We've Never Been This Way Before: Trusting God in Unprecedented Times
By R.T. Kendall
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About this ebook
What if I told you the “new normal” is that nothing will be normal again?
As recent events have unfolded, not only America but the entire world has been brought to the precipice of the most challenging moments of our lifetimes. But while these times seem unprecedented and unchartered to us, they are not to God. Much like He said to Joshua and the children of Israel standing on the edge of the Promised Land, God now says to us: “You have never been this way before” (Josh.3:4). God’s word is tender, challenging, and scary. God knows where we’ve been and where we are going. As we cope with extraordinary new outbreaks of disease, racism, and cultural upheaval, we have been forced to recognize that we are not prepared for this. Nobody is.
Yet there is hope. In this timely message, trusted theologian R. T. Kendall helps you navigate the way forward by exploring how God led His people in the past. Along the way, he answers questions such as:
- Where is God in all this?
- What do Christians have to offer the rest of the world during these times?
- Did the devil cause these things? Did God cause them?
- If God allowed these things to happen, then why?
This book will help you understand what God is saying to us during this time of uncertainty and change.
R.T. Kendall
R. T. Kendall was the pastor of Westminster Chapel in London, England, for twenty-five years. He was educated at Trevecca Nazarene University (AB), Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (MDiv) and Oxford University (DPhil) and has written a number of books, including Total Forgiveness, Holy Fire, and We've Never Been This Way Before.
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We've Never Been This Way Before - R.T. Kendall
CHURCHES
PREFACE
RECENTLY CHARISMA HOUSE asked me if there was anything on my heart that related to the coronavirus crisis that is all over the world. Yes,
I replied, as a matter of fact, there is.
What has been on my heart is unfolded in this book. But I had not thought of writing such a book until they asked me. Of all the books I have written, two stand out when it comes to thoughts flowing quickly: Holy Fire, which my publisher asked that I write, and this one—We’ve Never Been This Way Before.
The divine instructions to the children of Israel as they were preparing to enter Canaan, You have never been this way before
(Josh. 3:4, NIV) gripped me over twenty years ago when I preached through the Book of Joshua at Westminster Chapel. Those words came to my mind during the tumultuous times of the first half of 2020 and came to my mind immediately when my editor contacted me. This book has been written in the shortest period of time of any of my books and yet flowed with the most ease of any I have written.
That does not mean you have to take every word seriously! I’m sure it could be improved on if we had more time!
I want to express thanks to Dan Cathy, CEO of Chickfil-A. Though I have not met him, he has kindly permitted me to quote him as I do in chapter 5. Although I did not need to ask him for legal reasons since what he said is in the public domain, I wanted to make sure he still stood by what he said—that America needs to repent over its racism.
It is my conviction that America is under judgment—for at least four reasons: (1) its racism, (2) legalizing abortion, (3) approving of same-sex marriage, and (4) theological liberalism in many churches. But I am hopeful—or I would not have written this book.
My thanks to my editor, Debbie Marrie, for inviting me to write this book and share my views concerning the current crises in America. A huge thank-you to Joy Strang for taking the time to read my manuscript and to her husband, Stephen, the owner of Charisma, for giving me a broader ministry ever since we retired from Westminster Chapel in 2002. And thanks to my wife, Louise, my best critic, who has been gifted with wisdom as she has read all that follows.
This book is being dedicated to our beloved friends Paul and Sandy Berube of the Gate City Church in Nashua, New Hampshire.
—R. T. KENDALL
HENDERSONVILLE, TENNESSEE
JULY 2020
INTRODUCTION
You have never been this way before.
—JOSHUA 3:4, NIV
WE ARE IN two major crises at the moment. Both are unprecedented. It might be said that we have been given a double whammy in the year 2020: (1) the coronavirus crisis—which is a natural phenomenon, and (2) sudden civil unrest that has its origin in racial prejudice. It is impossible to say now which of these may be more difficult for our nation.
The Lord not only knows perfectly where we have been but equally knows where we are going. He realizes when we are facing the unprecedented. The fact that He graciously gave this word to the children of Israel—You have never been this way before
—reveals how loving and compassionate the God of the Bible is. I cannot imagine a more comforting or reassuring word than this word to the children of Israel. God said this to them as they prepared to lead the children of Israel into the Promised Land—the land of Canaan.
First of all, as I write this, we are still in what is probably the most significant natural crisis in the history of the whole world. It is called the coronavirus crisis because the outbreak of this virus has led to many people contracting the disease known as COVID-19. CO stands for corona.
VI stands for virus. D stands for disease. 2019 refers to the year it first emerged, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). It is scary. Troubling. Even terrifying. We are all vulnerable. Not only has our way of life been at stake; our very lives are at stake. Our health is at stake. Our finances are at stake. The safety of our loved ones is at stake. What we have been familiar with all our lives will almost certainly never be quite the same again. The new normal is that nothing will be normal as we have known it. Virtually every person in the world is in some way touched by