A Child’s Question about the Coronavirus – Part 3

Let me get back to your question. The world in which we live is no longer perfect or “good” as God first declared. In some ways, it is broken.

Because it is broken, God has prepared a more perfect place, a place beyond what we can see with our human eyes – a place we call heaven! Heaven is better than anything we’ve experienced and it will last forever! That’s a big part of our Easter message! When we compare what heaven will be like and how long we will enjoy heaven, our time in this world is so very short.

But in a way, I can “see” heaven now through faith; it’s what I believe in! I know it to be true because Jesus told us about it over and over; and so many others who have become His followers have discovered heaven to be true, too! They know it because the Spirit of God who lives inside of them assured them it was so!

So the really big evil is not so much the harm from the coronavirus or death in this world as we know it. The real tragedy would be to miss God’s invitation into heaven! Don’t you agree?

What About the Devil? Sometimes it does seem like the devil is winning – but his victories end up being short and hollow. His victories never last. Jesus has defeated the power of the devil when He rose from the grave and overcame death! Death had been the best tool in the devil’s toolbag. But it is a useless tool now, because Jesus sets us free from our fear of dying! The Bible says: Because God’s children are human beings – made of flesh and blood – the Son (the Son of God) also became flesh and blood. For only as a human being could He die, and only by dying could He break the power of the devil, who had the power of death. Only in this way could He set free all who have lived their lives as slaves to the fear of dying. (Hebrews 2:14-15)

Jesus broke the powers of death! I remember being afraid of death, as one who had “lived their lives as a slave to the fear of dying.” But because of my friendship with Jesus, because I make time every week to be with Him through prayer and reading His word in the Bible, I have found that fear no longer dominates my thoughts.

How Is God Involved? Yes, God could have stopped a lot of bad things from happening. In fact, there are times when God does interrupt the natural chain of events to “rescue” someone from disease or danger. But that’s not the normal way God acts.

God has acted in such a way that when these bodies wear out because of disease or decay we have a new kind of world in which we can live! Again, we call it heaven! In heaven, we live in the awesome presence of God’s perfect love and glory! It will be better than any vacation we could imagine on earth! It is so very good!

God has also acted in ways that intelligent people can find treatment and bring cures to a lot of diseases. God has acted in ways that He touches my heart and your heart so that we take care of people when they are sick, to be kind when they are sad, and encourage our friends and family with our love!

This is good news! It’s good to ask these important questions. And I hope you will ask me again when you get to wondering! These are the questions that need to be answered now, when you’re young and you want to know the answer to the next “Why...?” I know that the answers you hear today will also lead you to more questions. That’s okay! God wants us to explain His ways to us!

Kevin Lantz, 3-31-2020; Barboursville, WV