DAY 210
Faith in the Midst of a Pandemic
A series of daily reflections for people of faith
by Rev. Robert Bayley, Interim Pastor
Patuxent Presbyterian Church, California, Maryland
pastorrobert@paxpres.org
Week Thirty Saturday 10 October 2020
Apocalypse Now
Under an eerie red sky, wildfires turn the West into a hellscape.
“Apocalyptic wildfires ripping through California, Oregon, and Washington have forced hundreds of thousands of residents to evacuate as the infernos turned skies blood-red across the West. At least 35 people have died and dozens more are missing in blazes that so far have scorched more than 5 million acres; …Billowing clouds of toxic smoke forced flights to be cancelled and schools to be shuttered, and authorities from Los Angeles to Seattle urged residents to stay indoors to avoid breathing some of the planet’s most polluted air. Scenes of devastation litter the Northwest. The small Oregon towns of Phoenix and Talent, home to 11,000 people combined, have been reduced to ashes. There’s nothing to sift through.” - From an article by the same name in the current issue of a national news weekly.
“Hellscape” is an appropriate adjective for the nightmare of heat, smoke and fire faced by many in the west. Whatever people believe about hell, they are living through it now. From the same article: “One man was racing to his family when he found a badly burned woman in the road. He helped her into his car, apologizing that he had to keep driving to find his wife. ‘I am your wife,’ the woman whispered.” For them, this has been hell, a portent, perhaps, of things to come: “But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare.” 2 Peter 3:10.
Some believe that hell will last forever. Others believe it will have an end, otherwise eternity would not be perfect in God’s kingdom. Whatever we believe, millions confess of Jesus on a regular basis in the Apostles’ Creed “he descended into hell. Jesus issued warnings to the religiously self-righteous to avoid that place “where the fire never goes out” Mark 9:43. By focusing on heaven rather than hell, we can gain entrance into the one and avoid the other through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, the Savior who saves us from both sin and hell. Whatever ‘hellscape’ or ‘apocalypse now’ we might face, our souls are secure for eternity in Him. Thus “…might not perish...” is perhaps the most neglected yet hopeful promise in John 3:16.
Reflective question: What will happen to you when you die?
Reflective Scripture: Hebrews 9:27 – “…people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment,…”
Reflective hymn:
“Are You ready For the Judgment?” – Jason French © 2010
Wretched man, Oh, who will save me! Who will save my soul from hell!
Is there one who will stand with me to declare that all is well?
There is One who will stand for us! Taking all our guilt and shame!
Bearing all our sin and sorrow – Jesus is His holy name!
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