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Continuing our discussion from part one, as you've probably already heard by now, the global stock markets are likewise being very seriously affected as the coronavirus continues to spread to more countries, and as key manufacturers -- such as in China -- are forced to pull back production levels due to a lack of healthy workers, and because they are trying to contain the coronavirus outbreak. Investors are becoming increasingly alarmed as the Dow Jones Industrial Average continues to plunge. First, it dropped 3,500 points in the matter of a week's time. Then, a few days later, it tumbled yet another 970 plus points. To make matters worse, it fell again by nearly ten per cent after that, and it tumbled yet again by almost another 3,000 points. News sources are now stating that this is the worst the blue chip index has fallen since it crashed twenty-two percent almost thirty-three years ago in October of 1987. It is hard to imagine what the end result will be if the situation continues to worsen and the virus doesn't abate soon.

Here where I live, more than a hundred flights have already been canceled, and there have been over twenty thousand tourist cancellations, primarily from South Korea. This has really hurt our local economy, because it is tourism-based. But that is not all. Even our local government was forced to turn away a cruise ship a few weeks ago, due to the fact that there were infected people on board. We just couldn't take the chance with them. You see, because we are a closed environment with nowhere else to go, I am convinced that the COVID-19 disease would absolutely devastate our small island population of about 160,000 people, if it ever arrived on our shores. Our island is only about thirty-two miles long, and four to eight miles wide, depending on where you live. So if the coronavirus did surface here, it would sweep through this entire island rather quickly and overwhelm our limited number of medical facilities. It would be terrible.

Let me share one particular incident with you. When I went in for my monthly doctor's appointment in February of this year, I shared my thoughts regarding the coronavirus, and how it would affect our island if it were to surface here, with my doctor. My doctor's reaction was to say that due to our remote location here in the Western Pacific, our chances of being infected are minimal, even though we are only three to seven hours by air from nations where the coronavirus has already struck, including China, Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, the Philippines and Australia. Please understand that people from all of these places visit or live on our island. We are an airport hub more or less in the center of all of these nations, and a conduit for some flights to the U.S. mainland as well. Yet despite this fact, our risk level is low?

But the point I was getting to is this: While my doctor said that the threat to our island is minimal, when I entered his clinic, I was shocked to discover that all three front desk receptionists were wearing masks, as was my doctor himself. They never do this, which is why it immediately caught my attention and freaked me out a bit. It was as if they were sending a subtle message to everyone, without saying a word. This makes me wonder how many national governments may have already put a muzzle on their primary health officials in order to keep the situation under control, and avoid panic. Who knows. I won't take that thought any further.

But the point is, my doctor was trying to convince me that we are safe here, while his actions, and the actions of his receptionists were saying quite the opposite. Well, remember what I said a minute ago regarding not just listening to what national governments are saying, but actually looking at what they are doing? They want us to believe that we are safe, and that the risk for contracting COVID-19 is low. Yet look at all the serious steps they have been taking in recent weeks which seem to indicate otherwise. Does that seem like low risk to you? Would they be taking all of these preventative measures for something that is no worse, and way less deadly, than the annual flu? It just doesn't make sense and is highly suspect, in my opinion. Of course, I obviously cannot prove anything conclusively. But isn't that how it always is when it comes to government operations?

Now, regarding the mass media, is it possible that the news outlets are purposely exaggerating and hyping up the news for the sake of publicity, profit and a wider viewership or readership as some people have proposed? Of course it is possible. Only a very naive person would not realize that they do it all the time. Yet still, in light of everything that so many world governments are currently doing, should we really believe that the coronavirus isn't any worse than your average winter flu? Yes, I realize that the death rate for COVID-19 isn't anywhere near the annual death rate for the common flu. But let's wait another six months and then see where we really stand. To reiterate, too many nations are on high alert to believe that COVID-19 doesn't pose a greater threat than they want us to know.

