Corona Him with Many Coronas

“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matthew 3:2)

This virus is ruling our thoughts these days. As we find ourselves in a wilderness wandering of sorts, we’re thinking a lot about death, and wondering when we can meet together again.

It is rather well known now that the word corona refers to more than an alcoholic drink that is good with limes. As we all know now, the virus is named such because of its crown like features. A crown is symbolic of majesty and control. A king is meant to have an elegant dominion. I can’t help but to notice both features of the symbol of this virus present in our world today with the virus.

First, there is something of a beauty to it, insofar as viruses can be described as beautiful. I’m probably not the best person in our congregation to describe them. Our pharmacy, nursing, or biology professors or students could do better than I. But if you ask them about it, I hope you notice something elegant and majestic. We should marvel at the intricacy and complexity of God’s creation. The coronavirus displays the wisdom of God’s creation, and it is only because we have a wise and perfect creator who makes knowledge knowable that we can study this virus and discern the truth about it. It may be hard to know the truth about it. We should be careful with the data. And we should let our reasonable seeking of understanding to be known to all. But we can only know truth as we recognize the wisdom of God in creation.

“The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom, and whatever you get, get insight. Prize her highly, and she will exalt you; she will honor you if you embrace her. She will place on your head a graceful garland; she will bestow on you a beautiful crown.” (Proverbs 4:7-9)

Crowns are meant to be beautiful, and that beauty is a representation of the wisdom of God the creator. And as we gaze at this current corona, do our hearts readily turn to worship the King of creation who is crowned with beauty and wisdom? Or are our hearts captivated by sin and its ugly putrescence. Are we morbidly preoccupied with statistics of morbidity? Christians think differently about the coronavirus because our hearts are drawn to our King and with those thoughts we are led into life. The world and its ways lead to death.

Secondly, there is not only something beautiful and majestic about this virus, but there is something controlling with this virus. This corona represents a kind of dominion over people. In a real and physical sense, if you get this disease, it can arrest you and subdue you. It can rule your existence, and it may even subject you to its capital punishment. But in another way, even those who do not have this disease can be ruled by it, ruled by fear of it, ruled by allowing it to control your thoughts and actions. In a sense, this virus is ruling the world right now. For hardly a government has not bowed their knees to its demands, except for North Korea, they’ve been on lockdown for decades. So we should pray for whomever God has placed in authority over us.

But what about those who belong to a kingdom not of this world, who have their citizenship in heaven and who live as ambassadors now in a foreign land? Have we bowed our knees in fear of this virus and allow it to rule our hearts? We should not fear, but have joy, because God dwells with his people and protects them.

Instead, believers ought to see the symbol of the crown and be reminded of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, on whose shoulders are all the governments of the world. “Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore.” (Isaiah 9:7)

Jesus rules over this virus. It obeys his voice, and so should we. For us to turn a created thing into our master is idolatry. We cannot serve two masters. There’s nothing new with this virus. God is using it along with everything else in all of creation to display his righteous character. Christians should not be angry, but should be steady under trial, with self-control, not wasting this opportunity for good, using our time wisely, speaking graciously, and giving thanks in all circumstances.

Whatever coronas we have in this world, we should cast them down before his throne, because King Jesus rules over all. Jesus alone is crowned in beautiful majesty with all authority in heaven and earth. And while we may succumb to death by the coronavirus, let us not forget Jesus, who is “crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.” (Hebrews 2:9)