As we have experienced one of the most unusual times in history, we are faced with many questions. One question that some are asking: “Is all these restrictions really necessary?” Another question may be: “Will things ever get back to normal?” Or perhaps we may ask: “What will be the new normal?” And then we ask the ultimate question: “Where is God in all of this?” I believe that God has a purpose for everything. I do not believe that God purposefully caused this virus to sweep across the globe, however, I do believe that God allowed it and is using it for His glory and to bring the world unto Himself.

Covid-19 and other diseases comes from the fact the we live in a world that has been cursed by sin. Ever since the fall of man in the Garden of Eden, the earth has been cursed. There is disease, famine, wars, evil, pain, death, etc. The things we go through in life are not things that God has inflicted us with. All the suffering of mankind is of our own doing. It is the sinful nature of man that has brought the sufferings of this world. We cannot blame God for what we are going through. What we are facing is simply the results of a sin-cursed world. The truth is that it is not going to get any better. There will be more pandemics. There will be more famine. There will be more wars. There will be more natural disasters. All of these things will continue to escalate the closer we get to the return of Jesus Christ. This sickness and the response of the world to this sickness is a sign of the times. Calls for more government. Calls for tracking citizens. Even calls for a one world government. These are all things that point to what we know of as the end times. No matter how you look at it, Satan is at work to bring about his evil desires for this world. At the same time, God is using this time in history to draw all people to Himself and giving the world yet another chance to repent and turn to Him.

Where do you fit into all of this? The Bible says that “all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). That includes you and me. Sin is anything we say, do, or think that is against God’s Word. Sin is missing the mark or the target. Our mark is the Word of God. The Bible is the standard for what is right and wrong. Therefore, when we do things against God’s Word we have sinned. Also, when we don’t do the things the Bible commands us to do, we have sinned. Everyone can confess that they are a sinner. Admitting your sin is the easy part.

Our sin brings about some very bad news. Romans 6:23 says, “The wages of sin is death….” All of the death and decay we see in the world is a result of sin. Death is not the end. We have been given an eternal living soul by God. Therefore, we will live forever. However, the penalty for our sin is eternal death. It is eternal separation from God in hell. As long as there is sin in the world, there will be sickness, wars, evil, etc. Covid-19 exists because sin exists.

But, there is Good News! Jesus came to pay the penalty of sin for us. He came to this earth and died on a cross to pay the price for our sin. Romans 5:8 says, “God demonstrated His own love toward us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Jesus died for you. Why? Because He loves you. You see, God is not the cause of the world’s problems. He is the Savior. Jesus came to save us from ourselves. He did for us what we could never do for ourselves. He provided a gift of salvation for us.

How can I have this gift of salvation? Romans 10:13 says. “Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” If you want to go to Heaven, you can! You don’t have to pay the ultimate price of sin. You don’t have to go to hell! Call upon Jesus today and ask Him to forgive you of your sin and to save you from the penalty of sin. Trust in Him by faith today and you will be set free from the curse of sin!

Not only is God using the Covid-19 crisis to draw people to Himself; He is also using the Covid-19 crisis to wake up the church and expand our outreach. In the book of Acts we find the early church was in a similar situation. They were content with staying where they were. They enjoyed the fellowship they shared and stayed in Jerusalem. However, that was not God’s plan for them. God wanted them to scatter out and preach the Gospel to everyone. So, God allowed the church to be persecuted in order to force them to get out of their comfortable circles and go out into the world and preach the Gospel.

Today, God is using the Covid-19 crisis to force the church outside it’s four walls. God has scattered us so that the whole world may hear about Jesus. God has gotten us out of our comfort zone and has forced us to minister in ways that we may have never thought of before. You may ask, ‘how can I tell people about Jesus during a stay-at-home order?’ There are many ways. Perhaps you can make a video of your testimony and post it on Facebook. You can send out letters explaining the Gospel to random addresses. You can send Bibles to people. You can call people on the phone. There is so much that you can do. This is what God wants us to do. This is what God is calling us to do. In a world that has been turned upside down, people are looking for hope. Will you give them that hope?