Ark builder

Jul 17, 2026

In the book of Genesis, we are introduced to a man named Noah. God decided to judge a world thoroughly corrupted by sin while preserving a righteous remnant through whom humanity would continue.

God found Noah to be righteous, so He revealed His plan to judge the earth through a great flood and instructed him to build an ark that would preserve people during the event.

I would like to point out a few standout lessons from his story in this write-up.

Read Genesis 6-9 for a fuller context.

Just the other day, I stepped out to play basketball on an open court. The moment I saw the cloudy skies, I knew it was going to rain and that my game would probably be ruined. If I told my guys that rain was about to fall and that they should stay indoors, they would believe me.

In Noah’s time, many understand the text to suggest that rainfall was either unknown or, at the very least, unprecedented on the scale Noah described. Think about that for a moment. A man went around telling people that the Lord had said water would fall from the sky and cover the whole earth. To them, that would have sounded like pure fantasy. He must have seemed completely crazy.

If you’re going to embrace the voice of God, there may be moments when you look crazy to others, especially when you’re saying things they cannot yet conceive or understand.

Noah valued God’s instruction so much that he was willing to wake up every day and endure the pain and arduous labour of building a remarkable structure simply because God told him to. Also inspiring is his diligence and commitment. The wood didn’t magically appear or stack itself. He would have spent countless hours chopping, carrying, measuring, and building.

It takes radical faith and diligence to work with God.

Another reason I believe Noah had strong spine is that it takes a different level of devotion to God to remain faithful when an entire generation is marked by unrighteousness, and you, along with your household, refuse to join in.

Genesis 7:1 ESV
[1] Then the Lord said to Noah, “Go into the ark, you and all your household, for I have seen that you are righteous before me in this generation.

Like Noah’s generation, ours also presents strong pressures to compromise God’s standards. It takes real conviction to stand, like Noah, for what is true and righteous in the midst of opposing voices and ideologies that contradict the clear teaching of God’s Word.

Type and shadow

In the upcoming posts I’ll be making, I’ve decided to add this section to explain a very important theme in the Bible.

Colossians 2:16-17 ESV
[16] Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath.
[17] These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ.

Types and shadows refer to certain Old Testament persons, events, institutions, and objects that foreshadow Christ or New Testament realities.

The Old Testament type is the initial symbol, while the New Testament reality is the ultimate fulfillment. Shadows describe the prophetic, anticipatory nature of those types.

A shadow points to the existence and shape of a reality but is not the reality itself. It gives enough information to recognize what is coming, but it lacks the substance and complete expression of the real thing. In other words, a biblical shadow is the outline cast by a greater reality that is ultimately fulfilled in Christ.

Since we’re talking about a builder, let me use a common building analogy to explain this. Before a building is constructed, an architect first produces a blueprint or sketch. It is essential to the construction process because it reveals what the finished building will look like. You can see the building in the sketch, but you don’t yet have the building itself. In the same way, throughout the Old Testament, God gave us sketches of what was to come. The fullness (the completed building) is brought to life in Christ.

Having explained the idea, the ark in Noah’s story is widely considered to be a type of Christ.

The ark was God’s gracious provision of salvation for Noah and his family. In the same way, Jesus’ death on the cross is God’s gracious provision of salvation for all who trust in Him.
Those who remained in the ark were saved from God’s judgment. Likewise, those who abide in Christ are saved from the wrath of God.
There was only one door to the ark. Jesus calls Himself the Door (John 10:9). He is the only way to eternal life.
God Himself shut the door of the ark. Salvation ultimately depends upon God’s gracious action. Noah did not secure himself; God secured him.
The flood was an unexpected act of judgment upon the wicked. Likewise, Christ will return in judgment, and his coming will be unexpected by those who are unprepared.
The ark was built according to God’s exact instructions. Noah did not invent his own means of salvation. In the same way, God determines the way of salvation, not man.