The God of Disasters (5)
So that there is no misunderstanding, the biblical perspective does not prevent us from offering practical assistance to the surviving victims. That is, even if they had been the objects of God's judgment, Scripture teaches us to show practical benevolence even to our enemies. It is up to God to punish them for their sins, to the extent that he chooses, and at the time of his choosing. Our duty is to obey the relevant biblical precepts on how to treat people. And of course, it is even more important for us to preach the gospel to them, and to tell them that only Jesus Christ can deliver them from the greater wrath to come.
Those who deny the very possibility that these disasters come as God's judgment against the wicked do so based on several beliefs and assumptions that subvert a proper understanding of biblical dogmatics. Some of them seem to think that people are basically good and decent individuals, far from deserving the grisly deaths that they suffered. Then, some people speak as if God will not judge them just because they are Americans. The Israelites came under a similar delusion.
In any case, if the average man on the street is innocent and undeserving of God's harsh judgment, then the gospel is unnecessary for most people. But Scripture teaches that everyone has sinned against God and transgressed his laws, so that everyone deserves death and destruction. Once we affirm this, then there is no reason to be shocked when God pours out his wrath upon a group of people, even killing thousands of them all at once. Rather, it is to be expected.
Those who reject the very possibility that natural and "man-made" disasters can come as divine judgment against the victims not only contradict the biblical doctrine of human depravity, but they also represent God as someone who would not judge and punish in such a fashion. At times, even professing Christians are stunned by what happens, and wonder why God would "allow" such things to happen. But this shows that they have never taken seriously the historical accounts in the Bible concerning the great flood at the time of Noah, the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, and the plagues of Egypt.
God has always judged sinners through natural and "man-made" disasters, killing thousands of them at a time. This is wholly consistent with his holy and just nature. There is no problem with this other than the fact that many people do not want to believe the truth about God and about themselves. In denying that God is the God of disasters, they assure people that he can be ignored and even mocked with impunity. But this universe is not a democracy, and you cannot democratize or Americanize the kingdom of heaven. You have no rights that would require God to treat you a certain way. With God there is no freedom of religion, no freedom of speech, no freedom of thought – if you believe the wrong thing, say the wrong thing, or even think the wrong thing, God will take it into account and punish you for it, that is, unless you have been saved from his wrath through Jesus Christ.
"This makes God a tyrant," you say. But is God unrighteous unless he conforms to your political theory? This objection itself is evidence of human depravity, and shows that mankind deserves the harshest possible divine punishments. And who says that God cannot be a tyrant? The first definition of a tyrant does not carry the negative connotations often associated with the word, but it is simply "an absolute ruler unrestrained by law or constitution" (Merriam-Webster). No sinful man deserves so much power, but the true God can have no less.
Some professing Christians resist the biblical doctrine of divine sovereignty with this objection, that it makes God a tyrant. The implication is that, either they refuse to have a God who is "an absolute ruler," or they take it for granted that a God who uses his absolute power in a way that displeases them has abused his power. Either way, their reaction makes them rebels against the Most High rather than his submissive children. The more urgent problem is therefore not whether God is appropriately called a tyrant, but whether these people are Christians at all. If they are true Christians that are merely confused, then let them make the correction at once.
(to be continued)
March 11 2006 | Apologetics, Current, Theology