Embracing the Coronavirus

For we have been consumed by Your anger And by Your wrath we have been dismayed. You have placed our iniquities before You, Our secret sins in the light of Your presence. For all our days have declined in Your fury; We have finished our years like a sigh. As for the days of our life, they contain seventy years, Or if due to strength, eighty years,Yet their pride is but labor and sorrow; For soon it is gone and we fly away. Who understands the power of Your anger And Your fury, according to the fear that is due You? So teach us to number our days, That we may present to You a heart of wisdom.

Psalm 90: 7–12 

The coronavirus is officially a pandemic. 

What does this mean? 

An official definition is given by the World Health Organization (WHO): 

...an epidemic occurring worldwide, or over a very wide area, crossing international boundaries and usually affecting a large number of people. 

As of March 2020, 125,000 people have been officially infected with over 4,500 deaths worldwide. While these numbers don’t yet equal influenza (flu) figures for the year, the short amount of time this virus has been spreading is cause for concern. On top of that, there are many unknowns about this virus.

What do we do with information like this? Should we fear? Should we panic? Should we isolate? Should we buy every roll of toilet paper we can find and clean out the stores of all hand sanitizer?  

Our reaction to this pandemic reveals a lot about our hearts. The Bible doesn’t say we should panic. Especially believers. We should run to our sovereign God in humble dependence and trust (Proverbs 3:5-6).

Our Fallen World

If not panic, how should we feel about this pandemic? What should it do in our hearts? Coronavirus should remind us of the fall of mankind. It screams that we live on a broken and corrupt planet. All creation is groaning especially loud right now (Romans 8:18-23). People are dying of this murderous virus. And we can’t stop it.  Governments can’t stop it. Doctors can’t stop it. Armies can’t stop it. (Psalm 33:16-17)

We are under the curse.

This virus and all illnesses should wake us up to the seriousness of our sin and the holiness of God. Through one man death came into the world and death spread to all men (Romans 5:12). When Adam sinned, all of his descendants were imputed with sin. All of mankind is born dead in sin (Ephesians 2:1-3) and yet living on a planet the Creator has cursed (Genesis 3:17). Death screams God is a just and holy God! 

God takes sin seriously.

Our Need for Him

You may say to yourself, what did I do to deserve this? If so, you have failed to remember or understand two crucial truths. The imputation of sin from Adam on all of us guarantees that God’s righteousness can also be imputed to repentant sinners trusting in Christ (Romans 5:15-17). 

We live under the wrath of God on this planet (Ephesians 2:3). The wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). We must see the pandemic for what it is, part of a cursed planet that as a whole fails to honor and thank its creator (Romans 1:18-33).

It is at this moment we should recognize something very important: we need a Savior. God is just and holy. We are unrighteous sinners. God is a righteous judge and we deserve the guilty verdict. His wrath is on display through this cursed planet. 

BUT GOD.  

God did something amazing. He ordained a deliverer. He predetermined a savior who would save people from His just judgment (Acts 2:23-24). 

Our Answer 

God sent Jesus into the world (John 3:16). God became man and lived on this cursed planet. He was mistreated and suffered the effects of this world. He lived a perfectly, obedient life, the life we couldn’t. He then died to pay for sin (1 Peter 2:21-25). 

He was placed in a grave. 

He was raised from the dead on the third day. 

He showed himself to His disciples (1 Corinthians 15:3-8).

He ascended to heaven to return to His glorious position over all creation (Ephesians 1:19-22). 

This is good news. 

Everyone who hears this message of Jesus and turns to Him in faith is saved (Romans 10:9-10). We are declared righteous before God through faith in Jesus (Romans 3:24-26). We are set apart, made holy, by God. God begins to sanctify and transform us, making us look like His son (Romans 8:28-29).  

Sinners are saved. The hellbound are delivered. This is His Gospel.

Yet in this good news, God doesn’t immediately take us to Himself. He leaves us in the sin-cursed world. Why? So that we can proclaim Him to everyone. What does this have to do with the Coronavirus? Everything. This is our opportunity as disciples of Jesus. 

We see death and we are reminded of the hope we have in the Gospel!

We can announce hope to a world that desperately needs it. We have good news to tell a dying world.  So believers, realize this is God teaching us to number our days. We have very little time before we see Him. Many will be lost forever. Don’t waste the Coronavirus. Proclaim the resurrected Savior to the world.