Strangely, Covid-19 makes me think of Jesus at the Last Supper.
Jesus, on the night He was betrayed, ate the Passover meal with His disciples. At that meal, He instituted the ordinance of Communion, still practiced by Christians worldwide today. We learn from Matthew 26:30, “Then they sang a hymn and went out to the Mount of Olives.”
In the Passover Celebration, a collection of Psalms, called the Hallel, is sung throughout various parts of the meal. The closing Psalm is often Psalm 118 beginning with “Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His love endures forever.”
This was possibly the last song of worship sung by Jesus before His crucifixion. And yet, He still chose to sing.
He sang knowing what was about to happen,
- He knew He would be betrayed that very night.
- He knew Peter would deny Him three times.
- He knew He would go through a mockery of a trial.
- He knew the crowds would cry out, “Crucify Him!”
- He knew about the crown of thorns that would be placed on His head.
- He knew He would be flogged, beaten, ridiculed, and crucified.
- He knew He was going to die.
But He continued in faith, knowing and believing and demonstrating that the faithful love of the Lord endures forever.
No matter what.
I wish I had that kind of faith.
I have to admit, my first thought regarding this pandemic is not the love of the Lord. Instead, it’s worry. I worry about whether or not I’m going to run out of toilet paper. I worry about whether or not we have enough food for two weeks, or four weeks, or eight weeks, or more. I worry about the health of my wife and I, about our parents and family, about my church family and friends, about my city and state and frankly, the whole world.
I’m not alone.
I see worry everywhere, on the faces of people, young and old. I see it in posts and tweets and newscasts and in articles. It’s everywhere.
How different would it be, though, if we tried to approach what’s happening with the faith demonstrated by Jesus as He sang the Hallel?
It’s going to stretch me, but today I choose to live by faith.
I will give thanks to the Lord. I will remember that He is good. His love endures forever.
Care to join me?
Photo courtesy of Neil E. Johnson and Unsplash
JohnJFrady.com 