Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through Him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. (Rom 5:1-5)Three key benefits: 1) We have peace with God when we were facing His wrath, 2) we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God when we had fallen short of His glory, and 3) we rejoice in sufferings. That last is a longer explanation. We rejoice in suffering not because we become masochists, but because we know that suffering leads to endurance which produces character which produces hope in God's love. These are huge benefits.
So, what about the suffering of the current crisis? What can we learn from COVID-19 that offers endurance, character, and/or hope? I think there is a lot. Here are just a few
1. All humans suffer from sin. All humans suffer consequences of sin. Some of that suffering is "real time" -- happening as we speak. This virus is a result of human sin. This reminds us of our mortality, which is a good thing, and of the real damage that sin does in this life and beyond if we don't repent. We think of sin as "goofs," a "faux pas" perhaps, but this crisis gives us a taste of the very real cost of sin, and it's not a slap on the hand.
2. If our sense of security is in our circumstances -- our world, our jobs, our friends and family, ourselves -- this virus exposes how weak that security is. All of this life is transient. Health, jobs, the comfortable norm, friends and family, temporal safety ... all of it can be stripped away in a moment. This is why we are told repeatedly to hope in God (Psa 42:5; Psa 43:5; Psa 62:5; Psa 78:7; Psa 146:5; Psa 147:11; Lam 3:24; Col 1:27; Rom 15:13; 1 Peter 1:21; etc.).
3. When we are out of control, we are reminded that He is in control. It certainly feels like this virus is outrunning anything we can do to stop it. We don't know how to manage it. We don't know what to do. We don't know what's next or when it will end. So it is with great joy that we can read, "In all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Rom 8:37-39) The biblical certainty that "faith, hope, and love abide" (1 Cor 13:13) are a supreme comfort to us in crisis. In all cases, the battle belongs to the Lord.
4. In a world hotly pursued by the specter of imminent death, we alone have good reason for imminent hope. After His visit to the desert, Jesus returned and began preaching the gospel: "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." (Matt 4:17; Mark 1:14-15) This COVID-19 scare is literally pushing people closer to the brink of a face-to-face experience with the kingdom of God. For believers, however, "to live is Christ, and to die is gain." (Php 1:21) That's a win-win. If we live, we live for Christ. If we die, we enter His presence. No one else offers that kind of hope. Yes, we stand on real ground. This crisis has real effects on believers as well as unbelievers. Like everyone, we face loss including potential sickness and even death. But in Christ alone we have certain hope that in life we are with Christ and in death we are with Christ and for those who believe there is nothing better.
There are many more things we can learn, I'm sure. God is always good and we don't always remember. In life people and things are often meant for evil, but God always intends them for good. So, in this, as in all tribulation, we can rejoice knowing that God will use it to produce character which produces hope in God's love. Remind one another of these things.
No comments:
Post a Comment