"If A Calamity Occurs In A City, Has Not The LORD Done It?" (Amos 3:6). September 11. Say those two words to nearly anyone in the civilized world and you need not say anything more. That day in 2001 is forever etched in the history of the world and in the minds of those who experienced it. It made a profound impact upon the hearts of multitudes of people, and few of us have been the same since. How can any of us ever forget the horror of seeing passenger airplanes crash into the World Trade Center? How can we ever forget the screaming of the bystanders as they witnessed the second plane crash into the South Tower? How can any of us forget the images of people jumping to their deaths to avoid the flames, or the images of the towers crashing to the ground while thousands of people were still inside? How can any of us forget the days that followed in which our hopes for the rescue of the victims were dashed, and in which we saw the tremendous grief of those who had lost loved ones? How hopeless we felt as all that we could do was watch in horror and sadness, being powerless to offer any help. Even now, when those images are replayed, they bring sorrow to our hearts and tears to our eyes.

Terrible tragedies in life such as September 11 perplex us. They challenge our reason and our ability to comprehend why things happen the way that they do. They challenge our understanding of God and His relation to the events of life. It has often been asked, “Why did God allow September 11 to happen?” “Where was God when those terrorists were hijacking the planes and driving them into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon?” “Why would God allow so many people to suffer such horrible deaths?” These questions are complex, and it is not stretching the truth to say that only God can fully comprehend the answers. Tragic events often surpass human understanding; their purposes fully answer only to God. Only God knows the complete implications of September 11. Only God knows how the course of history is shaped by such an event. Only God knows how He will use such a tragedy in the course of individual lives, individual nations, and the whole of humanity. But there are some general truths for all of us to consider in tragedies such as September 11. There are definite lessons that God would have us to learn. If we do not learn them, then events like September 11 are even more tragic, for not only do we endure the pain and sorrow of the event, but we also fail to receive the instruction that God intends. Let us, therefore, consider some lessons that God would have us to learn from September 11.

September 11 is a call to acknowledge the sovereign rule of God over the events of life. Some, in an attempt to defend the honor of God, have claimed that He was uninvolved in September 11. They have said that God could not possibly have any part in such a horrible event. Though their intentions may be honorable, the scriptures will not allow such an interpretation. In the book of Amos, we read, “If a calamity occurs in a city, has not the LORD done it?” (Amos 3:6). Contrary to a God who is uninvolved in tragedy, scripture presents a God who is completely sovereign over all things, even the worst of tragedies. Nothing escapes His purpose and plan. God says, “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, saying, ‘My purpose will be established, and I will accomplish all my good pleasure’” (Isaiah 46:9,10). Yes, God was on His throne on September 11, ruling over all things and bringing to pass all His good pleasure. “The LORD reigns; let the peoples tremble” (Psalm 99:1). He is God. Nothing is hidden from His sight; nothing happens apart from Him (Matt 10:29), for He “works all things according to the counsel of His will” (Ephesians 1:11). The nations are in His hands and he does with them according to His will. “Our God is in the heavens; He does whatever He pleases” (Psalm 115:3).

King Nebuchadnezzar, one of the greatest Kings to have ever lived, was humbled and removed from his throne by God. God did so to teach him that “the Most High is ruler over the realm of mankind, and He bestows it on whomever He wishes” (Daniel 4:32). When Nebuchadnezzar was restored, he bowed before God’s sovereignty, saying, “His dominion is an everlasting dominion, and His kingdom endures from generation to generation. And all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, but He does according to His will in the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and no one can ward off His hand or say to Him, ‘What hast Thou done?’” (Daniel 4:34,35). As Nebuchadnezzar, we are called to bow before the sovereign rule of God. We are called to see that He rules over the good and the evil. “Who is there who speaks and it comes to pass, unless the Lord has commanded it? Is it not from the mouth of the Most High that both good and ill go forth?” (Lam 3:37,38).

