Breaking the Virus Chains

Breaking the Virus Chains

            I admit that I am only a casual observer of religious media. What I witness or fail to witness therefore regarding a Christian response to the coronavirus may stem from this lack of observation. To me Christian leadership, in providing spiritual direction regarding the circumstances surrounding these events, seems limited.

I do hear a number of religious leaders expressing instruction about common sense personal hygiene and the need to follow the directives from health professionals and government authorities. Some speak of the power of God to heal and keep with no clear direction except to pray. Along with these there is also a smattering of fringe, nonconformist voices warning of the soon coming apocalypse or a government encroachment on personal liberties. To address these attitudes is not my purpose herein.

This writing is my small effort at framing the events of recent months in a broader spiritual context. Let me be perfectly clear that I believe we should follow the commonsense directives from our national and local leaders. God does place natural authority over us and unless this authority violates good conscience, (which in this case I don’t believe it does,) we should yield to their counsel and decisions. See: Romans 13:1-7; 1 Peter 2:13-17; Acts 5:29. Love dictates that we put the welfare of others above our preferences.

In addition, we should pray that divine wisdom, knowledge and understanding be granted unto them. The ones who pray (in the true sense of communication with God) to see into the heavens hold the greater power, in situations, than those that rule by position alone. See: 1 Timothy 2:1-3.

This is not easily understood by individuals that only see natural events outside of their spiritual context. They see the exercise of institutional power of the state to enforce its will, not recognizing that God uses all things to bring forth His purpose. God is not the cause of all things, such as this destructive virus, but He is able to use all things for good in the furtherance of His will.

God used a government taxation decree to position Jesus in Bethlehem and fulfill the prophecy of His birth; Luke 2:1. He used the governmental persecution of the early church to spread the gospel; Acts 8:4. He used a wrongful imprisonment of Paul to liberate a man, his family and a City; Acts 16:16-40.       And the famine that spread abroad in the Roman Empire, caused acts of love and kindness to spring forth among Christians; Acts 11:28-29.

The Bible has many similar events forged out of human struggle. Some of these events, like the birth of Jesus or the blessing of Abraham, were joyous and profound events influencing generations unto our day. Others, such as the liberation of Israel from Egyptian bondage, came as a result of much personal pain, abuse and deprivation to the entire nation. However in all of these God’s greater purposes were revealed.

Although God is not the source of the coronavirus no doubt He is active among every nation and in every person affected in any way by its wide path. It is a condition to one degree or the other that touches the whole world. Although very serious, it is only one of many illnesses and incidents that occur annually in our lives.

Take for instance, road vehicle accidents. Almost 40,000 people in the US die each year from road accidents and 2.35 million people are injured. Worldwide, the World Health Organization states that 3,700 people die each day by these accidents and 1.35 million die each year plus another 20-50 million people who suffer injuries from these accidents.

Or consider the yearly influenza outbreak. The World Health Organization estimates that worldwide the flu kills between 290,000 and 650,000 humans each year. In the United States the Center for Disease Control estimates that through February 1^st of 2020, 31 million people have caught the flu, up to 360,000 have been hospitalized and between 12,000 and maybe as high as 30,000 have died from the flu.

UPDATE AS OF DATE OF SHARING:  As of March 18^th there were 270,000 coronavirus cases worldwide with over 11,000 deaths. In the United States over 21,000 cases have been reported including 261 deaths. These numbers change daily. The number of cases and deaths is expected to rise significantly in the coming weeks and the total for the year won’t be known for some time. This is a very serious and deadly disease to be sure. One might reasonably ask however, why in comparison to accidents and other illnesses that have touched many more lives, has the coronavirus caused such a frenzied though understandable reaction?

Might I suggest that it is the fear of the unknown and the continued focus on this disease and its precautions that has gripped the lives of so many. Certainly the world is right to focus on this illness and take responsible precautions to prevent its spread, that goes without saying. But is it fair to ask why 31 million people in the US have contracted the flu and perhaps as many as 30,000 have died and we go about our lives without hardly noticing?

We disrupt our lives, lay off workers, close down businesses, isolate people and put the economy in jeopardy. Politicians and others are both severely praised and criticized. Fear controls many. Why, what makes this different?

