JAMES, BROTHER OF JESUS , lived in uncertain times, and says “Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.” (James 4:14) His words unsettle us, and we struggle for meaning in the now.
Time itself is now oddly shaped and twisted as the world, and we in it, experience a radical shift in meaningful engagement with day-to-day activities. No longer is there a predictable routine from Monday to Friday punctuated by a weekend in first-world countries; instead, all has become a blur—something the rest of the world has always known. Like a run-on sentence in a poorly constructed paragraph, our thoughts and actions jostle and crowd in, one upon another, and both intentionality and outcomes lose context from one day or one moment to the another. Planning for tomorrow is severed from the predictability once undergirded by at least the appearance of normalcy.
The impact of the coronavirus pandemic era is undeniably akin to that of the plagues of ancient times, and is Biblical in proportion. Even the church has had her routines shattered. How odd it is that there is no great hue and cry about end time events! Perhaps this is partly because there has yet been no great loss of life, but we also suspect that this is because the entire world has been in a heightened state of anxiety for decades. Nearly every nation on the globe has suffered repetitive catastrophic issues. Under the onslaught of one chaotic incident after another, the people of the world have become numb from the sensory overload of the daily news cycle.
The church also is in the midst of great trial, and we pray that the true church of Jesus Christ not be found unawares. Jesus said, “When evening comes, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red,’ and in the morning, ‘Today it will be stormy, for the sky is red and overcast.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times.” (Matt. 16:2-3)
What is our duty to Jesus’ church in such times? The word tells us, “Surely the Sovereign Lord does nothing without revealing his plan to his servants the prophets.” (Amos 3:7) And also that, “The spirits of prophets are subject to the control of prophets.” (1 Cor. 14:32) Jesus, the greatest of the prophets cautioned, “Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Christ.’” (Matt. 24:4-5) We desperately need wisdom to find our way forward in these perilous times. James says, “If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him” (James 1:5) We need wisdom not only from our reading of scripture, but also from the counsel of trusted elders, for “A wise man listens to advice.” (Pro. 12:15) We pray that God gives us not only wisdom, but also discernment of spirits.
Perhaps the Father has started the imminent countdown to Judgment Day. We are not wise enough to interpret eschatological prophecy and be able to pinpoint the day or the hour. Not even Jesus had that knowledge: “No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.” (Matt. 24:36) Yet not so strangely, we sense this may be the season. Maybe we have known about the season since first we had strange thoughts as a small child. And we are convinced that we now live amongst a band of saints that you have given this same urgency of knowing.
If the season is upon us, again we ask, what is our duty to Jesus’ church in such times? Most importantly, for our own well-being and for the sake of others, it is the requirement to serve as models of consistency in faith, obedience, and compassionate action in the service of others. We are called to reassure everyone we can that Jesus is the answer to every need, and to do so consistently and by example, “Not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.” (Eph. 5:15-16) In the family of God we are to “Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” (Eph. 5:19-21) These are the actions that will give normalcy to our lives and routines in uncertain times.
We do not need sensationalism during such critical times as these; instead, what we need, and what is required, is that the church rise up in the power and wisdom of God, and in unity carry on with the gospel message and the love of one another. We don’t need fire-breathing prophets warning of the condemnation of sinners by an angry God and their consignment to an ever-lasting hell, though we cannot ignore the truth of this. Instead, we need voices of reason and the compassionate actions of true believers ministering in practical ways to the real needs of those who are overwhelmed by the circumstances that have stripped away any sense of normalcy in this suddenly upside-down world.
Each of us who ministers—and that should be all of us—needs to hold on tightly to this promise of God: “Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come upon the whole world to test those who live on the earth.” (Rev. 3:10.) What should we say in times of trial? Perhaps just this: “Thank you, Father.”
Q. Am I overwhelmed by my daily trials, or undergirded by Christ?
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