promises” (cp. 2 Pet 1:4). During the storms of life we can trust God’s promises. We can rest in them and rely on them.
There was a night when the disciples found themselves in a storm. They were afraid that their little vessel was going to sink and they would all drown. However, before they set sail, the Lord Jesus said to them, “Let us go over unto the other side of the lake” (Luke 8:22). He never warned them about the storm, but He did say they were going to the other side. You can be sure that if the Lord says you are going to the other side, you will make it to the other side. The winds may howl, the waves may dash high, the lightening may flash, and your boat may be flooded with water, but we have God’s promise that we are going to make it through the storm.
Are you going through a storm? If so, are you looking at the storm or the Savior? When you look out at the storm, it can shake your faith. But, when you look in at the Lord, it will settle your faith.
There is one final look that I want you to take with me. Let’s once again step back inside the ark and look through the window again. As we do so we see that:
LOOKING UP CAN STRENGTHEN OUR FAITH
When God gave Noah instructions for building the ark, He said in Genesis 6:16, “A window shalt thou make to the ark, and in a cubit shalt thou finish it above.” As we saw earlier, there was only one window in the ark. The window was not placed in the side of the ark, but at the very top. God said “thou shalt finish it above.” In order to look out the window, you had to look up.
Because the window was in the top of the ark, whenever Noah looked out, he was looking up toward heaven. What a fitting place for the window, because looking up:
Promoted Dependence
A. W. Pink described the location of the window the following way, “Noah and his companions were not to be looking down on the scene of destruction beneath and around them, but up toward the living God.”
In other words, they were to keep their eyes on the Lord! They were to look to the Lord, trusting in His promises and protection. As they looked up it reminded them that the God above was watching over them.
A group of deacons were discussing a need that had arisen in the Church. They discussed different ways to meet the need, but none seemed sufficient. Finally one deacon said, “It looks like we will have to pray about it.” Another deacon cried out, “You mean it has come to that.”
May I say it should always come to that! Our eyes must be upon the Lord. We must look to Him in faith, trusting in His Word. Our dependence must not be on our ability to face and survive the storm, but rather on His ability to keep us and bring us through the storm.
Years ago a single lady was leaving for a foreign field to fulfill God’s call in her life. Just before she boarded her ship, a friend walked up to her and handed her a sealed envelope and said, “If you ever get to the place you have nowhere to turn, open this envelope.” More than thirty years later she returned home for a visit and stood to give her testimony. In her hand was that envelope, still sealed. She told the story of what her friend had said to her on the day she departed and then said, “In all these years I never got to the place where I had nowhere to turn. My Lord was always there.”
You will never get to the place where you have nowhere or no one to turn to in time of need. Look up! Look up to the Lord! Rest in His promises and depend on Him to keep those promises.
Furthermore, looking up:
Prevented Distraction
The window was not only in the top of the ark, but it was a very small window. Genesis 6:16 tells us the window was a “cubit” in width and length. A cubit was commonly reckoned to be the length from the point of the elbow to the end of the middle finger, which is normally about 18 inches. I think you would agree with me that was a very small window for a ship the size of the ark.
Because the window was small, Noah and his family had a limited view of what was happening outside of the ark. This was not a large bay window which gave them a panoramic view of all that was going on around them. No, their vision was greatly restricted. Because it was in the top, they could not look around. They could only look up. The focus of Noah was narrowed by the location and size of the window.
The location and size of the window reminds us that when we are in the storm our focus must be narrow. As I have already said, we must not look at the storm. We must keep our eyes on the Lord.
The story is told that when Leonardo da Vinci finished his painting of the Lord’s Supper, he invited a trusted friend to view it and give him his assessment of the work. The friend looked at the painting and commented on the cup sitting in the center of the table. He seemed oblivious to everything else. Leonardo reached for his brush, dipped it into the paint, and with one bold stroke, wiped out the cup. He then said to His friend, “Look at the Master’s face! Look at the Master!”
When you go through the storms of life keep your eyes on the Lord. Looking out at the storm will shake your faith, Looking in will settle your faith, and Looking up will strengthen your faith. In all things and at all times, keep your eyes on the Lord.
Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
Look full into His wonderful face,
And the things of the earth will grow strangely dim
In the light of His glory and grace.
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