What else is to say about the Coronavirus? Everything that needed to be said from the democrat/liberal side has been said, everything that needed to be said from the republican/conservative side has also been said. Arguments everywhere, some refuse to stay home and embrace social distancing and sheltering in place; others feel that it is irresponsible not to do so. Some expect the government to fix it all and take care of them; others are ready to go back to work. Some argue that they care about lives more than the economy. Others argue they also care about lives, but also about the economy. Every side pushing their agendas; some blaming Trump, some blaming the Chinees, etc. I get it, we seem to be saturated with the Coronavirus topic from every angle.

Let me add a point of view on this topic that I have not seen discuss yet. Personally, I have never seen anything changing our way of life more than this virus; not even September 11. I am convinced that from here on social distancing will be the “smart” thing to do in our society. Let’s face it, before the Coronavirus we were already becoming more and more socially distant. Am I the only parent who struggles with children, now adults, who want to spend hours in their rooms consumed with social media? Some of our youth already have experience sheltering in place. LOL!

I don’t claim to have all of the answers, but something hit me the other day. The Bible tells us in Matthew 24:12, “Because lawlessness is increased, most people’s love will grow cold.” (NASB) The word Lawlessness is the Greek Word, anomía; “In most cases in the NT it means not the absence of the Law, but the violation of Law, i.e., transgression or lawlessness.”^[1] The reason why the love of many will grow cold will be because the total disregard for the Law. Folks will move away from God further and further and, absolute truths will no longer be accepted; we are already seen that.

This virus will justify isolation and will forever affect the way we interact with each other. No shaking hands, no high-fives, no hugs, etc. This virus will take away all of the social and public expressions of love and human contact and, those who continue to hug and kiss, shake hands and high-five will be seen as irresponsible. Who knows, they may pass laws against it; all the government need is a justification to do so.

As we get closer and closer to the reality of Matthew 24 and the culture of the last days, we will see an increase in the hatred against Christians. That hatred is going to be justified also because Christians will continue to gather, to hug, to kiss and essentially, to love each other. We will be seen as barbarians, lacking sophistication, lacking intellect and as non-educated ignorant folks. The “sophisticated Christian”, on the other hand, will bow to the craziness of the world and ultimately, do services online and keep people separated.

I saw many churches close around the country and the world; they went online and encouraged their folks to stay home. I am not sure how I feel about that! Others were more creative and increased the number of services for their Sunday services, assigned their members to go to their specific services and did their best to keep their Sunday congregations between 10 and 15 people; I respect that!

See, the reality is that the Bible does not justify for us to stop gathering, kissing, hugging and all of those simple expressions of love and fellowship because of a virus; it is not there. It is going to be a difficult battle because folks are going to be afraid of getting sued; what if I open my church and somebody get infected? How will the world see me? These are real arguments, real struggles that will require a total trust in God and in his Word. See, our faith is in direct conflict with the way of the world.

 I understand that, at times, we have to take temporary measures; but make no mistake about it, this is not a temporary thing, this is designed to change our culture… to prepare the way to a society without love.

^[1] Spiros Zodhiates, The Complete Word Study Dictionary: New Testament (Chattanooga, TN: AMG Publishers, 2000).