There’s no doubt that in terms of natural disasters some summers have been among Australia’s worst in recorded history, and people around the globe have had to dig themselves out of their homes in sub-zero temperatures after heavy snowstorms. What on earth is happening?
Paul the apostle provides the answer. “The earnest expectation of the creation waits for the manifestation (revelation, unveiling) of the sons of God; for the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but by Him who did so in hope because the creation itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious freedom of the sons of God. For we know that the whole of creation groans and travails in pain together until now.” (Romans 8:19-22)
Paul’s attribute pain and suffering to a creation that we might think incapable of feeling the intensive pains of the kind that precede childbirth. Animals, of course, feel pain, and we’re told that plants and trees do too. But inanimate things? Yet in his expansive statement the inspired apostle includes the whole of Creation.
It would be a foolhardy person indeed who would link every natural disaster to sins known nationally. God does punish nations through related consequences, but only after varying periods of grace that present opportunities for national repentance. Science declares that “for every action there is an opposite and equal reaction”. Yet God’s patience does have a use by date.
Words can be used both literally and figuratively. Paul wrote of the pain felt by Creation, although the nature of that pain is unknown to us. It is the pain that comes from being in an unnatural state to that intended by the Creator. Its condition is the result of Adam’s sin and those of his descendants, meaning every one of us.
Let’s take a figurative look at what’s going on in this world. Might they reveal a connection between ungodly human behaviour and an increasing suffering worldwide? Are natural the disasters we see counterparts to the behaviour that is the product of sinful human nature? Let’s look at four examples:
1. Sudden, unpredicted storms that sweep in out of nowhere, bringing destructive hail, floods and winds and leaving the tears and sorrow that accompany great loss. Their human equivalents may be multiple murders, road rage incidents, acts of domestic violence, and damage to people and property. Does this read like your daily newspaper? God warned Cain that sin was lying at his door like an angry dog, and that it was up to him to control it. He didn’t but instead killed his brother Abel and thus became the first murderer. People are murdered with intent before becoming actual victims; there is a potential crime scene in the heart of every hater. So, next time you find yourself caught in a sudden storm, consider how vulnerable someone close to you feels when you lose your temper. Do you have the self-control you once possessed, or are you losing it more by the day?
2. Major earthquakes of the kind that bring down buildings, kill people, and devastate whole areas. We live in a time of recurring political, social, and economic instability, and unexpected upheavals that are now shaking the faith of some who thought themselves Christians. When the earth buckles and rolls underfoot any sense of security or stability disappears. In times of instability, we need to remind ourselves that such “shaking of things that are made” are preparing us for “a kingdom that cannot be shaken” — one that we are receiving by faith, even while things are falling all around us. (Hebrews 12:26-28) If you have little or no such sense of security, I urge you to turn to Jesus Christ for help quickly, while you can.
3. Volcanic eruptions are often caused by a buildup of pressure between tectonic plates, which allows an escape of molten magma from beneath the earth’s crust. Likewise, personal build-ups of pressure are often hidden until they find release at weak points in temperament or character flaws. I was at Mt Pinatubo not long after it exploded and saw with my own eyes houses that had caved in under the weight of volcanic ash. I also saw streams of hot mud escaping from the volcano and filling valleys. I have seen personal eruptions during my fifty years of ministry destroy relationships and devastate homes, clubs, and churches just as effectively — albeit on a much lesser scale. Hidden resentment over perceived slights or injustices can build pressure in a person that finds its release in an emotional eruption — with awful consequences. Prayer can release personal pressure (Philippians 4:6, 7) and corporate prayer releases a power more than equal to the pressure applied by people or by circumstances (Acts 4:21-31).
4. Hurricanes, cyclones, and typhoons. The first two differ only in that they move in reverse circular directions. Typhoons spin off the equator and water-blast cities and towns with stinging horizontal rain and frightening wind gusts. Furious displays of temperament are +human equivalents. Sudden and unexpected mood swings frighten entire families because of the unknown dangers they hold. “Man’s [extreme] anger never works God’s righteousness.” (James 1:20) Anger can be a good thing, but not if carried too far; and sleeping with it causes us to wake up feeling like the Devil himself! (Ephesians 4:26, 27) A “temperamental” person may be fifty percent temper and fifty percent mental. Submit to God and resist the Devil, who will then flee from you. Grow “the fruit of the spirit” and you’ll be less inclined to do “the works of the flesh” (Galatians 5:22, 23).
The whole creation is groaning while waiting in anticipation for God’s sons to be unveiled. This is because it cannot function as God intended until those who believe are revealed in the Resurrection. Paul lists three “groans” in Romans 8: the groans of the trapped creation that waits to be released from its unnatural state; the groans of believers who wait to be clothed with immortal bodies; and the groans of the Spirit in us for what God wants to give us. “Sighs” is an alternative word, one which best describes all three.
The revelation of the sons of God in the Resurrection will be a wonderful event! Would it not be wonderful if, even before then, we were able to rid ourselves of the clinging characteristics of sinful humanity by taking on ourselves a more appropriate identity — the one God has provided for us through the death, the burial, the resurrection, the ascension, and the glorification of His Son!
Far better, surely, to see ourselves in Christ than to see ourselves mirrored in the all too frequent disasters that are taking place in the increasingly fragile world around us. Don’t wait and end up crying out “Oh my God!” when the End Arrives; instead call on Him to save you now! Ask Him to forgive your sins because Jesus was crucified and shed his blood to save you from them. Forgiveness and peace with God are only a heartfelt prayer away.