Attack on America
Making Biblical Sense of an American Tragedy
In the aftermath of the September 11 attacks on America by terrorists in which nearly 3000 died, people have responded in different ways. Shock, grief, anger, confusion, frustration – these are understandable emotions being expressed by Americans. Also, looming ever near the conversations of those seeking to cope are the questions concerning "Why?" Why did this happen? Where is God in it? Did He cause it? Did He allow it? Is this His judgment on America? What was His role? Where is He? Christians, in some cases are expressing opinions which, I fear, are more based on supposition than Scripture.
Introduction
I received the following forwarded email sometime last week. I was reluctant at first to use it or even send it to anyone else because I wasn't sure if it was authentic. There are so many stories flying around the Internet these days that simply have no truth to them that I've just about given up believing them. However, after I heard this mentioned on Fox News a couple of days ago, I took another look at it and decided to read it to you.(*) It is reportedly a note sent by someone who flew into Dulles Airport on September 15th, four days after the terrorist attacks in New York and Washington DC. I thought you might enjoy it. There is no name attached to the email. It reads:
"I just wanted to drop you all a note and let you know that I arrived safe and sound into Dulles Airport tonight [9/15] at about 6:00. It was an interesting flight.
"The airport in Denver was almost spooky, it was so empty and quiet. No one was in line for the security check point when I got there so that went fairly quickly, just x-ray of my bags and then a chemical test to be sure nothing explosive was on them.
"Then I waited 2 1/2 hours to board the plane. What happened after we boarded was interesting so I thought I would share it with you.
"The pilot/captain came on the loudspeaker after the doors were closed. His speech went like this:
'First I want to thank you for being brave enough to fly today. The doors are now closed and we have no help from the outside for any problems that might occur inside this plane. As you could tell when you checked in, the government has made some changes to increase security in the airports.
'They have not, however, made any rules about what happens after those doors close. Until they do that, we have made our own rules and I want to share them with you. Once those doors close, we only have each other. The security has taken care of a threat like guns with all of the increased scanning, etc. Then we have the supposed bomb. If you have a bomb, there is no need to tell me about it or anyone else on this plane; you are already in control.
'So, for this flight, there are no bombs that exist on this plane.
'Now, the threats that are left are things like plastics, wood, knives, and other weapons that can be made or things like that which can be used as weapons.
'Here is our plan and our rules. If someone or several people stand up and say they are hijacking this plane, I want you all to stand up together. Then take whatever you have available to you and throw it at them. Throw it at their faces and heads so they will have to raise their hands to protect themselves.
'The very best protection you have against knives are the pillows and blankets. Whoever is close to these people should then try to get a blanket over their head - then they won't be able to see. Once that is done, get them down and keep them there. Do not let them up. I will then land the plane at the closest place and we will take care of them. After all, there are usually only a few of them and we are 200+ strong! We will not allow them to take over this plane.
'I find it interesting that the US Constitution begins with the words We, the people - that's who we are, the people and we will not be defeated.'"
"With that, the passengers on the plane all began to applaud, people had tears in their eyes, and we began the trip toward the runway.
"The flight attendant then began the safety speech. One of the things she said is that we are all so busy and live our lives at such a fast pace. She asked that everyone turn to their neighbors on either side and introduce themselves, tell each other something about your families and children, show pictures, whatever. She said, 'For today, we consider you family. We will treat you as such and ask that you do the same with us.'
"Throughout the flight we learned that for the crew, this was their first flight since Tuesday's tragedies. It was a day that everyone leaned on each other and together everyone was stronger than any one person alone. It was quite an experience.
"You can imagine the feeling when that plane touched down at Dulles and we heard 'Welcome to Washington Dulles Airport where the local time is 5:40.' Again, the cabin was filled with applause."
Isn't it amazing some of the things that are happening in our nation? The flags - the patriotism - the cooperation even among politicians - these are things I have not seen at this magnitude in my lifetime. I've heard TV News stories of divorced or divorcing people getting back together and ambulance drivers finding that people are suddenly more willing to pull over for them. Reportedly, the fastest selling Halloween costumes at the moment are not ghosts and witches. They're firemen and policemen. We can only hope that such things will continue as our nation's shock wears off.
