“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.
(Joh 3:16-17 ESV)
Virus keeps us at least six feet apart.
Epidemics and pandemics are not new. The Black Plague, also known as the Black Death devastated large numbers of the of the worlds population, Cholera, Influenza, Typhus, Smallpox, Measles, Tuberculosis, Leprosy, Malaria’ Yellow fever have killed millions of people over the centuries. Some of these have wiped out entire population groups https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pandemic,
The most catastrophic virus infected mankind and the planet long before all these viruses. According to the Bible it is the cause of all other viruses. It started when the first man infected the rest of mankind. The result was the beginning of suffering and death. Paul makes reference to it in Romans,
Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned—
(Rom 5:12 ESV)
Sin is the virus that infected the entire human race. Without sin there would have been no suffering and no death. But sin caused something else It harmed our relationships with each other and It caused a separation from God. Before sin entered into the world God walked and conversed with man. Sin resulted in a distancing between man and God. It is universal, none is exempt.
for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
(Rom 3:23 ESV)
A virus is impartial. It does’t look at ones race, color, age, or social or economic status. We’re told to stand six feet apart because we all can be carriers.
Sin is even more impartial than a virus. We don’t become carriers, we are carriers. No one is immune. We don’t catch it. It was a nasty gift given to us by our first ancestor. He sinned and past the natural propensity to sin to all of us. There are no anti-viruses for sin. Whereas people can survive a virus they cannot survive sin. The result of sin is death. We all die.
Except for my wife, I stay at least six feet away from others, even my loved ones. It is hard to keep distant, especially from our grandchildren. I want to hug them, play with them, take walks with them, and visit with them in their homes. I’m thankful we can at least converse by phone. I’m thankful that this is temporary.
God the Father has a distant relationship with us because of the original virus. He doesn’t walk with us anymore. We can talk to Him through pray, but it’s not the same as being in His presence.
Just as I desire to be close to my grandchildren, God desires to be close to us. If I had a cure for the present virus I would give it. God has a cure for Sin. He sent a physician to heal us from sin. The Physicians name is Jesus. He didn’t wear a face mask. He came to us and intentionally exposed himself to our virus. He took it upon himself and died in our place. He did this so that we could be brought back into a relationship with the Father that He so desires.
We must accept the Physician to receive the cure. God didn’t send him to condemn us. The virus (sin) already condemned us. He sent him to save us. Just as the virus inflicted us through one man (Adam), so also the cure for the virus has been provided by one man (Jesus). The cure is a gift from the Father. You can’t earn it. Receive the Physician and receive the cure. The Physician cured the virus, defeated death, and rose from the dead. He wants to heal each of us, but we must believe that he is the cure.
If there has been anything good that has come out of the present crisis it has been that most of us have had to stay at home, rest, spend time with our family and given a chance to reflect on our relationships. The most important relationship is the one we have with God. We don’t have to be six feet from God for the rest of eternity. If we accept and draw close to Him, He will draw close to us.
“And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”
(Rev 21:3-4 ESV)