Q&A: Why Does God Allow Natural Disasters

Question: Why does God cause or allow natural disasters to kill so many people each year? Why doesn’t He step in and stop hurricanes and floods?

First, God does not create natural disasters nor does He inflict harm on people both good and bad.

God created the earth as a home for His crowning creation, mankind (Genesis 1:26-28). Scripture tells us in Genesis that at the time of Adam and Eve, the Land of Eden was peaceful and temperate. There was no rainfall as the plants were supplied water due to exceptionally high ground water levels (Geness2:6).          Animal life was supplied water by way of springs that created streams, ponds and rivers. Because there was little temperature fluctuation both day and night, Adam and Eve did not need protective clothing (Genesis 2:25). And, because the earth was not at its current 23 degree tilt, the entire planet was kept at a steady pleasant sub-tropical temperature day and night. In other words, the atmosphere was perfect for the perfect first people of God. On an interesting note, paleontologists have found the fossil remains of both ancient and more modern plants and animals under the North and South poles.

Then Adam and Eve made the conscious decision that they wanted to be like God (Genesis 3:5). They ate the one forbidden fruit expecting to become like god through knowledge. By intentionally rebelling, they sinned and they pushed God away. However, God did not give up on mankind. In fact, He had a plan in place to redeem them. But He also needed to discipline His petulant children. So, before He banished them from the Garden paradise He had prepared for them, He gave them a simple sacrificial worship system to follow (Genesis 3:21). This was a shadow prophecy of the actual self-sacrifice the world’s future Messiah would make on their behalf. Until then, His system was freely available for those who had faith in their Creator and were looking for a way to redeem themselves from the sins they constantly committed against Him. Next, He took the skins of the sacrifices and showed Adam and Eve how to make clothing and build structures to protect themselves from coming weather fluctuations. He then instructed them how to farm and animal husbandry (Genesis 4:2-4). On an interesting note, some Jewish scholars believe God allowed them to remain in the Garden until Eve gave birth to her twins, Cain and Able. In this way, God graciously showed them how to deliver children.

God also told Adam that, because he had willingly broken their Adamic Covenant, he would now have to perform manual labor in order to provide the food that God had once freely given to him (Genesis 3:19). So, while the Garden of Eden was a microclimate designed exclusively for Adam and his descendants, this tranquility would not exist in the world outside of the Garden. The world that Adam would now find himself in was both beautiful and bountiful while at the same time rugged, uncultured and subject to uncomfortable climate variations. And while God did not cause unusually intemperate weather to further punish Adam, He did not step in to stop the Laws of Nature that were in effect in the greater world outside Eden where Adam once comfortable lived.

Adam came to realize that the earth was a large and dynamic organism. But the earth did not yet have the change of seasons and the more violent weather systems that they would create. This was because the earth would not receive its 23 degree tilt until the Flood of Noah. It was then that man had to deal with seasons and dramatic changes in weather patterns such as heatwaves and snow, droughts, flooding, plate tectonics causing earthquakes and occasional volcanic eruptions. It was also at that time that God gave mankind permission to organize governments, create laws that included the death penalty for premeditated murder, and permission to kill animals as a way to provide the protein necessary for strong brain function (Genesis 9:3-6).

So, today we see a God who loves mankind and has developed a plan for them to receive immortality and eternal life after death. But He also allows a certain amount of naturally occurring weather patterns to remind mankind that they continue to keep him at arm’s length. God wants to bring mankind back to the peace and safety of an Eden like earth. But mankind has made it clear that they do not want to experience this idyllic state of being if it means losing control of one’s own destiny. Thus, God allows nature to reflect the consequences that sin has on all creation. And Scripture tells us that creation groans under the weight of sin and waits in eager anticipation for the earth and mankind’s Messiah to once again be revealed (Romans 8:18-23). The deeper humanity continues to fall into sin, the more sin has an effect on all creation. Sin is the base cause for disasters, diseases, suffering and death. These cause and effects did not exist before Adam rebelled and sin came into the world.

