You’ve heard the PA motto, “Stay calm, stay home, stay safe.” These words convey the common sense challenge to do what we can to slow the spread of Covid-19. And in many communities it’s been working; stay-at-home has helped “flatten the curve” and keep the medical establishment from being overwhelmed. It’s good advice.
And yet, we chafe at this counsel. Stay home? We weren’t made to live under quarantine. Staying home may be the right thing to do for the moment, but not for too long! God designed his church to walk by faith together and to practice all those beautiful “one another” commands up close and personal, face to face: Show hospitality to one another (1 Peter 4:9). Accept one another (Romans 15:7). Be subject to one another (Ephesians 5:21). Forgive one another (Colossians 3:13). Confess your sins to one another (James 5:16). Pray for one another (James 5:16). Encourage one another (1 Thessalonians 4:18). Bear one another’s burdens (Galatians 6:2). Love one another (Romans 13:8). And so, we long for the day when we can all gather together in person.
But there’s another part of “stay calm, stay home, stay safe” I want to examine: just what do we mean by “safe”? I think this question requires answers on multiple levels. In terms of the surface issues, “safe” means alive; it means steering clear of serious danger from a virus that has brought death and devastation all over the world.
But thoughtful believers will be interested in “safety” on a deeper level. Focusing on physical health for today is reasonable but also short-sighted. Yes, we thank the Lord for bodily well-being; every day of good health is his gift, and we’re grateful. But God has something so much richer and fuller and more valuable than mere health to give us. Jesus calls it “abundant life” (John 10:10). In Christ there’s a “fullness of joy” that transcends this brief, earthly venture and extends into the eternal future, bringing us into the all-satisfying personal presence of the Lord!
And in light of such glory, how does our physical safety compare? Or to post the question differently, if you could enjoy excellent bodily health all your days until you breathe your last in old age, but you lacked the spiritual and eternal safety that Jesus offers to all who put their trust in him, would you feel satisfied to experience today’s temporary wellness?
Or to put it yet another way: If, in the age to come, beyond the grave, your fate would be to “perish” (John 3:16) and forever be separated from the Lord (2 Thessalonians 1:9) and forever bear the guilt and the just punishment for your own sins (rather than have the Saving Substitute atone for your sins, Isaiah 53:4-6), would you consider it a “good deal” to have been physically safe here and now, this side of heaven? I hope not!
The Coronavirus has imposed upon the world a moment of clarity: We can’t avoid seeing the harsh fact that life is frail, we’re all vulnerable, and the security of life in the flesh is so very limited. Thank the Lord for the way this crisis opens people’s eyes to today’s tenuous conditions and to all-important eternal realities. Pray that many, many hearts would be humbled and would seek true, lasting safety in Christ!
