My wife likes watching airplane disaster shows. We have flown many times because of my work and for pleasure. I’m not sure what sparked her interest, because she wants to fly again in the future. With tales of crashes caused by terrorists, human error or mechanical failure, you might think flying isn’t safe. Actually, it is much safer than traveling by car.
Their great safety record makes it even more dramatic when crashes do happen. Nobody expects to die when they board a plane. Many disasters happen with little or no warning, with a catastrophic failure or bad weather destroys the plane in midair and everyone dies. In other cases the pilots realized they had a problem and struggled to save the plane and people right up until the end. The passengers may not be aware of the problem until the plane begins to fall or they are told to prepare for a crash landing. Their final moments are spent wondering if, or knowing, they are going to perish. Some planes crash during takeoff or landing.
With every flight disaster authorities try to determine why it happened. A design flaw, maintenance wasn’t performed when it should have been, or a known problem wasn’t fixed and caused the aircraft to fail. Crew errors can lead to catastrophe if procedures aren’t followed. Their failure may have led to death and destruction! In most cases someone was at fault and finding out who and why, may prevent another crash.
Plane crashes remind me of this life we are living. Most people are passing along through this life, with little thought of where they might end up. They are oblivious to the danger they are in. They’ve heard stories of people dying, but they aren’t likely to die today. They believe they are in control and are unwilling to surrender that to anyone! They want to enjoy a long and happy life, with a peaceful ending someday. They may be moments from eternity, but they refuse to make a course correction. They may suddenly lose their life or have to endure a lengthy struggle that ends in death. Even if they live a little longer, their life will eventually come to an end “and great was the fall” (Mat 7:27 KJV).
So why bring up this gloomy subject? Why not let them enjoy their lives right up to the end? Because the end of this life doesn’t have to be a disaster! If they know JESUS as their LORD and Savior, “to live is Christ, and to die is gain (Phil 1:21KJV)! There you go with that religious stuff again! This isn’t about religion, (man’s attempt to get to GOD) but a personal relationship with GOD himself. That’s GOD’s plan for your life as seen in John 3:16, “God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” and it works!
What about all those who don’t believe like you do, are they all going to go to Hell? That answer is also found in John 3:16. It infers that whosoever believeth not will perish and have everlasting death. JESUS died on the cross to save us from our sins and accepting Him as our Savior is the only way we can meet GOD’s standard of perfection. That is why JESUS said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me” (John 14:6 KJV).
Wayne Lance