Episode 53 – Victory over the Virus Part 6

Welcome to Anchored by Truth brought to you by Crystal Sea Books. In John 14:6, Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” The goal of Anchored by Truth is to encourage everyone to grow in the Christian faith by anchoring themselves to the secure truth found in the inspired, inerrant, and infallible word of God.

Script: (Bible quotes from the New International Version and Contemporary English Version)

Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. 

Galatians, Chapter 6, verses 7 and 8, New International Version

Don't store up treasures on earth! Moths and rust can destroy them, and thieves can break in and steal them. Instead, store up your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy them, and thieves cannot break in and steal them. Your heart will always be where your treasure is.

Matthew, Chapter 6, verses 19 through 21, Contemporary English Version

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VK: Hello. I’m Victoria K. Welcome to Anchored by Truth brought to you by Crystal Sea Books. I’m here today with RD Fierro, author and founder of Crystal Sea Books. As we have announced before, we delayed a series of episodes we had planned to discuss Biblical prophecy in order to mediate on what the Bible has to say about dealing with trials and tribulations like the Covid-19 virus that is currently plaguing our nation and the world. And I think that we have learned a lot in this series, that – even though the Bible is over 2,000 years old – it speaks just as compellingly to people today as it did to its first audience. And you say, RD, that is, in and of itself, evidence of the Bible’s supernatural origin and inspiration. Could you amplify a bit on this observation?

RD: I’d be happy to. We open every Anchored by Truth episode with the observation that the Bible is the inspired, inerrant, and infallible word of God. Well, one of the ways that we believe that people can be ensured that the Bible is inspired, inerrant, and infallible is because it possesses two attributes that would mark any book that fits that description. First, the Bible is consistent with what we know about the created order, the unfolding of history, and the behavior of man. And second, the Bible contains evidence of having a supernatural origin. To support the contention that the Bible possesses those attributes we regularly refer to four lines of evidence that demonstrate those attributes.

VK: Right. And those four lines of evidence are that the Bible is historically reliable, has produced positive changes in untold lives, possesses a remarkable unity for a book with over 3 dozen human authors, and contains an abundance of fulfilled prophecy. And over the more than a year that we’ve been doing Anchored by Truth we’ve steadily explored various topics associated with those four lines of evidence?

RD: Yes. And that’s one of the big reasons we want to get to our series on Biblical prophecy and demonstrate some of the remarkable examples of prophecies that we know from history that came true just as prophesied. I mean, from a human vantage point, we often don’t know what the weather will be like tomorrow much less be able to tell who will win the next election or sports championship. So when a human being can give a specific prophecy about a future event dozens, or even hundreds, of years in the future – and then that event comes to pass – we can be sure that the human author had a supernatural source of inspiration. You don’t have to look much farther than what the Covid-19 virus is doing to our country and the world to see that human beings, on their own, can’t predict the future. A year ago, or even 6 or 3 months ago, who predicted the events that are now occurring daily?

VK: Well, though some people might make that claim very few would believe them.

RD: Precisely. There have been a lot people throughout history that have claimed to possess the gift of prophecy …

VK: Such as ...

RD: Well, I make it a practice to inadvertently try to publicize anyone who might lead someone astray. But just by way of illustration, Nostradamus is a name that’s often mentioned. But unlike the Biblical prophecies which were remarkable clear, Nostradamus wrote in these sort of poetic quatrains that are subject to all sorts of different interpretations. Quite different from the prophecy contained in Isaiah 44 in which Isaiah named the coming king, Cyrus, who would deliver the Jewish people from exile. Anyway, the Bible’s large volume of fulfilled prophecy makes it stand out from every other book and is substantial evidence that it has a supernatural inspiration and we’ll get more into that starting in the next episode.

VK: Nice tease. But before we go too much farther, how about if we appeal to our Almighty Father for His grace in helping our nation recover from this dreadful plague?. I hope the listeners will join us in praying for restoration to our communities and nation.

