Couple of weeks ago, we saw the effects of Hurricane Irene that hit the East Coast of the United States. Some have died and others have lost their homes due to flooding. And as always, some believe that God sent the storm because He was upset with the the East Coast.
Here are some reasons why that belief does not hold any water:
1. It is the goodness of God that leads to repentance, not death and destruction. It is the enemy that comes to steal, kill and destroy, not God.
2. Christ demonstrated his love for us by dying for us while we were sinners. Now all of a sudden He is upset?
3. Contrary to the popular assumption, God is not "angry" in this dispensation of Grace. In fact, "God so loved the world that he gave His only begotten Son ..." to be tortured and crucified for us. That's how much He is in love with the world (not just the Christians).
4. The sin issue has been taken care of on the Cross, once and for all. Love won't be insulted, but if it can, I would assume it would be insulting to God, when we say that God sends natural calamities due of sin; because in other words, what we are implying is, that Jesus' sacrifice was not enough to take care of the sin problem. Please allow this thought to sink in.
5. Lastly, the point that inspired the title of this post. If God is the author of storms, Jesus was defying His Father's will when He calmed the storm. But we know that Jesus was not being disobedient because He only did what His Father did.
5. Lastly, the point that inspired the title of this post. If God is the author of storms, Jesus was defying His Father's will when He calmed the storm. But we know that Jesus was not being disobedient because He only did what His Father did.
Sure, it might take a storm (literally or metaphorically)
or two to free ourselves from our undying dependence on the self and trust God wholeheartedly, but the implicit belief that God is the author of every storm,
is baseless under the new covenant.
7 comments:
His Word says that He is angry every day. Also, He is sovereign over "all" things.
Hi Anonymous, if you want to believe that God who is Love, who gave up his Son to be tortured and crucified because of His unconditional Love for us, is angry with you right now, in this dispensation of Grace, I am no one to stop you from believing so.
Of course, He has sovereign authority over all things, but like I said in my post, to conclude that God is the author of all storms is baseless, because if He is, Jesus was defying His Father's will.
Dan,
I don't believe He is angry with me or you. Psalms 7:11 states very clearly that He is angry with the "wicked" every day.
Hi Anonymous,
Thanks for sharing your thought.
It is easy to form our conclusions and build doctrines based on individual scriptures, but when we take a step back and look at the big picture, we see His Love for the whole humanity.
"God so loved the world...", not just the professing Christians.
As you would know, it was not because any of us merited it. Scripture clearly says that all have sinned and have fallen short of the glory of God (Rom 3:23). But, Jesus became the propitiation for the sins of the whole world (1 Jn 2:2; 4:10). The anger was exhausted on Him (Is 53) and the sacrifice was made, once and for all (Heb 10:10-14). Cross changed the history!
We can stack scriptures all day long, but in this present dispensation of Grace, I do not see why He is upset.
God is not "angry" with true Christians. Christ was a propitiation for our sins (that means He satisfied the wrath of God for all those who believe). But the unbeliever is still the enemy of God. His sins have not been propitiated. And if he dies in that state, the wrath of God will be set against him for all eternity (the bible calls that hell). John 3:36 states it plainly: "Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life-" whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him." (Also see: Ps 7:11, Rom. 1-3, 1 John 3:8).
God is in complete control of all things. Here is the short list: Not one bird can fall to the ground without it being God's will (Matt. 10:29). God creates prosperity and calamity (Is. 45:7, Jer. 32:42). God determines where people live (Acts 17:26). God does whatever He pleases (Ps 135:6, Eph. 1:11). God Controls "Storms" (Gen. 6:5-9, Exo. 9:23-29, 2Sam 12:18, Mk.4:35-40, Rev16:21).
Therefore, the storm Jesus calmed in Mark 4 was worked according to the counsel of God from start to finish. Jesus was not defying His Fathers will....for it was His Fathers will that there be a storm and that Jesus would calm that storm. For His own glory.The same concept if found in John 9 with the man born blind..... The man was born blind by the sovereign decree of God for the express purpose of Jesus healing him and receiving glory.
Gospel is good news. "God is angry at you" is not good news. It's the goodness of God that leads to repentance.
I am familiar with all the scriptures you have listed and the premise from which you are making your points. I simply view the whole picture differently than you do, so we'll have to agree to disagree on this topic.
Thanks again for sharing your thoughts! : )
I think these two verses might contribute to this discussion. People view God based on what's going on inside themselves.
Psalm 18:26 with the purified you show yourself pure; and with the crooked you make yourself seem tortuous.
According to this passage from Psalms, the people who view God as angry or torturous, are the ones who are crooked.
And here's why...
1 John 4:18 There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.
Paul said he was in the ministry of reconciliation. This means when he met people he spoke of reconciliation...not condemnation. When folks tell people they are condemned, they are ministers of death..Paul said that ministry came through Moses.
So which ministry are you in?
Dan is in the ministry of reconciliation.
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