Let’s be honest—it feels like the world has lost its mind. Open your news app, scroll through social media, or just listen in on conversations, and you’ll see it. Greed gets rewarded, cruelty gets laughed off, and truth has become whatever you want it to be. It’s not new. Genesis tells us that in Noah’s time, “every inclination of the human mind was nothing but evil all the time” (Genesis 6:5, CSB). The world was so broken that it grieved the heart of God.
And yet, in the middle of all that darkness, one man stood out. “Noah was a righteous man, blameless among his contemporaries; Noah walked with God” (Genesis 6:9).
That phrase, “Noah walked with God”, isn’t just a description of him. It’s a challenge for us today.
Faith that Walks The Talk
In America today, plenty of people claim to be Christian, but their lives tell a different story. According to Pew Research, more than 60% of Americans still identify as Christian, but if you look around, at our politics, our greed, our obsession with power, our neglect of the poor, you’d never know it.
We don’t walk with God. We name-drop Him. We put His name on our bumper stickers, our yard signs, and our political parties. But walking with God is different. Walking means moving with Him, staying in step, and letting His ways shape ours. Noah didn’t just say he believed, he spent years building an ark in the desert when everyone else thought he was crazy.
Sometimes obedience looks ridiculous. But faith is about trusting God when you don’t have all the details.
God Takes Sin Seriously
There’s an uncomfortable truth to the story of Noah. The flood story isn’t just about animals two by two and a rainbow at the end. It’s about judgment. God takes sin seriously because sin destroys what He loves.
We tend to downplay sin. We say we’re “just human.” We treat faith like a weekend hobby, something to dabble in when life isn’t too busy. But if the story of Noah tells us anything, it’s this: God isn’t interested in labels. He’s interested in lives that actually walk with Him.
Jesus echoed this when He said, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father” (Matthew 7:21). That should awaken us.
Walking with God in Today’s Culture
We may not be facing a literal flood, but our culture is drowning in storms of division, consumerism, and violence. And honestly, many Christians have stopped walking with God and started walking with the culture or political party instead.
When greed shapes our economy more than compassion, when politicians use Jesus as a mascot but live nothing like Him and are still celebrated as “God’s candidates,” when churches are more interested in staying comfortable than being faithful, that’s not walking with God. It’s akin to standing with the crowd that laughed at Noah.
Walking with God is slow, steady, daily faithfulness. It’s choosing honesty when lies are easier. It’s generosity when hoarding feels safer. It’s refusing to hate even when hate is popular. It’s living in a way that may look strange, because God’s ways often do.
The Promise Still Stands
Here’s the hope: just like God shut Noah in the ark and rode out the storm with him (Genesis 7:16), God doesn’t abandon us in our storms. His covenant still stands. The rainbow wasn’t just for Noah, it’s a reminder for us that God hasn’t given up on humanity.
And that means there’s still time for us to choose to walk with Him.
So the question isn’t whether we call ourselves Christian. The question is whether our lives actually walk with God. Because the truth is, God doesn’t need a crowd. He just needs one person willing to live differently.
The world may laugh. The culture may drift. But faith that walks with God still matters.
Will it be you?
Closing Prayer
Faithful God,
In a world that often chooses comfort over conviction, help us to walk with You.
Give us courage to trust Your voice when it doesn’t make sense,
to stand firm when the crowd goes the other way,
and to live in such a way that our faith shows in more than just words.
When the storms rise, remind us that You are with us.
When the world feels dark, help us shine with hope.
And when we’re tempted to give up, steady our steps and keep us close.
May our lives be an ark of faith and mercy for those around us.
We pray in the name of Jesus, who still calms the storms.
Amen.
The Rest of the Sermon 