There are so many responses that I have seen from Christians regarding the CoronaVirus outbreak.
Some are panicking, and others mocking. I’m not sure if it is because of politics or distrust of the media, but the danger is that we miss a golden opportunity to advance the Gospel. This has caused us to be foolishly earthly minded in our online behavior.
Whether or not you think it is rational, people are scared. This seems especially true for those who are older, or those who have loved ones who are older. On top of that there those who are vulnerable because of previous conditions such as cancer, asthma, diabetes etc..
In Italy for example, where I hope to go this summer as a missionary, has by far the highest percentage of cases per capita of any nation in the world.
As of today, there are over 17,000 people who have contracted the disease and over 1,200 have died of it. Because of the country’s lack of hospital beds and oxygen machines, many of the worst cases have not been treated and are denied care.
The country is in total shutdown. People have been ordered to stay in their homes. Only one person is allowed to enter into grocery stores at a time, a friend just posted on social media a picture of himself standing in line with dozens of people ahead of him. He will be there for hours. Police are arresting and fining people who are ignoring the quarantine command. People are only allowed to go to work, go to the grocery store or to go to the hospital. There are many more difficulties we could share but you get the picture.
We simply cannot let this opportunity slip by. We must call people to repent and point them to the One who can care and cure any disease including the most fatal of all of them-sin!
Please do not waste the CoronaVirus.
As bad as the CoronaVirus seems to be there is something far worse than an early death. That is an eternity in Hell.
When the tower of Siloam fell, Jesus didn’t take the opportunity to mock those in fear. At the same time, he didn’t seem to assuage their fears instead he used the opportunity to call them to repentance and therefore to teach us how to respond when tragedy strikes. He says,
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 13:3-5).
Jesus doesn’t ignore the tragedy, but instead uses the tragedy to point people towards their greatest need. In short, he says that we will all die, we are all evil, everyone deserves death, and Jesus Himself is the only answer!
We are the only ones with the message.
I mean just think about it for a second! Why are we shocked by the panic we are seeing?
Psalm 1 describes the world as being like chaff in the wind! Whenever the wind picks up a little bit they blow around without any ability to stop, they have no anchor to be able to hold onto to keep them from panicking.
Believers on the other hand are like trees firmly planted (at least we should be) and we are not to mock the chaff that is flying wildly around us, but rather we are called to model what it’s like to be people who meditate on the law of the Lord day and night and use this opportunity to point troubled souls to the cross.
We as believers are called to not think like the world does but rather let our thinking be conformed to God’s word. That’s why we are not anxious about the CoronaVirus. Jesus commands us not to be anxious (Matt. 6:34) and Paul tells us not to be anxious about anything (Phil. 4:6). Rather we are called to model trust in the Lord and use every opportunity that comes our way to point people to the One who can give every soul the same trust in God that we have.
I know its hard to not get drawn into political battles and I know it’s hard to not mock the over the top doomsday scenarios we are hearing from people and the media around us, but the sake of the lost I suggest we keep our jokes to ourselves and do what we are called to do. We are called to be ambassadors for Christ begging people to be reconciled to Him.
May God use this CoronaVirus to bring people to their knees in repentance and cause us all to hope in Him rather than this world!