To The Unknown God

 To the unknown God. The church speaks of this passage as if people were worshipping something they didnt know existed. But however the inscription to the unknown God has more philosophy in it than not. In the history of the church and philosophy this idea that God is unknown has meant that God can only be spoken of in the negative and not in the positive.

Someone can say what God is not but not what God is.

Paul in Acts 17:23 doesn't believe that God can only be spoken in the negatives. These people in Acts are like the Catholics, the naturalist like Descartes, Spinoza, Hume, Kant, and Hegel and a host of other naturalistic thinkers.

To say that God is not evil, is to say that He is good. Or We might say God is not finite but timeless. Some Calvinist and Catholics teach God is only in the negative statements. John Gill in his Body of Divinity says, "The attribute of God are variously distinguished by divines; some distinguish them into negative and positive, or affirmative: the negative are such as remove from him whatever is imperfect in creatures; such are infinitity, immutability, immortality, &c. which deny him to be finite, mutable, and mortal; and, indeed, it is easier to say what God is not, than what he is; the positive, or affirmative, are such as assert some perfection in God, which is in and of himself; and which in the creatures, in any measure, is from him, as wisdom, goodness, justice, holiness, &c. but the distinction is discarded by others; because in all negative attributes some positive excellency is found." - Page 34 - 35

John Gill a Supralapsarian

Of course we have other passages of Gill that could be used but this one is very clear:

In the election of men, "They were considered as on an equal foot with others not elected, as men are; as men are considered, when chosen, as in the pure mass, having done neither good nor evil, so were angels; this must be out of all question, with respect to them, since the elect angels never fell, never were in any corrupt state, and could not be so considered: besides, their preservation from apostasy, and their confirmation, by grace, in the state in which they were created are in consequence of their election; and therefore must be previous to the fall of the rest, who, with them, must be considered in the pure mass of creatureship; wherefore the choice of the one, and the leaving of the other, must be entirely owing to the sovereign will of God." - Body of Divinity, Pg. 176

God is one and so His knowledge is eternal

"The knowledge of God proves him without successive duration. God knows all things, past, present, and to come, that is, which are so to us; not that they are so to him; these he knows at once, and all together, not one thing after another, as they successively come into being; all things are open and manifest to him at once and together, not only what are past and present, but he calls things that are not yet, as though they were; he sees and knows all in one view, in his all-comprehending mind: and as his knowledge is not successive, so not his duration." - John Gill, The Body of Divinity, Pg. 49

If there was a successive  moments in God, then He would not be immutable if he thought like us.

"Is not time measured by the succession of ideas in our minds?" says Philonous, in George Berkeley's Three Dialogues, Pg. 23

God's chastisement for his children

"But, as for afflictions, we must reply, firstly: although all affliction and death entered into the world by sin, God does not always have regard to our sins when He afflicts us. We establish this from the whole history of Job and elsewhere (John 9:3; 1 Pet 2:19; 3:14; James 1:2). But He has several other ends in view which tend to His glory and our profit, as we shall explain further on.
On the other side, when God afflicts Hus own for their sins, even if He comes to make them feel the pains of death (Job 13:15), He is not provoked to anger against them as a judge, to condemn them, but as a Father who is chastising His children in order to prevent them from perishing (2 Cor 6:9; Heb 12:6; 2 Sam 7:14), or to give an example to others (2 Sam 12:13, 14)."  - Theodore Beza, The Christian Faith, pg. 19



"Nor do the hidings of God's face from them after conversion, prove any change in his love to them; for though he hides his face from them, and forsakes them for a moment, in a little seeming wrath, to shew his resentment at their sins, to bring them to a sense of them, to humble them before him, and to cause them to seek his face and favour; yet with great mercies he gathers them again to himself, in the most tender manner, and with loving-kindness, has mercy on them; and, for the strengthening of their faith in his love, swears he will not be wroth with them; and declares his loving-kindness to be more immoveable than hills and mountains, Isa. liv. 7-10. Afflictions are no evidence of a change of affections to them; though he may thoroughly chastise them, and, as they may think, severely, yet he deals with them but as children; and, like Ephraim, they are his dear sons and daughters, and pleasant children, in whom he takes the utmost complacency and delight; chastenings are rather proofs of sonship, than arguments against it." -John Gill, The Body of Divinity, Pg. 39

This reminds me of the Westminster Confessions of Faith - Chapter 17


They, whom God hath accepted in his Beloved, effectually called, and sanctified by his Spirit, can neither totally nor finally fall away from the state of grace, but shall certainly persevere therein to the end, and be eternally saved.
2. This perseverance of the saints depends not upon their own free will, but upon the immutability of the decree of election, flowing from the free and unchangeable love of God the Father; upon the efficacy of the merit and intercession of Jesus Christ, the abiding of the Spirit, and of the seed of God within them, and the nature of the covenant of grace: from all which ariseth also the certainty and infallibility thereof.
3. Nevertheless, they may, through the temptations of Satan and of the world, the prevalency of corruption remaining in them, and the neglect of the means of their preservation, fall into grievous sins; and, for a time, continue therein: whereby they incur God's displeasure, and grieve his Holy Spirit, come to be deprived of some measure of their graces and comforts, have their hearts hardened, and their consciences wounded; hurt and scandalize others, and bring temporal judgments upon themselves.

