Should Churches Gather Together in a Calamity, such as Covid-19, Persecution, and War?

Now, during these Covid-19 days, the church has been greatly hurt. For most congregations within the US and around the world, they have gone to "online church", as it is being generally called. This is due to the shelter in place orders given by most governors. This has been going on since early March for some states, but for Pennsylvania and Alabama, the latter end of March. None of this is what God has commanded for His church, rather online "meetings" are not church; the government is tyrannical, and pastors have not stood as watchmen to protect the church from this tyranny, by standing on God's Word alone (Ezekiel 33:7).

How the Church should Act During Dangers

This is the case even if there is any matter hardship or persecution. The church is "essential" at all times because it was instituted by God as the proclaimer of reconciliation to the world, as 2 Corinthians 5:17-21 states:

17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. 18 All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; 19 that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. 20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

This text is declaring the ministry of reconciliation by God through Christ by the means of ordained ministers. John Calvin states it well:

Ministers are furnished with this commission, that they may bring us intelligence of so great a benefit, no more, may assure us of God’s fatherly love towards us. Any other person, it is true, might also be a witness to us of the grace of God, but Paul teaches, that this office is specially entrusted to ministers. When, therefore, a duly ordained minister proclaims in the gospel, that God has been made propitious to us, he is to be listened to just as an ambassador of God, and sustaining, as they speak, a public character, and furnished with rightful authority for assuring us of this.

It is for this reason, that in the midst of a pestilence that the church should remain open, for it is the duty of the minister to proclaim the gospel of reconciliation to those who are both outside and inside the visible church. This is so, because in the midst of a pestilence the worship of God should exceed more and more by the repentance of all national and personal idolatry. The minister should be declaring everyone to examine themselves to see the idols that they are holding on to, and to call the nation to examine itself.

Matthew Mead declares so in his book during the Bubonic Plague called: Solomon's Prescription For The Removal Of The Pestilence: OR, The Discovery Of The Plague Of Our Hearts, In Order To The Healing Of That In Our Flesh.

But all you the Ministers of Christ, if indeed you take his Work it self for your Honour, Pleasure, and Wages, though many of you may want those encouragements which are so requi∣site and desirable for your success; yet, be awakened to do all the service you can to your Lord and Master? Let us not stand accusing any for the removal of our opportunities, whilest we have so many before us, if we had the hearts and skill to use them. How glad would the Primitive Chri∣stians, or our Protestant Martyrs have been of those Priviledges we enjoy, though they might earnestly have desired more? What Sirs, are there no poor souls near you, that cry aloud for your help, to save them from the burning lake, to rescue them out of the jaws of Death, and snares of the Devil, by whom they are led captive at his will? These, these are they, upon whom especially you ought to employ all your skill and pains, and from him that died for them, you shall have your reward. I know the Godly also call for strengthning direction, comfort, and quickning; but surely your principal (much less your only) work is not with them; the miserable creatures that are just at the Graves mouth, and yet know not what they came into the World for, require speedie and seasonable help.

The Scripture from which he expounded here is 1 Kings 8:37-40, which says:

37“If there is famine in the land, if there is pestilence, if there is blight or mildew, locust or grasshopper, if their enemy besieges them in the land of their cities, whatever plague, whatever sickness there is, 38whatever prayer or supplication is made by any man or by all Your people Israel, each knowing the affliction of his own heart, and spreading his hands toward this house; 39then hear in heaven Your dwelling place, and forgive and act and render to each according to all his ways, whose heart You know, for You alone know the hearts of all the sons of men, 40that they may fear You all the days that they live in the land which You have given to our fathers.

The cure for the ending of any harsh circumstance put on a nation by God is repentance and faith in the Lord Christ. The text says in verse 38: whatever prayer or supplication is made by any man or by all Your people Israel, each knowing the affliction of his own heart, and spreading his hands toward this house. So, this denotes that the worship of God would continue at the Temple, even in the midst of a calamity. It is so, specifically because of this phrase “by all Your people Israel”. That is a corporate fast, assembly, and lamenting prayer as Joel 1:14 expresses more clearly: Consecrate a fast, Proclaim a solemn assembly; Gather the elders And all the inhabitants of the land To the house of the Lord your God, And cry out to the Lord.

God commands the priests to consecrate: the act of setting apart being devoted to God with acts of repentance. Fasting is not accepted by God, unless done in love and obedience to His commands.: “Sanctify” it, make it an offering to God, and as it were a sacrifice, a holy and blameless fast.”: To “sanctify a fast” is to exhibit abstinence of the flesh, meet toward God, and seeking to obey all that God has commanded. God next tells the priests to call all the nation and its leaders to assemble for repentance, worship, and lamentful crying out to God.

