Rainbows I Remember

The promise of the rainbow is not just beautiful, it's divine.  We look at the rainbow and we remember that God promised that He would never cover the earth with water, again. 

Though our times be as destructive and wicked as they were in the day of Noah, we have the promise that God will never cover the earth with water.  The rains will never pour down as they did that day. What a promise that God has given us. 

Did you know that the rainbow is also mentioned in the vision that Ezekiel had of the wheels in the wheels? In the midst of the destruction that was prophesied, the rainbow was there, a reminder that God will not destroy the earth with a flood ever again.  Though the waters rise and we feel overwhelmed, God will not allow the raging waters to overflow in our lives.  He will keep us safe, if we trust and obey. 

The rainbow is also in the book of Revelations.  Again, a reminder for us that we will not experience the wrath of God if we follow His word, Jesus.  It's inserted at the end of the Bible, to be inserted into our minds and our hearts for all of eternity.  When we see the rainbow, at the end of the storm, we are reminded of God's promise to never again destroy all flesh and every living thing. 

Wouldn't it be great if that were the end of the story? Rainbows and beauty and glory and promise.  A lovely ending to a lovely tale.  We have the promise that no matter what happens, when the floods begin to rise and all of life seems just too much, too overwhelming, we have the promise of the rainbow.

It's not the end of the story, however.  The rainbow serves another purpose, that you and I may not have caught. 

Genesis 9:15 states, "I will remember my covenant". 

Did you hear that?

He will remember.  When He sees the bow in the clouds, He will remember.  It's not just so that when we look at the rainbow, we put it into our remembrance and we repeat it over and over to ourselves, that our knowledge of Noah's flood gives us safety from the storm.  It's that "the bow in the clouds" is there so that God will remember His promise to us. 

Our safety is His concern, His charge to Himself.  That's His part in our lives and He volunteered for it. 

Do you think He didn't see? He didn't see. . .  the world would become just as wicked and vile and much more than it was in the days of Noah?

Of course He did.  He knows the heart of man.  He knows the heart of you and me.  It's no surprise to God that the world is wicked and vile. 

He knew it would become that way, again. 

The difference in today's world?

The difference is the pain. 

Tremendous pain it caused the heart of God to see all that He had created, then destroyed by the flood.  It was unbearable to His heart, almost as unbearable as the "State of the Nation" that brought about the destruction from the flood in Noah's day.  The state of the nation was not good at that point in time. 

Do you think God assesses the state of the nation any differently, in our present day?

We have to, even if we tried to put blinders on, we would have to determine that God does not assess the state of the nation differently than he did in Noah's day.  But,. . . 

He remembers. 

He remembers the pain that He felt when that which He had created and loved was so completely lost that the only salvation was judgment.  True judgment left nothing vile to continue its downward course.  A clean slate was given, yet, history would record the flood.  The only thing that was left of unrighteousness was a memory.  And man would continue to remember the flood and what had brought it about. 

But God. 

God would remember the pain of seeing His creation destroyed.  He would know that He could never allow that again.  He, too, remembers what brought the flood about.  A wicked generation!

Perhaps we can change the course of time.  Perhaps, we can remember pain that has come into our own lives because of a wrongdoing.  Whether we were the victims or the perpetrator, indescribable pain was the result.  Get just a glimpse.  Magnify that pain across all of creation, and see what it must do to the heart of God.  Doesn't that just make you stop and think?

Doesn't it?

Yes, God remembers.  Every time He sees the rainbow, He remembers.  He's not unaware, today.  The state of our nation is important to Him. 

The state of our heart is even more important to Him.  No matter who is president to give the state of the nation addresses over the next several years, He is infinitely more concerned with the state of the heart, your heart, my heart. 

Yes, God remembers! Next time you see a rainbow, trust confidently that He remembers. 

It almost makes you want to go through the storms, doesn't it? Just to see the rainbow!