If there is one thing the current pandemic, economic downturn, social disconnection, and general uncertainty and anxiety of our times should do for those who have been raised with Christ, it is this: It should stir our hearts and souls to seek the things that are above. Personal crises and calamities often give the unlooked-for gift of perspective; how much more so a global catastrophe? Coronavirus should cause us to see this Good Friday and the coming celebration of Christ’s resurrection with new eyes. Now more than ever we have need of setting our minds on the things that are above, and placing our hope not in this life, but in our life that is hidden with Christ.
As the number of confirmed cases of coronavirus in our country climbs, as the death toll mounts, as unemployment hits an unprecedented peak, and as we long for the comfort of community and normalcy to be restored, many are looking to find the good in the bad. Heartwarming stories are surfacing in the midst of the overwhelming waves: an Alabama man sings “Amazing Grace” to his wife with Alzheimer’s every day through her nursing home window; community members gather to applaud, encourage and pray for their hospital’s medical workers; despite social distancing, a neighborhood celebrates a young girl’s homecoming after her final round of chemotherapy.
Such stories put a smile on our face and bring tears to our eyes. It is comforting to witness the love and care of people for each other in dire times. But finding the good in the bad shouldn’t end with ourselves. The bright points of light amid the darkness, the acts of kindness and good will, the hope we see shining forth from out of the despair should direct our eyes to the ultimate display of light, love, goodness and hope: the cross of Christ.
Coronavirus has reminded us all, believer or not, how fragile and unpredictable life can be. It has shown us how quickly “normal” can be yanked from our grasp, and how everything we thought was stable can be shaken down to nothing. When our trust is misplaced in money, health, government or people, we will inevitably be disappointed. Everything in this life, including life itself, can be taken away. But the steadfast anchor of Christ extends behind the veil (Hebrews 6:19)—it draws us beyond this temporal life and into eternity.
Christ is the Heavenly Bridegroom, the Beloved Husband of our souls who rejoices over us with gladness, quiets us by His love, and exults over us with singing (Zephaniah 3:17). Our songs of love and joy to each other are the echo of Jesus’ song over us, His beloved bride. He is the Great Physician who gave His life to cure our sin-sick souls and rescue us once and for all from a world of disease and death: “But he was wounded for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and by his stripes we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5). Doctors and medical personnel who work tirelessly, risking life and health to help others mirror God’s ceaseless and sacrificial care for the souls of humanity.
And He is our Victorious King—the One who conquered Death, ascended into Heaven, and made the way for us to finally, at long last, return home. “Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God” (Romans 6:8–10). Every victory, every recovery, every celebration of life restored points us to the ultimate victory: the restoration of once-dead souls to life by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:1–9).
The cross is the culmination of finding the good in the bad. At the cross we find our salvation in the Savior’s sacrifice. At the cross we find restoration, redemption and reconciliation. At the cross we find Jesus bled and died so that we would taste death no more. We find He gave His life so that we could be eternally healed. And we find He paid our debt so that we would no longer be separated from God and each other by our sin.
Let’s look on the cross today with new eyes, seeing the hope of salvation beyond the present and in the glory to come! May our perspective extend past earthly health, wealth and happiness to heavenly life, spiritual riches and eternal joy. And may we be strengthened to endure illness, adversity, separation and death by looking to Jesus with eyes of faith, fixing our hearts on Heaven, and setting our minds on the things that are above. Jesus is the good we seek in the midst of the bad—let His sacrifice light up the dark, lift up your soul, and enliven your heart this Easter, and forevermore.