Date:   09/04/05

Text:   Psalm 29:10-11

Title:   When the Flood Comes and Earth Shakes

Theme: Since we live in a fallen world, by God's grace we learn to live according to

God's sovereignty and power in the midst of calamities.

Introduction:

   In September 05, as a result of Katrina, our country experienced the greatest natural disaster in her history. Even to this day, the city of New Orleans have not completely recovered. Now, 3 years and 9 months later, the water came again. But this time the earth also shook and is still shaking. In Burma, close to 128K had died. In China, 19,000 are confirmed dead and the total number of death may be as high as 50K. Schools collapsed killing most of students. Even though such disasters occurred about 10K miles away, because of internet, cell phone cameras and news media, it appeared as it has just occurred next door. Every day we see images of destruction, suffering, death and great grief. Our hearts go out to the parents in both Myanmar and China who have lost their children and especially parents with only one child. During these past two weeks, we also witnessed the strength of one government and the weaknesses of another. Tragedies always bring out the good and the bad of individuals, societies and governments.

In moments like this, our hearts ache with sadness and minds confused. In order to minimize our pains, we seek answers to the cause of such tragedies. We may come up with instant answers just as: God has his plan in this, this is a great opportunity to share the gospel message, this is an indication that the end of the world is near, or you must have faith. While no one can refute such statements, yet they sound so hollow and superficial. Unknowingly, we are trying to defend God for what happened and to avoid facing the reality and consequences of pain in such moments.

  So, what do we do in moments like this? This morning I want to share with you a message that I preached here on 09/04/05, the Sunday after the Katrina tragedy. I want to do my best to provide some basic principles that will give us a handle on how to face these and other disasters that come our way. I have chosen Psalm 29:10-11 as a platform to share with you this truth: Since we live in a fallen world, by God's grace we learn to live according to God's sovereignty and power in the midst of calamities.

I.   In a broken and abnormal world, disasters are an integral part of human experience.

  First, we need to know and understand what is the biblical worldview? The scripture is rather silent on the reasons behind natural disasters. The closest we can come to is to go back to Genesis. In Chapter one we learned of God's creation. Even though we do not know the details of how he created the heavens and the earth, yet one thing we know for sure; everything that was created, the heavens and the earth, man and woman, and the relationships between the created word and the human beings, God considered them as good. That is, according to his most perfect standard, everything was good.

  However, as we continue with the creation story, in chapter 3 we learned of men's deliberate disobedience to God. Because of this disobedience, sin entered the world. What was good, normal and perfect had now become imperfect, abnormal and broken. In Genesis 3:17-18, “…. cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life; 18 thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you;…” We want to take note that as a result of men's disobedient, the snake and the earth were specifically cursed. What we see is a broken natural world. There is no more harmony between men and the world he lives in.

  If we take a look at world history, we see a record of broken world. (See ppt) These are the worst natural disasters. Then there are numerous smaller but devastating disasters. The world history tells us we live in a broken and abnormal world. Jesus did not try to explain the whys of pain and suffering, he simply stated: John 16:33, “ 33 "I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” Its not that you may have tribulation, but you will have tribulation. Apostle James in 1:2, “ 2 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds,..” Again, please note; it it not, if you meet trials of various kinds, but when. Because we live in an abnormal world, therefore trials, natural and or man made disasters are part of life.

  If we think our world is a normal world, when disasters strike, we'll ask: why? It is not fair. Where is God? How can you do this to me. If we know our world is, fallen, broken and abnormal, then we ask: How should we then live? What can we do in such situations.

II.    In a broken and abnormal world, children of God learn to develop a belief system with focus on God's attributes

  Living in this abnormal world, facing the tragedy and damage Katrina brought to us, what then is our belief? I want to share with you a few thoughts on this:

1 •  To recognize human limitation. First, natural disasters always brought human being to the realization of our own limitations. In the 21 st century, we pride ourselves of our technical know how. We have the entire sequence of human genome. We have the know how's of how to clone a cat, cattle, sheep and even a human being. At times we even pride ourselves of our ability to predict earthquakes. But time and again we become so powerless when nature unleashes its destructive force. A survivor of the earth quake saw people being thrown up into the air and fell to their death . This human finiteness should cause us to see how weak and feeble we are. The only proper response is to bow to the creator God.

2.   To recognize God's sovereignty in the created world. When nature unleashes its destructive force, when countless lives are lost, properties are damaged it is hard to believe in God's sovereignty, right? When I just bought a new car, a new house, got promoted or found a new job, it is easy to recognize God's sovereignty. But during the down time, in those terrible moments, in experiences no one wants to repeat or plan, it is very difficult to believe God is in control. It is so easy to ask: God, where are you? Where is your power? Are you that weak that you can't even stop this hurricane and have it dissipated in front of our eyes? In such moments, the psalmist says, Psalm 29:10, “ 10 The Lord sits enthroned over the flood; the Lord sits enthroned as king forever.” When the waters are ravaging, he sits in his throne. Yes, the natural world seems to be angry and ruthless, yet our Lord is still sitting on his throne. The world can change, but he never changes. His power and authority remain the same. We may not fully understand this, but this is the bedrock of our belief system.

