Why would a man build a cargo ship miles from the water? Why would a lawbreaker step before a harsh judge and expect a good outcome? Faith.

Over the next few months we will be looking at the famous "Heroes of faith" chapter of Hebrews. The writer begins the chapter with a clear definition of faith: "Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see" (Hebrews 11:1). That definition is both profound and complicated.

To help us understand this definition, the writer to the Hebrews uses examples from the Scriptures. One of them is Noah. Noah built the cargo ship miles from any water. It was probably the largest boat ever built up to that time, and Noah was no shipbuilder. In all the years that it took him to build it, the people must have thought that Noah was some kind of nut. But he built it because the Lord told him to build it. The Lord decided that unless the people of the day repented, he was going to destroy the earth with a flood. God also decided to save Noah and his family along with every type of animal. So God told Noah to get busy building.

According to the writer to the Hebrews, Noah demonstrated his faith by building the ark to save his family from a destruction he couldn't even see. "By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family. By his faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that comes by faith" (Hebrews 11:7).

Of course Noah wasn't just guessing about what kind of disaster lay ahead. God had told him precisely how he was going to destroy the world and exactly what kind of ship to build to protect himself and his family. You have to wonder if Noah didn't sometimes wonder about what he was doing. It was hard to even imagine such a disaster. It still is. But Noah built the ark because he believed what God told him even though he could not see it, even in his imagination.

But because Noah was a believer he knew something else. He knew that God had promised all the people from Adam and Eve on that he would someday send a Savior from sin. Noah knew that God could not destroy all life on the earth and still keep that promise. By faith Noah believed the warnings of God and built the ark, and his earthly life was saved. By faith Noah believed in the promises of God to send a Savior, and his eternal life was saved.

Not many people have to live through the disaster of a flood. But few people make it through life without any disaster. We can't see the future. But we know who can. He is the same one who kept his promise to Noah and us and sent his Son, our Savior Jesus Christ. He is the same one who has promised to carry us above the floods of life like he did Noah.