May 3, 2020
By: Bill Conger
For the last few weeks, we’ve been talking to ministers in the community about the spiritual answers to handling the COVID-19 pandemic. We wrap up our series with the following Q and A with Bobby Hale, pastor at New Home Missionary Baptist Church.
Bill Conger: This is a period of uncertainty for a lot of people, and many people have a lot of worry and stress. What does the Bible say about what people should do when experiencing these trials?
Bobby Hale: The Bible says instead of worrying over our situations that we should rather rely on God’s provision. The majority of Matthew Chapter 6 is dedicated to helping us understanding this truth especially the last two verses…Matthew 6:33-34 which say this…
(NLT) Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. So, don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today.
God is ultimately sovereign over all things, and the Bible points out that not even a sparrow falls to the ground without him knowing of it. Therefore, we should not worry about things we have no control over but rather focus on the one thing we do, which is making sure we are seeking the Kingdom of God above all else and telling as many others how to get there as possible!
Conger: What can be said to people who focus their hurt and anger on God for this issue?
Hale: I would say, unfortunately, the finger is being pointed in the wrong direction. Some may believe this is the judgment of God and indeed it very well could be. This could be to get our attention and to turn us back to Him. But if that’s the case, why is He needing to turn us back to Himself to begin with? You see, the Bible says that God is unchanging, and therefore, if He is unchanging, then that means He’s not the one who separated Himself from us, but rather it’s the other way around. Because of our sin, we have separated ourselves from God and this is simply His way of getting us back into a closer relationship with Himself.
I heard a little story one time of an elderly couple who were riding down the road one day in their pickup truck. The husband was driving, and the wife was sitting next to the window on the passenger side. She says to her husband, “Honey do you remember in the old days when we used to sit so close to each other that you couldn’t slide a piece of paper between us?” The husband responds, “Yes, honey. I remember those days well!” She then asks, “What happened to us?” To which the husband responds, “I don’t know honey. I’m not the one who moved!”
If we have been separated from God and indeed this is His way of turning us back to Himself, it’s because “we’ve” moved away and not Him! The only thing the Bible speaks of that can separate us from God is our sin. So, instead of blaming God for all of these problems we’re facing right now, we need to take a good look in the mirror and examine ourselves and our country because God’s not the one who did the moving!
On the other hand, instead of judgment, I like to think that this could be God’s way of extending His unending love and mercy to us. Think of how many more people have heard the gospel of Jesus Christ through this pandemic! The gospel is going out further through online platforms and on more airways than it ever has before, and there is no doubt that people’s lives have been changed because of it!
Therefore, in my opinion, this could rather be God’s way of getting our attention and extending a hand of grace and mercy so that people will turn to Him before it’s too late! What if the end of the world were to come tomorrow and a person through this pandemic has come to know God? What do you think that person would say when they stood before God on judgment day? I believe they’d say, “Thank you Lord for that pandemic because if it hadn’t of been for it, I probably wouldn’t have ever come to know you!”
It’s all about perspective and for those who are blaming God for this pandemic, it’s all about helping them to understand that their perspective on the situation is simply misguided.
Conger: What can we do to decrease our fear and anxiety in the face of all of these uncertainties?
Hale: I would say the greatest thing a person can do to decrease their fear and anxiety is to turn it into faith by studying the Word of God. There is nothing more peaceful than sitting down in a quiet area and opening the Word of God and letting it speak to you. The Bible tells us in…
(KJV) Isaiah 26:3 – Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.
And then David said in…
(KJV) Psalm 1:1-2 – Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the sear of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.
If you are dealing with fear and anxiety, sit down with God’s Word, pray over it, read it, study it, let it speak to your heart, and you will find that your fear and anxiety shall soon disappear and be replaced with a newfound peace that surpasses all understanding!
Delight yourself in the Word of God! As I heard another pastor once say, “Get into the Word until the Word gets into You” and you’ll be sure to find a blessing and more than likely even become a blessing to someone else through the process!
Conger: What are some practical ways we can love our neighbors in the midst of COVID-19?
Hale: I have heard many horror stories during this time of trial and tribulation. I’ve heard of people in retail stores cursing at one another, pushing one another, cutting in front of one another in line along with many other unacceptable reactions during this Covid-19 Crisis.
The reason we see these sorts of things is because of a me, myself and I attitude instead of a servanthood mentality where we put the needs of others before our own. Jesus’s entire life, and even his death, was characterized by putting the needs of others before His own, and we would do well to understand this. When asked what the greatest commandment was his reply was…
(KJV) “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.”
If we cared for others as much as we cared for ourselves, these kinds of attitudes listed above would be obsolete! During these trying times we need to be treating others the way we’d like to be treated. We need to be extending a hand of fellowship and exercising the fruits of the Spirit, which are love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness & temperance. (Galatians 5:22-23)
Paul said in (KJV) Galatians 5:14 – “For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.”
So, the main way we can love our neighbors in the midst of Covid-19 is simply treating them the way we would want to be treated. If we were in need, would we want someone to lend a helping hand? Of course! If we were hungry, would we want someone to give us some food? Of course! If we will take care of the small things, the big things will take care of themselves, but it all begins with loving our neighbors as ourselves!
Conger: What final word of encouragement would you offer to the person really struggling with fear today?
Hale: Don’t allow yourself to become a prisoner of fear. By doing so, you are giving fear way more credit than it deserves. The Bible says in…
(KJV) Hebrews 2:14-15 – “ Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; 15 And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.”
Jesus Christ, the one and only Son of God, came to this world, robed Himself in flesh just as we are, and suffered through the same exact things that we suffer through! He did this so that when we run into trials and tribulations like we are facing right now with Covid-19, we can remember that we’re not going through anything that He hasn’t already experienced and overcome! The Bible tells us here that Jesus defeated death, hell and the grave and walked out victorious and therefore in Him, we have can have the victory over fear!
(KJV) Romans 8:35-39 – “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 36 As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. 37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. 38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, 39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Press on! Instead of frolicking in fear, fight the good fight of faith and put your trust in the one who has conquered fear, the Lord Jesus Christ! By putting your faith and trust in Him, you will inherit eternal life, and at that point what else is there to fear?
Services at New Home Missionary Baptist Church are on Facebook Live and YouTube Live. Past sermons can be found on the website at www.NHMBCTN.com.