God is going to richly bless us. Turn to your neighbor and say God is great. I'm going to title my short exhortation as the Mighty Wind of the Bible. The Mighty Wind of the Bible.
Before I start, whatever is there in God's creation, there is a meaning to it. When we have a meaning, God also created the winds, and there is a meaning in it. And what is wind? It is nothing but a moving pattern of air. The wind is a bigger part of the weather in these days. Wind plays a major role in summer, winter, rainy season, everything. Wind plays a major role.
The Hebrew word for wind is called "ruach," which means Spirit, breath, and wind. In Hebrew, ruach means Spirit, or breath, or wind. There is no place on Earth without wind. The wind surrounds every place on Earth. The Bible says God created the winds. Let's turn to Amos. Amos can be found between Hosea and Joel. On a side note, Hosea and Joel were the only prophets to Northern Israel after Elijah and Elisha. Amos and Hosea, apart from Elijah and Elisha, were the only prophets to Northern Israel, and all the other prophets belonged to Judah. Interestingly, Amos was from Judah. He was living in Judah, but God appointed him to prophesy to the northern kingdom. This is a small insight for you. Let's turn to Amos, chapter 4, verse 13.
Amen. The Lord of hosts is his name. The Bible says God created the winds. What are the kinds of winds God created? There are four kinds of winds. The most prominent one is the East Wind, which blows from the East side. The next one is the West Wind, which blows from the West Side. The last two are the North Wind, which blows from the north side, and the South Wind, which blows from the South side. What are the Four Winds? The East Wind, the West Wind, the North Wind, and the South Wind. We're going to talk about the Mighty Wind of the Bible.
1. The East Wind: The Wind of Wilderness
The first one is the East Wind, also called the wind of wilderness. The characteristics of this wind are its powerful and violent nature, and it blows from the desert. This kind of wind is most often seen in the Bible. Let's turn to Exodus, chapter 10, verses 12 and 13. This passage describes the plague of locusts. For the benefit of all, when the people of Israel went into captivity under Pharaoh, God wanted the people of Israel to come and worship Him. But Pharaoh did not let them go, so God sent a number of plagues. This is one of the plagues, the eighth plague. Let's read Exodus, chapter 10, verses 12 and 13.
Amen. The Lord sent the East Wind. This is the eighth plague; the seventh plague was the hailstorm. Usually, locusts like to live in wet soil. They lay more eggs and breed in huge numbers in wet soil. The sequence is this: God sent massive hailstones that destroyed everything and made the ground wet, and the next day, God sent locusts to destroy anything that was left. God sent a plague through the East Wind.
Now, let's see what happened next. Pharaoh was very disheartened and came to Moses and Aaron, asking for forgiveness. Moses made a supplication to God, and God sent a strong West Wind which took away all the locusts from Egypt. The Bible says not even one locust remained in Egypt. What a wonderful God. The East Wind brings power, and the West Wind brings relief.
Next, we'll see another incident from Genesis, chapter 41, verses 21-23. God uses the East Wind to demonstrate His power in Pharaoh's dream. Pharaoh had a dream one night and saw seven animals come out of the River Nile. The later half of the prophecy tells that there were seven years of famine caused by the East Wind. First, God sent a plague through the East Wind, and then He gave Pharaoh a dream about seven years of famine through the East Wind.
Let's look at one more incident from Exodus, chapter 14, verse 21. God sent an East Wind to divide the Red Sea into two. In Hosea, it says this is the wind of the Lord. God sent His wind to divide the Red Sea and make dry land. The East Wind is also used as a war weapon. Let's read Jeremiah, chapter 18, verse 17. God says, "I will scatter them as with an East Wind before the enemy; I will show them the back and not the face in the day of their calamity." Here, God is rebuking the people of Israel for their iniquities, saying He will send the East Wind to shatter them in front of their enemies.
What have we seen so far? God sent locusts through the East Wind, famine through the East Wind, parted the Red Sea through the East Wind, and warned His people about their iniquities through the East Wind. The East Wind symbolizes the power of God.
2. The West Wind: The Wind of Relief and Blessing
Next, we'll talk about the West Wind. The West Wind's characteristics are bringing relief and blessing. First Kings, chapter 18, verse 45 says, "And it came to pass in the meanwhile that the heaven was black with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain." This was during the three years of drought in Northern Israel. Elijah was the first prophet after the kingdom divided, and he was the first prophet to the Northern Kingdom. During the three years of drought, Elijah brought a small cloud of rain, which was carried by the West Wind, bringing relief and blessing.
We also saw that the West Wind drove off all the locusts from Egypt. The West Wind brings relief and blessing.
3. The North Wind and South Wind: The Winds of Love and Protection
Next, let's talk about the North and South Winds. Their characteristics are love and protection of God. The East Wind symbolizes the power of God, the West Wind symbolizes relief and blessing, and the North and South Winds symbolize love and protection.
Let's read Song of Solomon, chapter 4, verse 16. It says, "Awake, O north wind, and come, wind of the south; make my garden breathe out fragrance, let its spices be wafted abroad. May my beloved come into his garden and eat its choice fruits." This wind brings fragrance, silence, God's love, and protection. It doesn't destroy anything but brings people in. Let's read Numbers, chapter 11, verse 31. "And there went forth a wind from the Lord and brought quail from the sea, and let them fall by the camp, as it were a day's journey on this side, and as it were a day's journey on the other side, round about the camp, and as it were two cubits high upon the face of the earth."
Because of God's unlimited love for the people of Israel, He sent a wind from the North and South and brought quail from the sea. What are the four winds? The East Wind, the West Wind, the North Wind, and the South Wind. These winds were created by God and have been operational from the beginning of creation up until today.
How the Winds Behaved in the Times of Jesus:
How did they behave in the times of Jesus? Let's read Mark, chapter 4, verse 39. "And he arose and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm." Jesus rebuked the wind because He created it. The sea did not behave roughly; it was the wind that made the sea behave roughly. God created the winds, and He rebuked the wind, calming the sea. People who witnessed this said, "What kind of a man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him?"
In Amos, chapter 4, it says He created the wind. We have seen all these four winds. The North and South Winds are God's love and protection, the West Wind is God's blessing and provision, and the East Wind is God's power. How are these winds life-givers for us today? Let's turn to Ezekiel, chapter 37, verse 3.
Conclusion:
Ezekiel had a dream about dry bones. On several occasions, he prophesied, and the dry bones formed, but there was no life in them. God said to prophesy to the Four Winds to come and give breath to them so that they may have life.
Now tell me, are these four winds life-givers for us? How are they life-givers for us today? Acts 2:2 says, "And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting." God is a spirit. That's why the spirit is called Ruach. That Spirit came on the day of Pentecost. That is the one which is going to give us a life-changing rebirth in our life. How many believe that all these four winds are operational even today? All these Four Winds combined together are going to give life in our lives.
This is a wonderful verse that Jesus shared with Nicodemus. John 3:8 says, "The wind blows where it wishes to blow, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit."
Jesus is saying that if you are born in the spirit, it is like the wind. Nobody knows where you're going or where you're coming from. We cannot see the wind, but we can feel its effect. When there is a huge wind blowing, we can hear it through the rustling of the trees and leaves. This is equal to the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. We may not see the wind, but we can feel its effect.
Let us pray and thank God for the mighty wind of His Spirit that brings life, protection, provision, and power into our lives. May we be filled with His Spirit and experience the transformative power of His mighty wind every day. Amen.