Of course all of this reminds me of the Book of Hebrews in the Bible.

By Faith do we do good works

Faith may result in action, and certainly true faith in Jesus always will result in action; but faith itself is not doing but receiving. - J. Gresham Machen

The Augsburg says something similar:
"It is also taught among us that such faith should produce good fruit and good works and that we must do all such good works as God has commanded, but we should do them for God's sake and nor place our trust in them as if thereby to merit favor before God." - Augsburg Confession, Article 6


The basic idea is that Faith causes good works. This is true.

Gill says,

"Doctrine has an influence upon practice, especially evangelical doctrine, spiritually understood, affectionately embraced, and powerfully and feelingly experienced; so true is what the Apostle asserts, that the Grace of God, that is, the Doctrine of the Grace of God, that bringeth Salvation, the good news, the glad tidings of salvation by Christ, which is peculiar to Gospel Doctrine, hath appeared to all men, Gentiles as well as Jews, in the external ministry of the word; teaching us, to whom it comes with power and efficacy in the demonstration of the Spirit, that denying ungodliness and worldly lust, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world, Tit. ii. 11, 12." - John Gill, Introduction to the Body of Divinity, Pg. xxiii


I like what he says here. Doctrine has an influence upon practice. Of course we know that we may believe the truth and yet sometimes what is believed does not right away translate in what we practice. But the order is first doctrine and then practice. Not that we look to doctrine first and then second to our practice but rather it is the case that as we look to doctrine always that it SHOULD turn out to practice.

Common Grace denied

"The omnipresence of God may be argued from the distributions of his goodness to all; to angels and glorified saints, who partake of his special favours; to all men on earth, to whom he does not leave himself without a witness of his kindness to them, giving them food and raiment, and all things richly to enjoy; he is present among them, and opens his hand and plentifully and liberally communicates to them: as well as from his universal government of the world by his wisdom; for his kingdom rules over all, the kingdom of nature and providence is his, and 'he is the Governor among the nations.'" -John Gill, The Body of Divinity, Pg. 42

"Nor is God ever in such sense with wicked men, as with good men; namely, by his gracious presence: but this hinders not, but that he is with them by his omnipresence and power, supporting them in their being." -John Gill, The Body of Divinity, Pg. 45

Scripture interprets Scripture

If you are a Congregationalist please note you are not alone:

"The Scripture is the best interpreter of Scripture, or the Spirit of God therein; nor are the church or its pastors, nor councils and popes, the infallible interpreters thereof; there is a private interpretation of Scripture, which every Christian may make, according to his ability and light; and there is a public one, by the preacher of the word; but both are subject to, and to be determined by the Scripture itself, which is the only certain and infallible rule of faith and practice." - John Gill, The Body of Divinity, Pg. 22-23

Stay congregational my friends.

Shedd's view presents changes in the Trinity?

"Shedd's material begins on page 278 of volume two. There he says, 'The God-man was a new person.' since Shedd will deny that the man Jesus was a person, this assertion implies certain changes and alterations in the Second Person of the Trinity. Indeed he is a very specific, for on page 281 he adds, 'The Trinity itself is not altered or modified by the Incarnation. Only the Second Person is modified.' Coming from an intelligent and well-educated Christian, this is amazing. The Second Person of the Trinity is as immutable as the other two. Furthermore, if the Second Person suffered alteration, it would modify the Trinity as whole. The Trinity, if I may use the language, is a complex of three Persons. Clearly if one changes, the complex changes. It will have different constituents. Certainly this violates the basic Christian doctrine and destroys all confidence in what may be said of the Incarnation." - Gordon H. Clark, Incarnation, Pg. 47


John Gill kind of reiterates this fact of the incarnation:


"Nor is the unchangeableness of the divine nature to be disproved by the incarnation of Christ; for though he, a divine Person, possessed of the divine nature, was made flesh, or became man; the divine nature in him was not changed into the human nature, nor the human nature into the divine, nor a third nature made out of them both; was this the case, the divine nature would have been changeable; but so it was not; for as it has been commonly said, 'Christ remained what he was, and assumed what he was not;' and what he assumed added nothing to his divine person; he was only manifested in the flesh; he neither received any perfection, nor imperfection, from the human nature; though that received dignity and honour by its union to him, and was adorned with the gifts and graces of the Spirit without measure, and is now advanced at the right hand of God." - John Gill, The Body of Divinity, Pg. 37

The incarnation did not change the Son of God. Nothing was added to Him when he assumed the nature of man.

The law and gospel distinction in Jonah

"He threatened the Ninevites with the destruction of their city within forty days, that is, unless they repented: they did repent, and were saved from ruin, God repenting of what he had threatened; which, though a change of his outward conduct towards them, he threatened them with, was no change of his will; for both their repentance, and their deliverance, were according to his unchangeable will, Jonah iii. 4, 10."
- John Gill, The Body of Divinity, Pg. 40

I once heard a sermon on this book. It was by a Lordshiper. Of course through the sermon the focus was that sinners are to repent from sin if they do not then God's wrath will come upon them. However, is this really what Jonah was speak about? I wonder if this elder knew the law and gospel distinction?

