Cross and Covid 19
Subject – A Response to the Coronavirus
by Rick Welborne
Acts 12:1-16 (NIV)
1 It was about this time that King Herod arrested some who belonged to the church, intending to persecute them.
2 He had James, the brother of John, put to death with the sword.
3 When he saw that this pleased the Jews, he proceeded to seize Peter also. This happened during the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
4 After arresting him, he put him in prison, handing him over to be guarded by four squads of four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring him out for public trial after the Passover.
5 So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him.
6 The night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries stood guard at the entrance.
7 Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up. "Quick, get up!" he said, and the chains fell off Peter's wrists.
8 Then the angel said to him, "Put on your clothes and sandals." And Peter did so. "Wrap your cloak around you and follow me," the angel told him.
9 Peter followed him out of the prison, but he had no idea that what the angel was doing was really happening; he thought he was seeing a vision.
10 They passed the first and second guards and came to the iron gate leading to the city. It opened for them by itself, and they went through it. When they had walked the length of one street, suddenly the angel left him.
11 Then Peter came to himself and said, "Now I know without a doubt that the Lord sent his angel and rescued me from Herod's clutches and from everything the Jewish people were anticipating."
12 When this had dawned on him, he went to the house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark, where many people had gathered and were praying.
13 Peter knocked at the outer entrance, and a servant girl named Rhoda came to answer the door.
14 When she recognized Peter's voice, she was so overjoyed she ran back without opening it and exclaimed, "Peter is at the door!"
15 "You're out of your mind," they told her. When she kept insisting that it was so, they said, "It must be his angel."
16 But Peter kept on knocking, and when they opened the door and saw him, they were astonished.
1 It was about this time that King Herod arrested some who belonged to the church, intending to persecute them.
2 He had James, the brother of John, put to death with the sword.
3 When he saw that this pleased the Jews, he proceeded to seize Peter also. This happened during the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
4 After arresting him, he put him in prison, handing him over to be guarded by four squads of four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring him out for public trial after the Passover.
5 So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him.
6 The night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries stood guard at the entrance.
7 Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up. "Quick, get up!" he said, and the chains fell off Peter's wrists.
8 Then the angel said to him, "Put on your clothes and sandals." And Peter did so. "Wrap your cloak around you and follow me," the angel told him.
9 Peter followed him out of the prison, but he had no idea that what the angel was doing was really happening; he thought he was seeing a vision.
10 They passed the first and second guards and came to the iron gate leading to the city. It opened for them by itself, and they went through it. When they had walked the length of one street, suddenly the angel left him.
11 Then Peter came to himself and said, "Now I know without a doubt that the Lord sent his angel and rescued me from Herod's clutches and from everything the Jewish people were anticipating."
12 When this had dawned on him, he went to the house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark, where many people had gathered and were praying.
13 Peter knocked at the outer entrance, and a servant girl named Rhoda came to answer the door.
14 When she recognized Peter's voice, she was so overjoyed she ran back without opening it and exclaimed, "Peter is at the door!"
15 "You're out of your mind," they told her. When she kept insisting that it was so, they said, "It must be his angel."
16 But Peter kept on knocking, and when they opened the door and saw him, they were astonished.
--I listened to a message from one of our missionaries and he said it was sensitive so it could not be shared on line. He is in a sensitive area. I want to try to share his thoughts with some Rickaneese thrown in.
--I hope we are thinking properly during this time but I am very afraid that many are not. The conspiracies continue from pastors and believers who should be more mature. Please stop!
--This is an unprecedented time for us but not unprecedented in history. How the true church has responded to plagues in times past has changed the course of history. Will we rise up for such a time as this?
--The church historically did not deny the plagues existed and they did not think it was judgment on those rotten sinners. They saw it as a time to serve others and to shine for Christ. To share the love of Christ.
--The true church actually grew through times of pandemics which helped change the world. Their response was how can we serve people and glorify God?
1. They were astonished.
--In our text we saw the people at the prayer meeting for Peter astonished. What surprises you? What astonishes you? The early church was astonished that God chose to deliver Peter.
--They were not astonished that Peter was in prison or that James had been beheaded but they were astonished that Peter was delivered. I am sure they were praying for him.
--I am sure people were praying for Stephen (the first martyr) as he was being stoned and I am sure believers were praying for God to rescue Jesus as He was being crucified on the cross.
--They believed in God’s power to deliver, but because of what they had seen before, they had come to believe that Peter was going to die. Not a lack of faith but a big dose of reality.
--They were astonished that God delivered Peter because they had come to believe that suffering was a part of life for those who chose to follow Christ. There was a good chance you would die following Jesus.
--See the contrasts with us today about what astonishes us. What surprises us today is not good news but bad news. We are like Job’s friends, as soon as something bad happens we think someone sinned for sure.
--When we face something bad we ask “Why me?” I have been shocked by the selfishness of the church thru this time. Everything is about us. Tell that to the millions who have lost their jobs and are in food lines.
--Maybe we should reverse this “Why me?” especially in this virus. Why me, why am I so blessed, why do I have Jesus to walk with me thru this time, why do I have a church family to help? Yes, indeed! Why me?
--Our modern way of looking at the Word has caused us to sanitize the parts we don’t like. NIV heading says of our text…Peter’s Miraculous Escape from Prison. James dies and barely gets noticed. Bad news.
