3-15-2020 A "Current" Event

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Introduction:
Do you remember the Sunday after 9/11?
I’ll never forget the crowds in churches from that day. People flocked to church. Many churches had to add extra chairs. It was unlike anything this nation had ever seen. Fast forward to Saturday, February 1st, 2003. The space shuttle Columbia exploded upon re-entry, right over Texas. Pastors in Houston and Florida didn’t realize how close that tragedy would hit the city that bore the space program. Churches in those states were packed just like on 9/11. 
In times of panic, people need to gather together—especially the people of God. In times of sudden uncertainty, people—saved or unsaved— flock to church. And they like being together. Sickness seems to have struck us hard this year. With the onset of COVID-19, social distancing is necessary right now, but the Scriptures tell us that the very first thing God says is “Not Good” is for us to be “left alone.” [[Genesis 2:18]]
Genesis 2:18 LEB
Then Yahweh God said, “it is not good that the man is alone. I will make for him a helper as his counterpart.”
We were designed for relationships we were designed for community--a community that functions as one body.
So what is a church to do when there’s a greater desire than ever in our society to hear a message of hope, but the solution seems to be not to gather together to hear it?
We find ourselves in a sober moment. Coronavirus is serious and causing widespread fear. These are uncertain times around the world and fears are rising. The Bible is not silent in times of fear. People who have never felt anxious before are suddenly weighed down with worry and are not sure what to do next.
When I need to stay calm, I turn to this Scripture:
Philippians 4:6–7 LEB
6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
These last few days, I have been getting slammed with questions from people in this community about what “everyone is doing” about church this Sunday. 
I decided to see what the other local church’s approach to the weekend would be. The responses came in three groups: some are choosing to suspend church services. Others are still carefully monitoring things and are planning on gathering. Yet others told me - “we are still figuring this out.” To this last response, I wanted to retort, “Please tell us what you figure out!”
Online, I’ve seen a pastor of a very large church in Texas said, “The Bible teaches us that we should gather together. But it also teaches us that we should honor those in authority over us (the government) and teaches us over and over that we are to do everything we can to help the helpless. Even if we are healthy, even if it seems silly if suspending meeting means helping solve this, then that’s what we will do.” 
On the other hand, Chris Hodges, Senior Pastor of Church of The Highlands, which is one of the largest churches in the country, had said “We are not entertainment. We are a hospital. We are a place of worship. We are the place that people go when nothing else is open. We need to give staff and volunteers the option of staying home if they feel that is what’s best. But the church needs to stay open.”
So there are a variety of opinions, among very smart people. But even among that variety, some common best practices among big churches are bubbling up:
Giving hugs, shaking hands, and the like have been replaced with bumping elbows or tapping feet with each other.
Churches that set up with chairs are eliminating some seating and/or creating space between chairs.
Senior Adult ministries and programs have been largely suspended so that those at risk are best protected.
Online platforms are no longer just an option, they are the new norm, particularly for very large churches.
Online or electronic giving has become commonplace. We have seen giving trends change toward this in America dramatically in the last decade, but there are still a whole lot of churches that rely on the traditional weekly Sunday offering. “Passing the plate” is a health risk right now. I’m wondering now if those who have never considering online giving are to give it a try. There is still the boxes in the foyer/narthex/lobby area as a viable option.
I’ve found online that smaller churches actually have the biggest problems in this type of situation. “Normal Sized” Churches is a term used usually for churches that have 100-300 attendees. Of the (around) 365,000 Protestant churches in the United States, about 350,000 have fewer than 300 attendees. Most of those churches are too small to build an online campus but too large to gather together during this time of social distancing. Our state isn’t allowing meetings over 250 people — I suppose a hidden benefit to our small size.
Transition:
The threat of a pandemic also creates an opportunity for the church—our church. People will be more open to the gospel than ever before. So we ought to prepare ourselves for this opportunity. If we ourselves are not in the right place spiritually, with right thinking and right perspective, we will be unfit to carry on the great commission in a ripe season. So what do we need to do to be ready ourselves? First: Trust God

