Tuesday, November 27, 2012
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Now, we had not had a major airplane crash in New York City for a long time. So, we were all pretty riveted at that particular time by the scene of the crash of Avianca Flight 52 on Long Island near JFK Airport. More people survived the crash than died in it, thankfully, but it was still a terrible tragedy. There was no fire, because they were apparently out of fuel, and that was a major reason for the crash.
We watched, especially in the New York area, the dramatic rescues of survivors; some of them live on television. Of course, because Avianca was the national airline of Colombia, many of the passengers were from Colombia and it was mentioned that en route to the U.S. the plane had landed at a city in Colombia that is known to be the center of drug distribution there.
Now, one survivor was really glad that he had survived and he had been rescued, but actually the bad news was not over for him when he was rescued. He was complaining of stomach pains. The hospital x-rayed him and they found dark spots in his intestines. Yeah, you probably guessed it. This injured passenger, it turned out, was smuggling cocaine in plastic bags inside his body. Now, who could have ever predicted when he put that cocaine inside of his body to smuggle it into the U.S. that there would be inclement weather all along the East Coast, they would be in a holding pattern over two hours in the air, there would be a missed attempt at trying to land, the plane would run out of fuel, he would survive a crash, and x-rays would expose his crime? Man, it looked like there was no chance of his getting caught! Actually there's no such thing.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The X-Ray Leaves No Secrets."
Well, our word for today from the Word of God comes from the book of Numbers 32:23. Some of God's chosen people, the Jews, have a choice here between a risky obedience and an apparently safe disobedience. I say apparently safe!
Now, the issue they were dealing with isn't so important today as the advice that Moses gives. He says, "If you fail to do this, you will be sinning against the Lord, and you may be sure that your sin will find you out."
I'll bet that's a verse one particular Colombian drug smuggler would agree with, "Be sure your sin will find you out." You know, it's important that you make all of your moral choices realistically. What do I mean? Well, you cannot, and you will not ultimately, get away with sin - ever. If God knows about it, you're already caught! Oh, and He does all the time. That Colombian drug smuggler probably couldn't imagine a way he would be found out. The drugs were totally concealed in his body, but he was found out. You and I will be, too.
Oh, you may be able to cover your sin at work, maybe you can conceal it from your mate, and you might be able to fool every Christian leader you know. Maybe you've found a place where you're sure no one will discover what you're doing. Hear God, "You can be sure your sin will find you out."
Oh, the Devil will wait until disclosure will do the most harm; hurt the most people. He's letting you get away with it right now. And then one day he'll yank that chain, and he'll wait until it will do the most harm and the most damage. God may wait until the seed of sin reaches harvest stage, but be assured the bill will come for you. So, make no choices thinking that you can get away with sin. God and the Devil are both a lot smarter than you are.
Don't let the delay fool you. God x-rays every passenger, every trip, and His x-ray leaves no secrets.