In the aftermath of the September 11 attacks on America by terrorists in which approximately 3000 died, people have responded in different ways. Shock, grief, anger, confusion, frustration – these are understandable emotions being expressed by Americans. Also, looming ever near the conversations of those seeking to cope are the questions concerning "Why?" Why did this happen? Where is God in it? Did He cause it? Did He allow it? Is this His judgment on America? What was His role? Where is He? Christians, in some cases are expressing opinions which, I fear, are more based on supposition than Scripture.
In this message I will pose a few of the more obvious questions I've heard and try to respond to them from a Biblical perspective. The first question is an obvious one and perhaps one you have also considered.
1. Is This Terrorist Act the Judgment of God on America?
Some have said emphatically that the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon are God’s judgment on those segments of our population that practice things that God disapproves. Statements to that extent have been made both privately and publicly. It may be that God is bringing judgment on America for the evil her citizens produce and tolerate. We know He has dealt with sinners and nations this way before. Having said that however, I urge caution before affirming that we know for sure that this incident is God’s specific judgment.
It is true that there have been some terrible things taking place in America today – things that God calls sin which will, if not now, surely at the Great Judgment, incur His wrath. It is also true that God executes judgment on nations for their wickedness when it becomes too blatant. We know that He uses both the righteous and the wicked to render such judgment. He may also use what might be referred to as "natural" means, such as earthquakes and floods. However, it is also true that sometimes He forestalls judgment on the basis of reasons that are His and His alone.(1) We are not always privy to these reasons. He is beholden to no man. He does things after the counsel of His will, not ours. Our saying something is true of Him does not make it true.
The reason we cannot speak with certainty as to the exact nature of God's role in this tragedy is that we are missing something. What we lack today in making such assessments is direct revelation. In the cases of such judgment in the Old Testament, God interpreted His intentions by sending prophets to explain what was happening. There could be no misinterpretation of His meaning or intent among people willing to listen. We do not have living prophets today in the sense that they reveal truth beyond what has already been revealed in the written word of God.(2) What we have to go on is only what we can see that God has done in the past, as described by the Bible.
"Well," someone says, "It’s pretty obvious to me. If God allows it to happen, He must be doing so to get back at those He is angry with."
If you think that way, I encourage you to slow down for just a moment and think. Are calamity and tragedy that fall onto human beings always sure indications of God’s judgment on their recipients?
 | Many dedicated Christians were put to death in the first century of the church for no other reason than that they would not recant their faith in Christ. The tragedy was very real. Yet, surely we don’t believe their affliction meant that God was executing judgment on them! |
| Saul of Tarsus persecuted innocent Christian people before his own conversion.(3) With the zeal of a religious fanatic, he testified in court in such a way that some of them were put to death. God allowed it to happen. Was this calamity the result of God’s judgment on them? I can’t imagine anyone saying it was. |
| Job’s "friends" insisted that the tragic events of his life were God’s judgment against him for some as yet unseen sin or sins. Yet they were wrong. The Bible declares that Job was a righteous man.(4) |
| The man born blind in John 9 was considered to be either a great sinner or the son of great sinners by the Jesus’ disciples. Yet Jesus informed them that sin had nothing to do with his tragic condition.(5) |
| Perhaps the greatest injustice ever perpetrated by evil people against the innocent was the crucifixion of Jesus. Though He had done nothing wrong, he was falsely accused, viciously mistreated, and murdered. God the Father did not intervene to stop it. Does this mean that God was bringing judgment upon Jesus? |
You see, interpreting circumstances in the things happening around us in order to ascertain God’s specific will, beyond what is revealed in the Bible, can be misleading. Yes, God is active in the affairs of men and women and nations today. He has a purpose in allowing tragedy to take place. That purpose could be judgment to a greater or lesser degree. Certainly there are things in our nation that seem to deserve it. We probably will not fully realize God's purpose in these things though, until we can look back at this from the perspective of history and more likely until we can look back with the perspective of eternity.
God sometimes brings judgment on nations by calamity and by allowing their enemies to attack them. But there are other possibilities. God also allows hardship to come to the lives of righteous people in order to bring fruit in their lives.
