30 By 50

 

Genesis 6:14: Make thee an ark of gopher wood; rooms shalt thou make in the ark, and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch.

Genesis 6:15: And this [is the fashion] which thou shalt make it [of]: The length of the ark [shall be] three hundred cubits, the breadth of it fifty cubits, and the height of it thirty cubits.

In this scripture we have the story of how God told Noah to build the ark. The world had grown very evil in the time since Creation.

God decided to “wipe the slate clean,” as it were, and start over. This was not the first time this had happened, strangely enough.

First there was Adam and Eve in the garden, but then they fell by eating the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.

God had to start over with Adam and Eve outside the garden. Then in Genesis chapter 4 Cain killed Abel and God had to send Cain out to wander the earth. At the end of chapter 4 it says:

Genesis 4:26: …then began men to call upon the name of the LORD.

So in Genesis chapter 5 God begins once again with mankind. Through the chapter we see men like:

• Enoch who was so righteous that he was taken by God without dying
• Methuselah who served God for 969 years, more than any other.

We see all these great things, and then in chapter 6 the world falls apart once again.

God looked down on the earth and saw that the hearts of mankind were set on evil only. God has to start all over again.

So God has Noah build an ark. The purpose of the ark is to take Noah’s family and a few animals through the flood so that they can start over again.

Noah and his family would populate the earth with humans while two of every unclean and fourteen of every clean animal would take care of the animal repopulation.

Every other creature on the earth that breathed air would be wiped out.

How would they be saved? An ark would save them.

The ark was designed to hold all the people, the animals, and the food required for the journey.

God told Noah to make the ark 350 cubits long, 50 cubits wide, and 30 cubits high.

As you walked from one end of the ark to the other you were surrounded by timbers that were 50 cubits wide and 30 cubits high.

These timbers supported the weight of the storm outside.

The Bible says that it rained for 40 days and nights. The water covered the mountains of the earth by almost 23 feet. The storm was stronger than the entire earth for 150 days.

Genesis 7:24: And the waters prevailed upon the earth an hundred and fifty days.

That means that the storm exercised power over the earth for 150 days. The storm had the power to perform complete and utter destruction upon the earth.

God sent the storm to completely wipe away everything on the earth, yet inside the ark there was safety.

• As thousands of giraffes tried to use their long necks to keep their heads above the water, two giraffes survived inside. The timbers of 30 x 50 held the waters outside.
• As millions of goats and sheep scrambled up the mountainside looking for higher ground, 14 goats and sheep ate hay inside the ark. Timers of 30 x 50 held back the waters of destruction.
• As thousands of people struggled to figure out what was happening to them; as they clawed at the outside of the ark screaming, “Please let us in!” The timers of 30 x 50 kept Noah’s family inside and kept the others outside.

The storm held power over the entire earth everywhere except inside the ark.

Inside the ark God and the timbers of 30 x 50 kept everyone warm and safe; outside the water did whatever it pleased.

Those timbers of 30 x 50 ran the entire length of the ark, each supporting its load. If you were to walk from one end of the ark to the other no matter where you stepped you were surrounded by the protection of the timbers that were 30 x 50.

 

A Different Ark

If you have listened to me for very long, you know that I have said that you need to pay attention to the details that are presented in the Bible.

The scriptures were written with humans in mind and God knew that our brains could not handle detail for the trillions and trillions of things that are happening in the universe at any given second, so he gave us a summary.

He gave us only as much detail, as we needed so we could get the lesson. So when God gives us a detail such as numbers, he is giving us that detail for a very specific purpose.

Hundreds of years after Noah, the Israelites found themselves in the desert wandering for 40 years.

While they were in the desert God gave Moses instructions for a very different ark the Ark of the Covenant.

The priests carried this ark as they walked through the desert. When it was not being carried, the ark was housed in the Tent of Meeting and the Holy of Holies.

While in the Holy of Holies, daily sacrifices had to be made. The fire of offering had to be kept burning all the time.

There were many activities that had to be performed by the priests. Who were the priests? They were all aged 30 to 50.

Numbers 4:3: From thirty years old and upward even until fifty years old, all that enter into the host, to do the work in the tabernacle of the congregation.

