Matthew-Chapter 25
34 Then shall the King say to those on his right hand, Come, blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from [the] world's foundation:
35 for I hungered, and ye gave me to eat; I thirsted, and ye gave me to drink; I was a stranger, and ye took me in;
36 naked, and ye clothed me; I was ill, and ye visited me; I was in prison, and ye came to me.
37 Then shall the righteous answer him saying, Lord, when saw we thee hungering, and nourished thee; or thirsting, and gave thee to drink?
38 and when saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in; or naked, and clothed thee?
39 and when saw we thee ill, or in prison, and came to thee?
40 And the King answering shall say to them, Verily, I say to you, Inasmuch as ye have done it to one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it to me.
Don’t think of trials and suffering just on the individual level. Think about how God created us and intends for us to live in community. Our lives are never as small as the trials that we face.
If as Christians we are intentionally going into places where people are suffering, and we’re going in because we see the value and the love that God places on those individuals who are suffering, how clear will that witness be to those who don’t know Christ that there’s something absolutely different and unique about our lives? First responders, health care workers, doctors, nurses and more show tremendous moral courage by combating this virus and providing care for its victims, but every one of us who is a Christ follower should have that same type of courage … and sometimes stepping into someone’s life who’s really suffering takes a tremendous amount of courage.
We’re not meant to suffer alone. As Christians, we have the ability and the mandate to come alongside those who are suffering around us and help bear their suffering.
I'm not saying expose yourself to the virus. Our leaders have been put in place by God. And they have told us not to.(Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. Romans 13:1).
But there are many things, we as Christians can do to show the love of Christ. A meal or groceries left on a doorstep, a contribution to a fund for unemployed restaurant workers, a check-in with an isolated older person or a friend who has suddenly become a homeschooling parent—we can all do something, for someone, in this time.
Let us become the body of Christ to each other and the most vulnerable around us.