September 16, 2001   •  Pastor Randy Smith

One of the benefits of expository preaching through a book in the Bible is that we have the opportunity to cover the whole council of God. Over time we can broach every theme and topic in the Scriptures. For this reason, I rarely veer off from the scheduled topics. However, in prayer for this week’s message, I chose to make an exception.

Our world, our nation, our state, our community, our church still mourns over the horrific news we received early Tuesday morning. We huddled around television sets much like the American pioneers did around a campfire to hear the event unfolding, to grieve in disbelief, to separate truth from fiction. In shock we learned how countless, innocent lives were lost at the hands of suicidal madmen. We watched as the death toll increased, we wondered about the fate of those whom we know. Even some of us here this morning have lost or are still missing loved ones through a local tragedy that occurred less than 100 miles away. We as brothers and sisters mourn alongside you as does the rest of the world.

To be unaffected and unmoved by these events is to be inhuman. Anger, compassion, helplessness, disbelief, shock, grief, anxiety, fear…these are human emotions! I’m sure you experienced these emotions, possibly all of these emotions. But, I ask you, how would God want you to respond in a situation such as this? How should you understand these tragic events from a biblical perspective? Your answer to that question is of utmost importance. Do you have an answer?

Rarely have I ever seen the secular world turn to "God" as they have the past 5 days. Due to the intensity, our world has been brought to a state of desperation. People are publicly calling upon God in unprecedented ways. But is our society responding to God in a biblical and honoring way? Has your mind responded to God in a biblical and honoring way? Specifically, here’s where I’d like to go this morning. (FIRST PART) How does our understanding of Scripture interpret God’s actions in these events and then, (SECOND PART) how does our understanding of Scripture interpret God’s will for humans in these events. So biblically, how does man view God and how does God view man. We cannot process as does the world or Peter Jennings or does the 11:00 news with the indwelling Spirit and mind of Christ. We must think and respond biblically! Therefore, I’ve entitled this message…"A Biblical Response to Sept 11 or 9-11"

In the midst of tragedy, it is expected for humans to turn to God. God uses these events to enable His creatures to seek Him for comfort, healing and ultimately reconciliation with their Creator. I think of those dark times during the period of the Judges. The Scriptures say that Israel did not serve their God, whereas His anger burned against Israel and He sold them into the hands of the Philistines. For 18 years they fought against Israel. But in Judges 10:10 we read, "Then the sons of Israel cried out to the LORD, saying, ‘We have sinned against Thee, for indeed, we have forsaken our God and served the Baals.’" Like Israel, in times of desperation, our nation turns to God. But is it lasting? Is it sincere? Is it honoring to our Creator? Or will it be like Israel, who soon would turn away once the peace is restored?

Unfortunately, many who turn to God either turn to Him in anger or ways that are dishonoring to His character. I immediately think of two particular comments that always seem to surface during these times. Why does God allow bad things to happen to good people? Questioning God’s wisdom and holiness. And/or how could a good God allow these events to transpire? Questioning God’s sovereignty and goodness.

I’m thankful that nobody in this church dishonored God by asking such blasphemous questions. Nevertheless, maybe these thoughts have crossed your minds. The problem with such thinking is that these questions misunderstand the character of God and the nature of man. A better question would be: Why does God allow good things to happen to bad people? Or, why does a good God strive any longer with man? Or, why does man think his definition of good is better than God’s? Or, why does man expect God to play the game according to man’s rules? Or, why does man think his way is superior to God’s way?

Instead of realizing that God has created man in His image, humans have created a god in their image. Their god, like man, is weak, unloving and foolish. He winks at sin and promises everyone a happy life with heaven at the end of the road. Their daily events are left to chance, luck or blind fate-until tragedy hits; then the god they created and ignored is blamed for no longer operating by the rules they’ve ordained. It is a contradiction to blame a god who governs by chance for any discomfort in your life. It is a contradiction to expect a god of chance to work things together for good in your life.

Rather, we accept a God who has purposed events to come to pass from all eternity. Sovereignly, He exercises His will in concurrence with the free will he has given to man. Though man conducts his business, God’s plan cannot be foiled or frustrated, as all events are working together for His glory and the good of His children.

Respected theologian Don Fortner once said, "As a wise, skilled pharmacist mixes medicine, our heavenly Father wisely mixes exactly the right measure of bitter things and sweet, to do us good. Too much joy would intoxicate us. Too much misery would drive us to despair. Too much sorrow would crush us. Too much suffering would break our spirits. Too much pleasure would ruin us. Too much defeat would discourage us. Too much success would puff us up. Too much failure would keep us from doing anything. Too much criticism would harden us. Too much praise would exalt us. Our great God knows exactly what we need. His Providence is wisely designed and sovereignly sent for our good!"

