Is a Pandemic Panic Spiritually Wise?

I don't often write about the ebb and flow of current events.  News stories seem to come and go, and are so often simply a reflection of the fear that people bring to them.  But I wanted to take a moment to address the concern over the coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) outbreak in recent days.  I want to talk about it, because I believe people should have a separate avenue to plug into, when it comes to this type of fear.  News headlines are helpful, but can also be designed to promote fear and emphasize all of the bad things sometimes.  We don't hear as much about the thousands of people who came through this virus just fine ... because it doesn't make headlines.  It doesn't sell. 

Now I do believe we should take this worldwide event seriously (I would be a fool not to).  But I also wanted to talk about some spiritual things going on as well.  Some have argued that these types of things are God's wrath poured out onto a sinful world.  It is true, we do find areas of the Old Testament that describe this type of punishment.  But even so, these pestilences were administered only after repeated warnings from God's prophets, and a stern lack of repentance.  While I cannot strictly speak for God in this sense, I don't think this is what is going on today.  

This leads me to my next point.  Namely, that these types of things are indeed mentioned by Jesus in the Bible.  Luke chapter twenty-one recounts Jesus telling his disciples about what life will be like in the end times.  He says that there will be wars, and rumors of wars.  That nation will rise against nation.  There will be earthquakes, famines, and pestilences in various places, and fearful events and great signs from heaven.

Was Jesus exaggerating here?  After all, this was two-thousand years ago.  But stop and think about the last fifty years for a moment.  Do we not see all of these things occurring together?  Many of us will recall HIV, then SARS, and then Ebola.  Now we have the corona virus.  Though this is simply my personal opinion, I do believe that every day that passes since the death of Christ, we get one day closer to the 'end times.'  

Now the good thing about prophecy is that it can also bring comfort.  Yes, God is still in charge.  And yes, He foresaw many of these things taking place in the future.  There is still an order and a chronology to things.  Eschatology (or the study of final things) always seems to follow a pattern.  

But remember also, that Jesus warned us the world would give us trouble.  In John 16:33 he also told us to "take heart, as he has overcome the world."  Be concerned, but don't panic.  God has a generous heart, and the Bible says He has not filled us with a spirit of fear.  Take necessary precautions, follow safety guidelines, but don't let hopelessness creep into your heart.  Jesus did not die on a cross so that you and I would live in some type of endless fear spiral.  It doesn't feel natural, because it isn't.  

Please remember to take heart ... he has overcome the world.  



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