No doubt there are going to be those who claim that the current devastating wildfires in Spokane, Greece, Spain, Montana, and elsewhere are God’s wrath being poured out on a sinful and wicked people.
And sadly, this kind of “hellfire-and-brimstone” nonsense will be preached by so-called “Christians,” as it has been countless times when death and tragedy strike a particular community or geographical area. No wonder people are abandoning traditional and Evangelical Christian churches in droves.
Let’s look at the answer Jesus gave to his questioners in Luke 13:1–5 when they asked him about Pilate slaughtering a group of Galileans:
Read the Book
Your Life And What Comes After
Discover God’s plan from Genesis to eternity — and where your life fits into it.
Get It on Amazon“There were present at that season some that told him of the Galilaeans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.
And Jesus answering said unto them, Suppose ye that these Galilaeans were sinners above all the Galilaeans, because they suffered such things? I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.
Or those eighteen, upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and slew them, think ye that they were sinners above all men that dwelt in Jerusalem? I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.”
Our Lord could not be more clear. Disaster, suffering, and death, whether natural or man-made, are not meted out according to the level of sinfulness present in an area. Bad things don’t happen exclusively to bad people, and tragedy is not a sign of God’s judgment in this present age.
However, there is a time coming when God’s judgment and restoration will fall on the entire creation. The Apocalypse is real, but it is reserved for a future time, and those who have already accepted the sacrifice of the Lamb and are covered by it will be spared from the judgement of that great and terrible day.
Child of God, husband, father, grandfather, rabblerouser, songwriter, pot stirrer, waiting for the King.