We live on a dynamic and beautiful planet.
Consider the majestic mountains, the sights and sounds of
babbling brooks, and verdant valleys nestled between
mountain peaks.
There are beautiful glacier-fed lakes,
tropical islands, prairies, and plains.
Our planet is divided by terrain, temperature, and
soil type for growing an amazing variety of
foods--rice, wheat, and corn; citrus fruits,
almonds and walnut trees, mangos, papayas, coconuts,
and, oh, so much more.
We're refreshed by afternoon showers that
clean the air and give needed water for crops
and flowering plants of all kinds.
We're intrigued, and sometimes frightened, when
huge thunder and lightning storms pass over us,
occasionally accompanied by tornados or powerful
straight-line winds.
Volcanic eruptions are beautiful and awe-inspiring,
but they can be destructive and deadly.
Hurricanes rip apart homes and disrupt lives, as do
floods and earthquakes.
How do we make sense of such a dynamic planet?
If God is a loving God how do we explain so-called,
natural disasters?
Why does He allow disruption, destruction,
and desolation--often resulting in sorrow?
On this Tomorrow's World program, I'll give you
the answers.
And I'll also be offering our totally free resource,
Acts of God: Why Natural Disasters?
This resource gives more information than I have
time to cover on today's program, so be sure to
have writing material available to take down our
contact information to receive a free copy of,
Acts of God: Why Natural Disasters?
♪
A warm welcome to all of you, from all of us here
at Tomorrow's World, where we bring you the good news
of the coming Kingdom of God, explain end-time prophecies,
and make sense of the world in which we live.
On today's program, I'm discussing natural disasters,
why they occur, and what God reveals about some
in our future.
As explained in the short introduction, we live on
an amazing planet.
So much so that we could have a thousand programs
on the topography, the natural resources, and the diversity
of life--the flora and fauna in the waters and on the land.
But let us look at one thing we often take for granted--
and that is water.
It's both the source for life and a destructive force.
Have you noticed how scientists and science
writers look for evidence of water as they explore
other planets-- primarily Mars?
They know that life as we know it is impossible without it.
Many have swallowed the idea that if there is water,
there may be life.
Of course, this fails to take into account the
complexity of life and how it is mathematically
impossible to create life from non-living material.
Michael Denton pulls the cover off the idea of a
"simple cell" when he wrote:
Although the tiniest bacterial cells are
incredibly small...
each is in effect a veritable micro-miniaturized
factory containing thousands of exquisitely designed
pieces of intricate molecular machinery...
far more complicated than any machine built by man and
absolutely without parallel in the non-living world....
The complexity of the simplest known type of cell is so
great that it is impossible to accept that such an object
could have been thrown together suddenly by some
kind of freakish, vastly improbable, event.
Such an occurrence would be indistinguishable from
a miracle.
The creation of life needs more than water, but water
is far more important to life than merely quenching
our thirst.
Perhaps you have wondered why so much of our planet
is covered by oceans composed of salt water--
which is not fit, as it is, for our drinking.
The oceans make up approximately seventy
percent of our planet, but do you realize how
important these bodies of water are?
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration,
also known as NOAA, informs us of their many benefits.
Here are only a few:
Scientists estimate that roughly half of the oxygen
production on Earth comes from the ocean.
The majority of this production is from oceanic
plankton--drifting plants, algae, and some bacteria
that can photosynthesize.
One particular species, Prochlorococcus, is the
smallest photosynthetic organism on Earth.
But this little bacteria produces up to 20% of
the oxygen in our entire biosphere.
That's a higher percentage than all of the tropical
rainforests on land combined.
Wow.
Half our oxygen comes from the oceans and 20%
of total oxygen comes from one tiny organism.
In addition to pumping oxygen into the atmosphere,
NOAA explains that our oceans moderate global
temperatures by transporting "heat from the equator to
the poles, regulating climate and weather patterns."
The ocean's water is constantly circulated by currents.
Tidal currents occur close to shore and are
influenced by the sun and moon.
Surface currents are influenced by the wind.
However, other, much slower currents that occur
from the surface to the seafloor are driven by
changes in the saltiness and ocean temperature,
a process called thermohaline circulation.
These currents are carried in a large
"global conveyer belt."
This circulation brings warmth to various parts
of the globe and also carries nutrients necessary
to sustain ocean life.
The circulation process begins as warm water near
the surface moves toward the poles (such as the
Gulf Stream in the North Atlantic), where it cools
and forms sea ice.
As this ice forms, salt is left behind in the ocean water.
Due to the large amount of salt in the water,
it becomes denser, sinks down, and is carried southwards
in the depths below.
Eventually, the water gets pulled back up towards the
surface and warms up in a process called upwelling,
completing the cycle.