David speaks of this effect in Psalm 119:67:
"Before I was afflicted I went astray,
But now I keep Your word.
This is called "discipline" or "chastisement" in Hebrews 12:3-10. God also allows wickedness to exist and have some freedom of expression to remind us that there are always consequences for the way in which we utilize our own freedom of choice. I refer to the principle of reaping and sowing in Galatians 6:7-8. We simply do not have enough information to say with certainty, which one of these, or combination of these, is operating at this point.
The proper response is to learn whatever lessons it teaches us and allow it to draw us closer to God. We can't go wrong with that approach. We do not have to be able to articulate the "why" and "wherefore" in order for tragedy to produce positive results in us. And if God is judging wicked people, He certainly has the ability to make it clear if He chooses to do so. If this was God's judgment, we need to repent of evil. If this was not God's judgment, we need to repent of evil.
Another question being asked a lot these days is this:
2. Does this Terrorist Attack on America Signal Something Specific in End-time Prophecy or the Imminent Return of Christ?
I’m sure that popular end-times authors are working overtime right now to come out with a new wave of books in which they offer a waiting, wallets-open, American public their confident assessments that this incident is a sign that the end is near. They did it at the beginning of World War II. They did it during the Cuban Missile Crisis. They did it during the Iranian Hostage Crisis. They did it at the beginning of the Gulf War, as they have probably done it at the appearance of every major American crisis or tragedy. But you know, after you have been around a few times and seen these predictions come and go with the forecast events failing to materialize as promised, you begin to build up a bit of resistance to sleeping every night with your finger on the panic button.
Frankly, I find myself more than a little embarrassed at our tendency to interpret events from such an "America-centered" perspective – seemingly blind to the countries and peoples who suffer terrible calamity in other parts of the world. Huge earthquakes level whole cities and kill thousands of people somewhere else in the world and no one thinks, "End of time!" In no way intending to diminish the severity and devastation of our recent national suffering, I think we need to take a breath and get some perspective before we begin speaking of God’s plans for the world on the basis of our own interests. Great tragedy has struck our nation, yet great tragedy has also struck other nations in modern times. Yet we hear nary a "peep" from the end-times crowd about any of these.
Could these present tragedies signal a series of events leading to the end of time? Sure they could. Do they? No one knows. If the text of Matthew 24:36 has anything to do with the second coming of Christ, then we have the Bible’s verdict in these words: "But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone."
Then, just a few verses later, in verse 43 and 44 we read: "But be sure of this, that if the head of the house had known at what time of the night the thief was coming, he would not have allowed his house to be broken into. For this reason you also must be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will."
The parable of the ten virgins(6) makes it clear that we do not know when the bridegroom will come. We do know that some will be unprepared. Ours is to make sure we have enough oil in our spiritual "lamps" to last until He does, whether He comes early or He delays. We need to be so ready to meet Christ that we don’t have to worry about the hour of His return.
Should this wake us up to the reality of His return? Absolutely. But another wave of failed predictions, though it might cause some seemingly good momentarily results, ultimately discredits the cause of Christ in the minds of many. Falsehood always yields poor results in the end. We need to temper our words.
3. Can We Still Believe that God is Good if We Conclude that He Allowed this Tragedy to Happen?
Where was God at 8:42 A.M. EST on 9-11-01 when the attacks came? Was He there? Did He know what was going to happen? If He did, then why didn’t He stop it? Is He powerless to stop such things? If He has the power to stop them, why didn’t He? Is He really as "good" as He’s cracked up to be?
People in America have been asking questions like these perhaps more in the past two weeks than they have in the last two decades.
That God knew this was going to happen is something shown clearly in the Bible in more passages than I have time to read here. God knows everything that is going to happen. Isaiah 46:9-10 is a good representative passage:
"For I am God, and there is no other;
I am God, and there is no one like Me,
Declaring the end from the beginning
And from ancient times things which have not been done…"God has known everything that is going to happen since the beginning of time. He knew things in ancient times that have only recently happened.
