From darkness to light

Worldwide media attention has been focussed over recent hours on the San Jose mine in Chile. 33 miners had been trapped some 2000 feet below ground since early August. Over the long days and weeks since a major rockfall prevented their return to the surface, anxious families and friends have been hoping and praying that rescue attempts would ultimately prove successful.

From the early hours of this morning, dramatic pictures have been beamed around the world as, one by one, the miners were, at long last, winched to safety in a metal capsule measuring just 24 inches in diameter. Church bells throughout the country were rung as the first miner reached the surface; great rejoicing and celebration has been taking place. The rescue procedure, however, is slow, and at the time of writing there are still some miners who have not yet been brought to the surface. Their loved ones wait in hope and expectation. Isn't it great to have a good news story such as this as an antidote to our usual news menu?

I have been thinking how closely this story parallels the heart of the Christian gospel. The theme of the journey "from darkness to light" runs throughout Scripture. Just as the once trapped miners have been given what could be described as a new beginning, so that is just what we are offered by Jesus. St Paul writes of how through faith in Jesus Christ we become, as it were “a new creation”, and Jesus himself speaks of the need to be “born again”. It is perhaps best summed up in the first verse and chorus of a hymn written by Charles H Gabriel:

In loving kindness Jesus came,
My soul in mercy to reclaim,
And from the depths of sin and shame
Through grace He lifted me.

Refrain
From sinking sand, He lifted me,
With tender hand, He lifted me,
From shades of night to planes of light,
O praise His name, He lifted me!

Just as the Chilean miners had the choice of whether or not to step into the capsule, so each one of us us given the choice whether or not to accept the offer of new life in Christ. The right choice is obvious, isn't it?

UPDATE: since publishing this blog yesterday, I have received an e-mail quoting the Chilean President's chaplain, Revd Alfredo Cooper. He says that it is clear that faith has been a big part of this whole drama, with many miners "finding God": "They're all wanting to testify to the Lord Jesus Christ. All 33 of them are saying that they found God in the mine. Five or six were already Christians and held services down in the mine. Many went down with no faith at all but they all say this: 'We were not 33 we were 34 because Jesus Christ was with us down there.'"

Graduation time

I recently had the privilege of attending my nephew Michael's graduation ceremony at the City Hall in Hull. It is many years since I was last in the Hull City Hall. I have a feeling that the last time I was there was probably when I attended a Cliff Richard concert for Tear Fund in the late 70's!! Michael, along with 100s of others, was graduating from Hull University. Because his parents are in New Zealand, my sister Mary and I had the privilege of being surrogate parents for the occasion. It was certainly an impressive setting, and the ceremony itself was well organised and presented.

A graduation ceremony is a momentous occasion for a student. It is the culmination of several years of work. The graduation certificate which each student receives is proof that they have accomplished their goal and achieved the level of competence required of them by the University. For examinations, there is generally a pass mark which is set. If a student achieves the mark, they have passed; if not, they have failed.

It seems to me that many people have that kind of picture in their minds when they think of their relationship with God. There is appears to be a general feeling that life is a bit like an exam: if a person achieves a sufficient standard of behaviour, then God will accept them and allow them into heaven. Or, to put it another way, if our good deeds outweigh our bad deeds we should be ok. There is, however, a big problem with this assumption, namely that the Bible tells us that none of us will achieve the grade, the pass mark. Why? Because the pass mark is 100%, and none of us, despite our best efforts, live perfect lives. If the truth be known, we fall far short of that standard. As St Paul writes, "Everyone has sinned and fallen short of God's glorious standard." (Romans 3.23)

So is there no hope for us? Do we have no chance of being truly accepted and loved by God, or being allowed to share the blessings of heaven? The good news is that although we can't earn or deserve God's love or forgiveness, in Jesus Christ it is freely offered to us. Paul goes on to explain, "The free gift of God's grace makes us right with him. Christ Jesus paid the price to set us free." (Romans 3.24). Sin separates us from God, it makes us fall short of God's standard (a bit like wrong answers on an exam paper). But by dying on a cross for us, Jesus has paid the price for our sin (like crossing out the wrong answers and writing the correct ones in instead!)

Perhaps the exam analogy has its limitations, like most analogies. But the wonderful truth is that we don't have to try and earn God's love, we simply have to put our trust in what Jesus has done for us. Through Christ we can enter into a brand new life, set free from the burden of sin and guilt. Amazing!