Devotion on Genesis 7 - The Cycle of Submission and Reward

Scripture: Genesis 6 and 7

As we read in Genesis 6 and 7, God saved Noah from the Flood because he was living righteously. No one had anything against him that they could blame him for and he walked faithfully with God (Genesis 6:9). He had submitted his life to God's Lordship both internally and with his dealings with others, and he was rewarded for it. He was saved from the Flood.

In the same way, if we live under the Lordship of Christ and submit our lives to Him, we will be saved. God will count us as righteous in our generation, just as He did Noah in his.

But after Noah was found to be righteous, God continued to give him instructions, and Noah continued to submit. When God told him to build the ark to the exact measurements God prescribed and to take the animals with him, the Scripture says that Noah did all that the Lord commanded him to do (7:5).

So it is in the Christian life. God will give us instructions, reward us, and then give us more instructions. We are never finished submitting our lives to God, and God is never finished rewarding us for our faithful service. It's a continual cycle of service and reward.

But remember that the reward may be far richer than mere riches. Noah's reward was salvation and the knowledge that He had found favor with God. Though tragic to see such destruction and death that the Flood brought, think of how spiritually assured he must have felt to receive such a mission and such a salvation as his. Do you feel that same kind of spiritual assurance? Do you feel in your spirit that God has saved you and counts you as righteous?

Have you submitted your life to Christ's Lordship? How has He rewarded you in the past? How is He continuing to bless your life now both spiritually and perhaps materially? What new instructions for service is He giving you today?