----- PRAYER FOR RESTORATION FROM THE COVID-19 PLAGUE ----

VK: I think that’s a prayer that many people are praying for in their own way. And here at Anchored by Truth we do believe that the prayers of God’s people are important to Him. As we often remind people James 5:16 says that “The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” In this context the righteous person doesn’t mean a perfect person – just someone who has accepted Jesus as their savior and is endeavoring to live according to Jesus’ teaching. Anyway, let’s get back to today’s topic. You said that you just wanted to make a few final points as we close out this Victory over the Virus series.

RD: Yes. As we close out this series I want to think a little more about the fact that nothing that we have seen during the response to the pandemic has been inconsistent with the observations made in the Bible. Quite the opposite. Tragically, we have seen confirmation of what used to be some time honored bits of wisdom and warning that the Bible contains. Thankfully, as we briefly mentioned in our last episode we have also seen wonderful examples of people and organizations who have been motivated by the Bible and their Christian faith to bring help and comfort in truly dramatic ways. And the fact that we can see the Bible’s wisdom and warnings present in what we have seen all about us leads to one final lesson that we should all learn – to not only have victory over the virus but to bring greater victory and hope to the rest of our lives.

VK: Ok. That sounds like we have a lot to talk about. So, where do you want to begin in terms of seeing that present day actions and events point to truths contained in the Bible?

RD: Well, let’s start with one of the sadder observations that confirms an old Biblical truth. This is a truth that used to be taken for granted but that you rarely hear it discussed today.

VK: And that is?

RD: That the love of money is the root of all sorts of evil.

VK: That’s an oldie but a goodie. 1 Timothy 6:10. In the New International Version it reads “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil.” In the Contemporary English version it reads “The love of money causes all kinds of trouble.”

RD: Right. Well, I think it’s pretty easy to see that trouble and evil have been all around us during this difficult time. And while I don’t like to make political comments on Anchored by Truth, there are a couple of facts that are now commonly known that the love of money played a big part in the spread of the virus. It’s becoming increasingly clear that the Chinese government cut off domestic travel from the Wuhan province to the rest of China while they continued to allow international travel from there. It’s hard to draw any conclusion from that rather dramatic distinction made by the Chinese government other than that they intended to limit the spread of the virus in their country but were indifferent to whether it infected and affected the rest of the world. I think the kindest conclusion you can draw is that the Chinese government was more concerned about preserving their commercial interests abroad than they were about protecting the health of their trading partners.

VK: Yikes. That is a sobering thought but it may well be warranted. One of the reasons northern Italy got hit so hard is that there are a number of garment manufacturing facilities there that employ a large number of Chinese workers. So, a great many Chinese workers who had gone to China for a festival and to see family returned to their jobs bringing the virus with them. And that same thing was true in other places around the world where China has major economic interests such as Iran and Russia. By some reports more than 5 million Chinese left the Wuhan province before the Chinese government locked it down completely.

RD: Exactly. And to be fair, it’s likely that the vast majority of those workers did not know that they were carrying the virus or even had been exposed to the virus. But sadly this did not prevent them from inadvertently spreading the virus. And you don’t have to assign a specific motive to any particular person to see the general truth of the Biblical observation. Sometimes, 1 Timothy 6:10 is misstated to say, “Money is the root of evil.” But that is not what it says. Money is an inanimate object. It’s a tool that can be used for good or evil. The observation is that the love of money is what can produce all sorts of evil or trouble. And we should note that the admonition that Paul made to Timothy doesn’t mean that there has to be specific intent to cause trouble for others, i.e. if “I do thus and so I will get an extra $500.” Paul is just reinforcing the observation that Jesus made in Matthew 6:21 and other places that your heart will be wherever your treasure is. And Jesus, again, was talking about treasure in the sense of gold or pearls but in the sense of whatever you value most in your life. So in verse 10 Paul is building on the thought he started in verses 8 and 9 that foolish and harmful desires, such as greed, can plunge people into ruin and harm. And the love of money, greed, is a particularly prevalent desire in humans.

VK: All right. That seems to be a fairly clear example. But what other Biblical observations do think have been illustrated by what’s been going on as we respond to the virus in our nation and communities?

RD: Well, sometimes the Bible tells you things not to do like to avoid the love of money. But sometimes the Bible tells us that there are things that we should do like be diligent in our work and saving money so we are better prepared to handle difficult times. And sometimes the examples the Bible uses to encourage us to be diligent are surprising one. Like when Solomon tells his readers in Proverbs 6:6 to “go to the ant, you sluggard.”