--Our modern theology tells us that those who follow Christ become happier, joyous, and prosperous. We have heard the safest place in the world to be is in God’s perfect will.
--Try telling that to James as they beheaded him, Stephen as they stoned him to death, or Jesus as they crucified Him. Life was not safe for those who followed Jesus. Ask the apostles. All of them.
Matthew 10:16 (NKJV) 16 "Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves.
Timothy Keller – The basic premise of religion says that if you live a good life, things will go well for you is wrong. Jesus was the most morally upright person who ever lived and he lived a life of poverty, rejection, injustice, and even torture.
--Why is knowing this so important? When we think only good, blessings, prosperity, and joy wait for us, we are extremely hindered when we face something like COVID 19.
--We look for someone to blame instead of asking God what would He have us to do. God’s requirement for those who will take this gospel to the ends of the earth often require pain and suffering. Leaving secure jobs.
--When we think life is all about us, when a virus hits we tend to look inward instead of outward. We seek to save our lives at all cost. Christians hoard and hunker down. So sad.
Mark 8:34-36 (NKJV)
34 When He had called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said to them, "Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.
35 For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel's will save it.
36 For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?
34 When He had called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said to them, "Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.
35 For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel's will save it.
36 For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?
2. Our theology and thoughts about God.
--One of the greatest problems in the church today is that we think God’s chief purpose is our happiness, our prosperity, our health, and our comfort. Suffering, pain, and sacrifice are not acceptable.
--Yes, God loves us but His chief purpose for us is to bring salvation to all people, to glorify God, and to make Jesus famous in all the earth. This is why we must be a missions’ church!
--During the 1700-1800 the people of the church were so uneducated that the church formed catechisms to teach people the doctrines of the church. One of the first on the list was this:
West Minster Catechism – What is the chief end of man? The chief end of man is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever.
--So how was it that the early church expanded and changed the then known world? Listen to their mindset:
Philippians 1:29 (NKJV)
29 For to you it has been granted on behalf of Christ, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake,
29 For to you it has been granted on behalf of Christ, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake,
2 Timothy 1:8 (NKJV)
8 Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me His prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the power of God,
8 Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me His prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the power of God,
--When Paul reviews his life with Jesus, look at what he brings to mind. Notice the word danger not blessings.
2 Corinthians 11:24-27 (NIV)
24 Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one.
25 Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea,
26 I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my own countrymen, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false brothers.
27 I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked.
24 Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one.
25 Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea,
26 I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my own countrymen, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false brothers.
27 I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked.
--When Paul describes his life with Jesus it does not sound like an easy road but a dangerous road. Following Jesus does not make our lives easier or free from worry. We face Pandemics, suffering, persecution, and pain.
Acts 20:22-23 (NIV)
22 "And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there.
23 I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me.
22 "And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there.
23 I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me.
--Let’s face it, with our mindset today, if God warned us that prison and hardship were waiting on us wherever we were going, we would say “Thank You, Lord, for keeping from going.” Paul went anyway.
Acts 20:24 (NIV) 24 However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me--the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace.
--If our theology tells us that God’s chief purpose is our joy, our prosperity, and blessings, it will keep us from going and doing what He wants us to do. Remember Jesus didn’t come to save Himself…to save others.
--A prophet, Agabus, comes to Paul and takes his belt and ties his own hands and feet and says Holy Spirit warns that the owner of this belt will be bound in Jerusalem. They beg Paul not to go.
Acts 21:13 (NIV)
13 Then Paul answered, "Why are you weeping and breaking my heart? I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus."
13 Then Paul answered, "Why are you weeping and breaking my heart? I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus."
--How many Christians in the medical field have been begged by their families to stay away from the hospitals and the sick. They can’t because their calling is from God. It is not about self-preservation.
1 Peter 2:21 (NIV) 21 To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.
1 Peter 4:12-13 (NIV)
12 Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you.
13 But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.
12 Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you.
13 But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.
--Remember we talked about what surprises us. Peter said don’t be surprised by the fiery trial but to rejoice that we get to suffer with Christ. What a different theology of today. This is Biblical, Life Church!
--Does the church again turn inward or do we do our best to reach out to those who are hurting and to those who are hungry? Thank God for those who continue to minister at our House of Hope every week.
Martin Luther – Should Christians flee the plague? We die at our post. Christian doctors cannot abandon their hospitals, governors cannot abandon their districts, pastors cannot abandon their churches. The plague does not absolve us of our duties, it turns them into crosses on which we must be prepared to die.
3. Suffering with Christ.
--All these people were following the example of Jesus as He left the comforts of heaven to come and rescue us. He didn’t come to us and then, live separate from us. He suffered for us.
Hebrews 2:18 (NLT2) 18 Since he himself has gone through suffering and testing, he is able to help us when we are being tested.
--If Jesus is going to be revealed during COVID 19, it will be because Christians (doctors, nurses, law enforcement, pastors, churches) are willing to walk with people thru their pain. Five lessons:
1. Remember when it seems everything is changing, nothing really changes. Jesus is the same!
2. Wash your hands, and then, wash someone’s feet. Then, wash your hands again. Serve like Jesus.
3. Allow God to search you. Let Him examine you to see if you are into self-preservation or are we people of the Spirit, serving this world and one another.
4. Don’t be self-righteous. This is the worse sin we can have during this time. Pray for and encourage others.
5. Point people to Jesus. Fear is almost as bad as the virus. People need hope, they need Jesus.
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