Why Didn’t God Stop The Tsunami?
(week 08/05)
Olubi Johnson
This is a question that will be on the minds of many people: Christians and non-christians.
To answer this question we need to understand the reason behind ‘natural’ disasters like storms, hurricanes, earthquakes etc.
Firstly, these things are not the will of God, because we see God in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ rebuking a storm:
Mark 4:37-40 NKJV: And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling. 38 But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow. And they awoke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?” 39 Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace, be still!” And the wind ceased and there was a great calm.
Now, God cannot rebuke himself, so who then was behind the storm?
Satan.
John 10:10-11 NKJV: The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.
This is true of all natural disasters and distorted weather patterns, including last December’s tsunami.
When God created man in the Garden of Eden it was a perfect environment for human habitation: there were no distorted weather patterns or geographical anomalies like deserts. Every where was fruitful and blossoming.
Genesis 2:4-16 NIV: When the LORD God made the earth and the heavens— 5 and no shrub of the field had yet appeared on the earth and no plant of the field had yet sprung up, for the LORD God had not sent rain on the earth and there was no man to work the ground, 6 but streams came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground– 7 the LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being. 8 Now the LORD God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. 9 Andthe LORD God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground–trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. 10 A river watering the garden flowed from Eden; from there it was separated into four headwaters. 11 The name of the first is the Pishon; it winds through the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold. 12(The gold of that land is good; aromatic resin and onyx are also there.) 13 The name of the second river is the Gihon; it winds through the entire land of Cush. 14 The name of the third river is the Tigris; it runs along the east side of Asshur. And the fourth river is the Euphrates. 15 The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.
However, after the fall of man, at which time Adam’s spirit was cut off from or alienated from God, spiritual death entered the planet, creating the chaotic weather and geographical patterns and anomalies we see today.
Romans 5:12 NKJV: Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned–
Romans 8:20 NKJV: For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope;
However, God in His mercy and sovereignty made a limited covenant with Adam and Eve by making animal sacrifices (all the Old Testament covenants were limited because of man’s sin nature; it is only under the new covenant through Jesus Christ that men can receive the life of God in an unlimited measure (Jn. 10.10)) . So He covered their sins temporarily with the blood of animals and their physical bodies with the skins of animals.
Gen 3:21-22 NIV: The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them.
Through this limited covenant and others like it under the Old Testament, a limited amount of God’s life started flowing into the planet to sustain human life and existence.
However, Satan’s control over man’s fallen spirit gives him access into the earth and by the release of spiritual death through the mouths of men, he is able to wreak havoc through ‘natural’ disasters on the earth.
Proverbs 18:21 NKJV: Death and life are in the power of the tongue, And those who love it will eat its fruit.
James 3:5-6 NKJV: And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity. The tongue is so set among our members that it defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire by hell. NKJV
It is vital to understand that when God created man he put man in charge of the planet and God can do nothing legally on the planet unless He does it through men in covenant with Him.
Psalms 115:16 NKJV: The heaven, even the heavens, are the LORD’s; But the earth He has given to the children of men.
Genesis 1:26 NKJV: Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
This is because God is a righteous and just God who will never contradict His Word:
Numbers 23:19 NKJV: God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?
Psalms 97:1-2 NIV: The LORD reigns, let the earth be glad; let the distant shores rejoice. 2 Clouds and thick darkness surround him; righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne.
Jeremiah 1:12 NIV: The LORD said to me, “You have seen correctly, for I am watching to see that my word is fulfilled.”
Now, even when God sovereignly moves in the earth, like He did when Adam sinned by covering them with animal skins, the power He uses must still be paid for through the legal intercession of men in covenant with Him through Jesus Christ, by prayer in the spirit: in tongues.
It is through this avenue, of men who are in covenant with God, walking in the love of God, praying in a supernatural language by the utterance of the Holy Spirit, that God can release an unlimited amount of life into the planet.
Romans 8:26 NKJV: Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.
Ephesians 3:20 NIV: Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us
Ephesians 6:18 NKJV: praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints–
John 7:37-39 NKJV: He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” 39 But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.
It is vital to understand that while God does release a limited amount of life into the planet daily (La. 3.22-23), by His sovereignty, to sustain human life and existence; He cannot, because of legal limitations as adduced above, release enough life to neutralize the effect of the natural disasters taking place. He can only do this if He has enough Christians walking in the love of God and praying in the spirit, through whom He can release a sufficient amount of the life of God to reduce or even completely neutralize the effect of natural disasters.
In this end time, there has been a population explosion on the earth so the number men living has increased tremendously: about 6 billion as at present.
Of this 6 billion, less than 1 billion are born-again and even less are walking in the love of God and praying frequently, diligently in the spirit.
Consequently, iniquity is abounding and so there is a greater amount of spiritual death being released into the planet and so a greater amount of natural disasters, as Jesus predicted for the end-time:
Proverbs 29:16 NKJV: When the wicked are multiplied, transgression increases;
Matthew 24:12 KJV: And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.
Matthew 24:7 NKJV: For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places.
So the whole creation is groaning in pain waiting for the manifestation of the sons of God: mature Christians walking in the love of God and praying regularly, fervently and effectually in the spirit, who will liberate the creation from the bondage of corruption and decay to the liberty of life, by releasing tremendous amounts of the life of God into the earth.
Romans 8:19-22 NKJV: For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; 21 because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. 22 For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now.
Until this happens God will be limited in what He can do, for legal reasons as adduced above and not for a lack of compassion, to stop or reduce the effect of natural disasters like the Tsunami of last December.
The good news is that this manifestation of the sons (not just children, but mature sons) is imminent.
It is therefore necessary for as many of us, born-again Christians that have this understanding to covenant with God, to daily walk in the love of God, praying diligently in the spirit, so we can be channels of mercy to save lives that Satan wants to destroy through sin and natural disasters.
The more of us that do this the more God will be able to do and so the less the devastating effect these ‘natural’ disasters will have on men and on the planet.
It is instructive to say that in this dispensation, we will not be able to eradicate completely natural disasters and geographical anomalies, because not all men will submit to God, and so will remain channels through which Satan will continue to release death into the planet; however we will be able to reduce their destructive effect on the lives of men, even though we may not stop all of their occurrences, and in some cases totally neutralize them like Jesus did with the storm.
It is only during the millennial reign of Christ when Satan is bound in the bottomless pit for a thousand years (Rev. 20.1-3, Is. 11.6-9, 66.20-25) that natural disasters and the distortion in the creation will be totally held in check.
But thank God that even now in this dispensation we can taste of the powers of the age (Heb. 6.5) to come by the power of Holy Spirit to be channels of mercy to save men in our generation from sin and ‘natural’ disasters!
