The Mountain of Deliverance

THE LORD IS MY LIGHT AND MY SALVATION. WHOM SHALL I FEAR? (Psalm 27:1-2)

Do you see Mount Ararat on the map?

Do you know how high it is?

Have you ever climbed a mountain?

Do you know which mountain is the highest in the world? It is Mount Everest.

It is 8,848 meters high and is located in the Himalaya Mountain chain. But now we will tell you about a mountain which is mentioned in the Bible. Maybe you already know this mountain. It is Mount Ararat and we will call it the Mount of Deliverance.

The Bible, which is the Word of God, tells us in Genesis 6-9 about a terrible event.

People had become very sinful because the thoughts of their hearts were corrupt and all their deeds were evil. They didn’t fear God and did not ask what He wanted. Everybody behaved as he pleased. Finally God became angry and said: “I will destroy all life from the face of the earth – men and animals, and the birds of the air.”

How tragic for us if God is not with us!

There was a godly man named Noah. He walked with God and God was pleased with him. We read in the Bible that Noah was righteous. God did not find any fault in him. Noah lived in constant fellowship with God.

God blessed Noah with three sons. Their names were Shem, Ham and Japheth. The three sons were married.

Noah’s family consisted of eight people.

God gave Noah a strange command: “Make yourself an ark, for I am going to bring flood waters on the earth to destroy all life under the heavens, because man’s wickedness has become great.”

God planned that the ark would have three decks with an opening in the roof and one door at the side. Noah had to coat the whole ark with pitch, inside and outside, that the water would not penetrate the ark.

It was a big ship with many rooms. It was amazing: Its length was 133 meters and its width was 22 meters. Its height was 13 meters. It is hard to imagine how large that ship was. Many tools and a lot of material were needed to build the ark.

Noah and his sons worked day and night to finish the ark. It was a hard and tiring job. The people around didn’t help them. They only laughed at them and said, “Look at this stupid man. He is building a large ship on dry land, and on a hill! There is no water and the sea is far away. Ha! Ha! He’s crazy.”

But Noah built the ark because God commanded him to do so, and Noah obeyed God.

After a time the ark was complete. Who do you think entered the ark and lived in it?

God told Noah: “Enter with your wife, your sons and their wives. Bring provisions for you and your family, also food for the animals that will enter into the ark with you. Take with you one pair (male and female) from each kind of animal which is on the face of the earth, and also from the birds of the air. The ark will be a shelter for them.”

Noah obeyed God and did everything according to His command. And the animals entered the ark, two by two.

When the people and animals were inside the ark, God Himself closed the door.

After Noah’s family settled in the ark and the animals rested, a big storm came. The rain fell on the earth like a river. All the springs under the ground opened and the water began to rise higher and higher. The people were afraid and went to the ark and began to say: “Was Noah right? Where is he now? Surely, he is in the ark which he built according to God’s command.”

The people shouted: “Noah... Noah... let us come inside your ark! Open the door for us and let us enter!” The people who were shouting were very fearful. Noah wanted to help them, but the door remained locked so that no one (who did not believe in God and obey Him) could enter in. God Himself closed the door so that Noah could not open it.

It rained down from the sky 40 days and 40 nights without stopping. The water rose and the ark went up with it.

It started to rise over the houses, the trees and the mountains. The water covered the highest peak by seven meters. It was the worst flood that ever happened.

What happened to the people who did not believe in God’s Word and did not enter the ark?

What happened to the animals that stayed on the face of the earth? They were all searching for shelter and a place to be saved.

Do you think that they would have been safe on a tower? Or on the top of a mountain? What a pity, nothing could save them. All of them drowned. How tragic!

They could have been saved from this terrible death if they had listened and obeyed the Word of God. But the time came when it was too late for repentance. Life without God always leads to death and destruction.

Do you know what the Bible tells us then?

The water remained high for 150 days. This was a very long time for Noah and his family. How happy and thankful they were when God remembered them and closed the springs, stopped the rain and sent the wind. The water receded and then all of a sudden the ark hit something and the ship stood still.

What happened? What did the ark hit? The ark stood on Mount Ararat. It was good that Noah had an opening in the roof. From it he could watch the water going down more and more. After a short time he could see the peaks of the mountains.

After 40 days, Noah opened the window and sent a raven out. It kept flying back and forth until the water had dried up from the earth. Then he sent a dove, but it returned to Noah in the ark. So Noah knew that the earth was not yet dry.

Noah waited seven days until he sent the dove out a second time. This time it came back with a newly plucked olive leaf in its beak. Noah knew that the tops of the trees were now over the water. It was hard for Noah and his family to wait so long until they could go out of the ark because they were inside for a whole year.

Noah waited another seven days and sent the dove for the third time and this time it did not come back. This was a good sign. The earth was really dry and the joy in the ark was great.

When will God open the door of the ark?

When will He command Noah and his family to leave the ship? All of them waited anxiously for this moment. It was very difficult for them to wait so long. But God knew the right time for Noah and his family to come out on the earth. The day finally came when they could leave the ark.

God told Noah: “Come out of the ark, you and your wife, your sons and their wives, and bring out all of the animals that are with you.”

What a happy day for the people and the animals!

Life came back to the earth, and the animals and birds were happy with their freedom. They scattered all over the earth. Although they were few in number, they multiplied and filled the earth.

What did Noah and his family do?

Noah and his family thanked God because He had saved them from the flood. They had learned that obedience to God is wise and always a blessing for us.

Noah expressed his thankfulness to God by building an altar from big stones. He put wood on the altar and offered some of the animals as a sacrifice to God. God was pleased with Noah and blessed him and his sons, and promised that He would not send such a flood on the earth again and would never again destroy all life. As a sign, God set a rainbow in the clouds to remind us of His promise.

Now that you have read this booklet, did you like it? Don’t you think that the pictures would look nicer if you colour them? Maybe you have already started to colour them. If not, bring your crayons and start now. We hope you enjoy this work.

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