Looking Forward to the Crown of Life
By Jason Chang
In this era of COVID-19, there are many questions swirling through my head right now and probably yours, too. How long are we going to be in a lockdown? How long will I be employed? How long will I be unemployed? Are my groceries safe? Is my mail safe? Will I get my family sick?
In normal times, I’m not one to have much anxiety. I’d like to say that’s because of my deep faith in Christ, but it’s more likely a foolish overconfidence in myself. So as I saw the case counts go up and more and more people died, the feeling of dread started to well up in my chest. As the number of jobs lost in the US continued to mount, a feeling of uncertainty for my own job began to grow.
And all of this is rooted in fear. The fear of losing comfort and health. Of even life. It was in one particularly low moment that I turned to search the scriptures for some help with that fear and found this passage:
Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and for ten days you will have tribulation. Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life.
Revelation 2:10
Jesus, in the book of Revelation, writes to a persecuted local church in the city of Smyrna, and prepares them for the suffering that is coming. Jesus is preparing them to stand steadfast.
Jesus says to them, “Do not fear,” even though they’re going to suffer physically. Some will be killed. Even so he calls them to “Be faithful unto death.” And he promises them a reward: ”and I will give you the crown of life.”
I’m not saying we’re all going to die of COVID-19 or that there will be great suffering for our church at this time. We don’t know what will happen. However, like the church in Smyrna, we are called to stand firm, steadfast in our faith, and be fearless in the face of this pandemic. I am not saying be stupid and go lick door knobs, throw some house parties, or host a church potluck. No, I think we should set a good example of care for our congregation and socially distance ourselves physically. But I think that we should also be willing to take physical risks at the same time in order to serve and love our congregation and the lost people in our communities as well.
In this dark time, we have a greater opportunity to shine bright for Christ. So I want to say, “Wintersburg family, do not fear. Be faithful unto death and He will give you the crown of life.”
But I have to ask, “Where does this power to be so steadfast in faith come from?” The answer lies in the past and in the future.
First, the past: Jesus has already won the greatest battle ever fought. He conquered sin and death on the cross and proved it through his bodily resurrection. He was faithful unto death. I’ll say it again. Jesus was faithful unto death. And in his resurrection he was crowned in eternal glory.
We now have our hope in that resurrection, and death has lost its sting because we too look forward to that resurrection life. That therefore gives us courage to be bold risk takers for the gospel.
Second, in the future: we must also know that Jesus wins. Our future victory in Christ, is already written, sovereignly ordained, seen in a vision, written for our encouragement. In the book of Revelation, we see Christ conquer his enemies for good. We know this battle is already won. We see the glorious end before it happens and for those of us who love Christ, that end is actually the beginning of our eternal joy and life in heaven.
Knowing this, and holding onto this, we have the power to be faithful… even when death is on the line, even in this pandemic era, because Jesus has already attained the crown of life for you. Which to me, means this: the crown isn’t the treasure. Jesus is. So in this time of uncertainty and fear, take the moment to pray and ask the Lord now for strength to treasure Jesus more than anything else this world or life can offer.
This devotional was given in its original form on April 30 for the Thursday Devotional time on YouTube. To watch this video and the other Thursday devotional videos, click here.