Will Anyone View Our “Shutdown” As a Severe Warning from God?
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I have a rare collection of prayers in my library of the English Reformers. It was collected and edited by Henry Bull in 1566. One of the prayers is titled: “Another Prayer Meet For the Present Time, That God Would Turn Away His Plagues Hanging over Us For Our Sins.” Consider how strong the English Reformers were at moments like ours. Here’s a portion of the prayer:
We confess and acknowledge, O Lord, that it is our sins which have moved you to wrath, and to show such fearful tokens of your displeasure towards us in these our days; first with fire from heaven, betokening your hot burning indignation and wrathful displeasure for sin which abounds at this day, and then with such horrible and monstrous shapes against nature, as was never seen here in our days in no time before us, which do betoken to us none other thing, but your plagues to come upon us for our degenerate and monstrous life and conversation; and not last of all, by great mortality, plague and pestilence, you have terribly threatened us, fatherly warned us, and mercifully called us to repentance.
These prayers were from the most learned Reformed scholars and pastors of the 16th century. What’s interesting to note is how the Reformers at certain times were willing to recognize the frowning providences of God as clear warnings and threatenings of divine displeasure for sin. They recognized that the “shapes against nature” and the certain things of providence that they never witnessed before had a strong message in them. For them the “plague and pestilence” were threatenings to the world, even fatherly warnings to God’s people, calling “everyone” to repentance.
How should we speak of the judgment of God?
Our pushback of reading providence too specifically (and rightly so) has left something of a void in how we speak of the judgment of God in times like those we are now facing. Who wants to sound like the angry evangelical calling out specific groups of people for being bad sinners? Without question, Luke 13 provides a strong warning against reading providence in such a way to say that the terrible events that happen to people occur because they are worse sinners than other people.
Further, Jesus would not let us read providence to say that the bad things that happen mean that God is specifically judging someone else for their sin. We are not to draw links from particular judgments to particular sins. We speak generally of these things. For instance, we have no right to say that someone who gets the coronavirus is being judged by God as a worse sinner or for some specific sin. Jesus would have none of this. He asked,
“Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered in this way? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.” (Luke 13:1ff)
All people are equally worthy of the judgment of God, and Jesus used these events and forced people to consider their own standing before God. The verdict has long been given—all have sinned and are under the just judgment of God.
The shutdown is a serious warning to us all.
But it would be equally wrong to ignore the providence of God in these cases. There is a very serious message everyone should consider in the dark moments of God’s providence. Jesus is telling us that these terrible events are warnings to everyone of the judgment to come, so we should repent today.
I believe the church should consider the unique moment we have during events like the coronavirus pandemic. For the moment, people are facing the possibility of loss in many forms. Things have become very serious now in a society that epitomized the mindset of, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry” (Luke 12:19). Americans live believing that life will go on as it always has. We are the people of 2 Peter 2 who deliberately forget the judgment of the flood that fell on the world that then was.
This is why we must consider the warning that comes with unleashing of the coronavirus disease. Like the prayer cited above, something is unfolding before us that we have never witnessed in our lifetime. Before us, society is shutdown, churches are banned from meeting, gatherings have ceased, and the economic fallout and inability to work and embrace one another are taking their toll. Jesus told us that these things would happen. Famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places are the beginnings of sorrows or birth pains (see Matt. 24). They are painful indicators of the impending final judgment.
Is our current crisis a small foretaste of Revelation 18?
Consider, however, the similarities of our current crisis to John’s description of what is to come upon Babylon in the final judgment of Revelation 18:
“For this reason her plagues will come in a single day, death and mourning and famine, and she will be burned up with fire; for mighty is the Lord God who has judged her….all your delicacies and your splendors are lost to you, never to be found again!” The merchants of these wares, who gained wealth from her, will stand far off, in fear of her torment, weeping and mourning aloud, “Alas, alas, for the great city that was clothed in fine linen, in purple and scarlet, adorned with gold, with jewels, and with pearls! For in a single hour all this wealth has been laid waste.…Rejoice over her, O heaven, and you saints and apostles and prophets, for God has given judgment for you against her!” Then a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone and threw it into the sea, saying, “So will Babylon the great city be thrown down with violence, and will be found no more; and the sound of harpists and musicians, of flute players and trumpeters, will be heard in you no more, and a craftsman of any craft will be found in you no more, and the sound of the mill will be heard in you no more, and the light of a lamp will shine in you no more, and the voice of bridegroom and bride will be heard in you no more.” (Rev. 18:8, 14-17, 20-23)
Revelation 18 says that the final plague of judgment will bring an end to the economies of the world. The luxury and wealth Babylon enjoyed is taken in an hour, leading to death and the final judgment. This is the death no one can escape. The joyful celebrations of weddings and gatherings are over. Work stops forever, and the economy takes its ultimate plunge. Worst of all, the light of the church and the gospel is seen and heard no more in Babylon.
This requires us to stop and think for moment. Hasn’t the shutdown of everything given us a small foretaste of Revelation 18? Consider the things that we are presently facing. At present, here is what has happened:
The economy is shut down and work has stopped.
Death is being displayed to us.
Gatherings and weddings are banned.
The church has been barred from meeting.
Though on a much smaller scale, what we are facing are the things that happen in the sudden final judgment. We are living proof that it doesn’t take much to halt everything in a moment. This is a worldwide phenomenon, accomplished by a little virus. Quoting the Reformers, we are facing something we have never seen here in our days.
Come to Jesus today!
An event like this should be a clear call for everyone to repent and escape the judgment to come. Sadly, the message of judgment is almost non-existent in the church today. But the church has a solemn responsibility to warn people of the wrath to come. The church shouldn’t be afraid of recognizing God’s providence at moments like this and calling all people to repentance and faith in Christ. All people are called to turn from their sins and come to Jesus for forgiveness and reconciliation with God. As the Reformers recognized at moments like this, God is terribly threatening us, fatherly warning us, and mercifully calling us to repentance.
The greatest silver lining in this, however, cannot be missed. We are still able to publish the best news ever: a lamp is still shining in Babylon and a voice is still sounding out,
“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” (Matt. 11:28-30)
This is not forever, and time is short.
Jesus is merciful, gracious, and longsuffering. Come, repent and believe, and enjoy the blessing of his forgiveness of sins. Christ’s word, in the midst of this present chaos, is a sweet word of peace to all who believe: “Then I heard another voice from heaven saying, ‘Come out of her, my people, lest you take part in her sins, lest you share in her plagues’” (Rev. 18:4). That’s the voice worth hearing in our present shutdown.
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Searching Our Hearts in Difficult Times (Puritan Paperbacks) by John Owen
This article is adapted from “Will Anyone View Our ‘Shutdown’ As a Severe Warning from God?” at agradio.org.
