Cause of the Christchurch Earthquake (7) - Warning Event

The Christchurch earthquakes were a Warning Event. The Christian influence in New Zealand has declined rapidly in recent years, so it is too late for a Shaking Judgment. God’s authority has been squeezed out, so he has much less influence on what happens here. The earthquake was not sent by God, but it was a sign that we are now getting close to the tipping point. Those who can discern the times will understand that the forces of evil were showing off their recently gained authority.

The effects of the earthquake were constrained, because God still had sufficient authority in New Zealand to clip their wings. That is why no one was killed and few were seriously injured by the first earthquake. God limited its effects.
The number of deaths in the second earthquake was relative low given the huge damage to buildings. At 12.51pm when the quake struck, many city workers had gone out of their high rises to get their lunch.

Although many tourists were in the cathedral, before it collapsed, they all escaped. This is because God has more authority in the cathedral than elsewhere, due to the faith of the people controlling it and the many prayers offered there.

If Jesus were here, he would say that Christchurch is no more sinful than any other city in New Zealand, but if the people of this nation continue on the current path and do not turn back to God, the influence of evil will continue to expand until we cross the tipping point. The earthquake is a sign of what the forces of evil could do, if they get sufficient authority to have a free hand.

New Zealand is in the process of forgetting God. It is not that people are hostile, but more that they have lost interest, because being a Christian no longer seems like a very attractive option. Unfortunately, this gradual forgetting has a serious consequence. This world is engulfed in a spiritual war. When a society ignores God, it loses his protection and become vulnerable to evil attack. We have casually allowed evil to make a home in our society and the cracks in our foundations are now being exposed.

As more and more people choose to ignore God, his ability to protect us is being diminished. As the number of people of faith declines, the evil has greater freedom to work. There may still be sufficient residual faith in Christchurch to restrain the worst of evil, but, if the decline in faith continues, the last restraints on evil will gradually fall away.

This should not seem strange. When the prodigal son left his father’s house, he lost the provision of his father.

The younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything (Luke 15:13-16).

The prodigal son was in danger of starting to death, but he was not starving because his father was weak or bad. The father was still wealthy and he still loved his son, but he was powerless to help his son, because the son had freely chosen to leave his father’s house and had wasted the money that the father had given to him. He was responsible for his situation and could not blame his father. In the same way, when a city that shuts out God, it eventually loses his protection. It is not that God has lost his power or stops caring. He just cannot protection people who have rejected him and placed themselves outside the scope of his protection.

A man involved organising disaster relief noted that people are shocked that it could happen here. He said that his staff working round the world on disaster recovery see it as normal and suggested that we need to start seeing the world the same way. That raises a question. Why is disaster normal in other countries, but abnormal here. If we are losing God’s blessing and protection by rejecting him, then disaster could become normal here too. If that is the situation, we should be getting prepared.

Future Fulfilment
Being predictable and uncreative, the forces of evil will do more of the same when they get the chance. Unless there is a change in our spiritual situation, we can expect to see serious earthquakes striking in the night in other parts of New Zealand. However, there will be a big difference. If we cross the tipping point, God will no longer be able to restrain the principalities and powers. Fuller freedom will allow them to wreak far greater death and destruction.

I do not know when we will reach the tipping point. Spiritual climates change slowly, so it may be a number of years before we see this warning event fulfilled. Or the Church might rise up and cut off its fulfilment, by preaching the gospel in power. If the number of Christians increases significantly, God’s authority in New Zealand will be expanded, and the principalities and powers will be squeezed out. That is one of the purposes of Warning Events. By overstepping the mark, the powers of evil often stir up the church to push back against them.

Doubling
The second serious earthquake was a continuation of the previous warning event. The repetition of the earthquake is interesting. When interpreting warning dreams, Joseph said that the doubling of a dream means that its fulfilment is “certain and soon” (Gen 41:32). I presume that the same principle applies to Warning Events. The doubling of the earthquake emphasises the warning and confirms that we will be at the tipping point soon.

This full series is at Causes of Christchurch Earthquakes.