| Commentary on Revelation | ||||||
| Home | Commentary Contents | Eschatology Articles | Downloads | |||
TsunamiMy comments on the tsunami disaster of 26 Dec 2004 Introduction A tsunami is a natural disaster, often called by insurers an "act of God". At least one US president noticed that "the buck stops here", and so yes, God is ultimately responsible for the disaster. He created the world, a world that is benign for most of us, but for some who live in the worlds volcanic regions can be malignant. Over geologic time the earth has experienced huge changes in climate, sea level, mountains have been built up and seas have dried up. In the first century AD there were earthquakes and the volcano Vesuvius erupted. Indonesia is on the rim of fire a location of great volcanic and seismic activity. The great eruption of Krakatoa in 1883 was in the same area. If Mt. Fuji in Japan erupts then the tsunami could engulf the West coast of America. Plate tectonics is a part of God's plan for the planet. Without plate tectonics life on earth is not possible (See the book "Rare earth" by Peter Ward, Donald Brownlee.). We need plate tectonics so that the world can support life. The earthquake occurred because of a shift in two plates. However the forces that make our planet habitable can also destroy life. There have been many natural disasters. The 1931 Yangtze flood killed some 400,000 people and affected more than 50 million people in the Yangtze and Huai River basins, it is just that CNN was not there to report it. The Times reports that the earthquake was the second largest in history being 9.3 on the Richter scale. The largest one was a magnitude 9.5 event that struck Chile in 1960. The December 26 quake tore a 740-mile (1,200km) rupture along the Sumatra-Andaman fault, lifting the ocean floor by more than 42ft (13m), according to the latest calculations. This produced tsunami waves reaching maximum heights of 98 ft (30 m). Jesus and disasters Jesus warns us that wars, famines and earthquakes are inevitable:
Birth pains increase with intensity as labour progresses. But there is nothing new about earthquakes or tsunamis. It is not the end of the world, just one event leading up to it. Luke puts it in ever starker terms, just before the end, when Christ returns.
Just as God gives good things to both the good and evil. Bad things can happen to both the good and evil. Jesus warned those left alive to repent.
The people who died were not worse sinners than we are, our sins are not judged in this life by natural disasters, but we will all stand before the throne of God on the day of judgement. Those of us who are left alive should examine ourselves to see if we are ready to stand before the throne of God on the great day of judgement. The word of Jesus to those who are alive is to repent. Where is God? On a human level many of those who died earned their living from the sea, either as fishermen or from tourism. The sea that had previously supported them now destroyed them. Had the tsunami occurred at night more people would have died. Human error is also involved, the government people of Hawaii knew about the tsunami before it hit Ceylon. The men of South East Asia rejected a short term forecast of a Tsunami in 2004 because it cost too much money. Who is responsible God or man? Men knew that a Tsunami was going to hit but they forgot to inform CNN. The death toll was made worse because of the poor quality of many of the houses which was the result of poverty. We should add that it also gives us the opportunity to show compassion to our fellow man. It may give more solidarity between the countries in the region and with the rest of the world.
