In many ways, this pandemic has been a gift to the Church. It has unmasked fake pastors, purified church numbers, pushed us to prayer, clarified our theology, drove deeper fellowship, and exposed the evil of the world system. It’s hard but it’s all working together for our good.
Dale Partridge
Scripture has often been famous for an upside-down view of the world, one that is contrary to our natural inclinations. Dale Partridge’s allusion to Romans 8:28 is a fitting example.
And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good…
Romans 8:28a ESV
This verse is particularly famous in Christian circles. Life is hard, so God is going to work this out for my good, right? Of course He is, but the “good” that God is working out shouldn’t be confused with human ideas of goodness or the prosperity gospel.
“Good” in Romans 8:28 is in the context of suffering, of which the reward in this life is that it conforms believers to the image of God’s Son (v. 29). The ultimate payoff comes later “with the glory that is to be revealed to us” (v. 18)—when the sons of God are unveiled.
“Sons of God” and the idea of being God’s image are both closely connected to the rulership of the cosmos. The sons of God in the Old Testament were a group of angelic creatures who were given rulership of the nations at the Tower of Babel (see The Unseen Realm or The Epic Gospel We’ve Forgotten). Rulership language permeates the image of God poem in Genesis 1:26-28.
Suffering becomes so important because Jesus is our example, the Human Who, unlike any other human in history, lived His life as the “exact imprint” of the Father’s nature. This meant a life of self-sacrifice that ended in suffering, torture, and death. And because of this, He was “crowned with glory and honor” (Heb. 2:9), becoming the Ruler of all creation (v. 8).
But the key is that Jesus, the “founder and perfecter of our faith” (Heb. 12:2), revealed the Father’s heart through willing self-sacrifice. Because He perfectly imaged the Father, He was made the true Ruler that humanity was originally called to be (Gen. 1:26-28). To someday be unveiled as the sons of God—the rightful rulers of earth, we must be conformed to the image of the Ruler of all creation, emulating His example by walking in love and being willing to go through suffering as He did (Eph. 5:2).
This perspective provides an upside down view of current events. Humanly, it makes more sense to whine about Covid, inflation, and supply shortages, or to put our hope in science or a political party to fix the mess we’re in. But the one Human Who perfectly displayed the Father’s love didn’t try to seize earthly political power. Rather, He gave Himself up to be sacrificed by the political powers of the day and the powers of darkness.
Through the supposed foolishness of the cross, Jesus revealed the wisdom of God (1 Cor. 1-2) and disarmed the forces of darkness (Col. 2:15). As asinine as it seems, if Christians want the mess the world is in to get better, our job is to look to Jesus and follow the example He gave us (Heb. 12:2), considering our trials to be a reason for rejoicing (James 1:2).
Hebrews 12 goes on to say that Christians should view hardship as discipline from God. Just as children who are loved by their fathers are disciplined by their fathers, so also God disciplines His children “for our good” (v. 10). Spoiled children who were never disciplined by their fathers are not fit to inherit the kingship. They are “illegitimate children” (v. 8). Although I may have hated it at the time, I now appreciate the discipline my parents gave me as a child because it formed and shaped me as a person.
For believers, Covid is a gift: loving discipline from our Father, conforming us to His own image so that we can partake in the rulership of the earth with Jesus, the “ruler of kings on earth” (Rev. 1:5 ESV).
Epic Gospel 