As for God’s complete power and control over everything that happens, a representative passage might be Job 42:2 where Job says in a conversation with God Himself:
"I know that You can do all things,
And that no purpose of Yours can be thwarted." (NASU)Four verses later God says that Job’s assessment is correct.(7)
Jesus said nearly the same thing as recorded in Matthew 19:26:
"…with God all things are possible."
If God is all knowing, then He knew this was going happen. If He is all-powerful, He could have stopped it. Yet He didn’t. Does this mean that God isn’t good?
Before we render a hasty verdict on the Almighty, we ought to use some common sense about what we call "good."
Which of the following would we consider the "good" parent: One who shields his child from all hurt, intervening every time there is the slightest possibility of pain, never causing any disciplinary pain, or one who occasionally allows or even causes pain in order that the child may grow up to be a responsible adult? Which would we consider a "good" teacher, one who never expected anything hard or unpleasant from her students and never gave them a failing grade for laziness, or one who put them through the difficult and unpleasant disciplines of learning? Which would be the best training for preparation for the rigors of battle: having the soldiers sit around the barracks all day, spared any of the pain of physical conditioning or training that taxes both body and mind to the limit? In all of these examples, I’m not claiming to know the intimate mind of God in all that He does. Nor am I trying to trivialize a very serious event. I’m simply suggesting that there are rational explanations for allowing pain and suffering other than declaring that the one that has the power to stop it isn't good. This is probably most difficult to see when we’re in the midst of pain, but we dare not allow our hurt to cloud our ability to reason.
Speaking of the pain sometimes involved in things like this, the writer of Hebrews explained in Hebrews 12:11: "All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness."
I have already stated that I do not know God’s specific purpose in the tragedy that has come upon our nation. I don’t believe any mortal does know specifically. I do know and trust, however, that God is, all at the same time, all-knowing, all-powerful, and all-good.
Perhaps the closest thing to a statement about God’s perspective versus ours in this area is Genesis 50:20. The context is Joseph’s observation after years of difficulty that began when his brothers mistreated him, dumped him into a pit, and sold him into slavery in a foreign country. It was certainly a great personal tragedy. Yet he said to his brothers 23 years later, after he had time to consider what had happened in a historical context:
"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."
When people ask us, we need to be ready to give an account of the hope that is in us, our hope that is placed in God through Christ. We just need to make sure that in doing so, we don't go beyond what is written.(8)
Conclusion
Let me close with three things that we understand better today than we did during the first week of September:
- There is evil in this world that can touch our lives just as it does the lives of people in other lands. We are not exempt or invulnerable. Thus we are more mindful of our own mortality.
- Our nation does yet maintain some remembrance of God, as was evidenced in the many calls for prayer that we have heard. Even the most ungodly of our politicians had to at least mouth the words, "Our prayers are with you," over these last several weeks. There is, apparently, still opportunity for the truth to find a lodging place among our neighbors and friends if we will use our opportunities to speak up.
- What our nation needs even more than a strong national defense and intelligence capability is a return to the godly values and the God on which it was founded.
Brash, unthinking, unbiblical statements of God's purposes, spoken so confidently when we don't really know, only complicate an already difficult picture.
May God grant us peace in the coming days - not only peaceful circumstances, but ultimately, that truth that brings peace with Him.
Footnotes: (Use your "back" button to return to your place.)
* For more information on this story, go to:
http://www.snopes2.com/rumors/pilot.htm
1. Genesis 15:16
2. 1 Corinthians 13:8-10: Ephesians 2:20
3. Acts 8:1-3
4. Job 1:8
5. John 9:1-3
6. Matthew 25:1-13
7. Job 42:7
8. 1 Corinthians 4:6
Dave Redick is Minister of the Hwy 20 Church of Christ in Sweet Home, Oregon and Editor of The Preacher's Study. He may be reached at pstudysupport@comcast.net.
Copyright © 1996-2008 by The Preacher's Study. Permission is granted to subscribers to use this document in total or in sermon preparation in the context of the local congregation only. Publishing it in a book, on the Internet, or anyplace beyond the local congregation is prohibited.
All Scripture quotations and references are from the New American Standard Version unless otherwise stated.
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