God's unchangeable covenant of grace

"God is unchangeable in his covenant of grace. This was made with Christ from everlasting, and stands fast with him; it is as immoveable as a rock, and can never be broken; the blessings of it are sure mercies, flow from the sovereign grace and mercy of God, and are sure and firm, being according to his unchangeable will, and are what he never repents of, nor revokes. . . . Rom. xi. 29. and viii. 30. the promises of the covenant, which are gone out of his mouth and lips are unalterable; what has been said of purposes may be said of promises, that they were made before the world were, by God, that cannot lie, who is all-wise, all-knowing, and all-powerful, and faithful to perform them." - John Gill, The Body of Divinity, Pg. 40

God's promises are never alterable. This is where assurance comes from. Even in the WCF Assurance is not grounded in our works but is grounded from the infallible promises of God. It is between God and Christ. It does not change. That is the gospel. Stay focus on who Jesus is. Justification is by faith alone. The Gospel assumes election. But, you can speak of all other points of doctrine and yet miss the gospel.

Absolute Predestination and against the Free Offer

"God is unchangeable in his purposes and decrees, there is a purpose for every thing, and a time for that purpose; God has determined all that ever was, is, or shall be; all come to pass according to the counsel of his will, and all his decrees are unchangeable. . . . the purposes of God are always carried into execution, they are never frustrated; it is not in the power of men and devils to disannul them; whatever devices and counter-workings to them may be framed and formed, they are of no avail. . . . and his purposes are called counsels, because designs wisely formed by men, are with consultation, and upon mature deliberation: and such are  the decrees of God, they are made with the higher wisdom by him, who is wonderful in counsel, and excellent in working, and so are unchangeable. . . ." - John Gill, The Body of Divinity, Pg. 38

Notice that if you read John Gill, in his Divinity, how he is so systematize every doctrine presupposes another. God's immutability presupposes his knowledge and his counsel.

The divine second person of the Holy Trinity and the incarnation

"Nor is the unchangeableness of the divine nature to be disproved by the incarnation of Christ; for though he, a divine Person, possessed of the divine nature, was made flesh, or became man; the divine nature in him was not changed into the human nature, nor the human nature into the divine, nor a third nature made out of them both; was this the case, the divine nature would have been changeable; but so it was not; for as it has been commonly said, 'Christ remained what he was, and assumed what he was not;' and what he assumed added nothing to his divine person; he was only manifested in the flesh; he neither received any perfection, nor imperfection, from the human nature; though that received dignity and honour by its union to him, and was adorned with the gifts and graces of the Spirit without measure, and is now advanced at the right hand of God." - John Gill, The Body of Divinity, Pg. 37

The incarnation did not change the Son of God. Nothing was added to Him when he assumed the nature of man.

God and Time

"In his nature and essence, being simple, and devoid of all composition, as has been proved: the more simple and free from mixture and composition any thing is the less subject to change. . . . and since he is eternal, there can be no change of time with him; time doth not belong to him, only to a creature, which is the measure of its duration; and began when a creature began to be, and not before; but God is before all creatures; they being made by him, and so before time; he was the same before the day was as now, and now as he was before; 'even the same to-day, yesterday, and for ever:' though he is the ancient of days, he does not become than he was millions of ages ago, nor will be millions of ages to come; his eternity is an everlasting and unchangeable now;" - John Gill, The Body of Divinity, Pg. 36-37

Time existed after creation. God is not older now than he was when he first created.

Negative and Positive statements of God's attributes

"The attributes of God are variously distinguished by divines; some distinguish them into negative and positive, or affirmative: the negative are such as remove from him whatever is imperfect in creatures; such are infinity, immutability, immortality, &c. which deny him to be finite, mutable, and mortal; and, indeed it is easier to say what God is not, than what he is: the positive, or affirmative, are such as assert some perfection in God, which is in and of himself; and which in the creatures, in any measure, is from him, as wisdom, goodness, justice, holiness, &c. but the distinction is discarded by others; because all negative attributes some positive excellency is found." -John Gill, The Body of Divinity, Pg. 34-35

For example, God is infinite which means he is timeless. Some Calvinist and Catholics teach that we can only speak of God in the negative statements. This makes no since. For one thing, if we can only speak of God in the negative only and not in any positive statements as well then how can we know him? I mean we know what he is not, but what is God as the WCF says.

Does Jesus have to say only for us to know that He only died for the elect alone?

