Lately when I look outside in the mornings the sun is streaming through the forest, blue sky is overhead, birds chirp, and our friendly cat Chornie is perched outside on our kitchen window ledge. It looks like a beautiful spring morning. All is well….or is it?
We all know the world is in an uproar because of the unseen attack of the coronavirus. The news is constantly reporting of it’s spread to all 50 states (and the world) and the daily death toll. And our state is ground Zero for the US.
Recently the Lord reminded me of Moses leading Israel in the desert on their way to the promise land. They had some difficulties and soon the people began to complain against God and Moses. Numbers 21:6 says, “The LORD sent fiery serpents among the people and they bit the people, so that many people of Israel died.” The people soon realized they were at fault so asked Moses to intercede. Moses did and God told him to make a fiery looking bronze serpent and put it on a pole outside of the camp for all to see.
Any who were bitten could simply come and look upon the serpent and be healed. That may have seemed like a weird thing to do but soon the snakes were gone. It was a matter of trusting God by faith that brought healing. Jesus used that illustration to picture his own death on a cross as a means to the salvation of any who believe. "As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; so that whoever believes will in Him have eternal life. (John 3:14-15) What follows is perhaps the most well known verse in the Bible. "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.”
Incidentally, the medical symbol of a serpent wrapped around a pole that we often see in doctor’s offices and on medical materials is thought to be based on this story from Scripture. The Greeks used it much later also, but in a corrupted way.
The point is that God allows difficulties like fiery serpents and Coronavirus to come our way. These help bring us to a point of repentance and deeper trust and faith in God. We don’t always know who’s sin brought it on. We do know we live in a sin cursed world so believers may be affected by the effects of sin in the lives of other.
The believer who is saved from sin by faith in Christ’s death on the cross wins no matter what. If we survive the virus we win and continue to do His will spreading the good news of gospel. If we die we win and will be with our Savior in heaven to glorify Him forever.
Therefore, we should simply trust God as we confront this fiery serpent-like Coronavirus. I say, “Trust God, stay calm, wash your hands, and spread the gospel.”
Pastor Mark
ANNOUNCEMENTS & NEWS YOU MAY HAVE MISSED
We have a new On Line Bulletin. You can access the link on the church home page www.discoverbaptist.org or click the direct link below.
Saturday 3/21/20 at 9 a.m. Pastor Mark will do a short Men’s Discipleship livestream. See it at www.discoverybaptist.org or click the direct link below.
Sunday 3/22 at 10:30 join our morning worship which will also be broadcast on LIvestream since no services will be held at church for awhile. Our worship team is working to make this event worshipful. “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful;and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.” Heb. 10:23-25
Be aware many churches may be livestreaming which could cause a slowing of the internet. If so you could probably see it better at a later time. Note that anything livestreamed may be watch about any time later.
What about giving? You can give by mailing it to Discovery Baptist Church, 4902 Gustafson Dr. NW, Gig Harbor, WA.
Or give online at the secure giving link below.
SALT group meetings are cancelled but our leaders will be working to keep in contact with all through our groups during this special time. Keep us in prayer and stay tune for exciting changes in this new world.
Emma Brown’s Graveside Service is cancelled due to the closure of the National Cemetery at Covington. She will be interred by cemetery staff only. When things clear we will have Emma’s memorial service at Discovery.
Good news from the Gustafsons is that they now have all their support. They are still in New York with Mike’s family and unable to get back into Ukraine until the virus scare clears there and Ukraine opens the boarders again. Currently no one in Ukraine is allowed to travel. Trains, subways, buses, and planes pretty much are at a dead stop. Most people there use public transport.
“Let’s Visit” is coming soon. It’s a new resource on the Community to provide our church family with a fun, easy, and meaningful place to chat about topics relevant to our new reality. This resource will be announced to the whole church Saturday 3/21 at noon. Watch for it on the Community.
Building Project Update this week the county sent our parking lot plan back with four more questions. Our engineers will be answering them but can’t get to them for a couple of weeks because of workload.
Stephen and Courtney Myers say missionary classes and training have been cut short and are available online to finish. They return back here sometime next week and will stay with family until this quarantine time is cleared up.