In accepting a sovereign and loving God, who defines "good" in divine realities, we are able to find the comfort and hope we need it difficult times as such. We are able to praise Him for the countless lives that were spared, by people coming to work at the World Trade Center late on September 11.

We are able to praise Him for those who were detained and missed their flights out of Boston, Washington and Newark. We are able to praise Him for the largely unpopulated section of the Pentagon that was demolished.

But, what does my theology do with the hundreds who were killed as they tried to rescue the injured? What about the vilest heathen who emerged from the carnage unscathed, as compared to the law-abiding churchgoer who was permanently unable to pick up her children from school that afternoon? What about the Petersons of Spring Lake, a godly couple from Community Baptist Church who were bumped ahead on their flight only to meet their Maker in a field somewhere in Pennsylvania?

Oh how we love to give thanks (and rightly should), but for every near miss, there was a near hit. How do we respond to that? Was God in control? Yes! Could God have prevented those accidents from happening? Yes! Does God love humans, especially His children for whom Christ died? YES!

My Bible says in 1 Thes. 5:18, "In everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." But how can I give thanks? Because we know that God is perfect in wisdom, goodness and omnipotence. He is too wise to err, too good to do wrong, and too strong to fail. Fortner again said, "Let Him therefore send and do what He will. By His grace, if we are His, we will face it, bow to it, accept it, and give thanks for it. God's Providence is always executed in the 'wisest manner' possible. We are often unable to see and understand the reasons and causes for specific events in our lives, in the lives of others, or in the history of the world. But our lack of understanding does not prevent us from believing God."

It is through times like these that our faith in God is most tested. We learn that faith in national security or steel-enforced skyscrapers is futile. We learn to put all of our faith in God as the sole source of our hope, knowing that He is good, that He is loving and that He is wise. And this good, loving and wise God operates in a sphere well beyond our finite human comprehension to achieve a perfect plan and purpose.

We saw that in the life of Joseph. He was almost killed and then sold into slavery by his own brothers. But in the end he exclaimed, "And as for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive" (Gen 50:20). We saw that in the life of Job. He was stripped of all his children and possessions, stricken with painful boils. But in the end he exclaimed, "I know that Thou canst do all things, And that no purpose of Thine can be thwarted. Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge? Therefore I have declared that which I did not understand, Things too wonderful for me, which I did not know" (Job 42:2-3). Ultimately we saw it in the life of Christ. He was the sinless Man who terribly suffered at the hands sinners. But in the end the Scriptures exclaim, "this Man, delivered up by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death" (Ac. 2:23). "Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and to enter into His glory" (Lk 24:26)? Philip Yancy said, "The same tears that break our hearts may also nourish us in ways that matter most to God."

Let me be clear, evil is never good. Though God always brings good from the evil, evil is always evil. Evil brings pain and sadness and death. God in His justice will account for all wickedness. But God in His sovereignty uses evil to accomplish his purposes, often in a way we don’t understand, but nevertheless must trust.

"For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Neither are your ways My ways," declares the LORD. "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts" (Isa. 55:8-9). "For who has known the mind of the Lord, that he should instruct Him" (1 Cor. 2:16)? "Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways! For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who became His counselor? Or who has first given to Him that it might be paid back to him again? For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen" (Rom. 11:33-36).

Just two and a half years ago we saw God glorified through Littleton. By faith we know that this tragedy will produce the same results, both those that are seen and unseen by the human eye.

In a nutshell, we are not in any position to question God. Romans 9:20 says, "On the contrary, who are you, O man, who answers back to God? The thing molded will not say to the molder, ‘Why did you make me like this,’ will it?" We do not judge God, rather God judges us. Human beings need to quit pointing so many fingers at God and begin pointing a few at themselves.

So often man questions God’s goodness and love and wisdom. Who do we think we are to put God on trial? Why God? It isn’t fair? Don’t you love me? He gives humans rain and food and sunsets and oceans and good night’s sleep and families and houses and health, and they ignore Him all the way. But the moment adversity comes, they have the audacity to cry out, "Where are you God?"

The other cry echoes loud, these past few days, "God bless America!" Why should He? We’ve plainly told Him that He is not welcome in our public schools or courtrooms. I think of that controversial prayer from that minister in Kansas before the Senate who said, "Heavenly Father, we come before you today to ask Your forgiveness and to ask Your direction and guidance. We know Your Word says, Woe to those who call evil good but that is exactly what we have done. We have lost our spiritual equilibrium and reversed our values. We confess that we have ridiculed the absolute truth of Your Word and called it Pluralism. We have worshiped other gods and called it multiculturalism. We have endorsed perversion and called it alternative lifestyle. We have exploited the poor and called it the lottery. We have rewarded laziness and called it welfare. We have killed our unborn and called it choice. We have shot abortionists and called it justifiable. We have neglected to discipline our children and called it building self-esteem. We have abused power and called it political. We have coveted our neighbors’ possessions and called it ambition. We have polluted the air with profanity and pornography and called it freedom of statement. We have ridiculed the time-honored values of our forefathers and called it enlightenment." We hear this and then listen to the general public say, "God bless America???"