It must be emphasized that God’s sovereignty by no means makes Him the author of sin. We can say that it was the hands of sinful men that hijacked those planes and killed thousands. Those men were the direct cause of the tragedy and are completely accountable for their sinful actions. Contrary to their false ideology, they are now consciously tormented under the judgment of God (cf. Luke 16:19-24). But God’s sovereignty was ruling over them on September 11. Nothing that they could do would escape the plan and purpose of God; yes, rather than thwarting the plan of God, their sinful actions fulfilled it. All things work according to His sovereign will, and even sin, though not condoned or coerced by God, is used by God to accomplish His purposes. So it was in the death of Christ. It was the hands of sinful men that put Him to death. In the exercise of their rebellion against God, they falsely accused Him and crucified Him. Were their actions outside of the decree of God? No, the scripture says that Christ was “delivered up by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God” (Acts 2:23). They committed an act of the greatest evil in putting to death the innocent Son of God, but in so doing they fulfilled God’s predetermined purpose. So also Christ said of His betrayal by Judas, “The Son of Man goes just as it is written of Him; but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed!” (Matt 26:24). So also on September 11. Sinful men committed acts of inexcusable evil, but in so doing, they fulfilled God’s decree that it would be so. And as God had purposes in Christ’s death that were fully known to Him, so also He has purposes for September 11, at least one of which is to humble us before His rule. Let us, therefore, bow before the Lord of heaven and earth.

September 11 is a call to national repentance. Not all tragedies or threats against a nation indicate the displeasure of God. The people of God have often been under attack while doing what is good in His sight. It was after the faithful acts of Hezekiah that the Assyrians came up against Judah (2 Chronicles 32:1), and very often attacks come for no other reason than the wickedness of the nations. However, God has often brought calamity or the threat of calamity to nations that rebel against Him. God sent the prophet Jonah to threaten Nineveh with destruction for its wickedness (Jonah 3:1-4). He brought Assyria against the northern Kingdom of Israel, destroying the nation and bringing its people into captivity. Why? “Now this came about because the sons of Israel had sinned against the LORD their God” (2 Kings 17:7). In the same way, God brought the Babylonians against Judah, bringing the people that had been called His own into captivity and destroying the temple that bore His name. Why? -Because of their sins against Him. In the case of Judah, God brought that judgment against them by a nation more wicked than they (Habakkuk 1:5-13), showing us that God can make use of the most wicked of men and nations to execute His judgments. Nations once greatly blessed by God can lose His favor and protection, suffering His judgment because of their sin (Jeremiah 18:9-10). Therefore, when tragedy either threatens or befalls a nation, it is right for that nation to examine its ways and to repent of its sins against God.

God has often relented of judgment when He has seen repentance. After the preaching of Jonah, the King of Nineveh issued a proclamation, saying, “Let men call on God earnestly that each man may turn from his wicked way and from the violence which is in his hands. Who knows, God may turn and relent, and withdraw His burning anger so that we shall nor perish?” (Jonah 3:8,9). When God saw their repentance, He turned away from destroying Nineveh. While in captivity, Daniel prayed a prayer of repentance for his nation, saying, “Open shame belongs to us, O LORD, to our Kings, our princes, and our fathers, because we have sinned against Thee” (Dan 9:8). He prayed for God to restore the nation and to rebuild Jerusalem, and God did so. If a nation comes to God in true repentance, He will surely hear their cries for His mercy. He will surely allow that nation to find His favor. “Come, let us return to the LORD. For He has torn us but He will heal us; He has wounded us but He will bandage us” (Hosea 6:1).

But has the United States sought God in repentance as a result of September 11? Can we say that we have repentance when we disregard the honor and worship of God? When multitudes of unborn babies are aborted in the name of women’s rights? When premarital sex, adultery, and homosexuality are not only tolerated but also glorified on television and in the media? When all forms of greed and dishonesty have corrupted businessmen and politicians? When our appetite for entertainment has become our god? When we have become prideful in our might, thinking that none can bring us low and forgetting to rely upon God? When we have removed the true God from the schools and from public places and have substituted the god of humanism in His place? When Huxley has become our prophet and Darwin our Priest! Not only have we done such things but we have also boasted of them! “Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil” (Isaiah 5:20). Do bumper stickers and banners saying “God bless America” represent true repentance when we continue to cling to such evils in our country? When the Pharisees and Sadducees came for baptism, John the Baptist said to them, “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Therefore, bear fruits worthy of repentance” (Matt 3:7,8). So also, God despises our use of His name when we reject Him in our actions. As a good tree bears good fruit, so true repentance bears the fruit of changed lives and conduct. True repentance involves our acknowledgement as a nation that we have sinned grievously against God. It involves our admission that we have dishonored God in our thoughts, words, and deeds. It involves us turning from those things that God says are evil, and turning to His ways.

