Dear Strand Baptist Family,

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

On Monday, 23 March 2020, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced a 21-day national lockdown which will commence at midnight on Thursday. The previously announced state of disaster has already led to the suspension of our Sunday Worship Services. The lockdown means that all other church activities will also have to be suspended until the 16th of April 2020.

How will the lockdown affect our SBC family?
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1. Sunday Services: These will remain suspended until the 19th of April 2020. A new message will still be made available on the website every Sunday.
2. Bible Studies and Prayer meetings: These have been suspended from today until Saturday, the 18th of April 2020.
3. AGM: The Executive felt that it would be irresponsible to continue with our AGM and put our members at risk on the eve of a national shutdown. The AGM will be rescheduled for the 29th of April 2020, pending the end of the lockdown on the 19th of April.
4. Office: Our church office will be closed from Friday, the 27th of March to Thursday, the 16th of April 2020. Where possible work will continue from home. Because of the national lockdown Pastor Pieter has delayed his sabbatical, which would have commenced on the 1st of April. You will be able to contact Pastor Pieter on his cell phone or via email. We will provide as much pastoral support as we are able.
5. Care: Our care ministry is in contact with those who need our support and assistance. Should you need help or support you can contact Dieter Meyer, our elder for care. We request that those who contribute to our food parcels rather make a financial contribution, which will be distributed to those in need. Please earmark such donations “Care Contribution”.

In 2 Corinthians 4:16 the apostle Paul says something remarkable: “So we do not lose heart…” How could he not lose heart? Earlier in the chapter he mentioned being “afflicted” and “perplexed” (v. 8), “persecuted” and “struck down” (v. 9). He even mentioned “carrying in the body the death of Jesus” (v. 10). Paul and his fellow labourers suffered for the sake of the gospel, yet “we do not lose heart”. How was that possible?

Paul had a different perspective on his suffering. First, he understood that God was renewing him day by day. Outward suffering was countered with inward renewal (v. 16). Through his trials the Lord sustained and sanctified him. Later Paul would even say: “I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” (2 Cor. 12:9).

Second, he understood that God had something better planned for his children. Paul spoke of “an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison” (v. 17). Trials put things into perspective. When we remember all God’s glorious promises to his children, the present world and its difficulties are put in their proper place. Compared to the “glory beyond all comparison” our trials are “light” and “momentary” (v. 17).

Third, he understood where his treasure should be. Paul instructs us to “look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen” (v. 18). Don’t lose sight of eternity. Why? Because “the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.” Our hope is secure with Christ in glory. Nothing will change that. Isaiah 54:10 speaks volumes of God’s faithfulness in times of calamity: “For the mountains may move and the hills disappear, but even then my faithful love for you will remain.”

These three truths help us to “not lose heart”. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God the Father and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

Because of Christ,
Pastor Pieter
(on behalf of the SBC Executive)

To our dear Strand Baptist Family,

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. On the 31st of December 2019 health officials in China alerted the World Health Organization of a pneumonia outbreak that they had never seen before. On the 7th of January 2020 the new virus was identified as Covid-19, a new Coronavirus (which includes the common cold and the SARS virus). To date more than 150 000 people have been infected worldwide, with almost 6 000 deaths. While more than half of these cases are in China, the last few weeks have seen the virus spread rapidly in other parts of the world. Currently 143 territories are affected, including South Africa.

While there are comparatively few confirmed cases of Covid-19 in South Africa, the number is expected to rise rapidly. The infection spreads by being near those who have been infected and inhaling droplets when they cough or sneeze, and through touch (handshakes, hugs and kisses). Our best defence against the virus is to slow its spread. We have already taken precautions at our worship services to protect, as far as we are able, our members and adherents. There are, at present, no confirmed cases of the virus in our church family. We praise the Lord for his mercy.

The response from government
On the 15th of March 2020 President Cyril Ramaphosa declared the Covid-19 virus a national disaster. As part of the measures to control the spread of the virus, President Ramaphosa announced the following: “it is essential that we minimise the risk of the spread of this virus by limiting contact amongst groups of people. While we appreciate the economic, religious, and cultural significance of social and community gatherings, the coronavirus is spread through contact between persons… Gatherings of more than 100 people will be prohibited.” This has serious implications for churches and calls for a prayerful and faithful response.

