August 20, 2026 | www.gospelofjesuschrist.blog | River Wilde
The morning began like every other morning.
The marketplace was crowded. Children ran between the stalls while merchants called out to passing customers. Somewhere in the distance a hammer struck wood.
THUD. THUD. THUD.
Everyone knew where the sound was coming from.
Noah.
For years the old man and his family had been working on that enormous wooden vessel.
An ark, he called it.
People had laughed about it for years.
“Noah is still building that thing?”
“Yes.”
“Does he still say judgment is coming?”
“Every day.”
More laughter.
Life continued.
People married. Families celebrated. Merchants bought and sold. Men planned their futures.
And Noah kept building.
Jesus would later describe those very days:
Matthew 24:37–39 — KJV
“But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark,
And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away…”
But on this particular morning, something felt different.
A young man stopped in the marketplace and looked toward the horizon.
The sky seemed darker than usual.
“Do you see that?” he asked his father.
His father barely looked up.
“See what?”
“Those clouds.”
“They’re clouds.”
“But Noah said—”
His father interrupted him.
“Don’t start talking about Noah again.”
The young man fell silent.
But something inside him wouldn’t let the thought go.
WHAT IF NOAH WAS RIGHT?
THE MAN EVERYONE LAUGHED AT
Later that afternoon, curiosity finally overcame him.
He walked toward the ark.
The closer he came, the more enormous it appeared.
This wasn’t a little boat.
It towered above him.
And there was Noah.
Still working.
Still believing.
Still obeying the God who had warned him.
Scripture tells us:
Hebrews 11:7 — KJV
“By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house…”
The young man stood watching him.
Finally, he called out.
“Noah!”
The old man looked toward him.
“Is it really coming?”
Noah knew exactly what he meant.
The judgment.
The Flood.
For years Noah had believed something he had never seen because God had spoken.
The young man looked at the enormous ark.
Then back toward the town.
His friends were there.
His possessions were there.
His plans were there.
Everything he knew was there.
And he walked away.
ANOTHER DAY PASSED
The next morning, people gathered near the ark.
But this time they weren’t laughing.
Something extraordinary was happening.
Animals were coming.
The young man pushed through the crowd.
He watched in disbelief.
The creatures were entering the ark exactly as God had commanded.
People whispered.
Some stared.
Others still mocked.
“It’s a trick.”
“Noah planned this.”
“Nothing is going to happen.”
But the young man’s heart was pounding.
What if Noah was right?
He hurried home.
“Father! You need to come see this!”
“See what?”
“The animals! They’re entering the ark!”
His father shook his head.
“And?”
“Don’t you understand? Noah said God told him—”
“Enough!”
The room became silent.
Then his father said something mankind has probably said in a thousand different ways ever since:
“We have plenty of time.”
The young man looked through the doorway.
The sky was getting darker.
THEN CAME THE DAY
Noah entered the ark.
His wife entered.
His sons entered.
Their wives entered.
The animals were inside.
The young man stood at a distance watching.
Something inside him screamed:
GO!
But nobody else was running.
His friends weren’t concerned.
His neighbors weren’t concerned.
His father wasn’t concerned.
Maybe he was being foolish.
Maybe everything would be fine.
Then—
BOOM.
Thunder rolled across the heavens.
The marketplace became quiet.
Everyone looked upward.
A drop of water struck the young man’s cheek.
He touched it.
Another struck his hand.
Then another.
The laughter stopped.
For the first time, people began looking toward the ark differently.
The young man’s heart began pounding.
Noah’s words raced through his mind.
Judgment is coming.
Another thunderclap shook the sky.
And suddenly he understood.
NOAH WAS RIGHT.
He began running.
RUN!
He ran past the marketplace.
Past the homes.
Past the people staring upward.
Rain began falling harder.
“THE ARK!” someone shouted.
Others began moving.
The young man ran faster.
His sandals struck the wet ground.
His lungs burned.
His heart hammered against his chest.
Ahead of him stood the massive ark.
And he could see the entrance.
THE DOOR!
He ran toward it.
But then he saw something that stopped him cold.
The door was closing.
“NO!”
He ran harder.
“WAIT!”
But Noah wasn’t closing it.
God was.
The Bible records one of the most sobering sentences in all of Scripture:
Genesis 7:16 — KJV
“…and the LORD shut him in.”
The door closed.
The young man reached the ark.
Too late.
He placed his hands against the enormous timbers.
“NOAH!”
Rain poured down his face.
“NOAH! OPEN THE DOOR!”
But Noah could not open what God had shut.
Behind him the rain became a torrent.
The ground began filling with water.
The people who had laughed were no longer laughing.
The people who had mocked were no longer mocking.
The people who said they had plenty of time suddenly wanted one more minute.
But the time for deciding whether God was telling the truth had already passed.
NOW LET’S LEAVE THE STORY
That young man isn’t mentioned in Scripture.
He represents the people who heard God’s warning but failed to act upon it.
But the ark was real.
