It has been almost 6 months into the COVID-19 outbreak that has ravaged the world.

Over 7 million people have been infected. More than 400,000 have died. Millions are scraping the bottom of the barrel to put food on the table. Countries have gone in and out of lockdowns, with non-essential social gatherings put on hold indefinitely.

Interestingly, Christians have responded in a myriad of ways. “Fear not, God will help us overcome the virus.” “Church is not important, love is.” “We will grow stronger through this.”

Yet, what do we make of the hundreds of thousands, including Christians, who have died? How can Christians grow stronger from COVID-19? Should Christians defy governments and continue meeting up despite lockdown measures?

It is easy to be confused about the right way to respond as Christians.

How should Christians respond amid the COVID-19 pandemic?

Allow me to suggest that the best way to begin is to go to the Bible and work from its main message, its storyline:

1. The Almighty God lovingly created the world out of nothing. The world was created good. There was no hint of blemish or evil. He created man to rule the world under him.

2. But mankind rebelled against God, wanting to be god instead. Time and time again mankind ignored God, worshipping either themselves or other gods.

3. So God condemned mankind to get what they want: to be cut off from himself, the life-giver. It meant that the world became a harsh dwelling place. Pestilence, drought and natural disasters became commonplace.

4. But God didn’t stop there and leave man to rot forever. Out of his great love, God the Father sent his Son Jesus to die on the cross for the sins of mankind. Jesus the Son of God has always existed alongside God the Father and is completely divine and sinless, sharing in the God-substance. Yet God sent him into the world, fully human. In the world, Jesus died and rose again physically.

5. Whoever submits to Jesus as God’s Son — God’s chosen Ruler — and depends on him for forgiveness has his or her sins washed away. The punishment that he or she deserves for rebelling against God is put on Jesus instead.

6. He or she receives life and God’s Spirit to live joyfully under God in this world. While he or she awaits the future unblemished world. When the current fallen world is judged finally and completely on Judgment Day.

At the heart of the Bible’s message is points 4 to 6: the gospel. It is the good news about the person and work of Jesus Christ.

The gospel has tremendous implications. It answers so many of our pressing questions today.

 1. God is our Creator and in full control of the world

The pandemic has certainly dispelled any myth that mankind is in control of the world. But the gospel has always said that.

God created everything, including mankind. Unlike mankind, God has complete power and authority over the entire universe. God is not part of the creation. He is “Other”. He is transcendent. There is nothing which is like him.

2. The world is under God’s judgment, virus or no virus

This means that the virus outbreak is not occurring without God allowing it. God isn’t negligent. He didn’t say, “Oops, forgot to keep track of that one…” Based on point 3 above, it would not be completely wrong to say that the COVID-19 outbreak is God’s judgment on the world. But that is only partially true. As mentioned, besides pestilence there has also been war, famine, oppression, and death. God had created the world good (Gen. 1), but we humans wrecked it when we rebelled against God. As punishment for our rebellion, God cursed the creation (Gen. 3:14-19) so that viruses, natural disasters, pain and sorrow are part and parcel of our world today.

There have been global plagues throughout history, not just SARS in 2003 or H1N1 in 2009. Among many others, there were also the Black Death of 1347 and the Spanish Flu of 1918. Perhaps a major difference between COVID-19 and these older plagues is the presence of air travel increasing the speed and reach of viral spread today. The ability of the COVID-19 virus to infiltrate large swathes of people at all levels of society throughout the world is perhaps why it has gained so much attention compared to many other tragedies of the past.

Besides, poverty, oppression, war, conflict, natural disasters and death have long been present even before COVID-19. The brokenness of our world has always been there, only suppressed, ignored or quickly forgotten. The world still is and has always been, under God’s judgment. It is not the utopia we sometimes imagine it to be. The present brokenness points to a future day when the world will be completely and utterly judged on what is known as Judgment Day (2 Pet. 3:7-10).

3. God is not evil

However, although he cursed the creation, God is not evil. God judges mankind precisely because he is just and good (Psa. 89:14). God cannot put up with evil and rebellion. The broken creation is not his fault. It is ours. The main problem with our world is our rebellion against God.

4. God is so good! He has shared in our sufferings and offers hope

Yet in his great kindness, God did not leave the world to be doomed forever. He has done something about it. He did not do something about it from afar. Rather, he entered the world and shared in our sorrows personally by sending his Son Jesus into the world. Jesus died on the cross for the sins of humanity, giving mankind the chance to be forgiven of our rebellion against God and to enjoy a restored, eternal relationship with God. Through Jesus, man can even call God “Father!” (Rom 8:14-15).

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.

~ John 3:16

God’s justice is fully met on the cross while undeserving sinners can now receive mercy. There is now hope for mankind. That is why the gospel is good news!

5. Christians still suffer and die physically

However, while Jesus promises his disciples eternal life, Jesus does not promise to guard us against all pestilence and suffering in this present life. It must be said that promises made about Christians overcoming the virus in this life are false and empty claims.