Continuing our discussion, one thing has become rather clear in my view. As I pointed out to you earlier, it is commonly agreed amongst medical professionals that the current strain of coronavirus has not yet peaked on a global scale. It has not yet reached all of the countries that it is going to invade, and it has by no means peaked yet in all the nations where it has already been detected. The infection rates and the death rates continue to climb on a daily basis, as you will see for yourself when you check out some of the links which I include at the end of this same series. As such, only time will tell the true tale and how bad it is actually going to get.

As I mentioned at the beginning of part one, when it comes to the discussion of the SARS-CoV-2 virus and the COVID-19 disease which is caused by it, online comments have ranged from those people who are taking the potential threat very seriously, to more laid-back folks who are laughing it off as nothing to worry about, or claiming that it is a hoax being perpetrated by the mass media, or just another false flag situation created by the globalists and the New World Order advocates as a means to implement their devious plans for world domination.

As I also mentioned in part one, personally, I am not a crazy-eyed conspiracy theorist who spends hours each day watching questionable YouTube videos and filling my head with unprovable nonsense. Neither am I what we might refer to as a fear-monger or a rumor-monger. I am in fact very careful regarding what I write in my articles, as well as in my online commentaries on the social networks. My personal rule is "Investigate before you propagate." Thus, I always strive to stick with the facts; both the Biblical facts, as well as the facts when it concerns some secular event, such as the current coronavirus threat.

The last thing that I want to do is to fill my readers and friends with fear and paranoia, as the world is prone to do. The world in fact thrives off of such things. So, while I have shared some alarming things in this series which may possibly unsettle you, whatever you do, please do not give in to fear. Like many of my Christian friends, no matter what happens in the days, weeks and months ahead, I remain firmly convinced that we should all continue to trust the Lord and not worry about it. We should not allow ourselves to become overcome with fear and freak out. We should claim the Lord's peace and protection, as in verses such as the following. You will find similar verses in the KJV Bible Verse Lists which I list at the end of this current series:

"Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee."


"He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler. Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday."


"The angel of the LORD encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them."


"Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness."


"And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."


"For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind."


Now, while I firmly believe in the message which is conveyed in the previous verses, it has come to my attention that a number of my Christian friends may be misunderstanding how we should be reacting in light of the current situation with the COVIC-19 disease sweeping the world one nation after another. For example, I came across one person who seemed to adopt a somewhat lackadaisical attitude. In other words, this person paraphrased Philippians 4:19, and appeared to be saying to his online friends "Don't worry about the coronavirus. Just relax. God will provide your needs." As many of you will know, Philippians 4:19 states the following:

"But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus."


Another Bible verse which some Christians may possibly look to during this current viral threat is the following one which is found at the end of the sixth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew:

"Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof."


My friends, I have shared the previous two verses many times since I first began this ministry fifty years ago. I firmly believe in both of them. I am fully convinced that God shall indeed provide our every need according to Philippians 4:19 and other verses which are found in the Scriptures, if we are truly seeking first His Kingdom, as Jesus advised us to do. Likewise, exactly as Jesus says in the previous verse, I also believe that we should not worry about tomorrow. However, I also realize that if we don't balance the previous two verses with other verses which are found in the Scriptures, we may come away with a skewed understanding. As I have taught for many years now, we must compare Scripture with Scripture if we expect to arrive at the right conclusion.

Let me ask you something. If you have to go to work today and suddenly realize that your gas tank is almost empty, are you just going to sit there and say, "Okay, God. Philippians 4:19. Fill up my tank before I go out the door please."? Of course not. You already know from experience that God doesn't quite work in that way. So instead of just sitting there waiting for your gas tank to magically fill up, you are going to take the practical step of driving to the gas station and filling up your tank, right?

Or what if your child comes to you and says, "Hey! I'm hungry but there is no food in the fridge!" Are you just going to say, "Okay. Just wait a minute while I pray. I am sure that the Lord will put something in there for you."? Again, of course not. Instead, you are going to take the practical step of going to the grocery store in order to buy some food for your hungry child.

