But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord. 9 These are the generations of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his generation. Noah walked with God. (Genesis 6:8-9)
Through the Bible: Genesis 4-7
Of all the people in the world, God chose Noah to build the ark, gather the animals, and preserve humanity and creation when the flood came.
Why did God choose Noah? Most Christians will tell you that it was because of all the people in the world, God found Noah to be righteous and good. That’s definitely how Genesis 6:9 describes him. So, case closed…right?
But if it was Noah’s merit that got him a place on the ark, what does that do to our understanding of salvation by grace alone? If only one sin is enough to separate us from God, are we saying that Noah was without sin? Was it that God needed someone to build the ark and take care of the animals, and Noah was the best God could do? Maybe Noah was only righteous and blameless relative to the people around him. Kind of like when we say things like, “Well, I know I’m not perfect, but at least I’m not as big a sinner as Bob next door…”
Or maybe it’s that Noah is an Old Testament picture of imputed righteousness. Notice that before Noah was described as righteous (verse 9), he finds favor in the eyes of the Lord (verse 8).
The word “favor” is interchangeable with the word grace. In fact, “grace” is how the KJV translates it. This makes Genesis 6:8 the first mention of grace in the entire Bible.
It is only after Noah finds favor with God that anything is said about his being righteous. First came God’s favor. Then, the pronouncement of righteousness.
And this is the gospel of grace. Noah didn’t do anything to earn God’s favor. Maybe he was better than Bob down the street. But that didn’t make him righteous. Noah was pronounced righteous because he had received God’s favor. Not the other way around.
Oh, beloved, let this truth set you free: God doesn’t love you because you are good. You are good because God loves you.
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