Last week I wrote about the first of two questions I’ve been asked in recent months: Why would God allow a virus to sweep the globe and cause so much harm? So this week, I’ll tackle the second: Is the pandemic God’s punishment for our sins?

Many believe in a direct connection between what we do and the events of our lives. Do something good and good things happen; something bad and bad things happen. There is some truth in this simply because there are natural consequences, positive and negative, for our actions. But this isn’t a Christian idea. In fact, it’s karma, which comes from Buddhism, not the Bible.

Now I know what some are thinking; what about the stories in the Bible when God comes down hard on someone for coloring outside the lines? Like the one about the couple (Acts 5) who sold a piece of property and gave the proceeds to the church leaders. Except they didn’t. They lied and held back some of the profits for themselves. As punishment, first one, and then the other, dropped dead.

The Bible tell us that God is active in the affairs of this world and the events of our lives. At times he intervenes to bless and other times to sanction. He works to advance his purposes and to thwart those who intend to do harm. And there are times, like with the couple who sold the land, when God judges a person, or even a group, for a specific sin. But we must be extremely careful about trying to identify a single event as an act of God’s judgment or blessing. These things are generally hidden and seldom revealed directly to us.

The writers of the Bible often issue warnings about continuing in a life of sin. One of God’s purposes, Paul says, is to judge ungodliness and unrighteousness (Romans 1:18). If we persist in sin, we will be judged for what we’ve done.

But there’s another thread that runs through the Bible; God’s mercy. In fact, warnings about coming judgment seldom come without an offer of mercy. Paul made it clear (Romans 2:2-4) that God frequently postpones judgment because “God’s kindness is intended to lead to repentance.” But we need to listen. Jeremiah complained that while God sent prophets to the people, they didn’t pay attention (Jer. 25:4). And that’s true of us as well.

The truth is that we live in a broken world. We live with both the effects of the harm we do to one another and the difficulties that comes from events beyond our control. Jesus said “[God] causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.” (Matthew 5:45) And, we might add, plagues affect both the unjust and the just.

What I find most troubling, is that many of those saying COVID is God’s judgment, claim it’s his judgment against someone else. But if you read the prophets, you’ll find that they ask us first to examine ourselves. That means it would be best if we consider COVID a warning. Instead of viewing it as an act of divine vengeance and pointing fingers at others, we allow it to shake us out of our complacency. It could be that God wants to get our attention. And my experience is that God will deal with us as gently as he can or as harshly as he must.

God’s deepest desire is to grant us mercy. Let’s then use the events in our lives, good or bad, as opportunities to turn our eyes toward him. And if it’s true that there are those around us suffering because of choices they have made, let’s turn toward them with hearts of compassion, doing what we can to relieve suffering, to care for the sick, encourage the weak and comfort the afflicted as we plead with God for his mercy.