Trust God

Well this sounds quite quaint! This crucial phrase: “Trust in God” has become very cliche! What do we need to do? we got to “Trust in God,” that’s the answer! Well, now that it is solved, we can all go home worry free, right? wrong! No, so what do I mean be Trust in God? it means that when the world is screaming at you, “Be afraid” yet scripture says:
Isaiah 41:10 LEB
You must not fear, for I am with you; you must not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, indeed I will help you, indeed I will take hold of you with the right hand of my salvation.
do not be afraid” you are to trust in God.
When the world says, “Worry about yourself” and scripture is clear
Luke 12:25–26 LEB
25 And which of you by being anxious is able to add an hour to his life span? 26 If then you are not even able to do a very little thing, why are you anxious about the rest?
Trust in God
When the world says, “stay away from people” and scripture commands us to be with people:
John 15:13 LEB
No one has greater love than this: that someone lay down his life for his friends.
then we trust in God.
Now, it is high time I mention the distinction between trusting in God and testing God. In other words: neglecting responsibilities cannot be in the name of trusting God. While we trust God, we still must act on wisdom. Faith like a child does not mean we act childish. What do I mean by that? what I mean is God has given us the knowledge through current medical sciences to what the risk factors are concerning this particular coronavirus strain. We are now responsible to respond with wisdom. We don’t just throw up our hands and say, “Well, there’s nothing we can do, trust in the Lord!” instead we use biblical principles to make decisions which is right for us and is right before our Lord. So it is right and wise for us to put forth extra effort to reduce risk and exposure. For some of us here, we have weakened immune systems and/or compromised health conditions and it might be right for some of us to stay home, for others, perhaps not. Perhaps for others, now is the time to be out and about doing the work of the ministry meeting peoples needs.
But Trusting in God does mean that we do not slip into fear. A fear of this virus, or the flu, or anything else is really a denial of the power of YHWH. In essence, it’s a slap in God’s face— “this virus is too big a problem for YHWH to handle” is what we are saying in action when we live in fear. We take extra precautions, not because we are afraid, but because we are responding to the gift of wisdom.
Many people are worried about Coronavirus, but this is a time to trust in the Great physician, YHWH.
Transition:
Trusting in God is absolutely foundational to the work of the ministry. And never is it tested with such intensity as at a time like this. This trust is the key to the next thing we must do to prepare ourselves:

Obey Scripture

If we trust that God’s way is better than man’s way, then obeying His Word becomes much easier. The world is telling us to stay away and seclude ourselves, yet time and time again we find that this is not the case when it comes to the Bible
Matthew 18:20 LEB
For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there in the midst of them.”
Gathering, in person, together is what Scripture expects.
It’s what the early church did— even with it being illegal:
Acts 2:42 LEB
And they were devoting themselves to the teaching of the apostles and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayers.
Although severe persecution was not yet widespread, the Romans forbade them to meet by this time, and so did the Jews.
The writer of Hebrews understood this when he wrote
Hebrews 10:24–25 LEB
And let us think about how to stir one another up to love and good works, not abandoning our meeting together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging each other, and by so much more as you see the day drawing near.
These calls to be together, even when the CDC & the medical doctors are against such a command, are relatively easier to obey than what Jesus exemplified throughout His ministry: being in the presence of the sick
Yes I know there are old testament commands in the Mosaic law dealing with separating the sick from the healthy, but we never see this with Jesus! Never once did He say, “oh sorry I can’t heal that person, because I might spread the virus to those I’m staying with or I might get sick myself.” and no, this is not a plug for the faith healers out there like Benny Hinn--I’m not suggesting that we go around healing people just as Jesus did; rather, we take the example of showing care and compassion to the sick — instead of total seclusion.
Many times with many examples that we could turn to see that Jesus heals the sick—more than that, He came for the sick:
Mark 2:17 LEB
And when Jesus heard it, he said to them, “Those who are healthy do not have need of a physician, but those who are sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
I know you might be thinking right now, “but Jesus was talking about spiritual sickness, not physical!” True, but he still used the analogy of sickness to make a strong ministerial point. Authentic Ministry involves coming in contact with sick people whether physically or spiritually, or in some cases, both.
And we know this is still true today because of what James commands the early church:
James 5:14 LEB
Is anyone among you sick? He should summon the elders of the church and they should pray over him, anointing him with olive oil in the name of the Lord.
It is a part of ministry whether we like it or not
Transition:
It is also supreme obedience to the command to love others—which is also what will prepare us for such a time as this:

Love Others

Love speaks! 1 Corinth 13 proves it is an action. In our love for others, we put ourselves second. Now, this does not mean we are careless about ourselves.
There are several reasons we as Christians should be concerned about this strain of the coronavirus, and for those who are suffering from the disease. But one primary reason, as the apostle Paul tells us, is that we should “weep with those who weep” [[Rom. 12:15]]
Romans 12:15 LEB
Rejoice with those who rejoice; weep with those who weep.
As a pastor of a church in Wuhan recently said in an open letter to fellow believers, “If you do not feel a responsibility to pray, ask the Lord for a loving soul, an earnestly prayerful heart; if you are not crying, ask the Lord for tears. Because we surely know that only through the hope of the Lord’s mercy will Wuhan be saved.”
And Paul continues the commands to love others in other letters. We are to “comfort those who are in any affliction” [[2 Cor. 1:4]]
2 Corinthians 1:4 LEB
who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in all affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.
And also Just like Jesus had compassion for others, we are to have compassion as well. It’s always great to help in any way you can and it is also great to pray for and with people who are in need. Give your time and comfort to people who need comforting. Do all things for the glory of God.
Again, I want to repeat, that we exercise caution while showing our love to others. It can actually be a bit selfish not to wash your hands and take extra precautions while around others. You might think, “well hey, it only affects me if I don’t wash my hands and take the risk of getting sick.” In actuality, even if you don’t care about taking higher risks, you are then exposing many more to the germs by carrying the germs around to spread them out further, and also prolonging the incubation period in your own body, so it is very selfish and wrong to be a caretaker in the ministry and neglect extra precautions.
Finally, I want to mention, we are to encourage each other — especially in trying times:
1 Thessalonians 5:11 LEB
Therefore encourage one another and build up each other, just as indeed you are doing.
This is really the crux of the matter. In our time of greatest need, we must be diligent to be constantly encouraging and building up. It is never the time to tear each other down.

So What?

So things will get worse before they get better— this is a given especially on the end of our study through the book of Revelation. But no matter the cause of a National Emergency, the three things we must be proficient on to weather the storm is our Trust in our Lord, our unwavering obedience to His Word, and our love for others.
Even in the worst case scenario, house churches are an option. During the persecutions of the first century, the church was forced to meet in homes, often with fewer than 20 people. Those “house churches” networked together to stay in touch, and when possible, gather as one. Here at Grace, we are holding regular services but we encourage anyone at great risk, and anyone sick to join online. 
So even worse yet, you might get sick and you might die, but death is not the end for the believer.
Philippians 1:21 LEB
For to me to live is Christ and to die is gain.
Many missionaries, including St. Nickolas’ parents visited the ill for the sake of ministry and died from the same illness.
What we should learn from this COVID-19 outbreak is that life is short and we’re not guaranteed tomorrow. While we all live forever, some will spend eternity in heaven and others in a real place called Hell. The difference between heaven and Hell is a relationship with the Creator of the universe: Jesus Christ.

So What?

In Conclusion:
Meeting in person really is the best. Some have joked that if virtual meetings were as good as face-to-face, Jesus would have just “skyped it in” rather than be born on earth. But given our situation, necessity is creating innovation throughout churches all over the world. The attendance this Sunday may not be big, and maybe it shouldn’t be. But that won’t keep us from offering hope to hurting world this week.  
As we spend time together over the next few Sundays, we can encourage one another. These challenges are great, but God is greater.
Let us cast our worries on the Savior and Sustainer of our lives.
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