While some suggest that this virus is being sent by God to warn those who have betrayed His teachings, discover who is actually assaulting this world with a deadly Coronavirus Pandemic. Also discover the means God uses to influence mankind.
SHOW NOTES
God and COVID-19
April 3, 2020 (lifesitenews) – Italian priest and theologian Nicola Bux stated that: The COVID-19 pandemic is a ‘warning to the men of the church’ who have betrayed Christ’s teaching . . . In other words God is punishing the world for clergy sins. Disease or plague a sign of the end of the world (Revelation 6:8) Plague was one of the signs of God’s curse for the disobedience in the law as given by Moses (Deuteronomy 28)
God and Control (COVID-19)
Being “in control” is terribly important to human beings. Positional posturing. Who will sit at the head of the table? Name games: Titles are so important to us. Dr, Worship, Lord Hierarchical authority structures: Prime Minister, Premier, CEO, Chairman of the Board Divorces are usually about control and power Alienation in families over power struggles Wars for control of natural resources We all need a power base from which to operate in this World The Kingdom of the World is about power, force and deceit.
God and Control (COVID-19) “God is in Control” is equivalent to God took ... InshAllah (Arabic for “Its God’s will.”) Deo Volente (D.V.) “God willing” Shauri ya Mungu “God’s doing or will.” Karma Kismet Touch Wood (Angles) What ever will be, will be. ** These are fatalistic statements, meaning we have no choice in our lives as they are determined by God.
Origin of “God is in Control”
Flood story as traditionally told. God was fedup and drowned the world. Job story. Satan has to get permission to harm Job. Narrative knows nothing about the devil as Jesus taught us. “The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away.” Dreadful Plagues on Egypt were from God Blessings or Curses for behaviour Deuteronomy 28:20 (NLT) “The LORD himself will send on you curses, confusion, and frustration in everything you do, until at last you are completely destroyed for doing evil and abandoning me. Ezekiel 14:21 (NLT) "now this is what the sovereign LORD says: how terrible it will be when all four of these dreadful punishments fall upon Jerusalem--war, famine, wild animals, and disease—destroying all her people and animals. The word “consequence” is never used in the Old Testament.
Jesus taught that disasters on this planet were not from God. Luke 13:1-5 (NLT) “About this time Jesus was informed that Pilate had murdered some people from Galilee as they were offering sacrifices at the temple. 2 “Do you think those Galileans were worse sinners than all the other people from Galilee?” Jesus asked. “Is that why they suffered? 3 Not at all! And you will perish, too, unless you repent of your sins and turn to God. 4 And what about the eighteen people who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them? Were they the worst sinners in Jerusalem? 5 No, and I tell you again that unless you repent, you will perish, too.”
Definition of Control:
The ability to order a situation according to one’s desires.
Physical Control
God is physically in control of the finely tuned universe but NOT of people. We can predict eclipses, tides, solstices, planetary and star movements. In the physical world manipulation is a synonym for control. The physical control of people is achieved by force, violence and fear through the use of police, army and financial penalties. God’s government is NOT physical but moral. He can only win our loyalty by goodness and compassion. He offers no penalties if we chose against him.
Moral Control is achieved by superior skill, beauty, inter-personal abilities or character. It is made possible because we have free will to chose. God’s government is moral. There was no physical battle in Eden. It was a moral war to capture the imagination of Adam and Eve. When we fall in love we concede moral influence to another.
Examples of moral influence:
1. Skill—acting, singing, sport, professions etc. 2. Beauty—Van Gogh’s art, Marilyn Monroe, 3. Inter-personal Ability—politicians, humourists, motivational speakers, pastors 4. Character—Jesus Christ, Prophet Mohammed, Mother Theresa, Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King Junior, Nelson Mandela In the moral world, which postulates freedom of choice, manipulation is an underhanded way of control. Advertising is often manipulation.
Quiz on physical versus moral influence or control:
Captain of a ship or aircraft. (Physical)
Surgeon in an Operating Theater. (Moral)
Army officer directing troops. (Physical)
Judge pronouncing a verdict. (Moral followed by physical)
Parent caring for a toddler. (Physical)
Police or Paramedics at an accident scene. (Physical)
Pastor or politician speaking at a gathering. (Moral)
The influence one alcoholic has on another alcoholic. (Moral)
An unrealistic concept of God's control asks questions like: “Where was God in the Holocaust?” “Where was God in the genocide in Rwanda? “Where was God on September 11, 2001 with the attacks on the New York Trade Towers?” “Where is God in abuse, rape or the death of a child?” These questions assume God can control or manipulate the feelings of hate which inspire acts like these. Does God control our thoughts? Did he inspire the anti-semitic thoughts in Nazi Germany? God is walking with the victims (Ps 23, Jn 15:26). This is what the Cross is a revelation of God’s suffering wth us. “In the world you will have trouble . . .” (John 16:33)
The Problem of God in Control
At least a quarter of the planet goes to bed hungry every night.
2017 report by International Labor Organization (ILO): 24.9 million modern-day slaves. 16 million in labor, 4.8 million sex trade.
32 million have died of HIV
500 million died of smallpox before it was eradicated.
