Don't worry. I'm not going to argue that sin was created in a lab in China.
FIRST: when someone tests positive for COVID, they usually ask, "Where did I get this?" or "Who gave this to me?" Likewise, when someone realizes they have a weakness—maybe ignoring mundane jobs or trouble trusting people or an anger problem or being afraid of making decisions—, they sometimes ask, "How did I come to be like this?" or "Did I inherit this from my parents?"
The answer to these questions is interesting, and in regards to COVID, the answer might help us warn others of exposure, but these questions can also blind us to the more important question: what will we now do with this sin/COVID?
When Jesus' disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" in John 9:2, Jesus replied that the man had been born blind so that God's power might be displayed in him. The most important question is not how did I get this way or who is to blame, but how will God's power be displayed in my weakness?
SECOND: when someone contracts COVID, they often feel isolated, judged &/or ashamed. Some people treat COVID-positive patients like they have leprosy or are unclean. By the way, I didn't feel like this at all while I had COVID. I felt surrounded by love and compassion by my friends and church family. Likewise, when word gets out that someone is dealing with a particularly unpopular sin—divorce, substance abuse, or homosexuality—that person often feels isolated, judged &/or ashamed. Their friends or family can sometimes treat them as if they were diseased or unlucky or to be pitied.
Whether people treat us with compassion or not is not our responsibility, although everyone would benefit from remembering that in comparison to God's health and righteousness, we all are terribly sick. But in regards to feeling ashamed or isolated or judged, it's not the feelings themselves that are the trouble, but what we do with the feelings. We can stuff them or ignore them or tell them to God. I obviously favor the last option. It's the only one that can lead us to realizing people will be people, and only God can be God.
THIRD: some people view COVID as simply a part of life. They believe that because we live in a fallen world, sicknesses are normal. They use this fact to argue that because we cannot rid the world of viruses, there's no sense in trying to eradicate them or make our lives revolve around them. Likewise, some people view their faults as simply part of who they are. They believe that because they live in a fallen world and it's impossible to be perfect, there's no point in greatly altering their lives in order to address their character flaws.
The greatest trouble with giving up on the world and our own perfection is that it flies in the face of God's command for us to be rulers of this earth and Jesus' command for us to be perfect. Did God and Jesus not really mean it? Has he let us off the hook because we simply can't?
It is true that we can't fix this world or be perfect. But regardless, God does not let us off the hook. He has simply changed the key players. God himself has decided to do it for us through Christ. And now that the pressure of our own perfection and putting the earth in order is no longer upon our shoulders, we can freely join what God is doing as he perfects us and teaches us how to rule with Christ. That is still what God wants accomplished.
LASTLY: some people believe that if they follow all the rules, go around masked, and sanitize everything, they will not get COVID. Rule-following becomes their safety net and their righteousness, Likewise, some people believe that if they follow all the rules and stay away from all things taboo, they will be good people deserving a good life.
The trouble with this is that neither COVID nor sin can be seen with the naked eye, and so no one can be absolutely certain that they've done enough. Also, the only way to maintain the illusion of moral or physical cleanliness is to uphold social walls between oneself and everyone else who is potentially contaminated with germs or sin. The degree of assurance actually depends on the strictness of wall maintenance. Hence, these people find it difficult to associate with those who didn't keep all the COVID rules. Likewise, the morally "righteous" people will have a difficult time being with those who aren't doing things right. Think the pharisees.
These kinds of people place themselves on a platform of purity above others, which makes having friends &/or a savior difficult. Friends, because we can never really be friends with people that we think are below us. And a savior, because how can a savior rescue someone who doesn't think they need help?
More on COVID: What I Learned From COVID, An Erupting Volcano, Why Quarantine? More Than A Virus, My Hope is Found on Nothing Less, Breathing, Questions Prompted by COVID, To Vaccinate of Not
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