King Jehoshaphat, he is another example as in 2 Chronicles 20:1-19 states.

2 Chronicles 20:2 Then some came and reported to Jehoshaphat, saying, “A great multitude is coming against you from beyond the sea, out of Aram and behold, they are in Hazazon-tamar (that is Engedi).” 3 Jehoshaphat was afraid and turned his attention to seek the Lord, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah. 4 So Judah gathered together to seek help from the Lord; they even came from all the cities of Judah to seek the Lord.

9‘Should evil come upon us, the sword, or judgment, or pestilence, or famine, we will stand before this house and before You (for Your name is in this house) and cry to You in our distress, and You will hear and deliver us.’

Here the King calls on God’s people to worship more during the time of judgment on the nation. He says that “we will stand before this house and before You”, and this denotes a constant worship of God in the midst of the hardship. In this and the verses above, it is a time of thorough examination of the church to see the sins within her, so that she repents and turns to God and He thus relieves the judgment.

18 Jehoshaphat bowed his head with his face to the ground, and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell down before the Lord, worshiping the Lord.

Second Point: The Government has No Control Over the Church

To begin this point, I think it would be wise to start with every government official's and pastor's go-to passage about submitting to the government, and that is Romans 13:1-4.

Exposition of the Text

Verse 1: Every person is to be in subjection to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God.

This verse begins by saying that everyone should be "subject" to the governing authorities. The phrase would be more accurately stated according to the Greek this way, "Let every soul be subject to the higher authorities". First, everyone is to be subject to those in authority over them. The word for "subject" here means a voluntary and cheerful obedience to the higher powers. The "higher authorities" here is the civil government, as seen by the following verses that describe the functions of those authorities. The next section of this verse says "For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God." From this section, it is obvious that God is the Creator of authority, as He Himself is the Absolute Sovereign King of all His creatures and creation. This is important because the word used by God here is ἐξουσία- ex-oo-see-a- meaning delegated authority, conferred authorization, or designated jurisdiction. Thus, it must be stated that there is a distinction here between authority and persons in authority. God designates governments with a particular authority, and this is expressed in verses 3 and 4 below. Deuteronomy chapters 17 and 20 express the clearest and most robust articulation of civil magistrate's God given authority. The conferred authority of civil governments is to establish and enforce the Law of God, in each particular nation as Theocracies, as seen from these texts of Scripture.

Deuteronomty 4:1-2--“Now, O Israel, listen to the statutes and the judgments which I am teaching you to perform, so that you may live and go in and take possession of the land which the Lord, the God of your fathers, is giving you. You shall not add to the word which I am commanding you, nor take away from it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you.

Isiah 2:2-3-- Now it will come about that In the last days The mountain of the house of the Lord Will be established as the chief of the mountains, And will be raised above the hills; And all the nations will stream to it. And many peoples will come and say, “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, To the house of the God of Jacob;That He may teach us concerning His ways And that we may walk in His paths.” For the law will go forth from Zion And the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.

Isaiah 49:22-23 Thus says the Lord God, “Behold, I will lift up My hand to the nations And set up My standard to the peoples; And they will bring your sons in their bosom, And your daughters will be carried on their shoulders. Kings will be your guardians, And their princesses your nurses. They will bow down to you with their faces to the earth And lick the dust of your feet; And you will know that I am the Lord; Those who hopefully wait for Me will not be put to shame.

Mark 7:9-13-- He was also saying to them,“You are experts at setting aside the commandment of God in order to keep your tradition. For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’; and, ‘He who speaks evil of father or mother,is to be put to death’; but you say, ‘If a man says to his father or his mother, whatever I have that would help you is Corban (that is to say ,given to God),’ you no longer permit him to do anything for his father or his mother; thus invalidating the word of God by your tradition which you have handed down; and you do many things such as that.”

Matthew 28:18-20-- And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying,“All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Verse 2: Therefore whoever resists authority has opposed the ordinance of God; and they who have opposed will receive condemnation upon themselves.

The second verse begins with, Therefore whoever resists authority has opposed the ordinance of God". The word "Therefore" is very important because it connects these two verses. To show the true meaning of the word it would be better translated as "On this account" or "Consequently" because it connects the cause to the effect. The cause in verse 1 is, "For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God." The effect is, "whoever resists authority has opposed the ordinance of God; and they who have opposed will receive condemnation upon themselves. ". So, the man that goes against righteous civil governments resists God's command, and he also receives a condemnatory judgment because they have done evil. This judgment is the retributive punishment for the breaking of the law.