That said, disasters do sometimes cause spectators and survivors to consider what happens after death. Churches are often filled after tragedies occur. Some people pray for survivors while others pray to be spared this same type misery. Also, miracles are always recorded in times of disasters. Disasters force some people to stop and reevaluate their priorities in life. God can and does step into the world in order to bring great good out of tragedy (Romans 8:28). Yet more recent disasters appear to be naturally brought about by mankind’s disrespect for the earth's plants, animals and atmosphere.

Today there are 120+ armed conflicts occurring every day in the world. There is also the ongoing effects that manmade pollution has on the quality of life on earth. The oceans are becoming more polluted, overfished, and acidification is causing a decline in marine life and the loss of coral reefs worldwide. The mass harvesting of ancient forests for wood and farm land is causing more carbon pollution and greenhouse gasses to build up thus trapping in the heat from the sun. This is growing the world’s deserts and causing arable land to become more and scarce due to severe droughts and flooding. Still mankind refuses to repent and turn to God. Instead they seek to invent ways to correct the problems that they have brought on themselves in the name of progress.

We can take solace in the fact that for the past six thousand years, the earth has experienced very few major natural disasters that could have taken tens of millions of lives. There have also been hardly any global disasters, excluding the 1918 flu pandemic which took the lives of 21 million people. However, mankind has created any number of human disasters of epic proportions. For example, in c.1200 A.D. Genghis Khan executed over 40 million people during his reign as emperor. World War I killed 28 million people, and WW II killed approximately 78 million. Joseph Stalin is credited with killing almost 20 million of his own people for political purposes. Pol Pot, a Cambodian dictator, executed 2 million of his people between 1975 and 1979. China executed over 65 million people during its social revolution. Thus, the death tolls caused by natural disasters pale in comparison to man’s inhumanity to his fellow men.

However, the time is fast approaching when the earth and the governmental systems of mankind will all suddenly fail. This will occur during the time of the Great Tribulation Period (Matthew 24:21). It will be at this moment in history that God will systematically bring to a close the Age of Rule of Mankind on earth. To accomplish this, Christ will return back to the earth along with His followers who were Raptured away seven years earlier (Revelation 19:11-16). Christ will instantly destroy all unrepentant people and put in place a godly government of peace and prosperity for the next one thousand years. During that time, mankind will experience the rest and longevity that God originally designed for them (Genesis 2:2). The earth will still have seasons, but they will be very mild. The earth will be regularly watered from pole to pole. People will live for many hundreds of years only to be transformed to a state of immortality at the end of their natural lives (Isaiah 65:20).

People will no longer work, but instead be assigned meaningful tasks that they are naturally well-suited for and will enjoy performing as it was with Adam in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 2:15). Homes, food, clothing and good health will all be provided during the Kingdom Age. Christ, through the power of the Holy Spirit, may provide for all needs. Then again, mankind may be encouraged to make use of advanced AI programs. These programs could provide dramatic medical breakthroughs which would lead to healthier and more enjoyable lives. AI may also provide advanced robotics to assist mankind with all manner of domestic chores including fully automated manufacturing systems. These systems could produce a wide variety of human necessities such as housing, household goods, clothing and food preparation. Systems could also be designed to perform mechanized farming to include plowing, planting, harvesting, processing, packaging and delivery. And all these systems would be powered by pollution free sources using only wind, sunlight and water. The earth will become mankind’s garden playground with abundant time to spend with family, friends and travel. There will also be an increase in personal knowledge on every subject from creation, faith and interpersonal relationships, to God’s future plans for mankind after the Millennial Reign of Christ on earth ends.

In the meantime, we must have faith in God that He has a much better plan in store for us than we have for ourselves. We must understand that the earth, according to Scripture, is temporarily in enemy territory and going through phases both physically and spiritually that will only get worse before they get better (Ephesians 2:3; John 12:31; 14:30; 16:11). However, Scripture is clear that God is loving and caring. He is looking out for all believers and they will be greatly rewarded for keeping their faith in Him during good times and bad. While God does not cause bad events to happen to a person, He does intensely watch to see how a person copes with these situations. And He regularly turns these seemingly bad situations into advantages. One’s faith in God should never waver in times of sickness, natural disasters and wars.

In short, if one keeps the faith, God will in turn keep His promise. This is a plan you can bet your eternal life on. And knowing this, one should always look past all momentary downturns, and instead keep their eye on the promises of God their loving Creator.