Reflections Growing Out of the Recent Epidemic by Francis Grimke

[Born into slavery on a South Carolina plantation in 1850, Grimke served as a pastor for 50 years, primarily at Fifteenth Street Presbyterian Church in Washington DC. This devotion is taken from a sermon he preached November 3, 1918, when churches were allowed once again to meet after several weeks of closure because of the Spanish Flu epidemic. The entire sermon – more than twice as long – is available here.]

We know now … the meaning of the terms pestilence, plague, epidemic, since we have been passing through this terrible scourge of Spanish influenza, with its enormous death rate and its consequent wretchedness and misery. Every part of the land has felt its deadly touch…. Over the whole land it has thrown a gloom, and has stricken down such large numbers that it has been difficult to care for them properly, overcrowding all of our hospitals…. Our own beautiful city has suffered terribly from it, making it necessary, as a precautionary measure, to close the schools, theaters, churches, and to forbid all public gathering within doors as well as outdoors. At last, however, the scourge has been stayed, and we are permitted again to resume the public worship of God, and to open again the schools of our city.

Now that the worst is over, I have been thinking … of these calamitous weeks through which we have been passing—thinking of the large numbers that have been sick— the large numbers that have died, the many, many homes that have been made desolate—the many, many bleeding, sorrowing hearts that have been left behind, and I have been asking myself the question, what is the meaning of it all? What ought it to mean to us? Is it to come and go and we be no wiser, or better for it? Surely God had a purpose in it, and it is our duty to find out, as far as we may, what that purpose is, and try to profit by it.

Among the things which stand out in my own mind … are these:

(1) I have been impressed with the ease with which large portions of the population may be wiped out in spite of the skill of man, of all the resources of science.… How easy it would be for God to wipe out the whole human race … if he wanted to; for these terrible epidemics, plagues, the mighty forces of nature, all are at his command, all are his agents. At any moment, if he willed it, in this way, vast populations or portions of populations could be destroyed.

(2) I have had also this question come into my mind, why of those who took the disease some recovered and others did not? The reason may be found, in one sense, in purely natural causes— some were physically better prepared to resist the disease, were stronger in vital power, and so pulled through. Others, not having sufficient vitality, went down under the strain; but I believe there is also another reason, and is to be found in the will of God.… Some day we have all got to go, but how, or when, or where, we do not know; that is with God alone. In Job 12:10, we read:

In whose hand is the soul of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind.

We speak of accidental deaths, … but there are no accidents with God. All things are within the scope of his providence….

(3) Another question similar to the above kept also constantly going through my mind, why are some taken with the disease and others not? … The ultimate explanation must be found in the sovereign will of God. It must be because He wills it.

(4) Another thing that has impressed me, in connection with this epidemic, is the fact that conditions may arise in a community which justify the extraordinary exercise of powers that would not be tolerated under ordinary circumstances. This extraordinary exercise of power was resorted to by the Commissioners in closing up the theaters, schools, churches, in forbidding all gatherings of any considerable number of people indoors and outdoors, and in restricting the numbers who should be present even at funerals. The ground of the exercise of this extraordinary power was found in the imperative duty of the officials to safeguard, as far as possible, the health of the community by preventing the spread of the disease from which we were suffering….

And so, anxious as I have been to resume work, I have waited patiently until the order was lifted.…

(5) Another thing that has impressed me in connection with this epidemic is how completely it has shattered the theory, so dear to the heart of the white man in this country, that a white skin entitles its possessor to better treatment than one who possesses a dark skin.…

In this terrible epidemic, which has afflicted not only this city but the whole country, there is a great lesson for the white man to learn. It is the folly of his stupid color prejudice. It calls attention to the fact that he is acting on a principle that God utterly repudiates, as he has shown during this epidemic scourge, and, as he will show him when He comes to deal with him in the judgment of the great day of solemn account….

(6) Another thing has impressed me during this epidemic. It has brought out in a way that is very gratifying, the high estimation in which the Christian church is held in the community—the large place which it really occupies in the thought of the people. The fact that for several weeks we have been shut out from the privileges of the sanctuary has brought home to us as never before what the church has really meant to us. We hadn’t thought, perhaps, very much of the privilege while it lasted, but the moment it was taken away we saw at once how much it meant to us….

(7) There is another thing connected with this epidemic that is also worthy of note. While it lasted, it kept the thought of death and of eternity constantly before the people. As the papers came out, day after day, among the first things that everyone looked for, or asked about, was as to the number of deaths. And so the thought of death was never allowed to stay very long out of the consciousness of the living. And with the thought of death, the great thought also of eternity, for it is through death that the gates of eternity swing open…. The grim messenger is God’s summons to us to render up our account. That there is an account to be rendered up we are inclined to lose sight of, to forget; but it is to be rendered all the same. The books are to be opened, and we are to be judged out of the books. During the weeks of this epidemic—in the long list of deaths, in the large number of new-made graves, in the unusual number of funeral processions along our streets, God has been reminding us of this account which we must soon render up; He has been projecting before us in a way to startle us, the thought of eternity.