40 million died in the Spanish Flu 1919 when population was less than 2 Billion
15 million in 1st WW, 50 million in 2nd WW
Depression is a significant problem in the Western World. 1m die p.a. of suicide
Everybody dies eventually
If God is in control he is doing a terrible job of it!
The Problem of God allowing Evil
To allow means that it is God’s will since he is all powerful
If you knew when your daughter married Joe it would end in divorce or abuse— would you allow the relationship to develop?
If you knew a rattlesnake was down the road would you allow your toddler to walk that path?
Suppose one of my kids began strangling another child. If I allowed it and said, “I didn’t cause this killing, so don’t blame me!” Would that make sense to you?
If you knew your son was going to the Twin Trade Towers on September 1, 2001 and would be killed. Would you allow him to go? Are you kinder than God?
Can God control our choice in a free, moral universe?
Our choices affect our life and the lives of others.
The Problem of God allowing Evil
This is idea is the same as “the end justifies the means” which torturers have always used.
Any one can use this justification for any deed they are thinking of doing.
God can always squeezes some good from the bad God didn’t want in the first place. This does not justify God allowing evil.
God’s ways are Mysterious
“We don’t know why God acts this way”
God doesn’t “act” in any way we can understand.
Finite beings can’t in any sense understand an infinite God, they say.
God is uninvolved. God created the world long ago but now has a hands-off approach. God watches the world from as it suffers. He sits on the sideline eating popcorn.
If God’s ways are not our ways, anyway is as good as any other.
Control of the World in the New Testament There is a dark prince who achieved moral and physical control by deceit Genesis 3. John 12:31 (NLT) “the time for judging this world has come, when Satan, the ruler of this world, will be cast out.” John 14:30 (NLT) “I don’t have much more time to talk to you, because the ruler of this world approaches. He has no power over me.” John 16:11 (NLT) ”Judgment will come because the ruler of this world has already been judged.” Hebrews 2:14 (NLT) “For only as a human being could he die, and by dying could he break the power of the devil who had the power of death.” 1 John 5:19 “We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one.”
God in Control in the New Testament John 10:10 NLT “the thief’s (Satan) purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My (Jesus) purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.” Here we have the cause of COVID-19. It is Satan NOT God Revelation 12:3-5 (NLT) then I witnessed in heaven another significant event. I saw a large red dragon with seven heads and ten horns, with seven crowns on his heads. 4 his tail swept away one-third of the stars in the sky, and he threw them to the earth. He stood in front of the woman as she was about to give birth, ready to devour her baby as soon as it was born. 5 she gave birth to a son who was to rule all nations with an iron rod. And her child was snatched away from the dragon and was caught up to God and to his throne. Revelation 12:9 (NLT) this great dragon—the ancient serpent called the Devil, or Satan, the one deceiving the whole world—was thrown down to the earth with all his angels.
It is clear from the New Testament that Satan is in Control of this Planet and will be until Jesus comes again. WhenIamincontrolofmycarIcanmakeitgowhereIwant,whenIwant, andat the speed I want. In this usage "control" is used as a synonym for total and complete manipulation of a machine. If a parent manipulates a child like this we call it abuse. If a man manipulates a woman like this we usually call it rape. If a ruler manipulates a country like this we call it a dictatorship. We certainly do not expect God to work in this way.
Every parent with a teenager knows the time will come when the parent will have to choose between retaining control of the car or providing the motoring freedom the teenager desires. One thing is sure: as the teenager drives away from home for the first time the parent is no longer in control! Most parents spend the evening concerned for their safe return. Is refusing the teenager the opportunity to drive by themselves an option? Not in a moral world. We all know the desire to ride a bicycle alone, drive a car alone, pilot a plane solo. We recognize these choices and enjoy them.
That about sums it up. Adam took the “car.” He could, if he was really free. There was a terrible accident and we are still picking up the pieces or consequences today. We were really free But Now we are in bondage to sin and Satan. The mess the planet proves that once and for all. Does a parent regret giving a child the car keys when they have an accident? Has God ever regretted giving Adam this freedom? “Now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.” (1 Corinthians 13:13)
Jesus demonstrated he could physically control storm, disease and death—but he could only invite people morally, and he would teach: “do not resist and evil person.” He demonstrated his lack of resistance to evil people in his life and death. He calls us to take up our cross, that is, take up the possibility of death. This demonstrates that Jesus was not about control. He was about vulnerability which is the service of love (Simone Weil). His death was “foolishness” to the Jews and Greeks ( 1 Corinthians 1:22) because they thought and lived in the Kingdom of this World where control is essential. How could a man who did not resist anyone be Messiah? We are called to give away control—which does to serve us, for God’s love and vulnerability which cannot fail us!
The song of God reigning sovereign is sung often in the book of revelation. (11:15, 17; 12:10; 15:4) Revelation 11:15 (NLT) then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices shouting in heaven: “The world has now become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign forever and ever.” Revelation 12:10 (NLT) then I heard a loud voice shouting across the heavens, “It has come at last—salvation and power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ. for the accuser of our brothers and sisters has been thrown down to earth— the one who accuses them before our God day and night.
Hallelujah! God’s love is going to triumph. It will happen eventually. We are prisoners of hope. And very glad for this hope.
God and Control (COVID-19) Part of the idea that God is in control comes from reading Romans 8:28 Romans 8:28 KJV And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. (NLT) and we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.
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