So where is God in all this, a disaster that killed about 300,000+ people? I do not question the existence of God. The issue is about the goodness of God, because we regard the tsunami as an "act of God". The problem of evil, i.e. why does a good God allow evil, the answers to this problem are given by the branch of theology called theodicy. We should contrast the difference between moral evil caused by man (think of Hitler or Stalin) and natural evil caused by nature or by God. The bible is no stranger to cataclysmic destruction, the great flood and the cataclysmic event in Revelation. Although God has promised never to destroy the whole world by a flood again (Gen 9:11). The events in Revelation only affect a limited part of the earth (Rev 6:8, 8:7, 9:15). Firstly, I have argued that earthquakes are necessary for life on earth. Secondly some deaths in Ceylon and India were preventable and occurred because of poor decisions by men. Thirdly it is a warning not to take life for granted and to be right with God because death can occur at any time. Those who died in the tsunami died early, but we will all die at sometime. The God who gives life has the right to take it away because He is the Creator. A few final thoughts on the problem of evil. This earth with its present natural suffering is not permanent but it will be destroyed and God will create a new heaven and new earth and there will be no sea. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away, Rev 21:1-4. Surely this is the Christian hope, we do not hope just for this life, we look forward to something better (2 Pet 3:13). The problem of evil people will be dealt with in the future with the day of judgement and then evil people will be quarantined in hell. If we ask why God allows innocent children to die, we should also note that God allowed His innocent Son to die an unjust and cruel death. The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse Many people think of the four horsemen of the apocalypse (Rev 6:1-8). When writing Revelation John would have in mind the famines and earthquakes plus the eruption of Vesuvius in AD 79. The four horsemen can be used to show that Christ is sovereign over contemporary events that John would be familiar with (Caird), I do not regard the tsunami to be an act of the devil, it is an act of God.
The tsunami created death followed by disease and famine (the fourth horsemen). The fourth horsemen afflicts a limited proportion (one quarter) of humanity (Rev 6:8). Revelation and the Tsunami. The seven seals (Rev 6): I regard the first four of these (especially the fourth horseman - death) as being common to mankind i.e. war, famine and earthquakes including tsunamis (Mat 24:6-7), they affect believers and unbelievers alike, the fifth seal refers to persecution against God's people (Mat 24:9). The tsunami affects all people, believer and unbeliever alike, those who died were not more wicked than those who survived (Luke 13:4-5). Those who survived are grateful that they are alive, do they blame God for those who died? The only people who rejoice are the hardened atheists, they say that God was on holiday or where is the all powerful God? Let them gloat, their condemnation is just. The seven trumpets serve as warnings to unrepentant mankind, their purpose is that men repent (Rev 9:20 ). There is still hope. God's people are protected spiritually against these. The seven bowls are God's final judgements on unrepentant mankind. There is no hope for these people. They curse God for these plagues. It is interesting to note that earthquakes feature five times in Revelation. The earthquakes indicate the presence of God (in judgement Rev 6:12, warning Rev 8:5, warning to repent Rev 11:13, judgement Rev 11:19 ) and one earthquake is the last and biggest one of all (Rev 16:18).
To those of us left alive these earthquakes are warnings. This earth is not our permanent home. The earth and this universe will not last forever. Revelation depicts a heavenly city which has foundations built by God that shall be our permanent dwelling place. Revelation depicts it as a set of negatives, no more death, no more pain, no more crying....
Final thoughts The tsunami will show us where our heart is on this disaster. Most of us will have compassion on those still alive and want to help. Some will blame God because they have lost a loved one. Some have lost everything and have to rebuild their lives. Some need the physical source of life, food, water and shelter, they just want to survive. Many have lost family, they suffer emotional loss which is much more difficult to cope with than physical loss. Some have lost their job, they were fishermen, but have lost everything. Some will ask God the question why? The atheist will blame God in order to justify their unbelief and give themselves some intellectual comfort. Some will curse God. Finally this tsunami highlights how the Western world puts tariffs on the third world in order to protect its own farmers. It puts tariffs on clothes from the third world to protect its own people. Frankly, I am sickened by this injustice. Many Americans have never left their own state. Maybe this tsunami might make Western people wake up, but I doubt it. Meanwhile the West gets richer and the poor get poorer. Frankly, I am glad that I have a God who will judge mankind on the day of judgement, I am also glad that there are people in power who can make a difference, which is why we should pray for those in authority. Tsunami II - 28 March 2005 Someone emailed me and said:
It is certainly interesting, but I would use the word "warn" rather than "punish". And what about a tsunami in the Pacific? Isn't America just as guilty of idolatry? Further links:
email: rossuk12@hotmail.com Last update 31 March 2005
|
||||||||||||||