Once debated some Arminians who, when quoted John 10 concerning Christ's effectual death on the cross limited to the elect alone, said that the passage at hand didn't say only.
John Gill responds: wer to this,


1. It is observed,[1] that “in none of these places it is said that Christ died only for his sheep, for hisfriends,or for his church;and, therefore, none of them say anything in contradiction to our assertion” of general redemption. I reply, this objection is much like... what the Papists make against the doctrine of justification by faith. They own the Scriptures say, that we are justified by faith, but not by faith only.Now it may with as much propriety be said, that other, besides those which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham, because the Scriptures do not say that they which be of faithonly are blessed with him, or that there are more gods and more mediators than one, because the text does not say, there is only one God, and only one Mediator; yea, it might be urged with equal strength, that men may love other women besides their own wives, in the same manner they love them, because it is not said, husbands love your wives only,as it may that Christ loved others, and gave himself for others, besides his church; because it is not said, he loved his church only and gave himself for his church only. But, though this restrictive word is not expressed, it is evidently implied; for, if Christ laid down his life, and gave himself for every individual man, these peculiar and discriminating characters would be utterly unnecessary. And, after all, it is owned by our opponents,[2] that “eventually Christ is the Savior of his body, and died only for his sheep and friends.”

2. The argument is retorted upon thus;[3] “He that died for his friends, and for his enemies, for the church of God, and for the unrighteous, that he might bring them to the church of God; for the sheep that heard his voice, and for the lost ones that did not hearken to his voice, died for all. But Christ died for his friends, etc., therefore he died for all.” The fallacy of this argument will easily appear, when it is observed, that they are, the same individual persons who are styled the enemies and friends of Christ, the unrighteous, and the church, the lost sheep, and such as hearken to Christ's voice; being the former as considered in their unregenerate estate, and the latter through the power of his grace upon them. - The Cause of God and Truth


My friend David Bishop also says,

In other words, the word "only" is unnecessary in view of the context; especially of verse 26. Shepherds shepherd sheep. They don't shepherd goats, cows, dogs and horses. Hence the title shep(sheep)herd. Therefore, He doesn't need to say the shepherd came to lay down his life ONLY for the sheep in order for his words to mean exactly that.

Arminianism is the doctrine of demons

". . . The doctrines of the apostles were revived, and supernatural Theology once more lift up its head; the reformed churches published their confessions of faith, and many eminent men wrote common places, and systems of divinity; in which they all agreed in the main, to support the doctrines of revelation; as of the Trinity, and the Deity of the divine Persons in it; those of predestination and eternal election in Christ, of redemption by him, pardon of sin by his blood, and justification by his righteousness.
But Satan who envied the increasing light of the Gospel, soon began to bestir him-self, and to play his old game which he had done with so much success in the first ages of Christianity; having been for a long time otherwise engaged, to nurse up the man of sin, and to bring him to the height of his impiety and tyranny, and to support him in it: and now as his kingdom was like to be shook, if not subverted, by the doctrines of the Reformation; he, I say, goes to his old work again; and revives the Sabellian and Photinian errors, by the Socinians in Poland; and the Pelagian errors, by the Arminians and Remonstrants in Holland; the pernicious influence of which has been spread in other countries; and, indeed, has drawn a veil over the glory of the Reformation, and the doctrines of it." - John Gill, Introduction to the Body of Divinity, Pg. XXXiX

