Pastor Zach's Blog

Seeking the Good of Others

May 11, 2020 at 5:15 am 2 comments

Credit: Governor Tom Wolf / Flickr

Cities and states across the country are beginning to reopen. Already, health experts are issuing warnings of a second wave of COVID-19 to come. The Associated Press reports:

From the marbled halls of Italy to the wheat fields of Kansas, health authorities are increasingly warning that the question isn’t whether a second wave of coronavirus infections and deaths will hit, but when – and how badly.

In India, which relaxed its lockdown this week, health authorities scrambled Wednesday to contain an outbreak at a huge market. Hard-hit New York City shut down its subway system overnight for disinfection. Experts in Italy, which just began easing some restrictions, warned lawmakers that a new surge of infections and deaths is coming, and they urged intensified efforts to identify victims, monitor their symptoms and trace their contacts …

U.S. infection rates outside the New York City area are in fact rising, notably in rural areas. 

This is a worrisome prediction. And yet, if a severe second wave does sweep across our nation, Christians can be uniquely positioned to be a force and a source for hope and help.

When the apostle Paul writes to the Christian church at Corinth, he confronts a strain of selfishness that has infected many in the congregation. It seems as though some of the Christians at Corinth have come to believe that just because they can do something, they should do it if they desire to, regardless of whether what they do hurts or offends others. Paul has to remind them that the call of Christianity is not to live for you and your wants, but to live for others and their wellbeing:

“I have the right to do anything,” you say – but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything” – but not everything is constructive. No one should seek their own good, but the good of others. (1 Corinthians 10:23-24)

As cities and states reopen, I am thankful that I will be able to patronize businesses I have not been able to shop at for a while. I am thankful that I will be able to go places I have not been able to go for a while. And yet, even while restrictions are blessedly being loosened, I still try to keep in mind those who I am called to serve – my family, my friends, and my congregation. I try to remember that how I handle my own health and safety can directly affect the health and safety of others with whom I come into contact. I may have the right to do many things. But I would rather seek to do the most beneficial things – for the sake of my family and my community.

As Christians, we are called to be neither restless over what will happen nor reckless as we confront what is happening. Instead, we are called to be selfless – always seeking the good of others. As Paul writes a little later in this same chapter to the Corinthians:

Whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. Do not cause anyone to stumble, whether Jews, Greeks or the church of God – even as I try to please everyone in every way. For I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved. (1 Corinthians 10:31-33)

Paul shows concern for everyone – for his fellow Jews with whom he grew up, for pagan Greeks who do not worship the God of Israel, and for those who are part of the church of God and follow Jesus. Whether they are like him or unlike him, Paul puts others first, for Paul knows that, when he does so, he is not just being kind, he is witnessing unto salvation.

May we do likewise for others. They need us – and they need Christ.

Entry filed under: Current Trends. Tags: Christianity, Covid-19, Duties, Helping Others, Love, Neighbor, Rights, Selflessness, Service.