At last people are beginning to take this pandemic seriously. Scenes of packed Tube trains in London shook the capital earlier this week. They reinforced the view that this is a nation of rebellious subjects who are a law unto themselves. Yet within hours of the Government’s appeal for volunteers, more than 500,000 responded, which also shows the amazing resilience of the British nation and people’s willingness to serve self-sacrificially when the need is presented.
This is very much like the World War II spirit in the Battle of Britain when suddenly the threat of invasion hit the nation, replacing the phoney war of the first nine months of hostilities. Once things got serious with the fall of France, Belgium and the Netherlands, the British nation responded by sending little boats manned by civilians, rescuing our soldiers from the Dunkirk beaches under heavy fire from land and air.
The big difference between now and the Dunkirk days is that in the war, when bombs were falling around us, there were no atheists! Everyone at least believed in God, and most were praying people. When the King called for a National Day of Prayer, the response was pretty well unanimous: and when the nation was saved from invasion by winning the Battle of Britain in the air, a second National Day of Prayer was called to give thanks to God.
My greatest sadness today is that so many people in Britain do not even acknowledge the existence of God, and very few people are really listening to what God is saying to the nations through this pandemic. God has been airbrushed out of our national consciousness. But God has been sending warnings for many years, although they have all been ignored. He has spoken quietly through many significant incidents such as financial crashes and natural disasters – storms, tsunamis, earthquakes, wind and fire – but few people have been listening. So now God is shouting to the nations!
My greatest sadness today is that so many people in Britain do not even acknowledge the existence of God.
Nations in Defiance
God is surely warning us that the world is heading for disaster. This is why we are seeing an international plague sweeping all nations – none will be spared, although some will be harder hit than others. This does not necessarily mean that they are more sinful or under greater judgment. It is simply that when a plague is released it does not distinguish between the righteous and the unrighteous. And in any case, we are all sinners; as Paul reminds us –
There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one. Their throats are open graves; their tongues practice deceit. The poison of vipers is on their lips. Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness. Their feet are swift to shed blood; ruin and misery mark their ways, and the way of peace they do not know. There is no fear of God before their eyes. (Rom 3:10-18)
The plain fact is that the nations of the world have drifted farther and farther away from the truth; either driven by war and violence or, as in the Western nations, by fake news, lies and deception. Even worse, we are teaching wicked lies to our children: filling their minds with violence, telling them that they can have sex whenever they choose, with whomever they choose, and abort unwanted babies - they can even choose their gender, in defiance of the God who created them.
That may be the final step that has caused God to release a plague across the nations: he is using it to warn humanity of the disaster to which we are heading. Millions of human beings are going to a lost eternity.
God is surely warning us that the world is heading for disaster. This is why we are seeing an international plague sweeping all nations.
Knowing the Truth
Make no mistake: that is the truth! Jesus came from the Father to bring truth to human beings. He alone is the light of the world, but people prefer darkness instead of light because their deeds are evil (John 3:19). But “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).
The Apostle John, who was closer to Jesus than any of his friends, said that Jesus could be trusted to bring the truth because he had come from the Father in Heaven. He said,
He testifies about what he has seen and heard, but how few believe what he tells them! Anyone who accepts his testimony can affirm that God is true. For he is sent by God…And anyone who believes in God’s Son has eternal life. Anyone who doesn’t obey the Son will never experience eternal life but remains under God’s angry judgment. (John 3:31-36, TLB)
Thousands have already died through the coronavirus and many more will die as it sweeps across the nations. We have not seen the end of this virus. Many people are living in fear because they have no faith - no anchor to hold them steady as the storm intensifies. It is only when we are in a right relationship with God through Jesus, who loves us with an unending love, that we have a peace of mind that passes human understanding. We know then that whether we live or die, nothing can separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Rom 8:38-39).
We Can All Witness!
If there is anyone in your family or among your friends who does not know Jesus as Lord and Saviour, you surely must do something to tell them the truth and lead them from darkness into light. The principle of accountability is deeply embedded in the Bible. Ezekiel sets it out:
If the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet to warn the people and the sword comes and takes the life of one of them, that man will be taken away because of his sin, but I will hold the watchman accountable for his blood. (Ezekiel 33:6)
If any Christian remains silent now, be assured that each one of us is accountable to God. As Jesus said, we are to be his witnesses - to tell others what he has done for us and how much he means to us. It’s no good being shy now. The last words of Jesus to his disciples were: “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8).
Right now, we are being presented with the greatest opportunity for personal evangelism we have ever had. Millions are sitting at home fearful of the future and especially fearful of death. There are so many ways that we can reach them with the good news of God’s love that will transform them for eternity. Short of ideas? Just read our Good News Page!