The Bible alone is the word of God alone and so the story of Noah's Ark is true

The Bible and Noah’s Ark
By
Monty L. Collier
Of all the books you can read, the Bible alone is the Word of God. “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works” 2 Timothy 3:16-17. The teachings of sinful men and their churches are neither above the authority of Scripture, nor are they equal to Scripture, for they are merely the fallible products of uninspired and sinful minds. “And these things, brethren, I have in a figure transferred to myself and to Apollos for your sakes; that ye might learn in us not to think of men above that which is written” 1 Corinthians 4:6.
The only persons who ever wrote infallible and inspired truth were those individuals selected by God to author the 66 Books of the Protestant Bible. Since the Bible is perfect, men no longer receive special revelations from God in the form of dreams, visions, etc. “But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away” (1 Corinthians 13:10). The Bible alone is the perfect Word of God.
The Bible alone is true. Scripture alone has the monopoly on truth. Apart from Scripture, God has given man no other source of truth. The Bible is not merely a scripture of truth, but, to the contrary, the Bible self-identifies itself to be “the Scripture of truth” Daniel 10:21. The Bible alone is true. All other competing systems, such as Islam, modern empirical science, Roman Catholicism, Cartesian rationalism, to name a few, are not based on Scripture alone—and so they are all necessarily false.
My friend and teacher John Robbins, who passed in the Summer of 2008, correctly wrote the following in the foreword to Louis Gaussen’s excellent book on the divine inspiration of Scripture: “God not only controlled which words, phrases, sentences, and paragraphs were to be set down as Scripture, but also controlled all human history so that at the exact time chosen, the author of those words would be properly prepared and available to write the words that God dictated to him. The result is an exact statement of God’s thoughts in human language, language perfectly adequate to express divine thoughts” (God Breathed: The Divine Inspiration of the Bible, page 9).
You should read and study your Bible daily. “Seek ye out of the book of the Lord, and read” Isaiah 34:16. You are not to rely on some minister, elder, seminary, public school teacher, parent, wife, husband, confession, Hollywood movie, popular author (alive or dead), pope, priest, or any other sinful person / institution to tell you what the Bible teaches. You are to search the Bible for yourself: “Search ye the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me” John 5:39.
When it comes to what the Bible teaches, men are not to be trusted, especially ministers, elders, seminary teachers, and preachers. 17th Century Calvinist Francis Turretin states the following: “Thus in the church the judgment of pastors can be admitted only so far as it agrees with the Scriptures” (Institutes of Elenctic Theology, Volume I, page 158). Why did this Calvinist theologian say this? Because, Turretin knew that all men by nature are sinful, prone to err, and inclined towards evil. Hence, their teachings must be carefully examined in light of Scripture alone. We are to test all things. “Prove all things; hold fast that which is good” 1 Thessalonians 5:21.
Bible believing Christians should not mindlessly accept the teachings of any minister or elder. “These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so” Acts 17:11. All men naturally descending from Adam are born evil, totally depraved, and inclined to lie. “Take ye heed every one of his neighbor, and trust ye not in any brother: for every brother will utterly supplant, and every neighbor will walk with slanders. And they will deceive everyone his neighbor, and will not speak the truth: they have taught their tongues to speak lies, and weary themselves to commit iniquity. Thine habitation is in the midst of deceit; through deceit they refuse to know me, saith the Lord” Jeremiah 9:4-6.
Not only is it a logical fallacy to think the teachings of a pastor are correct simply because he is a pastor, but, it has been recorded in the infallible Bible that pastors have a history of messing things up. “Many pastors have destroyed my vineyard, they have trodden my portion under foot, they have made my pleasant portion a desolate wilderness” Jeremiah 12:10.
Do you not see the importance of knowing the Bible for yourself? Those who do not know the Bible can only be in a state of error, and they cannot know the power of God. “Jesus answered and said unto them, Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God” Matthew 22:29.
★☆★Absolute Predestination★☆★
Did you know the God of the Bible has determined whatsoever comes to pass? It’s true. “In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of Him who worketh all things after the counsel of His own will” Ephesians 1:11. From Noah’s ark, which we will discuss later, to the writings of Martin Luther, which we will also discuss later, all events have been determined by God.
Did you know the Bible itself was predestined? Each inspired and infallible Word of the Bible, every sentence of Scripture, each command, and every proposition of Holy Writ was determined for me to read before the universe was ever created. “For ever, O Lord, thy word is settled in heaven” Psalm 119:89. Indeed, I would have never read a single line of Scripture, if God had not purposed it from eternity. “The Lord of hosts have sworn, saying, Surely as I have thought, so shall it come to pass; and as I have purposed, so shall it stand” Isaiah 14:24.
If God had determined for me never to have come into contact with the Bible, then I would have never been exposed to it. “For who hath resisted His will?” Romans 9:19. When I was a small child, I did not by chance hear the Bible being read, but God caused me to be present when my parents read Scripture to me; God made them read Scripture to me, and at the appointed time God illuminated my mind with His Word and Spirit: “Remember the word unto thy servant, upon which thou hast caused me to hope. This is my comfort in my affliction: for thy word hath quickened me” Psalm 119:49-50.
★☆★Noah’s Ark★☆★
There have always been wicked people who think the Bible is false, or who think that some parts of the Bible are false—but they are greatly deceived. The entire Bible is absolutely true, all 66 Books of the Protestant Bible. From Genesis to Revelation, the Bible is perfect, infallible, and completely true. “Thy word is true from the beginning: and every one of thy righteous judgments endureth for ever” Psalm 119:160.
Consider Noah’s ark. The Bible’s infallible history of Noah’s ark is true. Of course, this part of the Bible infuriates many nonbelievers today. Noah’s divinely inspired history tells us of an ancient world filled with wicked men, who despised God’s Word—ancient men who loved evil and who loved to strive against the God of the Bible. “And the Lord said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh” Genesis 6:3.