Verse 3: For rulers are not a cause of fear for good behavior, but for evil. Do you want to have no fear of authority? Do what is good and you will have praise from the same;

Now in this verse and verse 4, we get into the functions of governing authorities. The text of Scripture says that rulers are not to be feared for "good behavior". The proper translation of these two words in Greek is "to good work", and this is an important proper change in translation because as the NASB and ESV Bibles translate this as "good behavior" and "good conduct", detracts from the way this phrase is used in Scripture. The way these are used in Scripture denotes that of obedience to the commands of God, such as Ephesians 2:10, Titus 2:14, and 2 Thessalonians 2:17. Accordingly, the Lord is saying that the civil authority that is doing its proper duty is not to be feared by Christians doing their Christian duties, especially that of corporate worship on the Lord's Day. However, the text does say that those who do wrong are to fear the civil authority, and this is explained why in verses 2 and 4. That is, they will receive condemnation as in verse 2, and that condemnation is the bearing of the sword of God's retributive discipline, seen in verse 4.

Verse 4: for it is a minister of God to you for good. But if you do what is evil, be afraid; for it does not bear the sword for nothing; for it is a minister of God, an avenger who brings wrath on the one who practices evil.

Civil authority is to be God's servant for the church and national good as this verse says. Civil governments as ministers of God, must establish and enforce God's Law as the Law of the nation, since His Law is righteous and perfect (Psalm 19:7-8). To be a servant of God, the civil authority is to do His purpose; that is the delegated authority that God declares in verse 1 of this chapter. That is exactly what the Greek word for minister in the text means διάκονος- dee-ak-on-as, as defined: one who executes the commands of another, especially of a master; a sergeant, attendant, minister. The government was ordained for this, especially for the especially for the church's well being in righteousness and purity as the Westminster Confession States Chapter 23:3

The civil magistrate may not assume to himself the administration of the Word and sacraments, or the power of the keys of the kingdom of heaven (A) yet he hath authority, and it is his duty, to take order, that unity and peace be preserved in the Church, that the truth of God be kept pure and entire; that all blasphemies and heresies be suppressed, all corruptions and abuses in worship and discipline prevented or reformed; and all the ordinances of God duly settled, administered, and observed. For the better effecting whereof, he hath power to call synods, to be present at them, and to provide, that whatsoever is transacted in them be according to the mind of God (B)

A: 2 Chron. 28:18 with Matt. 18:17 and Matt. 16:19; I Cor. 12:29; Eph. 4:11, 12; 1 Cor. 4:1. 2; Rom. 10:15; Heb. 5:4;

B: Isa. 49:23; Ps. 122: 9; Ezra 7: 23, 25, 26, 27, 28; Lev. 24:10-23; Deut. 13: 5, 6, 12; 1 Kings 18: 4; 1 Chron. 13: 1-9; 2 Kings 23: 1-26; 2 Chron. 34: 33; 2 Chron. 15:12, 13; 2 Chron. 19: 8-10, 11; 2 Chron chapters 29 and 30

Bearing the Sword

Now for the expressed duty of the civil government, and that is the bearing of the sword. What does it mean to "bear the sword"? To bear the sword means first that the civil magistrate has authority, and it means the authority to punish those that do evil. Evil is that which is the breaking of God's Law, and the duty of the civil magistrate is to exercise God's righteous punishment on those that do evil, just as it says "for it is a minister of God, an avenger who brings wrath on the one who practices evil."

Application for Today

The civil government has no authority over the church, as you have seen from this text and Deuteronomy 17 and 20. The church has its own Laws of God to follow, and one is the gathering or assembling together on the Lord's Day. This is God's Command given in the 4th Commandment, in which is seen above. Therefore, when a government demands that churches cannot meet, they are overreaching their Biblical jurisdiction. When the church does not meet, it is disobeying God and is in sin, even in the midst of a plague because plagues are brought by God to bring nations to repentance, considering the Scriptures above.

Applications

1. Churches must assemble again in full measure, and pastors must be the first ones to search for sins within the church and nation, then call everyone to forsake those and turn unto the Lord. (Please see my prior blog post concerning a fuller explanation of this point).

2. Pastors must go out preaching the gospel, as showing their flock what everyone should be doing, especially during a plague, because if it truly is a plague, then millions will be dying and going to hell.

3. Men within the church should be bold and confront the pastors and government for not doing as they must do in accordance with God's Word, calling them to repent of their sinful negligence.

4. The members of each church should be regularly sharing the gospel with their neighbors.

5. Pastors should preach about politics because that is an area of Christ's Kingdom that the church has given up in the past couple hundred years.

6. Pastors should call on their local officials from the pulpit telling them their Biblical duties of protecting the church.