Wild World

Last week the Northeastern United States saw just how wild our world could be. An earthquake, hurricane, tornado, and flooding all in one week! Sadly such weather always brings loss of life and loss of possessions.

The good news is that, with a hurricane, there’s plenty of time to prepare. Modern weather forecasting gives us an advantage previous generations didn’t have. “Forewarned is forearmed.”

The bad news is that, with all our technology and scientific ability, we’re not even close to controlling the weather to prevent such disasters. All we can do is respond to them.

What if you met someone who could control the weather? How would you respond to that? Probably with a healthy skepticism. But if it were real, it would be awesome.

The Bible clearly teaches God controls the weather. He can use it to punish some and show his love to others. But modern minds disdain such unenlightened thinking.

However, humankind’s collective wisdom overrules our modern mindset. Our language reveals the truth. Whenever we describe natural disasters, even insurance companies call them “Acts of God”!

An ‘Act of God’ is a legal term for events outside of human control, such as sudden floods or other natural disasters, for which no one on earth can be held responsible.

So if some weather events are ‘Acts of God,’ it’s logical to think God can control weather.

“Now hold on, just a minute,” you may say. “What difference does it make? Who cares if God controls the weather?”

We should if we want to know who Jesus Christ really is!

One day Jesus was on the Sea of Galilee in a boat with his disciples. Suddenly a violent storm blew in and threatened to sink the boat. Jesus’ followers were afraid they would drown.

The Bible says Jesus “got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, ‘Quiet! Be still!’ Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.” Jesus turned to his disciples and said, “‘Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?’ Then they were terrified and asked each other, ‘Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!’”

Based on what Jesus had just done, the only answer to this rhetorical question was that Jesus was and is the Son of God! Only God can suspend the natural order of things and do miracles.

Even though miracles like this are hard for modern people to accept, the Bible makes it clear that Jesus is Lord over all creation and not just over his church. One of Jesus’ purposes in performing such miracles was to establish and increase the disciples’ faith in his deity.

After seeing such displays of power, Jesus’ disciples could answer his question when he asked, “Who do you say that I am?” Peter confidently said, “You are the Christ [Messiah], the Son of the living God.”

After the wild week we had it’s normal for everyone to talk about the weather. And while it’s important to know about and be prepared for wild weather, it’s even more important to know who Jesus Christ is and to respond to that knowledge in faith.

The Bible records the miraculous events in Jesus’ life for one reason: “But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” Begin by reading the New Testament Gospel of John. Then keep reading.

You owe it to yourself to investigate his claims. They’re really wild–and true!

Listen to the Bible; it’s great for your soul!