Lessons from church history
This is not the first time the Lord’s church has had to deal with an epidemic like this. In both the 14th and 15th century the Black Plague devastated Europe. The first outbreak killed nearly a quarter of Europe’s population. When the plague struck Martin Luther’s hometown of Wittenberg in August of 1527 many of his fellow citizens fled for their lives. Luther’s prince, Elector John, ordered Luther to leave as well. Luther stayed and continued to minister to those affected by the disease.

At the time Luther wrote: “You ought to think this way: Very well, by God’s decree the enemy has sent us poison and deadly offal. Therefore I shall ask God mercifully to protect us. Then I shall fumigate, help purify the air, administer medicine, and take it. I shall avoid places and persons where my presence is not needed in order not to become contaminated and thus perchance infect and pollute others, and so cause their death as a result of my negligence.” Luther encouraged his congregation to spend time in the Word of God and in prayer. He also attended the ill and dying, which he viewed as his duty as their shepherd (Matt. 25:36 and 1 John 3:16).

Another pandemic, the Spanish Flu, wreaked havoc all over the world from 1917 to 1919. It is estimated that more than 500 million people contracted the disease, with mortality rates close to 10%. It is considered one of the deadliest epidemics in human history. To combat the spread of the disease the District of Columbia, USA banned all public gatherings, including church services. How did the church respond?

An emergency meeting of all Protestant ministers was called and they “voted unanimously to accede to the request of the District Commissioners that churches be closed in the city”. They went on record “as cheerfully complying with the request of the Commissioners, which, we understand applies to all churches alike. We furthermore recommend that our people shall conduct in their own homes some form of religious worship remembering in prayer especially the sick”.
A few weeks later, when the spread of the disease began to subside, religious services resumed as normal.

The teaching of Scripture:
We believe that the Lord is sovereign over all his creation and that he does whatever pleases him. Psalm 135:6 declares: “Whatever the LORD pleases, he does, in heaven and on earth, in the seas and all deeps.” Even when Job was sorely afflicted, it was the Lord who allowed Satan to “touch his bone and his flesh” (Job 2:5), but the Lord did not allow Satan to take his life (v. 6). Job responded to this calamity the way he had responded to the others: with faith. “Shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive evil?” The Bible affirms that in “all this Job did not sin with his lips” (v. 10).
When the Lord called Moses, he was reluctant and afraid, because “I am slow of speech and of tongue.” (Ex. 4:10). The Lord reminded Moses: “Who has made man's mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the LORD?” (v. 11). Even here the Lord was sovereign.

Lamentations 3:37-38 helpfully reminds us who is in control: “Who has spoken and it came to pass, unless the Lord has commanded it? Is it not from the mouth of the Most High that good and bad come?” Again, the Lord declares: “I am the LORD, and there is no other, besides me there is no God; I equip you, though you do not know me, that people may know, from the rising of the sun and from the west, that there is none besides me; I am the LORD, and there is no other. I form light and create darkness, I make well-being and create calamity, I am the LORD, who does all these things.” (Isa. 45:5-7).

When a pandemic strikes, it is a comfort to know that our Lord is in control. We know where to turn: “call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me.” (Psalm 50:15).

Admittedly it does not give us all the answers. There are still a number of “why” and “what now” questions that need to be answered, but we can proceed knowing that the “LORD is on my side; I will not fear.” (Psalm 118:6). What does God expect of us in the midst of calamity?
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• Trust: “Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD GOD is an everlasting rock.” (Isa. 26:4)
• Pray: “do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (Phil. 4:6-7)
• Read: “the precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart” (Psalm 19:8)
• Love: “You shall love your neighbour as yourself.” (Matt. 22:39)

The church has weathered worse storms and Christ has carried us through. Let us be an example to our children, our neighbours and the watching world of calm, prudence and compassion.