Living Respectfully

 DEVOTION

GENESIS

LIVING RESPECTFULLY

Gen 9:20-27

20 Noah, a man of the soil, proceeded to plant a vineyard. 21 When he drank some of its wine, he became drunk and lay uncovered inside his tent. 22 Ham, the father of Canaan, saw his father's nakedness and told his two brothers outside. 23 But Shem and Japheth took a garment and laid it across their shoulders; then they walked in backward and covered their father's nakedness. Their faces were turned the other way so that they would not see their father's nakedness. 24 When Noah awoke from his wine and found out what his youngest son had done to him, 25 he said, "Cursed be Canaan! The lowest of slaves will he be to his brothers." 26 He also said, "Blessed be the LORD, the God of Shem! May Canaan be the slave of Shem.  27 May God extend the territory of Japheth; may Japheth live in the tents of Shem, and may Canaan be his slave."

NIV

So Noah was a farmer, or at least a vineyard keeper, and one of the first things he did when the time came to make a life in the new world after the flood, was to plant a vineyard. We know that it took many years for the grape plants to grow and to produce a yield of grapes. We also know that the yield of grapes once harvested and processed so stored in some containers to ferment for many years, and all we are told is Noah planted a vineyard and drank too much wine and got drunk. We also know that Noah was a man who found favor with God, who God declared would be saved with his family so they could begin multiplying the new world. Now we have a man who found favor with God getting so drunk he passed out naked in his tent. He certainly would not pass the test today as a man finding favor with some denominations, as well as those believers who put themselves back into the bondage of laws, although, in Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, he tells them not to be drunk on wine but be filled with the Spirit. The idea is that drunkenness leads to debauchery, at least with those Ephesians. However, the word does not forbid drinking wine, but as with Noah, to be drunk and pass out is not pleasing to God, or at least we believe that is true. We are never told that God rescinded his favor on Noah.  Nevertheless, the response of his three sons also has a lesson for us. Ham was no more than a gossip telling his two brothers about how he found his father. What we do not know is why Ham went into the tent of his father. Was the tent of Noah a private space? What about Noah’s wife, where was she when Noah started drinking so much wine? Is it any wonder Ham did not find any favor with Noah and ended up being cursed? Is that the story we should focus on? If we do not find favor with God we will end up being cursed. That is a truism because the only way to find favor with God is through faith in Jesus Christ. When a person comes to Jesus, accepting him as Lord and Savior, they find favor with God and will enter into his rest. They will be among those who start another new world living in a paradise with God. However, those who, like Ham, who first, showed no respect for his father, then told others about the condition of his father, will find a curse, being sent into the lake of burning sulfur. This is the truth about either showing respect or refusing to respect the Heavenly Father of all mankind. Shem and Japeth gave us the example of being respectful to our Heavenly Father, by how they respected their father. They did not bring shame to, or humiliate him, thus we should live so as not to bring shame upon our Father. It is not about living under the law but living respectfully toward men and God.