There are 6 scriptures that lay out the duties of the Levites in taking care of the ark; all of those duties are given to people between age 30 and 50:

• Numbers 4:23: From thirty years old and upward until fifty years old shalt thou number them; all that enter in to perform the service, to do the work in the tabernacle of the congregation.
• Numbers 4:30: From thirty years old and upward even unto fifty years old shalt thou number them, every one that entereth into the service, to do the work of the tabernacle of the congregation.
• Numbers 4:35: From thirty years old and upward even unto fifty years old, every one that entereth into the service, for the work in the tabernacle of the congregation:
• Numbers 4:39: From thirty years old and upward even unto fifty years old, every one that entereth into the service, for the work in the tabernacle of the congregation,
• Numbers 4:43: From thirty years old and upward even unto fifty years old, every one that entereth into the service, for the work in the tabernacle of the congregation,
• Numbers 4:47: From thirty years old and upward even unto fifty years old, every one that came to do the service of the ministry, and the service of the burden in the tabernacle of the congregation,

 

It was wooden timbers that held back the destruction of the water in Noah’s ark, but it was people who held back the spiritual destruction in the Ark of the Covenant.

Just like the timbers, those people were called by God to be between 30 and 50. As you walked from one end of the ark to the other, timers of 30 by 50 held back the waters of destruction.

As you walked through time, it is people of age 30 to 50 who hold back the spiritual waters. As the spiritual storms raged and battered against the people of Israel, it was the people of God’s chosen age that held it back.

If you were to get into a time machine and go back to any point in the history of the temple, you will find that, in it, people aged 30 to 50 who are doing the work.

Leviticus 27:3: And thy estimation shall be of the male from twenty years old even unto sixty years old, even thy estimation shall be fifty shekels of silver, after the shekel of the sanctuary.

This scripture deals with the imposition of a temple tax. What it tells me is that it still falls upon people who are not between the ages of 30 and 50 to support those who are.

A young preacher was going before the board for his license to preach. As part of this activity the board asked the young man a number of questions about his beliefs to ensure that he was well grounded in his doctrine. At one point the young man told the board that while he believed in Jesus, he wasn’t sure that there was a devil. As the board met to discuss whether or not to give the young man a license, a number of board members were hesitant to give a license to a man who did not believe in a devil. Finally one old preacher stood up and said, “Gentlemen, I wouldn’t worry too much about that. If you give that young man a license to preach I guarantee that within a month he’ll know for certain that there is a devil.”

I don’t know if that story really happened, but I do know that everyone who has ever entered a pulpit knows exactly what that old preacher was talking about.

I have been serving the Lord for a number of years and I can tell you first hand that serving the Lord is very rewarding, but also extremely difficult.

Having the Holy Ghost on you while in the pulpit is one of the most powerful feelings you can have. But our bodies were not made to have that kind of power all the time.

When I leave the church after being here I am exhausted. It takes energy to pray, find the will of the Lord, try to express that message in a sermon, and then deliver that sermon.

There is no way that anyone can do this job unless it is God who calls him or her to it. It is only through God propping me up physically, emotionally, and spiritually that I have a chance of getting up here and doing what I do.

I look forward to the day that I don’t have to get up and preach any more, but I can sit next to my wife in church again and let someone else take the burden.

Until then, the Lord has called on me and the other ministry in this church to be the “30 x 50” timbers that hold back the destruction that waits just outside.

 

A Different Man

I said previously that you could go back in time and find that it was people in the 30 to 50-age range who were holding back the waters of destruction.

 

That could only happen if there were ways to ensure that people of one generation trained the people of the next.

 

The Levites knew that the people of God belonged to God, not to the Levites. They also knew that it was God’s command that there be a forced retirement age.

There was never any discussion about whether or not a priest should be allowed to continue service after age 50; the Bible was very clear on that matter.

 

Hence every man knew that it was his job, to not only do his job, but also to train his own replacement.

The Bible tells us about the transition plans that were put into place. It shows us those that worked and those that didn’t. Some of the transition plans that worked were:

• Moses and Joshua
• Elijah and Elisha
• John the Baptist to Jesus
• Jesus and the 12 disciples
• Paul and Timothy

Some of the transition plans that did not work were:

• Joshua and nobody. We have no record that Joshua ever trained a successor and the people of God suffered as a result.
• Saul and David. Saul wanted to retain the kingdom for himself

For the ones that worked, we can see that the men actively trained their replacement.

• Joshua actually slept in the tent of meeting when he was young.
• Elisha followed Elijah for many years as he went through the countryside.
• Jesus taught his disciples for about 3 years before he was crucified.

Even in the time of the temple, the scripture says that people should support the temple at age 20, they can serve in the temple at age 25, and they can serve as priests at age 30. In each case there was a period of mentoring that took place.