Today, our own population is cursed with gross ignorance of the Bible, and it celebrates a plethora of abominations. We have a people who proudly publish and support activities so vile that modesty prevents us from speaking of them. Can one view media today without having the most sinister evils boldly paraded before one’s eyes and ears? Can one sit in a classroom today and not hear from the teacher how the most abysmal wickedness is actually good? Like the ancient days of Noah, our population seems to be courting God’s destruction. “And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented the Lord that he had made man on earth, and it grieved him at his heart. And the Lord said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them” Genesis 6:5-7.
★☆★Faith Alone In Christ Alone★☆★
Although most will never believe the Gospel, God has determined that some will. “Even so then at this present time also there is a remnant according to the election of grace” Romans 11:5. Many people throughout history never came into contact with Scripture, and of those who did, only some were converted. Today, in our own land, many have come into contact with the Bible, but the conditions of our churches and government testify that few have been converted. “Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine own? Is thine eye evil, because I am good?...for many be called, but few chosen” Matthew 20:15-16.
In the days before God destroyed the world with the great deluge, the Lord converted Noah. “But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord” Genesis 6:8. Like all Christians, Noah was justified by faith alone in Christ alone. “Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified” Galatians 2:16. Noah’s faith in God’s promise to send the Messiah to atone for his sins saved him. “And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel” Genesis 3:15.
Today, the Gospel is God’s promise fulfilled. Jesus saved His people from their sins with his substitutionary life and death. Christ paid the ransom to God for us; the blood of Jesus satisfied the Law of God for us. Because of Christ’s definite atonement, our sins are not imputed to us, for they were imputed to Christ, while His righteousness is imputed freely to us and received by faith alone. The Lord’s amazing promise has been fulfilled for almost 2,000 years! This is good news. Those today, who are convicted of their sins by God’s moral Law, and who flee to God’s promise by faith alone, are saved! “But the Scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe” Galatians 3:22.
Like all sinners today, Noah was unable to believe God’s promise, for Noah was born in sin, totally corrupted, and his will wholly inclined towards evil. “There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God” Romans 3:11. Left to himself, Noah was incapable of believing the Gospel. Noah was dead in his sins, but God loved Noah from eternity. “And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins” Ephesians 2:1.
Not only did God determine to save His people, but the Lord promised to give all of us, like He gave Noah, both understanding and belief in His Gospel. “And I will give them an heart to know me, that I am the Lord: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God: for they will return unto me with their whole heart” Jeremiah 24:7. God gave Noah the faith he needed to be saved, and God freely gives this saving faith to all the elect today, too! “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast” Ephesians 2:8-9.
As a believer, like all believers, Noah’s sins were not charged to his account. “Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin” Romans 4:8. Noah’s sins were laid upon Jesus Christ, who is the Surety for all of the elect. “But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all…by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors” Isaiah 53:5-12.
Not only was Noah’s sins charged to Christ, but the righteousness of Christ was imputed to Noah, and to all of us that believe the Gospel. “(For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law. Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam’s transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come. But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many. And not as it was by one that sinned, so is the gift: for the judgment was by one to condemnation, but the free gift is of many offences unto justification. For if by one man’s offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ) Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life. For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous” Romans 5:13-19.
By faith alone did Noah receive the free gift of Christ’s imputed righteousness. Faith in God’s Word also saved Noah in a temporal sense, too—for he believed God’s promise to destroy the world with a great flood. What did God say to Noah? “And God said to Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth. Make thee an ark of gopher wood;…And, behold, I, even I, do bring a flood of waters upon the earth, to destroy all flesh,…But with thee will I establish my covenant; and thou shalt come into the ark, thou, and thy sons, and thy wife, and thy sons’ wives with thee. And of every living thing of all flesh, two of every sort shalt thou bring into the ark, to keep them alive with thee; they shall be male and female” (Genesis 6:13-19.
Noah built an ark, for he believed the Lord. “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith” Hebrews 11:6-7.
★☆★What Does Noah’s Ark Represent?★☆★
This is an interesting question. Some Catholics have thought that Noah’s Ark represents the Virgin Mary. These pagans wish us to think that we must go to Mary for salvation. Obviously, this contradicts the Bible, which plainly states that salvation is found in none but Christ alone. The Bible never recognizes any mere man in general, let alone the Virgin Mary in particular, to be our savior. “I, even I, am the Lord; and besides me there is no savior” Isaiah 43:11.
Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who is perfect God and perfect man, will allow none to share his exclusive position of savior: “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me” John 14:6. It is in Christ alone that salvation is to be sought and found. “Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole. This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner. Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved” Acts 4:10-12.
★☆★Martin Luther★☆★
Shame on you, if you do not know the history and writings of Martin Luther! Luther is the great German Reformer, who took on pope and emperor with Scripture alone and set off the Protestant Reformation! The Protestant Reformation did what the Renaissance could not do—it ended the Dark Ages and ushered in modern civilization.
Do you know what Luther thought Noah’s Ark represented? In the following, I quote five paragraphs from Luther’s Lectures on Genesis. In these paragraphs, Luther discusses God’s absolute predestination of all things, why Christians need not fear death, and what Noah’s ark actually represents. Check this out!
“Just as the Deluge and the Red Sea are helpers, as it were, to deliver Noah and Israel from death and to preserve their life, so our own death, if we abide in the faith, is clearly the opportunity for life. When the children of Israel were in extreme peril, the sea suddenly opened and stood to the right and to the left like an iron wall, so that Israel passed through without danger. Why did this happen? Manifestly in order that in this manner death might serve life. For this is the divine power by which the assaults of Satan are overcome, as was the case in Paradise. There, too, he was endeavoring to kill the entire human race with his poison. But what happens? Through what was truly a “happy guilt,” as the church sings, it was brought about that the Son of God came down into our flesh and delivered us from such great evils.
