Katrina/Rita: Mother Nature or Father God? #2

The point: Listen to the sermon with an open mind, even if offended, to understand God's love in the form of Katrina and Rita.

These biblical events are cited as historical manifestations of God's irresistible power and tokens of future judgment, which men often ignore until judgment touches their own lives.

In Revelation 6, verses 17 and following, we have that horrific picture of people crying for rocks and mountains to hide them from the face of Him that sits upon the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb. God speaks in His Word of His irresistible power, and His future judgment. Furthermore, God records in His Word those manifestations of His irresistible power, which are tokens of future judgment. When the fire fell upon Sodom and Gomorrah, it consumed those cities of the plains.

11:30 - 12:09 Read in full sermon

Driving home: For when your judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness.

Martin quotes E.J. Young to explain that God's judgments serve a beneficent purpose by leading sinners to repentance, as men tend to forget God when judgments are withheld.

based upon the work of Jesus Christ that they will be saved. So judgment is a severe mercy in order to bring them to God's saving grace. Listen. To the words of E.J. Young on this passage,

17:43 - 17:58 Read in full sermon

The point: Pray that amidst devastation, men and women will take seriously their unrighteousness and the just wrath of God, turning to Christ for salvation.

Martin imagines how those affected by the hurricanes, who previously ignored God, might now see the devastation as a 'little preview' of Christ's return and realize their unpreparedness.

God is the teacher, and the instrument which he often employs to teach righteousness is his judgment. Who knows how many who have felt some of the worst pressure of the devastation of Katrina and her family, and Rita for the first time has stood back and said, the God I heard about from my mama and my daddy, for that's what it would be down there in that part of the country. It'd be their mama and their daddy. How many who've heard of this God from the time mama and daddy began to speak to them in Sunday school, in church, perhaps have even read it in their Bibles, but have gone on their carel...

19:05 - 19:49 Read in full sermon

Driving home: Or do you despise, despise the riches of His goodness and forbearance and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance?

He uses the example of neighbors being swept away while others on the same street are spared to illustrate God's discriminating mercy, prompting the question 'Why was I spared?'

God purposes to soften sinners by his discriminating mercy manifested amidst death and devastation. Now let me explain what I mean. I have no doubt that there are not a few who when they reflect upon what Katrina and Rita have done, by the sovereign hand of God, have to ask themselves, why as I look down my street and realize that that family didn't get out in time and were swept away and are numbered among the dead. And the family to the left of me

22:09 - 22:53 Read in full sermon

Driving home: I tell you, no. But except you repent, you shall all in like manner perish.

These two current events from Jesus's time are used to show how sudden, tragic deaths become public knowledge and serve as a clarion call to repentance for the living.

Here were two current events which had apparently occupied the headlines in the first. In the first, there was a group of Galilean worshipers for what reason we do not know, apparently slain in the very act of offering their sacrifices in the temple. This wicked, cruel, unprincipled man, Herod, killed them for some reason we do not know. And there's all kinds of speculation, but people knew about it.

30:35 - 31:04 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: God uses the sudden and dramatic cutting off of some as a clarion call to repentance for others, correcting the mistaken notion that those who suffer tragedy are greater sinners…

Martin offers a modern paraphrase of Jesus's words, comparing New Orleans sinners to those in other cities, to challenge the notion that victims are greater sinners and to apply the call to repentance universally.

No, the Lord Jesus said, except you repent, you shall in all likewise perish. He corrects a mistaken notion and he uses their sudden death as a call to repentance. Let me give it a modern paraphrase. Do you think that these New Orleans, Lake Charles, Gulfport sinners were greater than all other sinners in New Jersey, in New York, in Chicago, in Los Angeles?

33:12 - 33:43 Read in full sermon

The point: Abandon the notion that others are greater sinners; recognize your own sin deserves God's judgment and flee to Christ for salvation.

He quotes Douglas Milne's commentary to reinforce that public tragedies are God's call to consider ultimate issues and that personal repentance is the appropriate response.

No. Douglas Milne in his commentary on Luke has captured this very well. Jesus would have none of this. He makes several observations.

35:03 - 35:14 Read in full sermon

Driving home: Preaching by Jesus Christ who went about doing good.

The story of Paul's shipwreck on Malta is used as a biblical example of God using a disaster to bring the Gospel to a new place, validated by Paul's good deeds as an 'island physician'.

caring heart of God as men and women in Christ's name are doing good to others. And as you think through your Bible, you see how God delights to do this. Paul is on his way to Rome. God has told him, you are going to testify of me at Rome. And what does God do?

40:47 - 41:10 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: God purposes to bring the Gospel to many through Katrina and Rita, a Gospel validated by tangible manifestations of selfless sacrificial love from Christians and churches, echoing…

Examples from World Magazine (Calvary Baptist Church, Bellevue Baptist Church) are given to illustrate how Christian organizations are responding to the disaster with selfless love, validating the Gospel.

there are many Christians, many churches, many Christian agencies that are responding to God's two devastating daughters, Katrina and Rita, in ways that they never would have reached out apart from that act of God. If you have been reading your World Magazine it's thrilling. Let me just read a couple of little instances. Calvary Baptist Church in Columbia, Missouri opened the doors of its gymnasium last week for up to 20 Katrina refugees.

41:49 - 42:23 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: God purposes to bring the Gospel to many through Katrina and Rita, a Gospel validated by tangible manifestations of selfless sacrificial love from Christians and churches, echoing…

An anecdote from World Magazine about a black man's prejudice against whites being overcome by kindness is used to show how God breaks down prejudices to bring the Gospel to His elect.

I'd have gone on to hell with all my prejudices in my heart against your people and against your gospel. Blessed be your name, oh God, for Katrina and Rita. Did you read the incident about that black fella that was picked up by two white folks and he was almost reluctant to get in the car whether they were Christians. World Magazine didn't say. He said by the

44:17 - 44:41 Read in full sermon

Driving home: The reason is simply when people start putting their trust in big government, they've attached themselves to a false god. And false gods can't produce the goods.

Martin quotes Joe Bells' editorial from World Magazine to articulate the argument that the anger directed at the federal government after Katrina exposed an 'idolatrous trust in big government' as a false god.

Our trust is in that. And God says cease the man whose breath is in his nostrils. One of the most perceptive articles I've read in this whole matter is the article by Joe Bells the founder and chairman of World Magazine who wrote in his editorial these words. Let's grant for the moment that President George Bush, FEMA, Homeland Security and the rest of the federal apparatus should have taken a few hours off three weeks ago to rehearse several times over just what they might do in the specific event that any one of the dozens of possible permutations began to unfold as Katrina approached from t...

51:59 - 52:43 Read in full sermon

The point: Plead with God to humble the hearts of many and turn to Him as their refuge and strength.

The story of Mo Leverett, a New Orleans minister who lost everything but embraced God's providence with equanimity, illustrates finding confidence in the living God rather than in man.

I'm God, you're not God. And we need to plead with God that God will humble the hearts of many and if I'm speaking to some whose God failed you and you have nowhere to turn, turn to the one true and living God who is the God of the psalmist who can say in the midst of every form of devastation with the world around me my God is an unchangeable refuge and strength of very present help in trouble. There's a moving article about a man who's buried his life in ministering to black

56:17 - 57:00 Read in full sermon