Persecution, suffering, pain, natural disasters, and other storms of life are common experiences of individual believers and the Church of Jesus Christ since its founding. In these difficult times, we encourage each other to hold fast as God remains all-powerful and in sovereign control over all the affairs of mankind—we do this even when chaos and uncertainty rage around us. Isaiah 41:10 reassures us that we can have this kind of confidence in uncertain times: “Don’t be afraid, for I am with you! Don’t be frightened, for I am your God! I will strengthen you—yes, I will help you—yes, I will uphold you with my saving right hand!” Indeed, only a few verses later we learn that the one who strengthens us with his “right hand” does so by taking hold of our right hand: “For I am the Lord your God, the one who takes hold of your right hand” (Is 41:13). Yet, our Commission to “make disciples of all nations” (Matt. 28:19-20) does not become a “great suggestion” in times of political, racial, economical, natural, and medical turmoil.
Historically, the persecution of the Church has led to the growth of the same, the spread of the Gospel, and the dismantling of barriers to Christianity. Indeed, this history has borne evidence to the fact that the church of Christ thrives more in adversity and opposition than in times of ease, security, and prosperity. In this regard, we know that the second century Church Father and theologian, Tertullian, was correct when he observed that “the blood of the martyr has become the seed of the church.” Therefore, as we ponder the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on our world, we must ask God to help us to use this time to spread the Gospel and disciple the saved glocally. For this to be accomplished, all believers must avail themselves for progressive discipleship while discipling others (2 Tim 2:2).
In this unprecedented Covid-19 era, if we pause long enough to ponder commonalities between plants, animals, insects, birds, and humans, we will observe two sure similarities, namely, life and growth. While this phenomenon seems simple and may be easily ignored, it remains inarguably true that anything that is alive will and must experience growth. Conversely, anything or anyone that ceases to grow is either dead or near death. Therefore, spiritual growth must continue during the coronavirus pandemic, and such growth is the responsibility of each believer as well as church leaders. Pastors are responsible for providing spiritual growth opportunities to the flock in their care so all can take steps to “grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Pet 3:18a) during this pandemic.
When church gatherings were precluded by the President’s declaration of a national state of emergency and the suggestion to limit gathering of groups fewer than ten due to the spread of the coronavirus, my fellow pastors and I began praying and strategizing about how we can continue to minister to the flock and to facilitate continued spiritual growth. The following plans were developed and implemented to facilitate continued spiritual growth: (i) we would continue the livestreaming of our worship services; (ii) after research, we determined that Zoom would be the best virtual meeting platform for our church; (iii) the leadership adopted, supported, and promoted the church-wide use of Zoom; (iv) we introduced Zoom to Bible study leaders and attendees, provided training and technical assistance to virtual Sunday schools, midweek Bible studies, support classes, and prayer meetings; (v) we presented and promoted devotional material for spiritual growth; (vi) we encouraged the congregation to take advantage of spiritual growth opportunities; (vii) to share the Gospel with non-believers; (viii) to serve people in need, etc.
Finally, as church leaders promote spiritual growth opportunities during the coronavirus pandemic, it is imperative that we maintain a global perspective to ministry and the Great Commission. We can do this by assisting smaller churches locally, and internationally by providing biblical content to aid the growth of others outside of our church, city, state, and country. If the Church’s disciple-making efforts will reach the “uttermost parts of the world” (Acts 1:8) in our lifetime, those blessed with various Bible translations, numerous study tools, and committed students of the Scripture must intentionally share content for a global audience.