“Accordingly, this allegory teaches, comforts, and encourages us in an excellent manner. As a result, we fear neither death nor sin but disdain all dangers while we give thanks to God for calling us and dealing with us in such a way. Death itself, by which the entire world perishes, is compelled to serve life, just as the Flood, in which the rest of the world perished, was the occasion to preserve Noah; and the Red Sea, by which Pharaoh was destroyed, served the welfare of the Children of Israel.
“This must be applied also to other trials. We must learn to disdain dangers and to have hope even when no hope appears to be left, so that when death or any other danger befalls us, we may encourage ourselves and say: “Behold, here is your Red Sea, your Flood, your baptism, and your death. Here your life—as a philosopher used to say about those who were going to sea—is barely a handbreadth away from death. But do not be afraid. This danger is like a handful of water, whereas through the Word you have a flood of grace. Therefore death will not destroy you but will be a thrust and aid toward life.” Far from being able to destroy the Christian, death is the most immediate escape from death. For the death of the body immediately precedes the liberation of the spirit as well as the resurrection of the flesh. Similarly, in the Flood it is neither the earth nor the trees nor the mountains that carry Noah; it is the Flood itself, even though it kills the rest of the human race.
“Therefore the prophets have reason for their frequent praise of the wonderful deeds of God, such as the passage through the Red Sea, the exodus from Egypt, and the like. For there the sea, which by nature cannot do otherwise than overwhelm and destroy man, is compelled to stand still and protect him, lest he be covered by its waves. Hence that which by its nature is nothing but wrath becomes grace for those who believe; that which is nothing but death becomes life. Thus, whatever misfortunes there are, of which this life surely has countless numbers and by which our bodies and goods are beset—all this will be turned into salvation and joy if you are in the ark, that is, if you believe and lay hold of the promises made in Christ; for death which carries you away, must be turned into life, and hell, which engulfs you, into a way to heaven…
“In order to comfort and strengthen our hearts, allegories must be directed toward the promises and toward the teaching of the faith, as the example of Peter teaches us. Because he sees that Noah is delivered in the midst of death and that the ark is the means of life, the ark is properly made to signify Christ. For it takes a divine power to save in the midst of death and to carry across to life. Thus in Ps. 68:20 Scripture calls God the One who delivers from death and makes death an occasion or even an aid to life.”
(Luther’s Works, Volume 2, page156)
★☆★Thomas Goodwin★☆★
Thomas Goodwin was born in the year 1600 near Yarmouth. He was an English Puritan, who was chosen in 1643 to be a member of the famous Westminster Assembly. He was a Congregationalist (he identified with the independent party, for he was one of the “dissenting brethren”). In 1649 he was appointed President of Magdalan College, Oxford. It was during this time that Thomas Goodwin and John Owen took turns preaching to the students of that University! Later, Goodwin was a chaplain to the great Oliver Cromwell. Below is a quote from The Works of Thomas Goodwin. In this quote, Goodwin explains what Noah’s ark typifies. Check this out.
“Christ our Savior typified by Noah’s ark.—As Noah was instructed by God to enter into the ark for his safety, so God in the covenant of grace teacheth us to know Christ, and to come to him for salvation…The ancient writers of the church, the fathers (as they call them), say, that by ark is meant the church. Now, it is true that one and the same type often signifieth two or three things; as, for example, the temple signified the body of Christ—‘Destroy this temple,’ saith Christ—it signifieth the church universal, the body of Christ mystical; it signifieth every particular soul: ‘Ye are the temple of the Holy Ghost,’ 1 Cor. Vi. 19. But this let me say, when you shall find a parallel made between the thing and the thing signified, and in particular applied to one thing, you must only understand it so, and there you must not understand it as a type of the other. In 1 Peter 3:20-21 you have Noah’s ark made a type of Christ, as he is administered to us in baptism: ‘The like figure whereunto’ (having spoken of the ark) ‘wherein few, that is, eight persons were saved through water.’ The like figure is baptism, whereby we are saved; but here baptism, signified by the ark, bears not the figure of the church, and that plainly for this reason, because the ark is the figure of that wherein we are saved (‘wherein few were saved, eight persons’). Now, eight were the persons saved, and saved in the ark, and they bare the resemblance of the church in being saved; but it is the ark that bears the resemblance of that wherein we are saved, who is Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world, signified and applied to us in baptism.”
(The Works of Thomas Goodwin, Volume 8, pages 164-166)
In other words, like Martin Luther, Thomas Goodwin is teaching that we are saved from eternal death by being in Christ alone, just as Noah was saved from temporal death by being in the ark. Noah’s ark is a representation of salvation in Jesus Christ alone. Those that believe the Gospel are in Christ and have eternal life.
★☆★John Gill★☆★
Who is John Gill? He’s the greatest Baptist preacher and theologian in the history of the English speaking people. Gill was extremely Calvinistic, and he was a prolific writer, too. He taught in the 1700’s in England. If you have not read Gill’s major writings, then make a point to obtain hard copies and carefully read them. Below is what John Gill thought Noah’s ark represented:
“The ark was a type of Christ, into whom whoever enters by faith, or in whom whoever believes, shall be saved: but as they that entered into the ark were but few, so are those that enter in at the straight gate, or believe in Christ; and that they went into the ark were saved by the water bearing up the ark, even by that by which others were destroyed; as the very same thing, for different reasons, is the cause or means of destruction and salvation; so Christ is set, for the fall and rising of many, is a stumblingblock to some, and the power and wisdom of God to others; and the Gospel, and the ministers of it, are the savour of life unto life to some, and the savour of death unto death to others…the ark, and deliverance by it, as it was a type of Christ and salvation by him, so it was a figure of baptism, and baptism was the antitype of that…Christ only is the Cause and Author of eternal salvation; and as those only that were in the ark were saved by water, so those only that are in Christ, and that are baptized into Christ, and into his death are saved by baptism; not everyone that is baptized, but he that believeth.”
(Gill’s Commentary, Volume VI, page 835)
★☆★Conclusion★☆★
The Bible alone is the Word of God. The history of Noah found in Scripture is absolutely true. Noah’s ark represents salvation in Christ alone, received by faith alone, all by God’s sovereign grace alone, and according to Scripture alone!

