Welcome back to another Windows Wednesday! Sanctuary Window 6 has the theme “Christ, The Friend of Sinners.” This week, we will look at the Old Testament scene at the top of the window, God’s first covenant with man.

We see in this image Noah leading his family and two dogs out of the ark under a rainbow, the sign of God’s new covenant with His creation. The rainbow stretches over the purple ark, and Noah, with his wife and sons, look to the sky and the Lord’s heavenly promise, that he will never again destroy all life in response to the sins of humankind. As a reminder to Himself and man of that promise, a rainbow would appear in the sky at the end of each storm. The rainbow would serve as a reminder that life continues, storms end, and God remains with us. This is a fitting message for today, as we celebrate the holy day of Epiphany, when we mark the recognition of Jesus as God come to earth: “‘They shall name him Emmanuel,’ which means, ‘God is with us.'” (Matthew 1:23) This image is inspired by the Biblical story below. Click or scroll over the image below to see the artist’s design for this section of the window.

Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him, “As for me, I am establishing my covenant with you and your descendants after you, and with every living creature that is with you, the birds, the domestic animals, and every animal of the earth with you, as many as came out of the ark. I establish my covenant with you, that never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of a flood, and never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.”
God said, “This is the sign of the covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations: I have set my bow in the clouds, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the clouds, I will remember my covenant that is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. When the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.” God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant that I have established between me and all flesh that is on the earth.” Genesis 9:8–17

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About the Author

Adam Alderson is the business manager and director of Resurrection at the United Methodist Church of Kent. He has a B.A. in Classics with a minor in Art History from Kent State University, and enjoys reading, graphic and web design, and singing and acting locally. Adam lives in Stow with his wife, Patti, and son, Alexander.