“But since the water still covered all the land, the dove did not find a place to light. It flew back to the boat, and Noah reached out and took it in.” (Genesis 8:9)
Everyone knows about Noah and how God saved him and his family from the flood. After 40 days and nights of rain and water springing from the earth, it stopped. After 210 days the water went down so that the ark finally rested on a mountain in the Ararat range. And after about 300 days the tops of the mountains could be seen. At 40 days more Noah let out a raven which kept flying about until the water was completely gone. Then Noah sent out a dove. (Genesis 8:1-9)
The Scripture above tells us that the dove did not find a place to rest. Much like us without the Lord. We ventured out in the world, hopefully to find what will satisfy our souls and never find rest in the world. Why is that you may ask? What is in the world that doesn’t satisfy? John wrote about it in his letters to the church. “Everything that belongs to the world—what the sinful self desires, what people see and want, and everything in this world that people are so proud of—none of this comes from the Father; it all comes from the world.” (1John 2:16) First, what our sinful self desires is not what is good for us. The words “sinful self desires” gives us the clue. Sin is a fleeting pleasure. It quickly leaves a bitter regret in our hearts. It does nothing to edify us. And because it’s fleeting, it doesn’t satisfy. The world makes us itch for the things we see. They attract us. They’re like the glam and glitter of a party; only a fantasy. We want that glam and glitter to last, but unfortunately, the party comes to an end. The world deceitfully tries to elevate one’s own accomplishments, striving and successes. These are not in themselves evil; except they are not satisfying when they define who we are. What good are those diplomas, those riches and “atta boys” when we’re in a situation that’s impossible, difficult or tragic? They’re not helpful. The world is a difficult place. It’s a place where everyone looks only to oneself. It’s ruled by the words “I” and “me.”
The dove Noah sent out, tried to find rest in the world, but found none. She exhausted herself and made it to the boat, but was so weary, she couldn’t fly in the window Noah had opened. He had o literally reach out and take it in. This is a picture of the Lord. He initiated relationship with us. He reached out to His creation to save us from our toilsome wandering.
The Father sent Jesus Who died for us while we were still wandering the world desiring anything and anyone instead of Him. “For God loved the world so much that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him may not die but have eternal life.” (John 3:16) He loved us first when we were sinners and His enemies. “But God has shown us how much He loves us—it was while we were still sinners that Christ died for us!” (Romans 5:8) He offers us a gift that is eternal, like nothing the world has to offer. “For sin pays its wage—death; but God's free gift is eternal life in union with Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6:23)
The world may attempt to understand God by human wisdom, but they are unable to do so. So then to them, godly things are foolishness. “Whoever does not have the Spirit cannot receive the gifts that come from God's Spirit. Such a person really does not understand them, and they seem to be nonsense, because their value can be judged only on a spiritual basis.” (1Corinthians 2:14) They can’t understand. But the Gospel of Christ has the power to cleanse us and change us. “So then, where does that leave the wise? or the scholars? or the skillful debaters of this world? God has shown that this world's wisdom is foolishness! For God in His wisdom made it impossible for people to know Him by means of their own wisdom. Instead, by means of the so-called "foolish" message we preach, God decided to save those who believe. Jews want miracles for proof, and Greeks look for wisdom. As for us, we proclaim the crucified Christ, a message that is offensive to the Jews and nonsense to the Gentiles; but for those whom God has called, both Jews and Gentiles, this message is Christ, who is the power of God and the wisdom of God. For what seems to be God's foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and what seems to be God's weakness is stronger than human strength.” 1Corinthians 1:20-25)
When we humble ourselves, realize that we cannot change ourselves and that we cannot help ourselves, then we will submit to Christ. When we face up to the Truth that we’ve made a mess of our lives and surrender to Jesus, then life becomes real. We see life as it should be. We receive the Holy Spirit, God’s wisdom, knowledge and understanding. There are so many changes in our hearts and in our minds, that others see the changes in our words, deeds and even our appearance. That’s the power of the Gospel.
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