Romans 8:18-28
So much has changed in the past few weeks, as our nation is making major changes to fight this outbreak. In midst of it all, we are asking questions like the following. Why do sickness and diseases like Covid-19 exist? How are we to understand suffering? What is the Christian posture in times of a pandemic? Although we will never be able to fully comprehend this mystery, I believe that the Bible gives us more than enough to make sense of our time and put our trust in our God. So let’s allow the Scripture to give us insight to these age-old questions.
Why does sickness exist?
In Romans 8:20-21, Paul writes, “For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. ” At the very baseline reason for why sickness exist is because all of creation is subjected to futility and corruption. Creation is dysfunctional, not working properly, and it is plagued with destruction. Corona-virus is just one example of this reality.
When God created the world in Genesis 1, it was good, beautiful, and in order. But in Genesis 3, Adam, the representative of humanity, who was supposed to protect God’s creation, instead rebelled against God. Sin entered the world, and with it, death and corruption. The whole creation became cursed and broken, including all of humanity. This is called “The Fall”. Sickness (Corona-virus), disasters, war, famine are all effects of the Fall.
How should we understand God in relation to sickness?
Here is an excerpt from the Heidelberg Catechism concerning God’s Providence:
Q. What do you understand by the providence of God?
A. Providence is the almighty and ever present power of God by which he upholds, as with his hand, heaven and earth and all creatures, and so rules them that leaf and blade, rain and drought, fruitful and lean years, food and drink, health and sickness, prosperity and poverty—all things, in fact, come to us not by chance but from his fatherly hand.
What a beautiful truth. Nothing is by chance. All things are dealt by his hands. This means, God is not surprised by the Corona-Virus outbreak; even this is in his hands.
Why does God allow sickness?
The hard answer is we simply do not know. We can not see what God sees, and we do not know what He knows. In the Wisdom narrative of Job, God allows Job to be inflicted with great suffering. At the end of the book, God does not tell Job why he suffered, but rather God reminds Job of God’s grand providence and sovereignty. God holds all the world together, and in his infinite wisdom, He plans and works all things according to His good purpose. We are called to trust in His goodness, power, and wisdom.
However, we do know where all of creation is ultimately headed. In Romans 8:21-23, Paul writes that all of creation is groaning in birth pain and awaiting its freedom from its bondage. The creation is waiting for its new birth, the New Creation. Jesus is coming back and he means to restore all of creation, where there will be no death, no pain, no suffering. And with creation, we too, are groaning for our resurrection, the redemption of our bodies. This is where all of creation is headed, and all sickness and suffering (including Corona-virus) are just a passing reality towards the new creation.
How should Christians engage in sickness?
We ought to be realistic and hopeful. We are realistic in that we understand that we still live in a broken world. We must be sober-minded and prepare ourselves to face suffering and death all the while we pray for God’s unrelenting help and protection. Let’s work towards helping one another fight this outbreak and suppress its spread.
But let us not live in fear because we place our hope in Christ. Romans 8:18, “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.” We are a people who hope in the resurrection to come! Let us be a people so hopeful that we say, “If I die, then I die. But I will rise.”
Lastly, let us be a people who look to Christ, the one who suffered in our place. The Cross is the proof that in the darkest times, there is still hope.