The Flood was real.
And according to Jesus Christ, there is a lesson in Noah’s generation specifically for those living before His return.
Jesus said:
Matthew 24:37 — KJV
“But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.”
People will be living. Working. Eating. Drinking. Marrying. Planning tomorrow.
Life will continue—until suddenly it doesn’t.
And there is something else Jesus said that makes the story of Noah incredibly powerful.
JESUS SAID HE IS THE DOOR.
John 10:9 — KJV
“I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved…”
Think about that.
Noah’s family had an ark. And that ark had a door.
Today God has provided salvation through Jesus Christ.
Not through our goodness. Not through our accomplishments. Not through membership in a religion. Not because we’ve performed enough works.
Jesus said:
John 14:6 — KJV
“I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”
THE DOOR IS OPEN RIGHT NOW
Imagine that young man again. Imagine being able to turn the clock backward. Five minutes. Ten minutes. One hour.
Imagine seeing him standing outside the ark before the rain began.
What would you shout to him?
“RUN!”
“Don’t worry about what everybody else thinks!” “Don’t wait for the rain!” “Believe God!” “GET INSIDE!”
My friend, perhaps that is exactly the message somebody reading this needs today.
You don’t need to wait until you understand every prophecy. You don’t need to wait until the world becomes frightening enough. You don’t need to wait until tomorrow.
God says:
2 Corinthians 6:2 — KJV
“…behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.”
Jesus Christ died for our sins. He was buried. He rose again. And salvation is offered as a gift.
Ephesians 2:8–9 — KJV
“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
Not of works, lest any man should boast.”
And Scripture gives this promise:
Romans 10:9 — KJV
“That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.”
The atonement of Jesus Christ was offered to all mankind, but because of our free agency, each person must ask to receive this gift. It is not just bestowed upon everyone. We accept the atonement gift from Christ by having faith in His atoning sacrifice, and to know that it is only because of Him that our sins can be forgiven. We then repent of our sins.
As we do this, we receive a “spiritual rebirth” Born Again, if you will. We immediately receive God’s Spirit within us, and we become sealed to God, and are known as a Child of God.
This is how we “board the ark.” This is how we will ensure that we will soon be raptured. And most importantly, this is how WE CAN KNOW that we will live with Jesus Christ in Heaven.
Let’s look again at that teaching of the rapture, and the promise to always be with the Lord.
1 Thessalonians 4:16–18 — KJV
16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
18 Wherefore comfort one another with these words.”
Those who are “in Christ,” who are the same as those who have been born again, will be rescued from the 7-year Tribulation period that is coming in the event known as the rapture.
And, FROM THAT MOMENT ON, they will “forever be with the Lord.”
God is Judging the earth during these final 7 years, just as He judged the earth during the time of Noah.
The ark was the rescue plan for God’s Children at the time of Noah. The rapture will be a similar rescue for God’s Children from the judgment that is coming to the earth, in just a few short moments.
DON’T WAIT FOR THE FIRST RAINDROP
There is another door mentioned by Jesus. Speaking of the bridegroom’s arrival, He said:
Matthew 25:10 — KJV
“…the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut.”
Those words should get our attention.
“The door was shut.”
There was an opportunity. Then there came a moment when that opportunity had passed.
Jesus therefore warned:
Matthew 25:13 — KJV
“Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.”
We don’t need to know the day. We don’t need to know the hour. We need to know Jesus Christ.
CAN YOU SEE THE ARK?
For just a moment, picture yourself standing there. The wind is blowing. The clouds are gathering. Thunder echoes across the horizon. Everyone around you says:
“Don’t worry about it.”
“You’ve got plenty of time.”
“Nothing is going to happen.”
But ahead of you stands the ark. And the door is still open. What are you going to do?
Don’t look around to see whether everyone else is running.
RUN.
Run past the doubts. Run past the opinions of men. Run past religious confusion. Run past your pride. Run past the thought that you’ll deal with God another day.
RUN TOWARD THE DOOR.
And then remember something wonderful:
You aren’t actually running toward a wooden ark.
YOU ARE RUNNING TOWARD JESUS CHRIST.
He is the Savior. He is the way. He is the door. And today that invitation is still being offered:
Matthew 11:28 — KJV
“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”
The message of Noah isn’t merely:
“JUDGMENT IS COMING.”
There is another message hidden within that enormous ark:
“GOD PROVIDED A WAY OF ESCAPE.”
And that is the beautiful message of the Gospel. God has provided a Savior. His name is Jesus Christ.
So don’t wait until you hear the thunder. Don’t wait until you feel the rain. Don’t wait until everyone around you suddenly realizes that God was telling the truth.
THE DOOR IS OPEN TODAY.
RUN TO JESUS CHRIST.
Because Noah’s generation discovered something when it was already too late:
When God says judgment is coming, believe Him before the rain begins. Believe Him BEFORE the rapture happens.
Now, where did I put my rain gear? I believe a storm is coming!!!
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