VK: Sluggard. That’s not a word you hear every day.

RD: Perhaps you’d prefer indolent, lethargic, or slothful?

VK: Not really. But I get the point. In Proverbs 6:6 through 8 Solomon tells people to consider the example of the ant who, even though it’s just an insect, is smart enough to gather food while the food is plentiful and store during the summer so it can be prepared for the winter. And then in Proverbs 10:4 and 5 Solomon says that “lazy hands bring poverty but diligent hands bring wealth. And “He who gathers crops in summer is a prudent son, but he who sleeps during harvest is a disgraceful son.” So, what Solomon is saying that even the humble ant exhibits the kind of behavior that helps them prepare for the lean time. In that way that humble ant is more noble than a disgraceful son who sleeps through the harvest when he should be storing food.

RD: Exactly. Some commentators have noted that the Bible has more to say about how we handle our money than heaven and the Bible admonishes us to be good stewards, in part so that when trouble hits we can not only continue to provide for ourselves but also help others. But I want to point out that when we make these observations we are not trying to direct criticism at anyone. All we’re saying is that at times like this, we see, in a very graphic way, that while the Bible is first and foremost a book about the creation, fall, and redemption – so at its heart it has a very spiritual purpose - it nevertheless is also a very practical book. The Bible contains a ton of observations and admonitions that we can use every day. So, if we will search out and apply the wisdom it contains it will not only help us get ready for heaven it will help us live more blessed lives on this earth.

VK: Furthermore, the Bible also brings blessings to our larger communities because the Bible contains specific instructions to believers to care for the poor and for those who are suffering. Sometimes people criticize the Old Testament because they misunderstand the purposes of the Levitical civil and ceremonial codes, but even in the Old Testament farmers are told to not gather all the crops on their land but to leave some in the corners so the less fortunate can come in behind the harvesters and get food for their families and Proverbs 19:17 says that caring for the poor is like lending to the Lord and the Lord promises to repay.

RD: Yes. And there are explicit commands in the New Testament for the church to provide for specific people like widows in need (1 Timothy 5:3) and for individuals in need (Ephesians 4:28). And happily you have seen churches and individual believers stepping up during these difficult times and putting these admonitions into action. It’s well known that Samaritan’s Purse has set up hospitals right in the middle of virus hot zones staffed by volunteers to bring relief. And churches and parachurch ministries across the country are operating food banks, giving away essential supplies, and delivering food to people in need. Some of the big ones like the Salvation Army are well known but there are many more smaller ones that never receive much publicity. So, there are a lot of instructions in the Bible that can be of benefit not only to individual believers but also to society in general.

VK: Again, the main point is that the Bible is just as accurate and relevant today as it was when it was first written and its relevance is demonstrated in both positive and negative ways. The love of money, greed undoubtedly played a big part in the actions that resulted in the world-wide spread of a deadly disease. But in the midst of the spread the Bible’s concern for the less fortunate animates many people to bring relief just as Christ brought relief to the people who came to Him. Are there any other points that you’d like to make?

RD: Yes. There are just two that I think we can cover in the time we have left. And these are sort of general lessons that the Bible has for us and they are so important that I think these are lessons that we should bear in mind whether times are good or bad.

VK: Ok. That sounds a little ominous in a way.

RD: Well, one of the lessons, again, has both positive and negative implications. We heard in our opening scripture that God has built an inexorable law into the economy of creation that is often referred to as the law of sowing and reaping. And God is so serious about it that he says that to try to ignore it would be like mocking Him and that is obviously a very serious error. What a lot of people don’t realize is that you don’t reap exactly what you sow.

VK: You don’t? That’s a surprise.

RD: No, you don’t. You will reap what you sow but later than you think, in greater quantities than you plant, and in ways that you don’t expect. This will happen both positively and negatively. The people who give generously to others, who sow kindness and generosity, will reap both back although the ones who will give back to them will most often be an entirely different group than the ones to whom they gave. I have seen numerous instances, either in my own life, or in the lives of others when someone gave generously, sacrificially even, and then later were the beneficiaries of a completely unexpect