There are many more critical life-sustaining
benefits provided by our oceans.
Huge amounts of water evaporate, forming clouds
that drift over land and provide needed rain.
And consider the massive amount of food that comes
from our oceans.
But our oceans are not always so benevolent.
They sometimes produce storms that cause great
destruction in the form of hurricanes and cyclones.
And when undersea earthquakes occur,
they can produce devastation on a grand scale.
In less than ten years, the world experienced two tsunamis.
The first, in 2004, killed more than a quarter million
people along coastal Indian Ocean areas.
The second was in Japan, which took as many as
20,000 lives in 2011.
Why, if God is a God of love, does He allow such
powerful forces on this planet?
Can He not prevent them?
Or is all this a matter of chance?
Those questions are answered in our free resource,
Acts of God: Why Natural Disasters?
This resource explains why a God of love allows
natural disasters and, yes, even causes some.
You need this resource, because no matter where
you live, a natural disaster can come your way.
In fact, according to the Bible, more than one will
come our way.
Acts of God: Why Natural Disasters?
is like no other resource on the subject.
While science can explain the how--the processes by
which storms, earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanoes
occur--science cannot explain the why.
For that, we must turn to the only source that
explains why the universe exists, what man is,
and what is God's purpose for him.
This free resource--Acts of God: Why Natural Disasters?
points you to the answers to these important questions--
straight from the pages of the Bible.
♪
For today's free offer call...
Or go to...
This clear and straight-forward resource
will help you understand this vital truth--
straight from the pages of the Bible.
If you're calling for the first time, you will also
receive a free annual subscription to Tomorrow's
World magazine.
Six inspiring issues discussing news, science,
and modern culture will help you make sense of
your world from a biblical perspective.
Call today and join millions around the world
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♪
So far, we've noted that our home here on earth
is beautiful and diverse.
How different it is from any other celestial object
we've been able to observe.
Its oceans, its temperature range, its 24-hour day
divided into light and darkness, all shout the
message that this planet was made for life--not life
as a result of chance, but life by design.
But, as we have also noted, there are powerful forces
that bring devastation and disaster: volcanoes,
earthquakes, tsunamis, hurricanes and cyclones,
droughts and floods, fires and tornados.
The question is, if God is a loving Creator, why do we
see such a contrast on earth between the beautiful and
the ugly, the beneficial and the destructive?
To answer that question, we must go back to the beginning.
The Bible tells us that our first parents were
placed in a beautiful garden filled with
wonderful foods of all sorts.
Man was made in God's likeness and image for
a grand purpose.
He was given a mind to think, to reason, to invent
and innovate, to make decisions far above what
any animal kind can do.
But these decisions go beyond how to make and construct.
Mankind must make decisions on how to relate to others--
in other words, moral decisions.
Adam and Eve were thus tested to see whether they
would trust God's judgment, as to what is good and
what is evil, or whether to strike out on their own
and determine good and evil for themselves.
Adam, who was not deceived by the serpent, chose the
latter and mankind has been doing the same ever since.
As a result, God said, in effect, "You wanna do it
your own way, have at it, but don't expect me to
bail you out of every jam you get yourself into."
However, despite our rebellion, God does care
for all of His potential children.
Note what Jesus said as recorded by Matthew,
in the fifth chapter beginning verse 44:
"But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those
who curse you, do good to those who hate you,
and pray for those who spitefully use you and
persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father
in heaven; for He [that is God] makes His sun rise on
the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just
and on the unjust."
Yes, God even gives rain to the unjust.
He has not left our environment totally to chance.
But notice also that God does manipulate our
weather from time to time based on our behavior.
To Israel He said in Leviticus the 26th chapter,
"If you walk in My statutes and keep My commandments,
and perform them, then I will give you rain in its
season, the land shall yield its produce, and
the trees of the field shall yield their fruit.
Your threshing shall last till the time of vintage,
and the vintage shall last till the time of sowing;
you shall eat your bread to the full, and dwell
in your land safely."
Can we not see, that the God who created the entire universe,
can change weather patterns for the good, that is, if we
obey Him, but also withhold the good if we despise Him?
Here's the result of the latter, in verse 14:
"But if you do not obey Me, and do not observe all
these commandments, and if you despise My statutes,
or if your soul abhors My judgments, so that you do not
perform all My commandments, but break My covenant,
I also will do this to you...."
Now the first thing He said would happen is that He would
give His people over to terrorism and disease epidemics.
But also notice verse 19:
"I will make your heavens like iron and your earth like bronze.
And your strength shall be spent in vain; for your land
shall not yield its produce, nor shall the trees of the
land yield their fruit."