You who are not Christians, who have not yet repented of your sins, who have not yet surrendered yourselves to the guidance of Jesus Christ, if you allow these repeated warnings that you have had, day by day, week by week, to go unheeded—if you still go on in your sins, should God suddenly cut you off in your sins, you will have no one to blame but yourselves…. God has opened the way for your salvation, through the gift of His only begotten Son, who died that you might have the opportunity of making your peace with God…. Before you go out of this house make up your minds to do the right thing—the wise thing—the only sensible thing. You have come out of this epidemic alive, while thousands have perished. Are you going to spend the rest of your days in the service of sin and Satan, or in the service of God? You know what you ought to do; you know what you will do, if you consult your best interest—if you do the right thing.

(8) There is only one other thought that has come to me in connection with this epidemic; it is of the blessedness … of the sense of security which a true, living, working faith in the Lord Jesus Christ gives one in the midst of life’s perils. I felt … the blessedness of a firm grip upon Jesus Christ—the blessedness of a realizing sense of being anchored in God and in His precious promises. While the plague was raging, while thousands were dying, what a comfort it was to feel that we were in the hands of a loving Father who was looking out for us, who had given us the great assurance that all things should work together for our good. And, therefore, that come what would—whether we were smitten with the epidemic or not, or whether being smitten, we survived or perished, we knew it would be well with us, that there was no reason to be alarmed. Even if death came, we knew it was all right. The apostle says, “it is gain for me to die.” Death had no terrors for him….

In the presence of such a faith, in the realization of God’s love, as revealed in Jesus Christ, in the consciousness of fellowship with him, what are epidemics, what are scourges, what are all of life’s trials, sufferings, disappointments? They only tend to work out for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. But, of course, if faith is to help us; if it is to put its great strong arms under us; if we are to feel its sustaining power under such distressing circumstances, it must be a real, living faith in God …—a faith that works, that works by love, and that purifies the heart. Any other faith is of absolutely no value to us in the midst of the great crises of life…. [Now] is a good time for those of us who are Christians to examine ourselves to see exactly how it is with us, … whether our faith is really resting upon Christ, the solid Rock, or not….

If, as the result of such examination, we find that we did not get out of our religion very much help, in bracing us up under the strain through which we have been passing, then we know that there is something wrong: either we have no faith at all, or it is very weak…. Or, if we find that we were helped, that our fears were allayed as we thought of our relations to God and to his Son Jesus Christ, then we have an additional reason why we should cling all the closer to him, and why we should be all the more earnest in our efforts to serve him. We ought to come out of this epidemic more determined than ever to run with patience the race that is set before us; more determined than ever to make heaven our home….

Let us all draw near to God in simple faith. Let us re-consecrate ourselves, all of us, to him….

 

“His Blood Be On Us and On Our Children”

Last Sunday’s sermon text includes these verses:

So when Pilate saw that he was gaining nothing, but rather that a riot was beginning, he took water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this man’s blood; see to it yourselves.”  And all the people answered, “His blood be on us and on our children!” (Matthew 27:24-25)

In the sermon we focused on Pilate’s guilt, despite his proclaimed innocence. But we also saw that Pilate could be forgiven, the same way that you and I can be forgiven: By grace through faith in the death and resurrection of the man He crucified. Furthermore, we saw that, beginning in the 2nd century, some church traditions say that Pilate did indeed come to faith.

However, there’s an ugly side to that tradition. In the church’s early decades, the great majority of believers were Jewish in ethnicity. By the late 2nd century, that was no longer the case. Rather, there was considerable animosity between Jews and Christians. Many Christians then began to use Matthew 27:25 as justification for hatred of Jews. You see, they would argue, the Jewish people as a whole are willingly accepting blame for the death of Jesus. And that blame continues through all future generations, since they accept it on behalf of their children.

This horrible distortion of the text has continued over the centuries, leading to persecution and hatred of Jews time and again.

Why is this interpretation a distortion? Because it is inconsistent both with the story surrounding this text, and with wider biblical teaching.

First look at the surrounding context. Jesus entered Jerusalem a few days earlier to the acclaim of the Jewish crowd (Matthew 21:7-11). The crowd in chapter 21 holds him to be a prophet (Matthew 21: 46). The crowd in the next chapter is astonished at His teaching (Matthew 22:33).

The crowd in front of Pilate in Matthew 27 has to be persuaded by the chief priests and elders to turn on Jesus (Matthew 27:20). We don’t know how these leaders persuaded them, but given the accusations against Him in His trial before the High Priest, it seems the religious leaders were able to convince the crowd that Jesus had committed blasphemy. That would explain why so many in the crowd now think He deserves death.

