Evangelism and Coronavirus
As an introvert who has also suffered with anxiety issues, I sometimes find talking to strangers difficult because I have all sorts of worries about how they will perceive me. But for whatever reason I can preach and teach with relative ease. Public speaking is not my struggle – uncomfortable social situations are!
I say that as a preface. The emergence of novel COVID-19 has turned the world upside down. People are scared. This is unprecedented in our lifetime to see a pandemic of this scale and severity. The world seems to be quite literally shutting down in front of our eyes.
In light of all of this, I wonder – will our practices of evangelism change?
Now more than ever, Christianity is poised to deliver comforting news to a suffering world. The world is reeling from the uncertainty of this pandemic, and whether implicitly or explicitly, many believe that this virus is random, and that can lead to hopelessness and fear.
But Christianity can speak into these fears.
Only Christianity provides hope that transcends death. Only Christianity offers a gospel of free grace. Only Christianity has a triune God who loves the world so much that he gave his only Son in order to save sinful people. Those sinful people he then adopted as sons and daughters and sent the Spirit to dwell with them, giving them comfort and peace. Only Christianity has a God who orchestrates all things according to his good and perfect will, and nothing is outside of his sovereign control (even these events happening around the world today).
When we go out shopping (whenever that may be again), we can speak of this hope. When we check on neighbours, friends and family, we can tell them of this hope. Often we can be hesitant to proclaim the hope that we have in Christ, because we are afraid that people don’t want to hear what we have to say. But in light of everything that is happening, won’t now actually be a time when speaking up will be a tremendous comfort?
This might be simply, “I’ll pray for you.” This might be something more direct, such as “The world feels scary right now, but let me tell you about the hope that I have in Jesus Christ. It doesn’t mean I’m not afraid. But it does mean that there is something greater than both of us, and a hope and security that this virus cannot take away.” Whatever way you approach it, remember how comforting the gospel is to you, and share it in that way!
So, from introverted me to you, I say: Be bold. Let us go forth with renewed vigour. We have good news to share. It has always been good news, but during times of fear and crisis, when people are stripped of their sense of control and safety, this good news is something people are ready to hear.
Christ reigns and rules! His church and kingdom go forth in his power. The gates of Hades (of death) will never stop his church. He has the keys of death and Hades. And he’s coming again to usher in a perfect world.
There is hope for today, tomorrow, and forever! Amen.