Are you starting to see the point yet? In short, there are likewise many examples in both the Old and the New Testaments where the Lord expected His people to exercise their faith and to do what they could. For example, didn't Joseph advise the Egyptians to prepare for seven years of famine? What if they had not done so? Obviously, they would have all starved to death. God likewise promised the Israelites the Promised Land. But did it just miraculously happen all on its own? No. Of course not. They had to go in and fight for it. They had to exercise their faith. Otherwise, their forty-year trek in the wilderness would have never ended, and they all would have died there.

In similar fashion, today, we have to do the same thing. We have to do what we can, and then God will do the rest. We need to give the Lord a little help and cooperation, by doing what we can to keep ourselves and our families safe until the current situation passes. To suggest that we should just sit on our fannies and do absolutely nothing in the face of some impending emergency of any kind, whether it is some natural disaster, or the coronavirus, or something else, is unwise, foolhardy, shortsighted and being irresponsible, in my view. It is not exercising faith. It is exercising plain stupidity. In short, we should all prepare for the coronavirus invading our area of the world, exactly as some health agencies and institutions have been suggesting we do for some time now.

At the very least, this means purchasing good quality face masks -- meaning with a rating of N95 or higher, or of class FFP3 -- stocking up on food and water and other basic daily necessities such as toiletries, required medications, etc., in case you need to lock yourself in for some period of time, and doing whatever else the Lord shows you to do. In fact, at the end of this current series you will find a link to one of my article entitled "Y2K Preparation: Survival Items List". You can use the article as a basic guide if you need any help with stocking up within a city environment.

The simple truth is that anyone who fails to properly prepare for a potential emergency situation will have no one to blame but themselves when they -- and perhaps their family as well -- suffer due to being ill-prepared. This is precisely the lesson we see in the following verse that is found in the Book of Proverbs:

"A prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself: but the simple pass on, and are punished."


So are you starting to get the message yet? Here it is again. Yes, we most definitely should not worry or be overcome with fear. We should indeed trust in the Lord. Likewise, we should not worry about tomorrow as Jesus taught. However, that does not mean that we should not make practical preparations for it, just as Joseph did in Egypt. God gave Joseph those dreams so that he would know to prepare for what was to come. So, my friends, we need to have some common sense, just like Joseph. We need to ask the Lord for His Wisdom, as in this verse:

"If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him."


So contrary to what some misguided Christians may think, and contrary to our Christian friends who accuse us of promoting fear because in love we advise our friends to prepare for the possible impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19), we are not demonstrating a lack of faith. We are not fear-mongering. We are not freaking out. We are not hyping up or exaggerating the situation. We are simply being smart, and being prepared, just in case the situation does deteriorate to a dangerous or even life-threatening level. I hope that those of you who hold to this erroneous view can see that now. Personally, I would rather prepare and not need it, than fail to prepare and find myself in a fix due to my own foolishness. I did the same thing two decades ago when we were threatened by Y2K, and I have no regrets. I was fully prepared then, and I will be prepared now as well. In fact, right now I am waiting for my FFP3 class respirators to arrive in the mail.

Returning to one of our previous topics, it is really so easy to entertain one conspiracy theory or another, and to try to politicize the issue, as so many people online have already begun to do. I have seen this happen time and time again. It seems that the minute that some important local, national or global event occurs somewhere in the world, the conspiracy theorists come out of the woodwork and start to fill up the web with their quite-often-unsubstantiated ideas. Sadly, it doesn't seem to matter whether or not there is any truth to what they are saying. If it sounds good, if it results in more likes, comments and shares, well then let's just put it out there for the masses to chew on. The tragedy is when I see my online Christian friends doing the same thing as well, and some of them are indeed doing it. I mean no offense to anyone, but some of the things they are saying are outright nonsense.

