The church is God’s vessel for this age. As much as Noah needed the ark, you need a local church. Sure, it’s not a perfect vessel. The ark wasn’t perfect either. But, Noah and his family did not dream of getting out of the boat.
I haven’t seen the movie that is out about Noah. But, I have thought recently about what it must have been like to be on the ark? The ark was God’s perfect plan. But, God’s perfect plan involved imperfect people, so there must have been problems.
Picture what it was like. I’ll bet it was dark. You can’t light too many candles when the ship you are on is pitching from one side to the other in a violent storm.
I wonder who was sick. Noah and his family weren’t sailors. I doubt they had Dramamine. Maybe even the animals were sea-sick. How would you like to share space with a nauseous elephant?
Maybe one of Noah’s sons didn’t put enough pitch on one side of the ark so that sea water was leaking on somebody’s bed.
Whatever happened, we can be sure that the ark wasn’t a perfect boat. But, it was God’s perfect plan and no one thought about getting off. The water was too deep outside.
God’s perfect plan for today is the local church. Jesus said that he would build his church and that nothing would stop him. We need the church as much as Noah needed the ark. Like the ark, the church involves imperfect people. It’s not a perfect vessel. It has flaws and is at times a leaky boat. But, we must not even consider trying to make it on our own. The water is too deep outside. And, nothing can replace the church. Today, the church is the ark.
