The First Thing on New Ground

“And Noah builded an altar unto the LORD; and took of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt offerings on the altar. And the LORD smelled a sweet savour; and the LORD said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man’s sake; for the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth; neither will I again smite any more every thing living, as I have done. While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.”

Genesis 8:20-22 KJV

There would have been plenty to do when Noah stepped onto the earth again. Shelter, food, and the practical work of beginning over all mattered. The account calls attention to his altar. Before the story moves into the ordinary business of life after the flood, Noah acknowledges the Lord who brought him through it.

Read the passage carefully

Noah's offering belongs to the worship of that period in biblical history. Christians now approach God through Jesus Christ, whose sacrifice is sufficient and never needs to be repeated. We should not copy Noah's altar as though Christ had not come. We can receive the lesson of grateful worship. Deliverance ought to turn our attention toward the Deliverer. A new opportunity is a reason to acknowledge God's mercy before we become absorbed in managing its benefits.

God's promise concerning seedtime, harvest, and the seasons also rests on His faithfulness rather than human improvement. The text remains honest about the evil of man's heart. The flood did not make fallen humanity sinless. Continuing provision is evidence of divine patience and sustaining care. That truth leaves no room for boasting that we have finally become the kind of people who no longer need grace.