The Bible records or alludes to scores of earthquakes. They include past earthquakes that happened at various times during Creation, Noah’s Flood, the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, the giving of the Law at Mount Sinai, the collapse of the Jericho wall, God’s appearance or revelation to Israel’s prophets, Christ’s crucifixion, Christ’s resurrection and the first-century apostolic ministry, as well as future ones that will occur as part of the signs of the end times, the Great Tribulation and the Second Coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. As a matter of fact, the biblical records of those past earthquakes are also evidenced by other historical, geological, archaeological records.
Do the earthquakes which destroy cities and villages, buildings, roads and bridges, kill hundreds and thousands of people, and leave behind devastation, chaos and sorrow attest to the deists’ belief that God is uninvolved in the catastrophic events of the world? Is it true that God has very little to do with catastrophes like earthquakes? Are they simply mere phenomena resulting from the natural laws? Or are earthquakes part of God’s sovereign, providential dealings in this world?
In the articles that will be published over the next couple of weeks, I would like to share what I have come to understand about earthquakes through the study of God’s Word. May the Lord be pleased to enlighten and strengthen you through these articles concerning the earthquakes that terrify and confound people.
The Bible records that God sovereignly reigns over the earth, even presiding over the fearsome, devastating earthquakes. As the Almighty King, God rules from heaven even over the earth. He owns them – "the earth is the LORD'S" (Exodus 9:29; Psalm 24:1; 1 Corinthians 10:26, 28). Exodus 19:5 says, "… for all the earth is mine". Deuteronomy 10:14 reminds us, "Behold, the heaven and the heaven of heavens is the LORD'S thy God, the earth also, with all that therein is."
As the Creator of the earth (Genesis 1:1; 2:1; Psalm 89:11), He not only owns it, but also rules over it. God is the sovereign Head over heaven and earth – "Thine, O LORD, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty: for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine; thine is the kingdom, O LORD, and thou art exalted as head above all" (1 Chronicles 29:11). Consider the following Scriptural declarations:
Earthquakes do not happen because God has lost control or because God has no more interest in the affairs of this earth. Even when the earth shakes and tremble, God is there, acting as its just King. God is still on the throne. While describing God’s matchless greatness, power and authority, Job said that God, as the great Judge, shakes the earth - "He is wise in heart, and mighty in strength: who hath hardened himself against him, and hath prospered? Which removeth the mountains, and they know not: which overturneth them in his anger. Which shaketh the earth out of her place, and the pillars thereof tremble" (Job 9:4-6). So, when the earth quakes, it isn't happening because it is outside God's power and control. Instead, earthquakes are part of His sovereign purposes concerning the earth and the universe which He has created and is directing.
The Bible clearly shows God’s design and purposes of the earthquakes that are recorded in the Bible. The Bible not only speaks of the localised earthquakes that had occurred in the past, but also predicts increasing number of massive, devastating earthquakes, culminating in a global earthquake like never before towards the end of the Great Tribulation. Then at the end of it all, at God’s final judgment, the earth and heaven shall pass away.
So, instead of pointing to a powerless god who is detached from the events of the earth, earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes, tsunamis, etc. point to a God who reigns over the earth, even over the earth’s calamities. God is not a helpless bystander. He is not a frail being who is unable to handle the forces of nature. He is the all-powerful, the Omnipotent, who reigns supreme over all the events on earth, including its tragedies.
We may speak scientifically about those phenomena and explain the earthquake as the result of a fault beneath the earth’s crust, or as being caused by the top of the earth’s crust moving in one direction while the levels under the earth’s crust move in the opposite direction. To be sure, these are the intermediate causes that God, the ultimate Cause of such events, uses for His purposes. He rules through intermediate causes and at times by direct intervention, but either way, He is in charge!
So, we sing with Isaac Watts:
There’s not a plant or flower below,
But makes Thy glories known;
And clouds arise, and tempests blow,
By order from Thy throne.
Moses Lee
I thank God for the precious lessons I have derived from God’s Word faithfully expounded during this youth retreat. Pastor has truly elucidated the differences between regeneration and adoption, and reiterated our obligations as "Children of the Most High".
Isaiah 53:5 states "But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed." Christ has redeemed us through his atoning death on the cross. He has emancipated us from sin’s galling fetters and ensnarement. He is our Mediator and Intercessor, whom we know has removed all enmity and reconciled God and man. Having received the gift of salvation, it is imperative that we "put off the old man with his deeds; And put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him" (Colossians 3:9-10).
Adoption not only encompasses regeneration, an important facet of soteriology, but also further establishes our position in relation to the Father. It changes our attitude towards Him. As sinners saved by grace, elected to be heirs of a wonderful inheritance, we cannot be fixated on the ephemeral things of this transient world. Each day, I am still learning to be more Christ-like in spite of all the seemingly insuperable challenges I may encounter along the way. In my pilgrim’s progress, I must learn to be more submissive to God’s will and not yield to the flesh. Putting God first in this morally deficient and decadent world may be difficult, but I put my trust in my Saviour – my Refuge and Strength. Although our steps may falter, we must humbly seek Him and repent, for the Lord is judicious in his chastisements, which are commensurate to our transgressions.
Finally, I cannot forget the privileges of our eternal glory and blessings in being a part of God’s kingdom. I pray the Lord may use this ministry to the youths mightily for the extension of His kingdom.