God in Corona Virus

 We need convincing evidence of the goodness of God’s character if we are to

trust him. I would therefore ask you at this point to listen to the core of

Christian teaching—whether you are familiar with it or whether it is new to you

—and to try to understand it before concluding that belief in God is inconsistent

with the existence of the coronavirus, or any other pandemic, disease or fracture

in the natural world.

Christianity claims that the man Jesus Christ is God incarnate—the Creator

become human. At the heart of the Christian message is the death of Jesus

Christ on a cross just outside Jerusalem. The question at once arises: if he is

God incarnate, what was he doing on a cross? Well, it at the very least means

that God has not remained distant from human pain and suffering but has

himself experienced it.

Therefore, a Christian is not so much a person who has solved the problem of

pain, suffering and the coronavirus, but one who has come to love and trust a

God who has himself suffered for them.

Quoting from a remarkable

book called I Choose Everything, in which Jozanne Moss (in South Africa) and

Michael Wenham (in the UK) describe their journey through pain. They are

both suffering from a terminal illness (motor neurone disease), and have only

met by email.

Jozanne likens that journey to climbing a mountain. With honesty and courage,

she writes about how God has sustained her:

“I have been climbing my mountain for about fifteen years. Most of those

years were spent in the base camp at the foot of my mountain where I

knew God was preparing me. I was always afraid to climb and thought

that the base camp was my goal. I didn’t think I could make it to the top,

but God showed me through my illness that it wasn’t about me, or what I

could do. It was always about him. ‘It is God who arms me with strength

and makes my way perfect. He makes my feet like the feet of a deer; he

enables me to stand on the heights.’

“I finally left the base camp and started my ascent. God has chosen

Everest for me. It definitely has not been easy, and my foot has often

slipped. I have often felt weary and at times I didn’t think I could go any

further. Parts of this climb are very steep and far beyond anything I could

achieve, but he continues to show me his power and strength, and when

I’m tired, he is there. ‘… but those who hope in the Lord will renew their

strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow

weary, they will walk and not faint.’

“My climb is nearly over. I think I am near the summit of my mountain.

The higher climbers go, the closer they get to the summit, the harder it

becomes to breathe. The oxygen level decreases as the altitude increases,

which causes climbers to suffer from altitude sickness. (According to the

Internet: ‘Symptoms of mild and moderate altitude sickness typically

consist of headache, shortness of breath, sleeping trouble, loss of

appetite, nausea and rapid pulse.’) As the muscles of the body weaken

with the progression of Motor Neurone Disease so too do the muscles

necessary for breathing become weaker. I feel short of breath, have

regular headaches, have trouble sleeping and often experience a very

rapid pulse. But it doesn’t worry me because I know I am nearly at the

top of my mountain. The climb is becoming tough now, but I must press

on. 

The reward that awaits me when I complete the climb, far outweighs

any sacrifice one makes. Ask any mountain climber!

“So here I stand, looking up. The end is in sight and my heart races with

excitement. I look forward to the day when I can say: ‘I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.’”

“God is too good to be unkind and He is too wise to be mistaken. And

when we cannot trace His hand, we must trust His heart.”

- Charles Haddon Spurgeon(19th century preacher).

The above words are an extract from the book called "WHERE IS GOD IN A CORONAVIRUS WORLD" written by John C. Lennox.