Fear of the unknown is perhaps one reason. The flu is always with us but this is a new coronavirus flu and we don’t yet know its outcome. Our response must be different. We should have an inner strength and confidence. Although we follow the prescribed course of prevention, these circumstances should not evoke fear within us.

We may know someone who will die from this virus, we may die of this virus but to let this control our lives would make no more sense than to give up driving because we might become one of the 35,000 road deaths or stop going to sporting events because we might be one of the maybe 30,000 Americans who will die of the flu.

Again, I am not saying we should not follow directives from health authorities regarding prevention, only that we should not let the possibility of contracting the virus or even the possibility of death control our attitudes and our willingness to become solutions through love and faith rather than victims of fear. Fear may be a greater underlying condition than the actual virus.

It sometimes takes me a period of time to adjust to change. I like many don’t like change very much, at least not change of the more difficult kind. To seek Godly understanding involves a process. I find myself looking at the difficult situations, as in this case the virus, through my personal emotions and prejudices. At times I even make self-righteous judgments even though I know that judgment that comes from my perspective and not God’s greatly limits the ability to be sensitive to His Spirit and direction.

After I get through with all my thoughts about the injustice of the circumstances and what they may mean to me personally, I can begin to free my thoughts to rise above my natural circumstance. Until I do, I may struggle with voices that I think are voices of reason because they share a common belief and support my fear.

Only when I begin to hear the voice of the Father can I really discern words of truth as opposed to words of fear, hostility, criticism and manipulation. These voices keep me in bondage to their beliefs, but the Father’s voice frees me from emotions of judgment, anger and fear of the future.

Many do not hear the Father’s voice, that is why they are in bondage to their own pain, prejudices and apprehensions of life. When you go higher, stop judgment and see from a higher perspective, it becomes like looking at the earth from the moon. You see clearly; and how do you know you see clearly? It is because you are at peace within yourself and your desire is for good especially for good to those that you perceive to be in need or even to be causing you harm. You stop fighting inside, the warfare in your mind ceases and calmness and wisdom proceeds forth.

In hindsight, it is always much easier to see the purposes of God when not in the midst of the turmoil. Yet it is those like the Apostle Paul, Abraham, Joshua and their companions that endured struggles with grace that the greater purpose of God is accomplished. This should be us.

These see by faith while in the midst of the struggle and therefore do not react like the masses; hording food and personal products, living out their own will regardless of who might be hurt by their actions. Rather they respond from the confidence found in the Spirit knowing that, ‘God Is For Them!’ They spread the bounty of the Spirit because they can see beyond the current circumstance. They do not live in fear but through faith! See: 2 Corinthians 4:16-18.

Such are you as the body of Christ. The birth pangs of the next age are upon us. We are part of the spearhead of a great transformation from the confusion and unbelief of the wilderness age to the amazing promises of the Kingdom! This virus is deadly to those who are physically compromised. Fear can be like that but only to those who have not awakened fully to His love.

Many want to believe but don’t know how. They sometimes see faith as something that is conjured up through human effort. They think that making pronouncements about the Word or voicing sentiments over and over until they are realized is the demonstration of faith. But do you know where true faith, life altering faith, fear canceling faith comes from?

It is found in four simple yet life altering words if you can allow them to mature your spirit and manifest in your soul. These are words we have introduced previously but perhaps not fully grasped. ‘God Is For You!’ That’s it, that is the seedbed of all true faith; ‘God Is For You!’ Regardless of the circumstances whether perceived as good or bad, all Bible men and women of faith cultivated these four words within their heart until they became part of their very being.

As a world we are going through a difficult time but in comparison to many other historic events, it is not as serious or consequential as many past struggles.  That is not to say this current virus is a minor event, but rather to say we need to put it into perspective with past catastrophic events of world wars, plagues that kill 40% of the population, despotic rulers who kill tens of millions of their own people and catastrophes that destroyed whole species and civilizations.

If it were as serious, would that warrant greater fear? But even if this was the same or worse as the sufferings of the past, we still have an obligation to remember who we are.  We don’t fear even if it’s worse because the principles of God remain true.