It reminds me of the plaque I saw recently at the Southernmost Point in Key West, Florida. The insignia read, "God Bless America." However someone chiseled out the word "God" so the in now read, "Bless America." That’s what we want! We want the blessings, but we don’t want the God!

For a moment let’s take the topic of prayer. We pray for the rescue workers, we pray for the injured, we pray for more to be discovered alive under the rubble, we pray for the families/friends who lost loved ones, we pray for the strength of our nation, we pray for our government and the decisions they will be forced to make, we pray for future peace, we pray, we pray, we pray. These are all vital issues demanding prayer, most of them obvious because even the unbelievers are asking for prayer in these areas. The problem with these prayers as an end to themselves is that they are all man-centered. Remember when Jesus rebuked Peter for only seeing things from man’s perspective? "Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God's interests, but man's" (Mt. 16:23).

Please don’t misunderstand. We are concerned for fellow humankind, but our ultimate concern is for the glory of God. Apart from God glorifying Himself through this event, I see this event without hope, purposeless and a ruthless act of fate. God does not expect us to see Him as One who uncontrollably or unlovingly allowed this event to come and then expect us to call upon Him as our divine medic or cosmic lifeguard to clean up the mess. Rather as Christians we are to pray that God would be glorified both in the world and in the church. Let’s look at both, first the world.

In addition to praying for the physical, we must pray for the spiritual. We must pray that human beings would understand the futility and brevity of life. "Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away" (James 4:14).

Octavius Winslow, a popular pastor of the 19^th century once said, "All is shadow here below! The world is a shadow; and it passes away! The creature is a shadow; and the loveliest and the fondest may be the first to die! Oh, yes! 'Passing Away' is indelibly inscribed upon everything here below! Yet how slow are we to realize the solemn lesson, what shadows we are, and what shadows we pursue!"

From the beginning of time humans have scoffed their Creator by spurning His existence, by thinking that this life is all that matters, and by thinking that time is on their side. "And (Jesus) told them a parable, saying, ‘The land of a certain rich man was very productive. And he began reasoning to himself saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no place to store my crops?’ And he said, ‘This is what I will do: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, ‘Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years to come; take your ease, eat, drink and be merry.’ But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own what you have prepared?’ So is the man who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God" (Lk. 12:16-21).

Man puts his faith in humanness. God wants us to put our faith in Him! It was Timothy McVeigh who left these final words before his execution, "'I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul." I’m sorry Mr. McVeigh, but you have no control over your soul and as we experienced recently, no control over your life. Death came for you like it comes to every human. Death laughed at your comments as you were executed by others against your will. Death scoffs at us as well in the worldly security in which we trust with such passion. Death scoffs at our military, at our FBI, at our medicine, at our security systems. Death is real. Death is certain. Humans need to realize that it may come sooner than they think, and when they die, they will face a just God who will send them either to heaven or hell based on what they did with His love offering of Jesus Christ. To some He will say, "Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world" (Mt. 25:34). But to the rest He will say, "Depart from Me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels" (Mt. 25:41).

Someone on Tuesday night at our prayer meeting commented that in seeing people dodging the flames in the Towers and attempting to jump to safety, reminded them of the torments unbelievers will suffer in hell. Unfortunately, the symbolic imagery is more realistic than we may care to believe. Many who jumped from the flames in the tower, jumped into the fires of hell the moment their bodies disintegrated on the concrete 100 stories below. You’ll never hear Ted Koppel give that perspective!

Oh do these events serve as a wake-up for the lost. They can deny God all they want when things are going well. However, there can be no denying the images that have been planted in their minds in viewing the repeated video footage of a jumbo jet smashing into the World Trade Towers, or Giuliani ordering 6,000 body bags. God wants them to wake-up. He wants them to realize that death is real, the eternity for their souls is unsettled and life without God is purposeless and disappointing. John MacArthur in commenting on the event said, "It’s the worst time in the history of the world to not know what your future is." It’s a good thing for the lost to be unsettled. I pray that people will seek their peace in God and not man. I pray that they will trust in God’s sovereignty and not America’s sovereignty. As Christians we need to take advantage of the opportunity to adequately minister in love and good deeds, ultimately presenting the Living God as the One to whom they must turn for meaning and hope. Larry Clark said, "God has removed the sting of death for each believer. I should save my sorrow for those without Christ and seek to win them." "It is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment" (Heb 9:27). "For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Rom. 6:23).