To be honest, I seriously doubt that any of us regular folks will ever know with any degree of certainty exactly where or how this particular strain of the coronavirus originated. Furthermore, I do not even think that it is that important. What is important, in my view, is that we Christians have a Bible-centric view and understanding regarding world events. We need to learn to view things through the lens of God's Holy Word, and to steer clear of the conspiracy theory trap. It is my opinion that if we do the latter, we are not only missing the mark, but we may even become unwitting victims of deception ourselves. Again, I see this happening right now on the social networks. Some brethren seem to practice very little spiritual discernment, sad to say.

Having said that, those of us who have diligently studied God's Word should understand that regardless of how and where COVID-19 originated, if we truly believe that God is control of the world situation, then we have to conclude that it is He who has also allowed the coronavirus to be released into the world at this present time, in order to fulfill His divine purposes, whatever they happen to be. Of course, some Christians may argue, "How dare you say that! God doesn't do stuff like that! God loves us! It's just the Devil who does such wicked things." If that is your view, then please consider reading my article entitled "Does God Cause Natural Disasters?", as well as studying my KJV Bible Verse List called "God Creates and Uses Evil". You will find links to both of them at the end of this series. Perhaps you will have a change of mind after doing so.

Regarding the SARS-CoV-2 virus, my view is this: Surely our all-powerful God could have prevented this from happening, yet He chose not to do so. He allowed this plague to spread from just one country -- China -- to over one hundred nations in a matter of just a few months. And as I mentioned earlier, this virus is just getting started. Even the CDC, WHO and various other medical professionals admit that we have yet to see the worst of it. So we must ask ourselves why God didn't stop it in its tracks before it became such a global threat. A clear answer can be found in God's Word.

As many of my readers no doubt already know, there is ample Scriptural evidence in both the Old and the New Testaments which indicates that God in fact uses plagues, pestilences and such as tools of His divine chastisements against a wicked and rebellious people. As I explain in articles such as "The Fruits of Disobedience", the ancient Israelites most certainly were aware of this truth. After all, Moses gave the children of Israel ample warnings time and time again of what would happen to them if they turned against the Lord, followed after the gods of the heathen, and disobeyed God's Laws. Consider the following sample verses:

"Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse; A blessing, if ye obey the commandments of the LORD your God, which I command you this day: And a curse, if ye will not obey the commandments of the LORD your God, but turn aside out of the way which I command you this day, to go after other gods, which ye have not known."


"But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day; that all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee: Cursed shalt thou be in the city, and cursed shalt thou be in the field. Cursed shall be thy basket and thy store. Cursed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy land, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep. Cursed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and cursed shalt thou be when thou goest out. The LORD shall send upon thee cursing, vexation, and rebuke, in all that thou settest thine hand unto for to do, until thou be destroyed, and until thou perish quickly; because of the wickedness of thy doings, whereby thou hast forsaken me."


"If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land."


Do you see that? The Lord very clearly said that He would curse the Israelites and in fact destroy them, if they chose to foolishly rebel against Him. Sadly, as I explain in the aforementioned series, despite so many stiff warnings from Moses, the Israelites did in fact rebel against the Lord and repeatedly fell into a state of deep apostasy, as becomes very evident in verses such as the following ones:

"And they forsook the LORD God of their fathers, which brought them out of the land of Egypt, and followed other gods, of the gods of the people that were round about them, and bowed themselves unto them, and provoked the LORD to anger."


"And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the LORD, and served Baalim, and Ashtaroth, and the gods of Syria, and the gods of Zidon, and the gods of Moab, and the gods of the children of Ammon, and the gods of the Philistines, and forsook the LORD, and served not him."