Mentoring can only work when there is a sense that one does not own a job, you fill a job; the job belongs to someone else.

At one place I worked they used to tell people, “This company is like a train. One day you get on the train. While you are here you paint the walls, you oil the wheels, you collect the tickets. When the time comes to get off the train, you get off the train.”

That company had a very good mentoring program for new employees.

The church is no different. You perform a job in the church, but it is not “your” church; it is God’s church.

All of us have an obligation to not only serve the Lord with all our heart, our soul, and our might; but we must also train the next generation to do the same.

Just like the Noah’s ark, God wants to walk from one end of the church to the other and always see those sturdy timbers of 30 x 50 holding back the evil and creating a place of safety inside.

He relies on each of us to not only be strong in Him, but to also train the next generation as well.

A Different Plan

Looking at the successful transitions in the Bible, you can see that there were sometimes vastly different approaches that the people took in dealing with the outside world.

 

Moses spoke to the Red Sea and a strong wind blew all night to part the waters. When Joshua got to the Jordan, he had the priests carry the Ark of the Covenant up to the water’s edge and the waters parted immediately.

 

The Bible doesn’t say that Moses ran up to Joshua and said, “Hold on! I’ve been parting waters since you were a little kid. Tell those priests to get back in line and bring me my staff.”

 

No, the world that Joshua faced was different than the one that Moses faced. The people with Moses had been slaves and were not familiar with God, so the miracle required Moses to personally take charge and for God to send a wind that blew all night long.

 

The people of Joshua knew of God and knew that He rested upon the Ark of the Covenant. Hence Joshua didn’t need to personally part the waters; the ark did that.

 

He also didn’t need to wait all night because the faith of the people was greater; that is why the waters of the Jordan parted immediately.

Consider Elijah and Elisha:

Elijah was a prophet in the wilderness	Elisha was a prince in the king’s courts
Elijah had no home to settle down	Elisha enjoyed peace in his own home
Elijah was known for his long shaggy hair and clothes	Elisha was known by his staff and bald head
Elijah ministry was one of stern rebuke and condemnation	Elisha was mainly one of teaching and winning the lost
Elijah was a rebuker of kings	Elisha was a friend and was admired by kings
Elijah preached with fire and full of vengeance	Elisha was a messenger of God’s mercy and love
Elijah was energetic and fierce	Elisha was gentle, compassionate and simple
Elijah was a lone solitary figure	Elisha was social and friendly
Elijah was full of God’s power	Elisha had a double portion of God’s power

Both men could hardly be more different, yet both were completely in the Will of God.

As the waves and currents ebbed and flowed outside the ark of Noah, the beams had to creak and move in response.

If the beams had been too brittle, then they would have cracked and allowed the water to rush in, sinking the ark.

But because they could bend and shift, they saved the world. They were still strong, but they were also flexible.

Likewise Elisha was flexible to the needs of the world around him. While Elijah was harsh and brittle to the Jezebel’s in his world, Elisha was more accommodating.

A Graceful Exit

Yet Elijah knew that when the chariot of fire came to collect him, he knew it was time to go. Elijah did not fight with God to stay. Instead he threw his mantle down and got out of there as quickly as he could.

Likewise Paul was like Elijah. Paul went to Ephesus and spoke to the people there, passing on the gospel that he had received.

Acts 18:19: And he came to Ephesus, and left them there: but he himself entered into the synagogue, and reasoned with the Jews.

Yet when the work was complete, Paul knew that it was time to leave.

Acts 18:20-21: When they desired [him] to tarry longer time with them, he consented not; But bade them farewell, saying…I will return again unto you, if God will. And he sailed from Ephesus.

They say that the two happiest days in a boat owner’s life are the day he buys it and the day he sells it.

I don’t own a boat, but I can imagine what that must be like. I do know that I used to run the soundboard in another church. I can tell you that they do not run the sound in this church the way that I would run it.

Does that mean that I think they are wrong? Nope. Does that mean that I want to take over their job? Not at all! I am ever so happy to know that I will never have to run the sound in a church service ever again.

Likewise I turn 50 next year. My time in that golden age of 30 to 50 will be over. Will the Lord allow me to sit in a church service next to me wife again?

I don’t know. What I do know is that until the Lord releases me of this burden, I am going to do everything I can to be like the timbers in Noah’s ark, to try and keep out the waters of destruction.

I am also going to stand strong with my fellow ministers to navigate the church through whatever rough seas lie ahead.

Please pray for us as we pray for you.