God has brought chastisement against nations in the past, and often those nations, though deeply troubled, would not repent. “’I slew your young men with the sword along with your captured horses, and I made the stench of your camp rise up in your nostrils, yet you have not returned to me,’ declares the LORD” (Amos 4:10). Where are the greatest nations of history? Where are the Assyrians? The Babylonians? The Romans? They have all been brought to the dust for their rebellion against God. Let our nation beware of not repenting, for “The wicked will turn to hell, even all the nations who forget God” (Psalm 9:17). Will we repent? Will we turn to God while there is yet hope? Or will we presume upon His mercy until He one day fully removes His hand of restraint, and the pride of our nation is brought to the dust?

September 11 is a call to personal repentance. On one occasion in Christ’s ministry some of those present reported to Him a local tragedy. They told Him that Pontius Pilate had killed some Galileans and mingled their blood with their own sacrifices. What would Christ say about such an act of horror? What would He say about those who could do such evil? What would He say was the reason why such a thing happened to those Galileans? Christ’s response was no doubt surprising to those present, but instructive as to how we must view tragedies. He said, “Do you suppose that these Galileans were greater sinners than all other Galileans because they suffered this fate? I tell you, no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. Or do you suppose that those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them were worse culprits than all the men who live in Jerusalem? I tell you, no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish” (Luke 13:2-5). Christ did not give the reasons why those tragedies occurred, nor did He address the evil done by Pilate; rather, He used those tragedies to call His hearers to personal repentance. The question was not whether the individuals who perished were worse than all others; Christ unequivocally said that this was not the case. The question was whether the living would take it to heart and personally repent. The universal command of God to humanity is to “repent and believe in the gospel” (Mark 1:15). Any who repent and put their faith in Christ will be saved. “It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners” (1 Timothy 1:15). Have you received the forgiveness of God? Have you turned to the Lord Jesus Christ in repentance and faith?

In the days of Jeremiah, God brought deep chastisement to the people because of their sins; but the prophet Jeremiah could say, “Thou hast smitten them, but they did not weaken; Thou hast consumed them, but they refused to take correction. They have made their faces harder than rock. They have refused to repent” (Jeremiah 5:3). Oh, let it not be so with us! Let us see the call to repentance! Let us see that it is almighty God who stands as our judge and who searches the innermost depths of the heart! If God should mark iniquities, who could stand? But there is forgiveness with God, that he may be feared (Psalm 130:3,4). Any who turn to Him will receive mercy. “Look to me and be saved, all you ends of the earth! For I am God and there is no other” (Isaiah 45:22). “Seek the LORD while He may be found. Call upon Him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; Let him return to the LORD, and He will have mercy on him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon” (Is 55:6,7).

Will individuals see their personal need of repentance in the sight of God? Will they turn to God in these days of tragedy? Those who went into the Twin Towers that morning did not know that it would be their last day. Perhaps they had heard the call to repentance and put it off until tomorrow. Perhaps they thought that there would be much more time. Perhaps they had some desire to seek God’s truth but allowed the cares of life to hinder them. They did not know that the end was coming for them that very day. In the same way, none of us knows the number of days allotted for us. Therefore, let us seek the Lord while He may be found; let us seek Him while we have the breath of life.

Have we learned these lessons from September 11? Are we personally and nationally the better for having gone through such a tragedy? Oh Lord, please have mercy upon us. Revive us as individuals and as nations. Teach us to bow before Your sovereignty. Bring us to repentance that we may know You and that we may give honor to Your great name.