"For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father. For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. And Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD, and went not fully after the LORD, as did David his father. Then did Solomon build an high place for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, in the hill that is before Jerusalem, and for Molech, the abomination of the children of Ammon. And likewise did he for all his strange wives, which burnt incense and sacrificed unto their gods. And the LORD was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned from the LORD God of Israel, which had appeared unto him twice, And had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods: but he kept not that which the LORD commanded."


"And they transgressed against the God of their fathers, and went a whoring after the gods of the people of the land, whom God destroyed before them."


"Now it came to pass, after that Amaziah was come from the slaughter of the Edomites, that he brought the gods of the children of Seir, and set them up to be his gods, and bowed down himself before them, and burned incense unto them. Wherefore the anger of the LORD was kindled against Amaziah, and he sent unto him a prophet, which said unto him, Why hast thou sought after the gods of the people, which could not deliver their own people out of thine hand?"


"For he sacrificed unto the gods of Damascus, which smote him: and he said, Because the gods of the kings of Syria help them, therefore will I sacrifice to them, that they may help me. But they were the ruin of him, and of all Israel."


"For the children of Israel and the children of Judah have only done evil before me from their youth: for the children of Israel have only provoked me to anger with the work of their hands, saith the LORD. For this city hath been to me as a provocation of mine anger and of my fury from the day that they built it even unto this day; that I should remove it from before my face, Because of all the evil of the children of Israel and of the children of Judah, which they have done to provoke me to anger, they, their kings, their princes, their priests, and their prophets, and the men of Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. And they have turned unto me the back, and not the face: though I taught them, rising up early and teaching them, yet they have not hearkened to receive instruction. But they set their abominations in the house, which is called by my name, to defile it. And they built the high places of Baal, which are in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to cause their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire unto Molech; which I commanded them not, neither came it into my mind, that they should do this abomination, to cause Judah to sin."


It is no wonder then that God had to deal with them time and time again, and those stiffnecked Israelites paid the price for their rebellion against the Lord. Turning to our current time, regarding COVID-19, assuming that it continues to grow worse in coming months as global health institutions have been predicting, what exactly is the endgame here? Well, as some of you will know, God's Word teaches us that Divine Chastisement is supposed to result in global, national or personal repentance, which will ultimately lead to a full restoration of our relationship with God the Father. That is always God's goal. This point becomes rather clear in verses such as the following. As you will see, the Lord takes no pleasure in punishing His children. It is most certainly not His desire to destroy us. Rather, He just wants us to repent of our rebellion and to return to Him:

"Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?"


"For the Lord will not cast off for ever: But though he cause grief, yet will he have compassion according to the multitude of his mercies. For he doth not afflict willingly nor grieve the children of men."


"Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven. For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost. How think ye? if a man have an hundred sheep, and one of them be gone astray, doth he not leave the ninety and nine, and goeth into the mountains, and seeketh that which is gone astray? And if so be that he find it, verily I say unto you, he rejoiceth more of that sheep, than of the ninety and nine which went not astray. Even so it is not the will of your Father which is in heaven, that one of these little ones should perish."


"And it came to pass, when the time was come that he should be received up, he stedfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem, And sent messengers before his face: and they went, and entered into a village of the Samaritans, to make ready for him. And they did not receive him, because his face was as though he would go to Jerusalem. And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, even as Elias did? But he turned, and rebuked them, and said, Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of. For the Son of man is not come to destroy men's lives, but to save them. And they went to another village."


"For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost."


"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved."


"Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began."


"For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour; Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth."


"The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance."


"And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons. Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live? For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness. Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby. Wherefore lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees; And make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way; but LET IT RATHER BE HEALED."


So as Bible-believing Christians, we must all honestly ask ourselves: Is it possible then that this is the purpose of the SARS-CoV-2 virus and the COVID-19 disease which has been currently spreading around the world? Are we being chastised due to our sins against the Lord? It is definitely something worth praying about, particularly as the world turns more and more against God and His holy precepts with each passing year.

Please go to part three for the conclusion of this series.

⇒ Go To The Next Part . . .

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