Earthquakes & Nature Disasters - The Spiritual Dimension

The earthquake on 12 May 08 in China, and the Cyclone Nargis disaster in Myanmar may be viewed as 2 natural disasters.

But natural disasters always have a spiritual dimension in the Bible. There are 2 protagonists that 'control' natural disasters: God and Nature. (I spell both in Capital letters.)

Natural disasters may occur at the command of Nature. But God has the authority to stop Nature from launching a natural disaster.

Also, sometimes God initiates natural disasters by commanding Nature to show its fury. Nature simply obeys God.

Natural disasters always result in mass destruction. Sadly from our perspective, the ignorant and the innocent always perish and suffer with the sinful in natural disasters.

If we read the 'natural disasters' in the Bible, we will always see the spiritual dimension and the reasons behind natural disasters. It may be the great Flood during Noah's time, or it may be the collapse of the Tower of Babel, or it may be any of the 10 plaques Egypt suffered during the time of Moses. There are reasons for each of them.

One of the most vivid description of earthquakes is captured in Numbers 16: 28-33. "Then it came about as Moses finished speaking all these words, ...the ground that was under them split open; and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up, and their households, and all the men who belonged to Korah, with their possessions. So they and all that belonged to them went down alive to Sheol..."

Now back to the natural disasters in Myanmar and China. In China, close to 100,000 lost their lives. For every one who died, another 10 were injured and another 20 suffered pain due to the lost of their loved ones. So as many as 3 million had suffered directly in the disaster.

What are the spiritual messages of the natural disasters in Myanmar and China? What is God trying to warn us? Unless we understand the messages, and heed the warnings, our people in Myanmar and China had died or suffered in vain.

Is it really so difficult to realise the spiritual dimensions of these 2 recent natural disasters?