Or, as we read in Deuteronomy 28:24,
"The LORD will change the rain of your land to
powder and dust; from the heaven it shall come down
on you until you are destroyed."
We see that God makes it possible for the righteous
and the unrighteous to survive on earth--giving
sun and rain to produce food for man and beast alike.
Yet, as we are beginning to see, He does manipulate
weather for His purposes.
In the next portion of this program, we'll see
that so-called "natural disasters," according to
the Bible, are indeed, in our future.
But first, let me take a short break to remind you
of today's free offer:
Acts of God: Why Natural Disasters?
The scriptures given in this program, and many more,
will point you to mankind's destiny in the very near future.
This resource explains why a God of love allows
natural disasters and, yes, even causes some.
It's one thing to know what is coming, but more importantly,
to know why these disasters are coming, so order your
free copy of Acts of God: Why Natural Disasters?
All you have to do is pick up the phone, or go to our
website TWTV.org/Disasters to receive your free copy of
Acts of God: Why Natural Disasters?
And do it today, and when I return, I'll show you from
the pages of the Bible what God foretold about
catastrophic events that will soon strike our planet.
♪
This clear and straight-forward resource
will help you understand this vital truth--
straight from the pages of the Bible.
Call now!
Or go to...
♪
Our Creator has given mankind a home on
planet Earth that is beautiful and dynamic.
Our home is teeming with life forms of every sort--
soaring birds, fleet-footed animals, and creatures that
live in our waters.
Then there is plant life coming in all colors and sizes.
We're overwhelmed by the natural process of mountains
and islands being formed by volcanic activity.
We're awed by lightning and thunderstorms.
But volcanoes, severe storms, earthquakes, floods,
and droughts can be frightening and devastating.
So, I have asked the question, if God is a god of love,
why does He allow such destructive forces to
plague mankind?
As we've already seen, it's man that has rejected God,
and essentially said, "God leave us alone.
Don't tell us what to do." And so, He has.
But we've also seen that He hasn't left us entirely alone.
He makes the sun shine and the rain to come upon both
the just and the unjust.
We've also seen that He blesses those who strive
to obey Him with rain in due season, but He directs
unfavorable weather patterns upon those who
despise His commandments.
In this portion of today's program, we'll see that
God will use disasters of unimaginable proportions
in the very near future to get our attention.
The book of Revelation describes a number of
so-called natural disasters.
Revelation describes a scroll sealed with seven seals.
And when the seventh seal is opened, seven angels are
given seven trumpet plagues to blow upon the earth.
Now let's look at three of them.
We read of the first disaster in chapter 8, and in verse 7:
"The first angel sounded: And hail and fire followed,
mingled with blood, and they were thrown to the earth.
And a third of the trees were burned up, and all
green grass was burned up."
Now it's difficult for us to know the precise means of
this disaster, but it will be of God, and will be
devastating beyond what the world has ever known.
The second disaster may be more easily defined.
"Then the second angel sounded: And something
like a great mountain burning with fire was
thrown into the sea, and a third of the sea became blood.
And a third of the living creatures in the sea died,
and a third of the ships were destroyed."
This would appear to be a super-volcano, a mountain
exploding and tossed into the sea.
We may even speculate, that it will be one of the known,
or currently unrecognized, super-volcanoes in or
around the geologically volatile South China Sea,
as it would have to be near busy shipping lanes.
Now note this:
The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development
estimates that roughly 80 percent of global trade
by volume and 70 percent by value is transported by sea.
Of that volume, 60 percent of maritime trade passes
through Asia, with the South China Sea carrying
an estimated one-third of global shipping.
Its waters are particularly critical for China, Taiwan,
Japan, and South Korea, all of which rely on the
Strait of Malacca, which connects the South China Sea
and, by extension, the Pacific Ocean with the Indian Ocean.
The next natural disaster is described in verse 10:
"Then the third angel sounded: And a great star fell from
heaven, burning like a torch, and it fell on a third of
the rivers and on the springs of water."
We often refer to a meteor as a "shooting star."
Scientists know that many large meteors and
asteroids cross Earth's path on a regular basis.
A few have struck the earth with devastating effect in the past,
but God has protected our planet for our sake.
However, according to this passage of scripture, a large
asteroid striking the earth appears to be in our future.
The Bible has much more to contribute to our understanding
of natural disasters, and that is the reason that we are
offering a free resource that explains why a loving God
allows, and at times even causes, terrible disasters
to occur on Earth.
Yes, there are powerful forces that affect our planet,
but there is a God who controls whether and when
they strike mankind.
They remind us that we are not nearly as much
in control of our lives as we sometimes think we are.
People who pay little attention to God, cry out
to Him for help when they are knocked off their feet
in an earthquake.
