FAITHFUL OR FOOLHARDY: Many churches have followed our leaders’ demands by canceling most or all of their gatherings. Others have cited their faith in Almighty God to justify ignoring the “social distancing” edicts. So, who is right? Whether or not a church cancels its gatherings, if several of their members contract Covid-19 and one actually dies, does that prove they were wrong? Of course NOT! We would NEVER know for sure who infected them. Or suppose no one gets the virus. Does that prove they were right? NO! We may never know for sure which other people these attenders may have infected as they stayed away from church.

So… Which decision is FAITHFUL, which is FOOLHARDY! We may never know for sure down here. Surely this decision is NOT one of the essentials of our faith. Scripture tells us our first priority is to worship and obey God. But it also tells us to obey our government authorities, since God appointed them (NOT elections, coups, etc.). Romans 14:1 (CSB) says “Welcome anyone who is weak in faith, but don’t argue about disputed matters.” Paul is specifically talking about believers who disagree about dietary restrictions. He says we should tolerate other believers’ decisions concerning nonessential things that they truly believe please the Lord.

Final observation: Whether or not you can GO to church right now, you are still commanded to GO into all the world and BE the church. Let’s Figure Out How and GO Do It!