As news of another Coronavirus outbreak picks up again, we should find comfort in God’s perfect knowledge. Before the creation of the world, God knew every detail of everything that has ever and will ever happen. God is not surprised. 

God’s perfect eternal knowledge of everything was described by our Lord in Matthew 10:29 when he said, “are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care.” God is fully aware of everything going on in the life of sparrows, he knows what is going on in our lives as well. That is why Jesus said, “So do not be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows” (Matt 10:31). 

We should find comfort, then, for three reasons: 1) God has always known what will happen in our futures; 2) God cares about what will happen to us; and 3) God has acted. It is the third point of comfort that should cause us to rejoice. God has always known, God cares, and God has acted. God acted on suffering when he entered into suffering. Our Lord, in his incarnation, was a true human (Heb 2:17). He experienced growth (Lk 2:52), pain (Jn 11), and death (Matt 27). God acted on the problem of suffering by entering the problem and destroying the problem from the inside. 

Peter said, “In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into and inheritance that can never perish spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time” (1 Pet 1:3-4).