All generations are met with a certain level of hardship, from climatic events to political skirmishes to agricultural failings and the ever-present economic difficulties. Those who navigate these occurrences successfully acquire a faith in themselves, a faith in their fellow man and above all a faith in God. Their perseverance comes from a knowledge that ‘God Is For Them!’

‘God Is For You!’ If the person who you think would be your perfect mate does not respond the same way; God is for you! If you get the job of your dreams; God is for you! If you suffer financial loss; God is for you! If you find that perfect home; God is for you! If your best friend dies; God is for you! If you marry that perfect person; God is for you! If you are blessed with children and riches; God is for you! If you suffer the loss of all things; God is for you! And some day if you should ever find yourself along with the rest of your world struggling with a new and deadly virus; God is for you!

‘God Is For You,’ that never changes. Those who know this, really know this down deep in their being, walk in great confidence and peace regardless of the circumstances. They realize that though they may lose things in this natural world, in the Spirit nothing is ever lost, all things are theirs. It is only in this brief moment that loss can occur, never in eternity.

Fear makes what we imagine always greater than what is real. The King killed James. Some of the people liked it so much he thought to do the same to the Apostle Peter and threw him in a dungeon chained to soldiers. Was Peter afraid? He would have had good reason to be. Were the Christians in Jerusalem afraid, well if not afraid they were at least cautious.

Peter is sleeping, that tells me if he was afraid for his life he did not show it for he was still able to sleep even thinking tomorrow his head would likely come off.  He’s not pleading for his life, he’s not in agony over what might happen. No he is sleeping. And what were the Christians doing? They were praying.

We get the idea that they were wailing and crying out to God. “Please, please God spare Peter. We need him, he is our leader. He is such a good man and can do such good for the Kingdom and you know how many people he can reach for you.” Maybe they did pray that way, but I don’t think so. I think they prayed prayers of deliverance, not prayers of pleading. I don’t think prayers of pleading would overcome the spirit of death hovering over Peter.

I think, like many in the body of Christ have learned, that they prayed pronouncements, (communicated, not hands folded and on their knees begging). They communicated in love with the Father. The force and alignment of their prayer overcame the spirit of death and it was according to God’s purpose.

What is God’s purpose in combating the spirit of sickness and death in this virus? Is it to order His people? Is it to awaken the earth to a higher reality and understanding? Is it to get the people of the earth out of a pleasure fulfillment pursuit and into a spiritual pursuit? Is it to usher in things kept secret from the foundation? Is it to have His people arise to their place as Kings and Priests?

What is His purpose? Did the saints praying for Peter know God’s purpose or did they desire Peter’s release and that was according to God’s purpose? Regardless the forces of good overcame the forces of evil. The world seeks a sign but believers seek His face. The Body of Christ is the instrument into the fulness of the Kingdom. Our weapon from the war chest is to overcome the fear of the weak by our positioning as instruments of His purpose.

My personal feeling is that we may find in the months to come that the cure was worse than the disease. That the fear of the virus may cause more harm than any sickness resulting from the virus. Churches are asked not to gather together. This may be a wise thing naturally but think of what happens if the church doesn’t gather spiritually.

In that case there is no force to push back the onslaught. The present natural effort to stop this disease is to isolate. That is good health counsel but the Body must never isolate in spirit but learn to grow and unify and assume its position as spiritual leaders. You are the instrument of God to destroy fear. When the course of this virus is over the fear of this virus will subside and we will be left to deal with the aftermath of decisions and actions that have been taken as a result.

Fear will then find its next avenue, its next virus, its next global struggle to continue its hold on the unlearned and unexpecting. You are death fighters! Your willingness to align with His nature makes you the greatest force for good in the world. Continue to allow His transformation in us. Continue to walk the frontlines of the fight and as the saints two thousand years ago, the bands that fell from Peter’s wrists will be like the bands of fear that will lose their hold on the people of the earth.

There are some very practical actions we can take that we can speak about at some point but first we probably need to be firmly convinced of His love, His protection and most of all that God and not a virus or any other fear generated by natural events, is in charge!

This is a day of spiritual awakening and you are God’s instrument for this awakening. Be of good courage and may the grace and mercy of God follow all you righteous acts!