What does the Scripture mean?

"Now, though heretics rail at the word person, or some morose and obstinate men clamorously refuse to admit a name of human invention; since they cannot make us assert that there are three, each of whom is entirely God, nor yet that there are more gods than one, how very unreasonable is it to reprobate words which express nothing but what is testified and recorded in the Scriptures! It were better, say they, to restrain not only our thoughts, but our expressions also, within the limits of the Scripture, than to introduce exotic words, which may generate future dissensions and disputes, for thus we weary ourselves with verbal controversies; thus the truth is lost in altercation; thus charity expires in odious contention. If they call every word exotic, which cannot be found in the Scriptures in so many syllables, they impose on us a law which is very unreasonable, and which condemns all interpretation, but what is composed of detached texts of Scripture connected together. But if by exotic they mean that which is curiously contrived, and superstitiously defended, which tends to contention more than to edification, the use of which is either unseasonable or unprofitable, which offends pious ears with its harshness, and seduces person from the simplicity of the Divine word, I most cordially embrace their modest opinion. For I think that we ought to speak of God with the same religious caution, which should govern our thoughts of him, since all thoughts that we entertain concerning him merely from ourselves, are foolish, and all our expressions absurd. But there is a proper medium to be observed we should seek in the Scriptures a certain rule, both for thinking and for speaking by which we may regulate all the thoughts of our minds, and all the words of our mouths. But what forbids our expressing in plainer words, those things which, in the Scriptures, are, to our understanding, intricate and obscure, provided our expressions religiously and faithfully convey the true sense of the Scripture, and are used with modest caution, and not without sufficient occasion? Of this, examples sufficiently numerous are not wanting. But, when it shall have been proved, that the Church was absolutely necessitated to use the terms Trinity and Persons, if any one then censures the novelty of the words may he not be justly considered as offended at the light of the truth? As having no other cause of censure, but that the truth is explained and elucidated?" -John Calvin, The Institutes, I. XIII. III. (Emphasis is mine)




"It does not appear that those men who are so strenuous for the use of Scripture phrases only in articles of religion, have a greater value for the Scriptures than others; nay, not so much; for if we are to form a judgment of them by their sermons and writings, one would think they never read the Scriptures at all, or very little, since they make such an infrequent use of them; you shall scarcely hear a passage of Scripture quoted by them in a sermon, or produced by them in their writings; more frequently Seneca, Cicero, and others; and it looks as if they thought it very unpolite, and what might serve to disgrace their more refined writings, to fill their performances and the Socinians more lately, carry on their cause, and endeavor to support it by making use of unscriptural words and phrases; and therefore it is not with a very good grace that such men, or those of the same cast with them, object to the use of words and phrases not syllabically expressed in Scripture; and the rather since the Arians were the first that began to make use of unscriptural phrases, as Athanasius affirms." - John Gill, Introduction to Divinity of God, Pg. xxix

Doctrine has an influence upon practice

"Doctrine has an influence upon practice, especially evangelical doctrine, spiritually understood, affectionately embraced, and powerfully and feelingly experienced; so true is what the Apostle asserts, that the Grace of God, that is, the Doctrine of the Grace of God, that bringeth Salvation, the good news, the glad tidings of salvation by Christ, which is peculiar to Gospel Doctrine, hath appeared to all men, Gentiles as well as Jews, in the external ministry of the word; teaching us, to whom it comes with power and efficacy in the demonstration of the Spirit, that denying ungodliness and worldly lust, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world, Tit. ii. 11, 12." - John Gill, Introduction to the Body of Divinity, Pg. xxiii


I like what he says here. Doctrine has an influence upon practice. Of course we know that we may believe the truth and yet sometimes what is believed does not right away translate in what we practice. But the order is first doctrine and then practice. Not that we look to doctrine first and then second to our practice but rather it is the case that as we look to doctrine always that it SHOULD turn out to practice.

The Bible informs our systematic theology and only then our practice

"Having completed an Exposition of the whole Bible, the Books both of the Old and of the New Testament; I considered with myself what would be best next to engage in for the further instruction of the people under my care; and my thoughts led me to enter upon a Scheme of Doctrinal and Practical Divinity, first the former and then the latter; the one being the foundation of the other, and both having a close connection with each other." - John Gill, Body of Divinity, or Systematic Theology, Pg. 23