A week before the February 2009 Bushfires (Australia’s worst recorded natural disaster), fire-fighters were control-burning bushland trying to prevent the sort of tragedy that would soon follow. At the time, something very unusual happened – a koala, driven to extreme thirst, allowed a fireman to approach and accepted a drink of life-saving water. The incident was filmed and shown around the world.
Since the fall of mankind from perfect environment, the world has been greatly corrupted. Between the devil’s tyrannical ruler-ship and self-centered human freewill, the planet has become a place of wars, sickness and suffering. Sadly, we are born into a sinful world that is far from the original design of our loving Creator. However, when disaster occurs, we naturally question why God allows it to happen. God knows of all events beforehand and, because of this, He is consciously aware that a greater disaster (Hell) is heading towards those who have not accepted His ‘gift of salvation’.
God does not want anyone to perish. As proof of this, He took on the form of a man (through Jesus Christ) and paid the complete penalty for all sins on the cross – so that whoever believes in Him will receive eternal-life (John 3:16).
However, God also gave people free-will and does not force anyone to accept His gift. Consequently, the greatest of all disasters is to reject the ‘gift of eternal salvation’.
God does not desire any to suffer in life and He grieves at the terrible loss, yet He sometimes allows disasters to take their course so masses of people wake-up to their mortality and start seeking spiritual answers. Only during such times of dire hopelessness do many people allow God to approach and accept His life-giving ‘waters’ of eternal salvation.
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:23