2 Corinthians 11:5-31
Questions We Cannot Answer

I think that I am not in the least inferior to these super-apostles. I may be untrained in speech, but not in knowledge; certainly in every way and in all things we have made this evident to you. Did I commit a sin by humbling myself so that you might be exalted, because I proclaimed God's good news to you free of charge? I robbed other churches by accepting support from them in order to serve you. And when I was with you and was in need, I did not burden anyone, for my needs were supplied by the friends who came from Macedonia. So I refrained and will continue to refrain from burdening you in any way. As the truth of Christ is in me, this boast of mine will not be silenced in the regions of Achaia. And why? Because I do not love you? God knows I do! And what I do I will also continue to do, in order to deny an opportunity to those who want an opportunity to be recognized as our equals in what they boast about. For such boasters are false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. And no wonder! Even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. So it is not strange if his ministers also disguise themselves as ministers of righteousness. Their end will match their deeds.

I repeat, let no one think that I am a fool; but if you do, then accept me as a fool, so that I too may boast a little. What I am saying in regard to this boastful confidence, I am saying not with the Lord's authority, but as a fool; since many boast according to human standards, I will also boast. For you gladly put up with fools, being wise yourselves! For you put up with it when someone makes slaves of you, or preys upon you, or takes advantage of you, or puts on airs, or gives you a slap in the face. To my shame, I must say, we were too weak for that! But whatever anyone dares to boast of--I am speaking as a fool--I also dare to boast of that.

Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they descendants of Abraham? So am I. Are they ministers of Christ? I am talking like a madman--I am a better one: with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless floggings, and often near death. Five times I have received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I received a stoning. Three times I was shipwrecked; for a night and a day I was adrift at sea; on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from bandits, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers and sisters; in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, hungry and thirsty, often without food, cold and naked. And, besides other things, I am under daily pressure because of my anxiety for all the churches. Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to stumble, and I am not indignant? If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness. The God and Father of the Lord Jesus (blessed be he forever!) knows that I do not lie.

New Revised Standard Version

I write these thoughts the weekend after Hurricane Katrina devastated Biloxi and Gulfport, Mississippi and Slidell, Louisiana, and created massive flooding, leading to unbelievable chaos, in New Orleans, Louisiana. I cannot help but to write about it, since this event will be one of the most expensive and deadly natural disasters in the history of the United States.

But what can I say? The question we really want answered is "why?", and there is no answering that question. We are not capable of comprehending and explaining how God thinks or what God does, any more than my daughter's pet fish could explain what I do for a living. In the Old Testament, Job wrestled with the calamities in his life, just to come face to face with his weak humanity and God's eternal holiness. Beware! Even though the Bible is clear that only God thinks like God, there are those who are claiming to explain, in simple terms, why God sent Katrina to the Gulf Coast. Throughout the New Testament, we are taught to test the words of prophets to see if they are true and consistent with God's messages in the Bible, and the false prophesies I have read concerning Katrina fail that test. This disaster was not a tool for God's political agenda.

However, I failed that same "truth" test in a different way as I analyzed weather data as Katrina was moving onto Louisiana. I can show you how this hurricane spared much of the storm energy that I expected would be inflicted on New Orleans. There was a unexpectedly strong trough to the west of Katrina that both pushed the center to the east of New Orleans and injected enough dry air into the hurricane's circulation that the pressure rose, the wind speeds dropped, and the southern eye wall dramatically weakened just before landfall. As the early reports came in after the hurricane moved inland, I believed we had seen God spare the Gulf Coast of the most severe impacts of the hurricane. But mere hours later, reports showed unbelievable devastation on the Mississippi coast, severe storm surge in Mobile, Alabama, and breached levees that allowed flooding in most of New Orleans. I might offer these last-minute weather changes as Divine Intervention, but there is no Love in such a claim, as there is no solace found in these affected areas contemplating how much worse it might have been.

We have other questions that grow out of our frustration and helpless feelings over these situations. Why weren't these regions better prepared, given that Hurricane Camille in 1969 devastated Gulfport and Hurricane Betsy in 1965 flooded New Orleans? Why did the people we now see on television refuse to evacuate? Why didn't the government officials call for evacuations sooner? Why didn't all of them realize this kind of disaster was going to happen at some point in time? It is often easier to blame the victims than to love the victims, but that isn't God's way.

And don't forget about our problems! Since Katrina damaged so much of the oil industry's resources in the Gulf of Mexico, our gasoline prices have increased dramatically and we've observed shortages of gasoline! Maybe we can avoid thinking about the Gulf Coast devastation if we can convince ourselves that we, too, are victims, but there is no Love in that response.

This brings me to an unusual scripture passage in 2nd Corinthians, where Paul uncharacteristically wrote about his personal difficult experiences. When we do a comparison of New Testament records concerning Paul, we are astonished at the number of beatings and tortures mentioned in this chapter that are not recorded in Acts and not mentioned in any of Paul's other letters. He had to discuss them with the church at Corinth, for they were being deceived by teachers who claimed the truth of their false teachings because of the persecution they had received. (It is backwards and wrong to think that since Christians are often rejected, then anyone who is rejected must be a Christian!)

Notice, though, that Paul includes in his list disasters that have no connection to being persecuted for his beliefs. Paul did not imply that shipwrecks, river floods, and robbery were signs he was being attacked for his faith and ministry. Paul was merely stating the facts.

Catastrophes happen, but what Paul did with the catastrophes in his life showed his dedication to and focus on God's work. In every event, natural or man-made, was an opportunity for God to work in Paul's life. When Paul was weakened by these situations, God's power was more than enough to overcome and succeed. Paul took great joy in how his weakness allowed God to receive the glory for all that was accomplished, and allowed new Christians to strengthen their faith in God. If Paul discussed a shipwreck, like the one Luke recorded in Acts 27, it was only to show what God did, so Paul rarely saw a reason to reveal his past calamities.

What are we going to do with the catastrophe most of us witnessed, and some experienced, this week? We cannot deny the wreckage, and we cannot deny the emotions we are experiencing, but we can choose to cling to God for comfort and peace. Next, we need to look outside ourselves and show God's Love through the loving response of God's people. We believers can act with compassion, just like so many unbelievers are responding generously to these urgent needs, and offer all sorts of relief to those affected by Katrina. But we are called to go even further, following Paul's example, and learn from God how God wants to use this experience to make us more obedient and willing servants. The pictures and stories from New Orleans and Biloxi have captured our attention, and God may speak to you through those images, maybe even as dramatically as God spoke to Moses in the burning bush. God wants to use this tragedy to challenge your heart, to instruct your mind, to burden your soul, or to help you channel your emotions.

We cannot answer why God allowed Hurricane Katrina to happen to Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. However, God will hold us individually accountable for how we allow God to use Katrina to mold us into more of what God intends for us to be.