During the past few days the eyes of the world have been riveted on the devastating scenes from the Nepal/Tibet border, where a major flash flood has swept away buildings, vehicles, and human beings with a force reminiscent of Noah’s Flood.
As of this writing, over 600 are confirmed dead, and over 1,900 are missing. These numbers are almost certain to rise, probably dramatically.
Such events cannot but remind attentive Seventh-day Adventists of the shortness of time, and of the signs the inspired pen tells us will inform the watchful of their Savior’s soon return.
“Like a Tsunami”
An eyewitness to the disaster, interviewed earlier today on television, compared the destruction wrought by this tragedy to a tsunami, sweeping everything before it regardless of size or apparent stability. As I have a friend who only recently worked as a missionary in that field, I sent him a Facebook message seeking to confirm his well-being. Thankfully he is safe and sound with his dear wife in Tennessee.
Among other things, Jesus warned His disciples of how, in the last days, there would be “upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring,” with “men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth” (Luke 21:25-26). Ellen White offers similar warnings in her predictions of last-day events:
Even now he (Satan) is at work. In accidents and calamities by sea and by land, in great conflagrations, in fierce tornadoes and terrific hailstorms, in tempests, floods, cyclones, tidal waves, and earthquakes, in every place and in a thousand forms, Satan is exercising his power. He sweeps away the ripening harvest, and famine and distress follow. He imparts to the air a deadly taint, and thousands perish by the pestilence. These visitations are to become more and more frequent and disastrous [##1|Ellen G. White, The Great Controversy, pp. 589-590.##].
How frequently we hear of earthquakes and tornadoes, of destruction by fire and flood, with great loss of life and property! Apparently these calamities are capricious outbreaks of disorganized, unregulated forces of nature, wholly beyond the control of man; but in them all, God’s purpose may be read. They are among the agencies by which He seeks to arouse men and women to a sense of their danger [##2|——Prophets and Kings, p. 277.##].
The restraining Spirit of God is even now being withdrawn from the world. Hurricanes, storms, tempests, fire and flood, disasters by sea and land, follow each other in quick succession. Science seeks to explain all these. The signs thickening around us, telling of the near approach of the Son of God, are attributed to any other than the true cause [##3|——Testimonies, vol. 6, p. 408.##].
Notice how both floods and tidal waves are mentioned in these forecasts. What happened in central Asia wasn’t exactly a tidal wave, or tsunami, but it certainly carried the strength of one! And whatever causes, be they natural or man-made, precipitated the event, we know the earth and all that remains with it is waxing old like a garment (Heb. 1:11). We have witnessed yet again a jarring reminder that preparation for the coming of Jesus must be our supreme, transcendent priority in these momentous times.
Conclusion: The Great Flood in Miniature
Watching the video accounts of the Nepal/Tibet disaster, one couldn’t help thinking of the inspired depictions of the Great Flood in Noah’s day—walls of water demolishing buildings, people running to and fro seeking vainly for shelter, and much more. One invariably wonders as to how many of those precious people were ready for the ultimate moment, any more than the people in Noah’s time were. Many of us remember the great Asian tsunami of 2004, and the reports of tourists climbing rocks and mountains, only to look below and see the surging waves taking all captive with them. Yet another miniature rerun of the earth’s first great destruction!
As glacial ice continues to melt, as the ravages of human greed work their will on the world of nature, we can expect many more such calamities. God declares plainly in the Bible’s last book that He will “destroy them which destroy the earth” (Rev. 11:18). But ultimately, we must ever remind ourselves that God is waiting, not on calamities, but on the spiritual revival and reformation of His professed people (I Thess. 5:23; I Tim. 6:13-14; II Peter 3:10-14; I John 3:2-3; Rev. 7:1-3). Calamitous events can arouse our souls, and let us pray they do. But in the end, it is we upon whom the Lord depends for the closing of human history and the finale of the controversy with evil.
Let us pray for the families and loved ones of those who suffered and died in the unfolding tragedy on the Nepal/Tibet border. So far, according to the Adventist News Network, no deaths or injuries have been reported among Seventh-day Adventists in the affected region [4]. Let us pray that local church members, and others throughout global Adventism, will be able to reach out and help in the search for survivors, the rebuilding of shattered lives, and most of all in directing minds and hearts to the ultimate significance of events such as this.
REFERENCES
1. Ellen G. White, The Great Controversy, pp. 589-590.
2. ----Prophets and Kings, p. 277.
3. ----Testimonies, vol. 6, p. 408.
4. “Flash flood strikes Nepal, hundreds reported missing,” Adventist News Network, Aug. 27, 2026. https://adventist.news/news/flash-flood-strike-nepal-hundreds-reported-missing
Pastor Kevin Paulson holds a Bachelor’s degree in theology from Pacific Union College, a Master of Arts in systematic theology from Loma Linda University, and a Master of Divinity from the SDA Theological Seminary at Andrews University. He served the Greater New York Conference of Seventh-day Adventists for ten years as a Bible instructor, evangelist, and local pastor. He writes regularly for Liberty magazine and does script writing for various evangelistic ministries within the denomination. He continues to hold evangelistic and revival meetings throughout the North American Division and beyond, and is a sought-after seminar speaker relative to current issues in the Seventh-day Adventist Church. He presently resides in Berrien Springs, Michigan