Hebrews 11:7 (ESV)
⁷By faith Noah, being warned by God concerning events as yet unseen, in reverent fear con-structed an ark for the saving of his household. By this he condemned the world and became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.

The story of Noah gives us a classic example of an obedient faith. God told Noah, not only that it was going to rain, but that there was going to be a downpour for forty days and forty nights and every living thing that He had made would be blotted out from the face of the ground (Genesis 7:4). Thus, God instructed Noah to build an ark to preserve mankind. How did Noah respond? He responded with reverent fear, constructing an ark in keeping with the instruction of God. It took him 120 years to complete it, but that did not matter because he was a man of faith. There is little doubt that the ungodly people that surrounded him gave him trouble, but that did not matter because he was a man of faith. The job was not easy. The task was daunting, and the obstacles must have been many, but none of that mattered because Noah was a man of faith, and one thing faith always does is obey. The moment you drain obedience from faith, you are left with a dead, useless condition (James 2:14-17). Now, let me make two observations about Noah’s obedience that I believe are extremely important.

First, Noah’s obedience was meticulous. To do something meticulously is to do it with care in the consideration of details. When it comes to obeying God, doing something meticulously means doing God’s will, God’s way. That is what Noah did when he built the ark. He followed the instructions of God precisely (Genesis 6:14-22). God is clear when it comes to this matter. We have both commands and examples that unequivocally declare that God demands a meticulous obedience to His commands (Hebrews 8:1-5; Numbers 20:1-12; Colossians 3:17). Strong and faithful bible characters, of which Noah was certainly one, all understood the importance of following the instructions of God with care for details. Saving faith leads to doing exactly what God tells us to do. Noah exemplified that kind of faith, and we need to follow in his footsteps.

Second, and I want to make sure that we are clear about this, meticulous obedience does not eradicate God’s grace. Over the years, many preachers have conjured up in their minds the idea that somehow grace means that salvation is unconditional, and that there is no human effort in it at all. That is a devil’s lie that has sadly been believed by too many people. Yes, we are saved by grace, but that does not mean that there is nothing for us to do. Both spiritually and physically, Noah was saved by grace (Genesis 6:8). Yet, from a physical standpoint, to be saved from the flood, he had to build an ark. Could Noah brag about earning his salvation because he built the ark? Of course not. Why not? It is because works of obedience never eradicate grace. It did not eradicate grace when the city of Jericho was delivered to the Israelites just because they had to marched around the city, did it (Joshua 6:1-5)? It did not eradicate grace when Naaman was cleansed of leprosy just because he had to dip seven times in the Jordan river, did it (2 Kings 5:1-14)? Nor did it eradicate grace when God saved the Jews from the fiery serpents in the wilderness just because they had to look up to the bronze serpent that had been erected on a pole (Numbers 21:4-9). The point of it is this—Noah’s story shows us that obedience does not eradicate grace, but, instead, is what proper faith naturally produces, so much so, that the two are inextricably linked together. If you have saving faith, you will live a life of obedience, and that obedience will be precise. Be like Noah and obey God meticulously. Prove your faith by following the details of His word.

As you wind down for the night, think on these things.