Here we are in uncharted territory, locked up, locked down, and locked out. Who could’ve guessed just two months ago as we struggled to hang on to a runaway economy that within a few short weeks we’d face the prospect of the new and improved Greater Great Depression? A self-inflicted act of economic euthanasia. Shuttered in our homes we peer through the TV and wonder, “Will my family make it through this? Will I make it through? Will this last so long the economy is gone? And if it does what then?”
Some say there’s a light at the end of the tunnel. Some say this is a train roaring down the tracks to obliteration station. I’m here to tell you today of another light. The light who is the Light of the world.
Just as the Bible tells us, “Do not worry,” it also tells those who believe in Jesus, “Let not your heart be troubled.”
How do we go through what we’re going through and not worry? How do we watch the daily briefings, the climbing death toll, adjust to house arrest, looming food shortages, and the possible collapse of the American economic miracle and not have a troubled heart?
Good questions deserve a good answer, and luckily God does not leave us alone. His Word provides all the faith, hope, and love we need to not only make it through but to help others not only survive but thrive.
From the day man rebelled and cut us off from God there’s been a plan in motion to re-unite us with Him. By confessing with our lips Jesus is Lord and believing in our hearts that God has raised Him from the dead we enter this plan. We welcome God into our life just as He welcomes us into His. And where do we find ourselves? Right where we always hoped we’d be, in the beauty of His glory and grace. The only fitting reaction to all this is to praise Him, to shout it from the roof tops.
And that’s not just in the rush of deliverance it carries over into our everyday walking around life. So now that we’re His we should act like it. We realize that we’re His children, in the world but not of the world. And because of this we praise Him even when we’re surrounded by troubles. Why should we sing praises when we are troubled?
Because we know that as long as we keep our hand in the hand of the man who stilled the sea these troubles will not crush us they will make us stronger. Because, troubles build patience, patience builds virtue, and virtue keeps us wide-eyed and expectant waiting on God. And as we wait, we should never feel abandoned or forgotten. Instead we should hold tight to the promise of the blessings He has instore for us, the blessings He pours into our spirit day after day.
Knowing from experience Christ is an on-time God, He didn’t wait for us to be good enough. He came and gave Himself as a sacrifice while we were in rebellion seeking to find our own way. This makes no sense to the natural mind. We can see how a good person might give themselves selflessly for someone worthy and even inspire others to do the same. However, God showed His true colors by offering up His Son to pay the price of our sin while we were still in rebellion and not good for anything.
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Now as we walk in the light of our reunion with God through Christ there shouldn’t be any doubt that we’re His children and reconciled with Him perfectly. Think about it, when we were at our worst, rebels and completely estranged from Him, we were forgiven and set right through the sacrificial death of his Son. Now that His resurrection has defeated sin, death, and the devil and we’ve been re-born into God’s kingdom just try to imagine all that He has in store for us.
So after the troubles have birthed patience, patience has brought forth virtue, virtue has developed a character of steadfast faith, and this faith has brought forth hope we can depend on God that this hope will not disappoint. Because this faith is founded on the love of God which is poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit He’s given us.
Yes, the world around us is in turmoil. Yes, this pandemic is testing us as we’ve never been tested. We see our nation, our families, and ourselves hemmed in by problems we never saw coming. But I’m here today to tell you hold on to the hope we have in Christ Jesus. Nothing can snatch us out of His hand. And I’m convinced that neither death nor life, angels, principalities, powers, not things present or things to come, not height or depth, or pandemics can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Dr. Owens teaches History, Political Science, and Religion. He is the Historian of the Future @ drrobertowens.com
Follow Dr. Robert Owens on Facebook or Twitter @ Drrobertowens / Edited by Dr. Rosalie Owens