The gospel provides no such guarantee! It is primarily focused on the restoration of relationship with God, not merely the physical body. Suffering and pain are removed only in the life to come. In fact, the gospel promises that we will be glorified with him only if we first suffer (Rom. 8:17). Having faith in Jesus will not heal us of physical infirmities in this life. Millions of Christians over the centuries have died from war, disease and famine. For their faith, some have been sawn in two, killed by the sword, dressed in skins of sheep and goats, afflicted, and mistreated (Heb 11:37-38).  Even the apostle Paul had a thorn in the flesh which did not go away despite his pleading with Jesus three times to remove it (2 Cor 12:7-9). Lazarus, Jairus’ daughter, and Eutychus — Biblical characters who were raised from the dead — are no longer alive today.

It is also presumptuous to say that individual Christians who have contracted the virus are being judged for their sins. Christians who sin can be judged (1 Cor. 11:27-32), but it is not always the case (John 9:1-3). Even then, God intends such judgment to produce righteousness (1 Cor. 11:32).

Christians still live in a judged and fallen world. Christians will still suffer and die physically. What the gospel promises instead is that even if Christians die, they will be resurrected to eternal life on Judgment Day (John 11:25).

6. A new life of receiving God’s help and assurance now

This gospel promise can be ours if we believe in Jesus and are joined to him in his death and resurrection (Rom. 6:3-4).

But gospel promises are not only for the future. Through faith in Jesus, we can call upon God as our heavenly Father today. God knows we are frail creatures. He knows we can easily fall away. God is the ever compassionate and merciful God, who wholly understands our suffering because Jesus himself suffered greatly, bearing our sins upon the tree. So we can plead with God in our despair, knowing that we may receive mercy and find grace in time of need (Heb. 2:18, 4:15-16).

7. Christians must love one another and the wider society

Believing in Jesus means we will also want to live in a way which pleases God (Rom 6:6-12) while we wait for heaven. The gospel produces a new inter-dependent community of believers, not independent self-centred individuals. The gospel compels us to look not just at God, nor at ourselves, but to God and others above ourselves. Christians serve God by loving one another (Rom. 12-13). While we are sojourners on earth, one of the ways God keeps us in Christ is his church. The church spurs each other toward love and good deeds, encouraging one another to keep trusting in Jesus as Judgment Day draws near (Heb. 10:24-25).

The “church” or “gathering” is also evangelistic. Through the church, God’s glorious wisdom is made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places (Eph. 3:10). Jesus’ disciples are to love one another to make Jesus known to the world (John 13:35). Paul expected the disciples he trained to spread the gospel (2 Tim. 2:2, Rom. 15:14).

What do we make of churches cancelling services and putting sermons online? It is certainly harder to love one another and evangelise the world without meeting up, but it is not impossible. On the other hand, it would certainly be wrong for Christians to thoughtlessly spread the virus. The COVID-19 virus can inflict great physical and emotional suffering. It would be unloving to carelessly cause such harm. Furthermore, it is loving to reduce the speed of viral transmission to allow healthcare services to cope. This will, in turn, allow those in need of urgent medical care to access the help they require.

So Christians must submit to the governing authorities insofar as they are not instructing Christians to disobey God (Rom. 13:1-7, Acts 3:19-20). Obeying government instructions about social distancing benefits individuals and society at large. Doing so does not contravene God’s laws. We must pay them the respect and honour that is due (Rom. 13:7). Yet, the purpose of the church as mentioned above also means that online church services cannot be permanent. When a vaccine has been developed to end the pandemic, virtual online church services must not replace physical gatherings. Furthermore, evangelistic efforts also cannot take a back seat while a physical disaster is ongoing.

8. Do not neglect the spiritual death; honour gospel workers

The gospel reminds us that Judgment Day is coming. Evangelism needs to continue amid the outbreak. People are still dying in sin. It is truly sad that COVID-19 painfully brings forward the death date for many, but we must not forget that everyone will die anyway because of sin.

Acts of love and kindness displayed to healthcare workers and the unemployed during this period are wonderful and loving things to do. Sacrificing ourselves for the sake of others is a hallmark of God’s love. But they are not the gospel. How about remembering that we need to be on the frontline against sin ourselves, putting on the whole armour of God and preaching the gospel (Eph. 6:10-20)? The gospel is not chained by physical barriers. Among many possibilities, how about sharing sermons or doing 1-1 Bible studies with non-Christian friends online? How about encouraging and showing gratitude to all pastors and preachers for equipping gospel workers in fighting the war against sin and death “on the frontlines” as the gospel of Jesus Christ is preached?

Let’s hear it again:

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

~ John 3:16

Gospel centrality is what everyone needs, not just in the COVID-19 outbreak, but for all time. When we feel lost and helpless, it reminds us that God is good and in control. When we are proud, it reminds us that we are mere humans, under judgment and in need of forgiveness. When we are suffering, it reminds us that God also suffered and is walking with us through our pain. When we fear death, it reminds us that Jesus has definitively defeated it. When we are worried for ourselves, it reminds us to turn our eyes to Jesus and then to others. When we are too engrossed in the here and now, it reminds us of future glory to come. The gospel provides us with a clear framework to make sense of the world amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Note: Image’s source is https://www.flickr.com/photos/niaid/49534865371/