Fear Not

Jesus has one task — to grow his church, even if the front door is closed this weekend. There is no plan B.

But you, Israel, my servant,
Jacob, whom I have chosen,
the offspring of Abraham, my friend;
you whom I took from the ends of the earth,
and called from its farthest corners,
saying to you, “You are my servant,
I have chosen you and not cast you off”;
fear not, for I am with you;
be not dismayed, for I am your God;
I will strengthen you, I will help you,
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Isaiah 41:8-10 (ESV)

A lot of churches are not opening doors this weekend. Some people are angered or scoffing at these churches for doing sensible things. God is with the church, but God with a church or person does not excuse that person from being responsible and prudent. God can be with you all day long, but if you pull the trigger on a loaded gun, God probably is not going to stop the bullet.

Christians should behave prudently.

Christians should not live in fear.

Distinguishing between the two can sometimes be hard and sometimes critics do not even want to try to distinguish. I do not blame churches for closing today. Many congregants are elderly, this virus has begun spreading in communities undetected, and there are not enough hospital beds in many communities right now if the elderly get sick.

This is prudent.

But some are now fearful and behaving fearfully. We all need to take a step back and remember God is still on the throne. God is still sovereign.

The God of the universe who creates all things, brings bread from heaven, brings water from rocks, and raised all of us from the dust of the earth is still in control. We know that all things work for the good of those called to His purposes and we can see good even now.

We see people rekindling community to check on the elderly. We see people taking cautious steps to protect the vulnerable. We see a recognition again that life is precious.

Fear not, because God is with you. Fear not, because God is on his throne. Fear not, because the God of all creation is working even as you cannot see him and these things are working for His purposes.

Jesus has one task — to grow his church. There is no plan B. The gates of hell will not prevail against that mission. At this time, with the front door closed to the physical church, the spiritual church, the body of Christ, can still open hearts to prayer, wallets to charity, and themselves to serving their members. The church can show the world that Jesus’s mission continues even if Sunday service cannot right now.

God will help us and he will uphold us even when all else fails. So trust in God.