But many Jews have been following Jesus, and, of course, all the disciples are Jews. They don’t believe He should be crucified!

So (a) this crowd is not representative even of those in Jerusalem at this time, much less of all Jews everywhere; and (b) the crowd, stirred to a frenzy through the manipulations of the religious leaders, calls out for blood without understanding what they are doing (as Jesus Himself says in Luke 23:34).

Thus, at most the crowd takes the guilt of Jesus’ death on their own descendants and not all Jews. But given their lack of understanding, we should question even this.

When we look at wider biblical teaching, we see that even this limited understanding of the guilt of the crowd’s descendants is wrong. First, a few weeks later at Pentecost many who were in this crowd – and even some religious leaders – come to faith in Christ and are forgiven for all of their sins, including this one (Acts 2:36-41, Acts 6:7). Second, Scripture is clear that while sin does often have a multi-generational impact, children are not condemned by God for the sins of their parents other than Adam (Ezekiel 18, Jeremiah 31:29-30; for Adam, see Romans 5:12-21).

So, no: This text does not teach anti-Semitism. Nobody is saved because of their ethnicity. And no one is condemned because of their ethnicity. All have sinned, Jew and non-Jew. All deserve God’s just condemnation.

Who, then, is responsible for Jesus’ death? Who crucified Jesus?

Many individuals were responsible. Judas. Caiaphas. Annas. Pilate. Others.

But in a larger sense, I crucified Him. You crucified Him – if you trust Him as Savior and Lord. For He paid  my penalty. And, if you are in Christ, He paid your penalty.

As Johan Heerman wrote 400 years ago:

Who was the guilty? Who brought this upon Thee?
Alas, my treason, Jesus, hath undone Thee.
’Twas I, Lord Jesus, I it was denied Thee!
I crucified Thee.

And yet He died so that those in the crowd before Pilate, so that their descendants, so that you and I, murderers that we all are, might live in union with Him as beloved children of God for all eternity.

So away with all anti-Semitism. Away with all semblances of ethnic superiority and hatred. Before God we all are equal – equally guilty. And before God, by His grace through the death of His Son, we all can be equally loved.

 

Trayvon, George – And You

Trayvon Martin. George Zimmerman.

Who are they?

Many have labeled Trayvon and George: Victim and Murderer. Attacker and Self-Defender. And much worse labels, on both accounts.

Many have tried to use the tragedy of Trayvon’s death and the sensation of George’s trial to advance one societal narrative or another.

But who are they?

Trayvon and George are not labels. They are not representatives of a class. They are not representatives of a race or a group.

They are individuals. With birthdays and classmates and friends. With plans and longings and desires. With mothers and fathers and siblings.

They are individuals – made in the image of God for the glory of God.

One of them is dead at the age of 17.

The other receives numerous death threats daily at the age of 29. He is “free.” But he and his family are in hiding.

How can we respond biblically to Trayvon’s death, to George’s trial and acquittal?

There is much we might say:

Let me instead offer ideas for prayer: Pairs of praise and cries to the God of the universe, thanking Him on the one hand, and beseeching Him on the other:

  • Praise God that through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, not one of us must be cut off from God the Father, but whoever believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life;
  • And pray to God that He might use this tragedy in the lives of George, and George’s family, and Trayvon’s family so that they might see Him, know Him, and love Him.
  • Praise God that we live in a country where we don’t let our justice system become the vehicle for political show trials;
  • And pray to God that the inequities that exist in our justice system would be removed.
  • Praise God for the “reasonable doubt” standard – and thus that we would rather set nine guilty free than wrongly convict one innocent;
  • And pray to God that those nevertheless wrongly convicted would be cleared, and those wrongly set free would face genuine justice; furthermore, pray that we as a country might be united in seeing the wisdom in this standard, even when justice may not have been done in a specific case.
  • Praise God that in the five decades since Martin Luther King, Jr penned these words – “Let us all hope that the dark clouds of racial prejudice will soon pass away and the deep fog of misunderstanding will be lifted from our fear drenched communities, and in some not too distant tomorrow the radiant stars of love and brotherhood will shine over our great nation with all their scintillating beauty” – we have seen genuine advances in racial equality and racial harmony;
  • And pray to God that the remaining, significant dark clouds of racial prejudice will finally pass away, and the fog of misunderstanding that still hovers over our fear-drenched communities will truly lift.
  • Praise God that, as a country, we trust the constitutional process governing politics and law more than we trust individual political parties, elected officials, or popular demagogues;
  • And pray to God that that trust- so rare in history, so rare even around the world today – would survive and grow and spread.
  • Finally, praise God that in Christ “there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all” (Colossians 3:11);
  • And pray to God that the church in general, and DGCC in particular, might live out this reality, displaying that unity with Christ across ethnic differences in our thoughts, attitudes, and actions.