Our resource, Acts of God: Why Natural Disasters?
explains why God allows these forces to afflict mankind.
And it can be yours free of charge.
All you have to do is pick up the phone and call the
toll free number shown on your screen, or go to our
website TWTV.org/Disasters to receive your free copy of
Acts of God: Why Natural Disasters?
It's just that simple.
After this short break, I'll show you that the Bible
also gives good news on this subject for our future.
♪
For today's free offer call...
Or go to...
This clear and straight-forward resource
will help you understand this vital truth--
straight from the pages of the Bible.
If you're calling for the first time, you will also
receive a free annual subscription to Tomorrow's
World magazine.
Six inspiring issues discussing news, science,
and modern culture will help you make sense of
your world from a biblical perspective.
Call today and join millions around the world
who are turning to Tomorrow's World for
truth, prophecy, and hope in these confusing times.
Call now!
Or go to...
♪
So-called natural disasters have been a part of mankind's
experience from the beginning.
Some of these are the result of a dynamically changing planet.
Some are the result of time and chance upon humanity--
the result of our rejection of God.
But, as shown in the previous segment of this program,
there are great calamities in our future,
and those disasters will not be so "natural."
However, there is good news regarding the future.
There is coming a time when rain will come in due season,
when God will protect His creation from devastating
floods, hurricanes, earthquakes, and tornados.
Quoting from Acts of God: Why Natural Disasters?
Could God stop natural disasters?
Could He give adequate warnings so people could
get out of the way while He builds a new island or mountain?
Could He direct the wind to take a course away from His children?
The obvious answer to anyone who truly knows God is,
Of course He could!
Who created the dirt under our feet?
Who created the law of gravity, the strong force
and the weak force?
Cannot the God who created the universe and life on
this planet protect us?
So why do these things happen now?
Our resource continues:
Scientists understand that our universe did not always exist.
So how did it come to be?
We are so arrogant we conclude that it all happened by chance--
so God is allowing us to live in a world of chance.
The disasters that "time and chance" throw at us
should get our attention.
But sadly, our attention span is short.
But God will get our attention.
When we come to the end of our rope, Jesus Christ
will return to save us from ourselves, as explained in
Zechariah the 14th chapter, beginning in verse 4.
"And in that day His feet [the Messiah, that is,
Jesus Christ] will stand on the Mount of Olives, which
faces Jerusalem on the east.
And the Mount of Olives shall be split in two,
from east to west, making a very large valley;
half of the mountain shall move toward the north and
half of it toward the south."
Following that earthquake, a river of living waters
will flow both east and west from Jerusalem and
bring healing to today's polluted seas and rivers.
Ezekiel describes this river, obviously also a type of
God's healing spirit, flowing out to heal our damaged planet.
Ezekiel the 47th chapter, and in verse 8:
"Then he said to me: "This water flows toward the eastern
region, goes down into the valley, and enters the sea.
When it reaches the sea, its waters are healed.
And it shall be that every living thing that moves,
wherever the rivers go, will live.
There will be a very great multitude of fish, because
these waters go there; for they will be healed,
and everything will live wherever the river goes."
Isaiah describes a future time of climate change when today's
deserts and wildernesses will be transformed.
Notice it in Isaiah 35:6,
"For waters shall burst forth in the wilderness,
and streams in the desert.
The parched ground shall become a pool, and the
thirsty land springs of water; In the habitation
of jackals, where each lay, There shall be grass
with reeds and rushes."
Isaiah continues a few chapters later, Isaiah 41:18,
"I will open rivers in desolate heights, and
fountains in the midst of the valleys; I will make
the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land
springs of water.
I will plant in the wilderness the cedar
and the acacia tree, the myrtle and the oil tree;
I will set in the desert the cypress tree and the pine
And the box tree together, That they may see and know,
and consider and understand together, That the hand of
the Lord has done this, and the Holy One of Israel
has created it."
The God who created the universe and our tiny planet in it,
is more than capable of controlling the forces that
shape this earth.
He's given us time to prove to ourselves that
our ways do not work.
He's allowed us to live by time and chance to remind
us that we are not as high and mighty as we think,
but once He gets our attention, He will show us how things
could have been from the beginning if we had chosen
to trust in Him.
Be sure to order your free copy of Acts of God:
Why Natural Disasters?
and be sure to come back next week, when Richard Ames,
Wallace Smith, Rod McNair, and I explain the prophecies
of the Bible, proclaim the good news of Christ's coming
Kingdom, and help you understand the world
in which we live today.
See you next time.
♪
For today's free offer call...
Or go to...
Call today and join millions around the world
who are turning to Tomorrow's World for
truth, prophecy, and hope in these confusing times.
The preceding program is produced by the
Living Church of God.
♪