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(this transcript has been lightly edited for readability)

Well, like most of you, I'm hunkered down here in my loft, not going outside, distancing myself from people. It's particularly important for me because I have a compromised immune system, and I am in the high-risk category for this pandemic that has spread across the globe.

Hi, I'm Paul Tripp, and you know, as I've been here, thinking and praying, I've been more and more impressed how this pandemic preaches the gospel to us. The first thing it does is it confronts the delusion of human independence and human self-sufficiency. It's just taken a single virus to shut us down. I live in Center City, Philadelphia. It has become a ghost town. Churches have been shut down. Businesses have been shut down. Families are separate from one another. Friends can't gather anymore. Restaurants are closed down.

It's an amazing thing, and it reminds us again, that we were created to be dependent. Dependent on the Creator. There is no such thing as human independence or human self-sufficiency. In fact, it reminds me that the progress, the move of grace in our hearts and lives, is not from dependence to independence but from independence to greater dependence on God. The more you grow in grace, the more you understand the wisdom of the word, the more you understand your own heart, the more you understand the foolishness of this world, the more you run in joyful, submissive dependency on God.

I'm also reminded that in these moments where we seem so weak, and life seems so out-of-control, that the glory of God's sovereign power and His amazing grace shines even brighter. Isn't it amazing that we understand that although things, to us, seem out of control, and in many ways, humanly, are out of control, there is one who sits on the throne of the universe, who is the definition of everything that's wise, and everything that's good, and everything that's true and faithful, and holy, and righteous, and almighty, and He is in careful control of His world? We don't always understand what that means. We can't always put that together, but there is one who rules the world, who is not afraid at this moment, who is not weak, who is not confused, who has no mystery, who never experiences surprises, and we don't always know why He does what He does, but we know who He is, and we know what He's promised His children.

There's a third thing. As this pandemic has spread from country to country until the entire globe is aware, and is shutting down in an attempt to squash its power and its spread, we're reminded that there is an even greater, darker, more dangerous pandemic. It gets everyone. It gets everyone from birth. It is a deep, dark infection. It is the ultimate disease. It's called sin. And you know, it's way more dangerous and way more destructive than the coronavirus will ever be.

But this is what's amazing, there is a cure. God looked at His world in awesome mercy and love and decided He would not let us die from this disease. And so, He sent His son to live as we could not live, and to die an acceptable death, and to rise again, conquering sin and death, so that there would be a cure for the ultimate disease. The cure is found in the Person and work of the Lord Jesus, and His amazing grace. Celebrate grace. Celebrate that something more dangerous, more deadly than this pandemic will ever be, has been cured by the power of the grace of Jesus. What a good thing.

I'm reminded of another thing as I think about this pandemic, that although we are practicing social distancing now, and sadly we have to be separate from one another, Sunday, I was reminded that, as I sat with Luella in our little television room and watched our church services online, that it was not the same. It's not the same as meeting with brothers and sisters, hugging them warmly, shaking hands, singing together, hearing the voice of others into our ears, people singing to one another, reminding one another of the grace of the gospel, it's not the same. And we're all feeling the remorse of our separation. It's wonderful to remember that no pandemic, that nothing in all of creation is able to separate us from God and His boundless love.

In fact, in these moments, God doesn't separate Himself from us. He doesn't turn His back on us, but He draws near. He draws near to the weak. He draws near to the broken-hearted. He draws near in love and grace, empowering us to face what we could not face without Him. Your greatest friend, your deepest lover, your sweetest companion, has no distance between Him and you. What a beautiful thing that is.

The fifth thing that I think about is a beautiful thing, that scripture reminds us that in these moments we don't have to shoulder these burdens alone by ourselves. When we are weary, and we are distraught, we have a place to go. Jesus welcomes us, when we're weary, to come to Him, and cast our cares on Him. He will shoulder our burdens because He really does care for us. In these moments, it's tempting to doubt God's goodness, to doubt His wisdom, to doubt His power, to doubt His ability to control.

And you see, what's deadly about that is when you doubt God's goodness, you quit running to Him for help, because you don't tend to go for help to someone you no longer trust. Fight the lies of the enemy that would whisper into your ear, "Where is your God now? What is He doing now? Why isn't He here? Why doesn't He answer?" The bible says, "God's near." "He cares, He hears, He answers." "Run not away from Him." "Run to Him."

Sure, we're going to wonder why, and maybe those questions won't be fully answered here and now, but again, we know who God is, and we know what He promised us, and we know that this moment preaches to us how much we need one who is greater than us, who has greater power than us, who has greater control than us, who directs things we can't direct, who is never weak, who is never tired, who is never weary. Run to Him with your burdens.

And then, finally, I am deeply persuaded that one of the most powerful defenses against fear is gratitude. You see, the more your heart is directed toward thanks, the more, with your mind, you're counting your blessings, the less, at those moments, your mind is running to fear and your heart is recounting the what-ifs. How about intentionally looking around at all the things for which, today, you can give thanks? All the evidence of God's provision, all the evidence of His care, all the things and people that love you, and God's provision He's made, and a house that is a safe place, all those things that you would take for granted, how about counting your blessings? How about letting praise overwhelm complaints, gratitude silence grumbling?

You know, the final promise of the gospel is this: That in this present world, we will face trouble, troubles of various kinds. This moment is a physical trouble, a trouble that can infect, weaken, and for some of us, destroy the body. But there is a sure promise that there will be a day when all such things will end forever, and we will be in a place where there will be no more sickness and no more suffering.

Now, hope in that is not some faint, dreamy wish, for those who are embracing some kind of religious delusion. You see, hope in God's promise is not a dreamy wish. Hope in God's promise is a confident expectation in a guaranteed result. It's coming. Paradise is coming. It is yours by grace. And there'll be a time, it's hard to imagine, where we will look back on this as a brief moment of trouble, as we are experiencing a perfect world, perfect bodies, perfect hearts, and perfect relationship with God, where everything now is as it's supposed to be, functions as it was meant to function, in peace and righteousness forever and ever, and ever. This scary moment reminds us of the most precious truths of the gospel. Instead of focusing on the what-ifs, how about meditating on those things today? God bless you as you do that. Stay safe, hunker down, and remember Jesus and the glories of His gospel of grace.