Ignoring God

"The Spirit of God has made me, And the breath of the Almighty gives me life” (Job 33:4).

The tragedy that has struck in the land of Japan has been spoken about by probably every newscast on television. They have given great details of the physical aspect of the damage that has been done. They have told us in great detail of what the fleshly eyes can see. But, what can be extracted from the spiritual aspect of this tragedy? What does God want us to learn?

When Job faced tragedy, Elihu reminded him Who is in control of the situation. And although He is in control, He is just and His love can only aid the humble: “When God arose to judgment, To save all the humble of the earth” (Psalm 76:9). As powerful as man thinks he is he has no power when God trembles the earth. He is the One who has the power to raise the waves of the sea and to allow the earth to open. We need to remember His power and our frailty.

God is love and He has been crying out to His creation to bring them under His wings of protection for many years: "Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling” (Matthew 23:37). But the people were not humble enough to listen and their ears remain closed to His voice today. And because the hearts of mankind are so hardened by fleshly pride, He must remind the stubborn Who has the power to bring the proud to their knees. Christians can use this tragedy to teach His love and grace.

God does not want the calamity of sin to fall upon mankind, but mankind continues to accept evil as the norm and ignore His words of grace. And then when sin causes the ugliness of its wages, they cannot understand why God does not protect them from its destruction. Christians have an opportunity to live under the protection of His love, mercy and grace. This is an opportunity to reveal to a world filled with pride how much more beneficial it is to live in humility. As those who do not know His Word try to get a grip on the situation, the people of faith can speak about the powerful love that protects them from the doom of sin. This is a powerful lesson to teach.

As Christians, we must be cut to the heart. Not only about the loss of the physical lives from this earth, but even more tragically, the loss of souls that do not accept the invitation into God’s kingdom. Many will be removed from this earth because of the great catastrophe that has fallen upon Japan. But what makes this even more tragic is that many of the dead will leave this realm outside the grace of God. This should remind us how tragic it is to leave our fate in the hands of the created instead of the Creator. God sent life to earth in the form of His Son. His voice still cries out to the prideful hearts of the world to come into the protection of His love. His cries are made known through the church, but like the prophets of old, their voice will continue to be ignored. And even though His voice is ignored, He still is the only One with the power to save.

In His Love,