Author:
Publication: World News
Date: September 6, 2005
URL: http://www.worldmagblog.com/blog/archives/017831.html
Missionary Jim Hogrefe emails this: "As one who believes that God is all-powerful, all-knowing, and always good, events like Hurricane Katrina force me to pause. All of the evidence - and the media's reporting of extensive human suffering - suggest that this was a catastrophe, a great tragedy. If God knew about Katrina beforehand, how can He be good to allow such suffering? Of course, this is one of the great excuses many people use in refusing to believe in the God of the Bible."
The Bible has many examples of how God uses tragedy and suffering to bring His people to repentance so that He can restore them to a right relationship. However, he always gives many warnings because He is a merciful God. People usually ignore the warnings as they increase in severity. In Isaiah's parable of the vineyard (Chapter 5), God prepares a vineyard (the house of Israel) on a fertile hill with the choicest vines, expecting it to produce good grapes. However, it produces only worthless ones. God's judgment is gradual: remove the hedge, break down the wall, stop cultivating it, and stop rain from falling on it. "Thus He looked for justice, but behold, bloodshed; for righteousness, but behold, a cry of distress."
How then shall we look at New Orleans and the devastation that occurred? If we look at this as one event in the long history of the world, and then look in the Bible to see how this might be an early warning of God's judgment, we might look at the final judgment in Revelation 18:10-11: "For in one hour your judgment has come. And the merchants of the earth weep and mourn over her."
This description fits what happened to New Orleans and many people might say that New Orleans would be a good candidate for an early warning. Its immorality, corruption, and crime are legendary. Nevertheless, for nearly a century God spared the city from major hurricanes that everyone agreed would destroy it. When He finally did allow a major storm, there was a 3-day warning and plenty of time to evacuate, although the governor, mayor and thousands of residents either waited too long or ignored the warnings.
If, however, we choose to look for answers in media reports, we will find anger and fear instead of thanksgiving, blame instead of understanding. The media seeks to use this - and most of their stories - to stir up emotions of anger that they carefully aim toward those they dislike, namely President Bush. They avoid positive viewpoints that might bring balance, and they definitely avoid perspective that would improve understanding (such as the World article that compared daily war deaths in Iraq with those in other wars). Jesus warned about such deception saying, "many false prophets will arise, and will mislead many" (Mt 24:11).
What then is the message of New Orleans and Katrina? It is the same message that John the Baptist delivered 2,000 years ago: "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near." We do not know when time will end and, with it, opportunities for people to repent. Until that time, though, God extends His grace to us through acts of kindness, through His Word, and even through natural disasters that warn us of the wrath to come for those who refuse to accept the free gift of salvation through Jesus Christ.