That’s how God can use these events to glorify Himself amongst the lost. Let’s take a moment to see how He can use these events to glorify Himself amongst the church. There can be no doubt that people respond differently in the midst of emergencies. In the past few days we experienced, great unity amongst our nation, great peace from those outside our borders, great prayer in light of the disaster, great encouragement for the workers, great urgency in responding to crisis and great faith that everything will resume as normal for our nation. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if this spirit could be sustained? Wouldn’t it be wonderful if such unity, peace, prayer, encouragement, urgency and faith could likewise characterize the church? It should and it can, but the problem for us is that we don’t see the spiritual emergency at hand.

A.W. Tozer once said, "Until that time the earth remains a disaster area and its inhabitants live in a state of extraordinary emergency. To me, it has always been difficult to understand those Christians who insist upon living in the crisis as if no crisis existed. They say they serve the Lord, but they divide their days so as to leave plenty of time to play and loaf and enjoy the pleasures of the world as well. They are at ease while the world burns!"

The Bible says that we are in constant spiritual warfare (Eph. 6). Every moment of every day is a battle. We have been created for these purposes. We are warriors! The Apostle Paul said, "Suffer hardship with me, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No soldier in active service entangles himself in the affairs of everyday life, so that he may please the one who enlisted him as a soldier" (2 Tim. 2:3-4).

We are created to battle. However, too often we find ourselves fighting the wrong enemy. Instead of waging war against the enemy for the glory of God (flesh, worldly philosophy, spiritual forces of darkness), we wage war against each other. You don’t have to be Norman Schwartzkopp to know that an army who wages war against itself will not stand victorious. Divisiveness plagues the church while the lost next door are dying and going to Hell. Do you think any trapped individual did not receive help because a hand of different color reached out to assist? Do you think rescue workers failed to work together because they had a difference of opinion at the station three months ago? Do you think money was really an issue when it came time to save lives? Do you think that anybody who had the means wouldn’t pitch in help despite any personal inconvenience?

The unbelieving community has humiliated the church! If the unbelievers called for unceasing prayer because of the emergency, how much more should the church call for unceasing prayer due to its emergency! If we can willingly volunteer to go overseas in the military to seek revenge, why can’t we walk across the street to share the gospel with our neighbor? If the hijackers had enough faith in their god to go through years of preparation and eventually lay down their lives, why do we struggle so much to get someone to watch our children downstairs once a month for an hour?

The politicians are almost prophetic; envision how these comments could equally apply to the church. "This battle will take time and resolve, but make no mistake about it, we will win" (President Bush). "An attack on one is an attack on all" (NATO Secretary-General Lord Robertson). "I believe it may take a lot of time, a lot of American treasure and perhaps some American blood" (Sen. John McCain). "This is a national crisis" (House Minority Leader Richard Gephardt). "I think everybody is so angry they want to hit somebody…but before we hit somebody, we need to know who that is" (Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle). "This will be a monumental struggle of good versus evil…good will prevail" (President Bush). "This is the new face of war...the invisible enemy can attack anywhere…without warning" (unknown author).

The Bible speaks likewise of the battle that the church undergoes. And if were not fighting each other, we’re asleep! We’re too busy deciphering Nostradamus codes or searching for satanic illusions in the smoke of the burning building. Tuesday’s event is also a wake-up call for the church!

Everybody in the church is running around angry. Some are angry at the hijackers. Some are angry at terrorism in general. Some are angry at our nations flawed security. There may be a place for righteous anger in some of these situations, but I have yet to hear anybody’s anger rightly channeled in the proper direction.

Many of the biblical writers experienced similar hardship, but I never see their disgust expressed in the same ways as we do ours. Take for example Paul. He had a lot to be angry about. One of the few times we see him angered was when he entered the city of Athens. He was not angered over evil people or his protection, but rather Acts 17:16 says, "his spirit was being provoked within him as he was beholding the city full of idols." Paul was driven to the most anger when he saw that his God was not being glorified in a way worthy of His nature. That is righteous anger! That is a man or woman whose heart is after God’s! Take Henry Martyn. That godly missionary to India watched people bowing down before their idols. Seeing those people prostrate before Hindu gods, Martyn said, "excited more horror in me than I can well express…I could not endure existence if Jesus was not glorified; it would be hell to me." A heart like this hates sin, but even more passionately hates to see God not receive the glory due His name by His creatures created for that purpose. God very bluntly refers to people as those "whom (He has) created for His glory" (Isa. 43:7).

As a church we must respond biblically. We must realize that we are in a state of spiritual emergency. We must fear God and not man. We must realize we belong to a heavenly kingdom, not an earthly one. We must exist as God’s ambassadors who exercise His attributes of love, compassion, justice and righteousness. "If then you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth" (Col. 3:1-2).

Oh that the Lord might use these event to wake up the lost and wake up the church. That people might realize that they are on trial and not God. That people would turn to Him in praise and adoration for being a God that is good, sovereign and loving and whose wise purposes cannot be thwarted even in the midst of calamity.