Earthquakes do not surprise God – in fact nothing surprises Him. We know that God is over time and sees all. That is usually good news. Most of the biblical references to earthquakes are found in the book of Revelation. Revelation is the final disclosure from God until Jesus comes for a second time. He will arrive with His new body and will invite us into “next things”. I grew up in California and experienced many earthquakes but the most significant was about 1978. My parents had added a few apartments to the rear of their home in Lawndale, CA. I had returned from my first experience of travel in Europe. They had not yet closed off the first apartment so I was able to act as a rescuer. I am a light sleeper but the heavy beams separating the two spaces made sense to me in that moment. I learned that my parents slept in their birthday suits but I was undaunted. The shaking was sudden, strong, and dramatic. I ran down the stairs into their room shouted earthquake and they stumbled out of bed and followed. I learned a bit about construction from my Dad and when we reached the beams I shoved them to both sides. I remained in the middle as if I could hold up the beams. I must have looked crazed holding two naked people up.
The Revelation passages follow. 6:12, “And I looked when He broke the sixth seal, and there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth made of hair, and the whole moon became like blood;”. 8:5, “And the angel took the censer; and he filled it with the fire of the altar and threw it to the earth; and there followed peals of thunder and sounds and flashes of lightning and na earthquake”. 11:13, “And in that hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell; and seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven”. And 16:18, “And there were flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder; and there was a great earthquake, such as there had not been since man came to be upon the earth, so great an earthquake was it, and so mighty”.
These references, because Revelation is the final book, are “end-times”. We have always had earthquakes but they will increase. Eventually Jesus will return. If you worship mother earth this will be a surprise. You have no wisdom in this area if you expect the creation to last forever. I will outlast the earth. You are not going to live forever unless you are a follower of Jesus. Using His name as if it is a password is not enough. Follow Jesus. Too many of my friends speak of God is love and that is their back-up plan because they are not following Jesus but following their own is an undeniable fact and they are hoping for the best. You will not get Gods best, as I read scripture, but pray hard for truth is my advice. He is full of grace but don’t be full of yourself.
I found this little note and believe I wrote this. So many bits and pieces are everywhere. If this is someone else’s good description let me know. Here it is. Mother Earth shook and your house fell down. God did not create a mother but He did create the earth. Earth is our temporary home and is not intended to last. When there is an earthquake our hearts shake in fear. We are in time and space. Things shake, but please do not sour on God who wishes you well. He does not shake. He is the only and best God we have.
I am getting to know some Hindu neighbors. I am mortified that two of their beliefs are very sad. The first is that there are many gods but they are forbidden from saying there is only one true God. The other is a very foolish goal. The goal is annihilation. The goal is to disappear into a fuzzy cloud of what? It reminds me of sci-fi movies. I am looking forward to meeting people like me in heaven – forgiven people who have been “following” Jesus. I hope this shakes you up a bit. The world is getting messier by the minute.
