this story. Imagine Brutus stealing Popeye’s ATM card, guessed his PIN, and withdrew P200,000 from his account. With the money, he flew to Timbuktu, splurged, and lived like a king for a few days.

Alas, the police caught up with him and Brutus ended up in jail.

So, Brutus suffered the bad consequences of his wrongdoing.

But was Brutus the only one who suffered?

Nope. Popeye suffered too. He didn’t do anything wrong, but he eventually lacked the money to buy his daily dose of spinach. Others were affected too. Because Popeye could no longer treat his friend Wimpy to hamburgers or give flowers to his girlfriend, Olive Oyl.

Let’s now study influence. Brutus’s brazen act of stealing P200,000 from Popeye inspired his brother Bluto to steal as well.

Here’s how this works: When we live with a number of people who do bad stuff, being bad becomes the norm. This is dangerous. Because your moral compass gets out of whack. When we’re immersed in a bad culture, the bad is seen as good. Soon, we’ll hear ourselves say, “Everyone else is doing it. Lugi naman ako kung hindi ako sasabay (It’s my loss if I don’t follow).”

Through this tale, Genesis says, “Sin is serious. It destroys lives.”

But more importantly, Genesis tells us how God reacts to sin.

God’s Reaction to Evil—Totally Unexpected

Let’s review what we just read, but see how God responded: “The Lord observed the extent of human wickedness on the earth, and he saw that everything they thought or imagined was consistently and totally evil. So the Lord was sorry he had ever made them and put them on the earth. It broke his heart [emphasis added]” (Genesis 6:5-6, NLT).

The very core of humankind was now corrupt. The supposed carriers of blessing became the carriers of the curse, not only for themselves but for everyone around them.

But what was God’s response? This is startling.

Typically, the story of Noah’s Ark is where some people show that the God of the New Testament is very different from the God of the Old Testament.

They say, “Look at how God got very angry—He destroyed the world!”

But did God really get angry? The text doesn’t say that. It says, “It broke his heart.”

This is stunning. God’s reaction was not anger but sorrow.

* This excerpt was taken from the newest book, GOD MADE YOU GOOD, by Bo Sanchez and the Bible Nerds.
Available now at feastbooks.ph