RESCUED!

Church family,

The Thai soccer team and coach have all been rescued! This news is now old news perhaps, but I am sure that for those trapped in the cave and for their families, this experience will not be soon forgotten. Gratitude will be expressed for a while for those who aided in the rescue. As the world watched over the past couple of weeks, we were greatly concerned about the outcome. Many were perhaps moved to emotion in a variety of ways, waiting for an outcome, hopeful for a successful rescue. 

As I have followed the story, one person has caught my attention. The doctor they called “Harry”. What was interesting was Harry “abandoned his holiday in Thailand and volunteered to help.” You see Harry was more than a doctor. He was an expert diver as well. Harry left his personal comfort, volunteered to be “part of the solution”, and ended up staying with the trapped boys and coach for 3 days.

Reflecting on this, I couldn’t help but think about what was risked for the sake of others. Perhaps you have made similar comparisons as you have reflected on this event. We will never really know if the boys would have been rescued apart from his help, but his help was said to make a real difference.

The Bible tells us that man is lost; dead in his sin. Hopeless apart from a rescue by someone fully capable of saving. Jesus left His home of perfection in heaven willingly to come and rescue man that was lost without hope. He came and lived among us, showed us the glory of His Father and out of love, gave His life to rescue us from our hopeless situation. I don’t know about you, but I am eternally thankful for the grace and love that was provided for my rescue.

As His children, we are ambassadors with the message of the gospel – the message of ‘rescue’. As our website says, “this gospel will change your life!” This gospel or ‘good news’ that is for man, can change a person’s life from eternally lost and hopeless, to rescued, purposeful, and fulfilled!

Here’s the question:  to what extent will we go to be a part of the rescue of someone else?

2 Corinthians 5:17-21 (NLT) This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ. And God has given us this task of reconciling people to him. For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!” For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ.

Walking with you,

Pastor Brian