Special Delivery

On Sunday, March 15, 2020, Pennsylvania mandated that, beginning at 7 pm, businesses would be required to observe regulations determined to prevent/ restrict the spread of COVID-19: limiting the number of people in their operations, requiring those on premises to wear masks, and facilitating social distancing. That morning, I went to a nearby grocery store, prepared to enter just as I did the day before, knowing the mandate had not yet gone into effect. To my surprise, plastic tarps covered doors and created "cattle shoots" through which the very limited number of customers could enter. A masked man in a haz-mat suit stood out front advising that no one could enter without a face covering. It was a dystopian scene, to say the least. "I thought this wouldn't be enforced until this evening," I argued. "We're enforcing it now," was all he said. I left. I was angry. This was my store. I loved the people that worked here. I didn't want to go elsewhere. This was not what was supposed to happen. Why hadn't they given anyone warning? Did they really expect us to shop this way? It was almost as frightening as it was infuriating. Looking back, I think my response had a lot to do with the delivery: the haz-mat suit, the tarps fixed with wide swaths of duct tape, glaring eyes as the store representative explained my freedom to shop as I was accustomed had been revoked. And I'm not saying precautions were not necessary, but the delivery was, well, a bit authoritarian, repellent, and intimidating. 

Information can come across that way. Organizations pay lots of money to professionals trained to deliver bad news. The way something is heard for the first time can be particularly effective and enduring. Which is why the way we deliver the good news of Jesus to others is important. It is important that we, first of all, pray. We need God to prepare our lips and the listener's heart. Prayer can bring something to our lips the person needs to hear, without us ever knowing how that word has hit the mark. (And sometimes leaves us wondering, "Why on earth did I say that?") We have no clue what God has been doing in the lives and hearts of those brought into our path, but the Holy Spirit can use the discussion to plant, water, or harvest a spirit. 

Secondly, we must love others. Traveling around with condemnation on your lips can alienate people rather than draw them in. And, if we're not teaching the Gospel out of love for others, do we truly love the Lord? How did someone share with you the good news? How would you have liked them to share? Believe me, I am not saying refrain from using that "sin" word, or don't confront everyone's need for a Savior -- "All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." (Romans 3:23, emphasis mine) -- but starting from the door with, "Did you know you're headed for hell because God hates sinners?" might leave the impression we are sending them there, if you catch my drift. 

Lastly, it is important that we know the Gospel, and know that, while our personal story may be a wonderful example of the Gospel at work, it is not the Gospel. The Gospel is that we all miss the mark of God's perfect standard, and we have missed it by our humanity as we received it as well as accepted it. In other words, not only was a sin nature inherited by each of us, but we obeyed that nature -- all have sinned. The penalty for sin is death and, because our sin is ultimately against an eternal God, so is the penalty. Therefore, we are, from birth, headed to pay the eternal consequence for our sin -- eternal death -- but for God sending His Son to pay our penalty for us at the cross! That is good news! But, it requires a response from every individual. It requires every individual to confess these truths -- their sin, the penalty, and Christ's substitution -- and to live their lives in gratitude for this precious gift and in worship of the Giver. And the way for anyone to find out what that looks like exactly, is to read God's Word, to talk to Him, to meet with other believers for spiritual guidance, and to trust and obey God in everything.

COVID has changed our lives, without a doubt. Many people took objection to the way information was disseminated. It was inconsistent. It was incomplete. It was attached to so many other agendas. It was poorly received by many. The Gospel is a life changer. Let's be responsible in the way we proclaim it -- prayerfully, completely, consistently, thoroughly, knowledgeably, purely, and in love. And while it may be poorly received, we too must trust and obey.