3.    To believe in God's goodness . Again, in good times, when things go our way, it is easy to believe in God's love, faithfulness, provision, protection and presence. But in the down times; when our homes are destroyed, possessions are gone, loved ones disappeared or died, how dare you tell me God is love, kind and faithful. Circumstances and environments have changed, but God has not. Yes, it is indeed very difficult to believe, but this is what the Bible is about. In Psalm 23, we read that the Lord is my shepherd and I shall not want…Even though I walked through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear not evil, because you are with me.” The scripture never promises we will always have the mountain top experience, but when are in that dark valley of shadow of death, a place of darkness, unknown, uncertainty and unsafe, there is the assurance that the Lord, the shepherd will be with us. In Isaiah 43:1ff “ Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. 2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. 3 For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel , your Savior. ……. 4 Because you are precious in my eyes, and honored, and I love you, ….. 5 Fear not, for I am with you;…” In the midst of the water and fire, is the promise and assurance of ‘I love you, I am with you, you are very precious to me…'.

These familiar and beloved verses tells us something about how deals with our pains and suffering in life. There are times God in his sovereignty will change the external circumstances such as preventing certain events to occur, change the course of or minimize the destructive effect of cyclones/tornados. When this happens, we'll hardly notice, right? However, the scripture also clearly tells when we face pain and suffering, He simply comes into our lives and sit by us and suffers with us.

This is what we are to have faith in. Yes, it is important to think positively, that dark times will not last forever, but true biblical faith is never about setting our eyes on things will get better. True biblical faith is to believe that even in the worst of times, God is sovereign, loving, kind and faithful. Even in that deep dark valley, when we cannot feel nor see his presence, we believe he is loving, faithful and he has never left us . This is faith; not faith in the present or future circumstances, but faith in the God who loves and cares.

III. In a broken and abnormal world, children of God learn to experience God's persevering power.

  We have looked at our world view. What is our belief and behavior in such trying times. How about God? What does he do? Psalm 29:11, “ 11 May the Lord give strength to his people! May the Lord bless his people with peace!” When the water is ravaging, He sits on his throne, because He is God, he also comes to us. Moreover, he also gives strength to his people. He gives us strength so that we can be strong when the environment is rough. He gives us strength when we feel like giving up. He gives us strength so we can continue to believe in his faithfulness and goodness.

  Not only this, the Lord will give his people peace. When the waters are ravaging, when the circumstance is anything but peace, the Lord promises to give his people that inner peace. The peace that transcends our circumstances. In John 16:33, “ 33 "I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”

IV.   In a broken and abnormal world, children of God learn to help others to relief some of their pain and suffering.

  Facing such disaster, we know what we are to believe, but equally important is what we are to do? What can we do to those who are in dire hard situations? As we live in this world full of suffering and pain, we also notice that in such tragic moments, people, Christians and non-Christians alike, do reach out to help each other.

In the first century church, there was a famine in Jerusalem and Judea. When believers in Macedonia heard about it, they collected some money and sent it to Jerusalem . What was unusual in this situation was that the Macedonian church was young and poor. They did not give according to what they had. They gave out of what little they had. They gave sacrificially to help the believers in Judea .

Early this week, one of my sons called and asked how he could help. Many of you have also inquired about what we can do to help. In our bulletin, we've provided you with some information about what some actions we are taking.

  As you take part in different aspect of helping those in need, I would like to remind us a very basic and important principle: we are to treat others, no matter who they are, with respect and dignity. Please do not treat them as objects to satisfy our own need to help others or as targets of our evangelization. Please take a look at this passage which I have referred to quite often. 1 Thess. 2:8, “ 8 So, being affectionately desirous of you, we were ready to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you had become very dear to us.” Paul said, we love you so much, that we are willing to give our lives for you and also share the gospel with you.” It is not because we want to evangelize you, therefore we love you. No, it is this: because we love you, we want to share our lives with you, we want to share the gospel with you.

  We serve these people who are in need because we love them. Love must be the primary motivation for you, for me, for HCC to reach out to others.

I would like to conclude with this note: It is important for us not to just react to crisis situations. It is easy to react to crisis: To do something immediately. And when we don't see things happening, we can become critical and cynical, of individuals, church and the government. Quick response to crisis is crucial, but it is also important to keep in mind, the need is a long term process. In another few weeks or months, we'll be back to normal again here. However, it will take months and even years to rebuild the destroyed properties and lives. It is easy to be with them at the beginning of the crisis, but long term care and commitment is equally important.