The Tsunami: Where are the people?

January 7, 2005: Touring the western coast of Sumatra, Indonesia, the Secretary-General of the United Nations in disbelief saw a devastated landscape. The tsunami had done its worst, and he had never seen anything like it. Where villages and towns once lined the coasts and thrived with human activity, they now appeared to be absolute wastelands. He said, “I have never seen such utter destruction, mile and mile. You wonder where are the people? What has happened to them?

The death toil escalated, with thousands still missing and unaccounted for. Tens of thousands have died, and many more were displaced and homeless. Many nations responded to help, but it will take years to clean up and to restore the Asian countries surrounding the Indian Ocean. The threats of disease and epidemics lurk, and many people have simply lost their reasons for living. Their communities and life as they knew it no longer exist.

The War: Where is God?

At World War II concentration camps, the Nazis planned to completely intimidate, demoralize, and obliterate the Jewish prisoners. At one camp, soldiers tortured and hung a young boy in public, and required all the camp prisoners to walk past and look at the dead body.

As the prisoners milled on, one woman kept lamenting “Where is God? Where is God?” Another person finally answered her “He is hanging there!”

In all, six million Jews were killed during World War II. Many people, including the Jews, have questioned the existence of God. If He exists, how could He possibly neglect. His people? Why did He not stop Hitler?

God is not dead. Jesus Christ stands alone, among all the possible solutions, religions and gods of this world, as the Only One who has experienced suffering and death with us and for us. He alone has the right to say to each person: “I love you, I know what you are going through. I too have experience horrible pain, violence, and death. I came to conquer death and to tell you God cares.

The Empty Tomb: Where is my Lord?

Jesus Christ, the Son of God was crucified and died a humiliating death on the Cross at Calvary. This was His mission, that He would give His life for the sins of the world. His disciples however were completely dejected at His crucifixion. Many ran away. Mary Magdalene, came looking for His body and she stood outside the empty tomb weeping. She could not find His body, and probably wondered “Where is my Lord?” “Where is His body?” Jesus who had already risen from the dead, called her by name, and talked to her. Excited and exhilarated, she ran to tell the other disciples, “I have seen the Lord.”

In resurrecting from the dead, He demonstrated that “all things were created by Him and for Him” (Col. 1:16), and rightly claimed His position “far above all rule and authority, power and dominion” (Eph. 1:21). We may not understand everything that happens in this world (So who does?), and we can boldly affirm that “He’s got the whole world in His hands.”

The Gospel Response Christians must truly care about this world. We cannot fold our arms and just watch the news. We must pray unceasingly. We must give sacrificially and support relief efforts, and many Christians have traveled to the tsunami hit areas to help.

But we must not be naïve to think this is the worst disaster, natural or otherwise, that can ever happen. We must not assume that the hope of humanity lies in relief agencies, international cooperation, or governmental intervention. Even if we solve the tsunami problem, the threats of large scale terrorism, war, horrendous criminal violence in daily life, diseases and other pestilences will still plague every society.

The Gospel is a simple message: “God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). This power of the message does not change or weaken with time or each disaster. Instead, it is reinforced by every human crisis because the Gospel is also a realistic message. It acknowledges the presence of suffering and evil, and the constant threat of insecurity in this world. Jesus came for these very reasons!

The next time you say to someone “God loves you, Jesus Christ died for you, He will save you”, say it with greater confidence. Because there is nothing else that brings eternal hope to humanity.

(David Y. Wu, Ph.D., is the Director of Library at China Bible Seminary in Hong Kong.)