I tested positive for the coronavirus. I self-isolated in our home for fourteen days. For six of those days I was too sick to do anything or think about anything. I have recovered well. In fact, I worked in our yards yesterday. According to the Tennessee Department of Health, I am out of quarantine. Someone recently asked for my reflections. So, here it goes.
I have been amazed to see how pastors have adapted to lead their churches. No criticisms here. We are all doing the best we can. Pastors are learning new ways to practice the faith. That’s a good thing.
Like it or not, the powers-that-be have deemed the church to be non-essential to the well-being of human community. Grocery stores, hardware stores, drug stores, etc. have all remained open. I was in Lowe’s yesterday, it was teeming with people. Movie theaters, sports events, and churches have been closed. In effect, the gathered church has been deemed non-essential entertainment. If the church becomes non-essential, then secularism is triumphant.
Life is fragile. In New York City someone dies of the virus every seventeen minutes. People are dying alone, separated from their families. Our way of life, our economy, has stopped. Some cities are ghost towns. We have been reminded of human mortality. We will all die.
It is because “we will all die” that the message of the Gospel is essential. Jesus is the Lord of Life and has defeated death. We are reminded of the words of Paul, “If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied” (1 Corinthians 15: 19 ESV). I believe in the resurrection of the body!
In this crisis we must not be risk-averse. I’m not suggesting that we throw caution to the wind. I am suggesting that we should understand the very real dangers, but find ways to be faithful to the call of Christ in spite of it all. Jesus said, “Behold, I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves” (Luke 10:3 ESV). The world has always been a dangerous place. Christians have died as they have been faithful to the call of Christ.
Some of the bravest people in this crisis are the medical professionals. They are putting their lives at risk to practice their profession. Because of their work many people will survive. I have always believed that all truth is God’s truth. The revealed theology of Scripture is God’s truth. Also, that which is revealed through scientific observation is God’s truth. Science is not the enemy of faith. But, scientists are not omniscient. Some of my colleagues lament the distrust of science among people of faith. I suggest that the distrust of science goes beyond people of faith. The experts are not always right. I’ve lived most of my life in hurricane ally. Time after time the experts have warned of impending disaster. They have been wrong so many times that most people no longer listen to their warnings. As a pastor, I’ve been with many families who have suffered from misdiagnosis of an expert. This is not meant as an indictment against the experts, most of whom will admit their limitations.
The passage of scripture that has been most on my mind for the past several days is James 5:14-15: “Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up” (ESV). If the church is to prove itself essential to the well-being of humanity, we must embrace suffering, and those who suffer. We must dare to pray the prayer of faith. We must put ourselves at risk for the sake of the sick. We must support the medical professionals who are suffering. And, we must comfort the dying, and those who grieve the loss of a loved one. We must speak words of hope. We should above all, seek to do no harm.
