• A Defensive Programming Problem

  Contributed by Sermon Central on May 9, 2012 (message contributor)

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  Scripture:  Hebrews 9:27-28

  Tags:  Judgment

A DEFENSIVE PROGRAMMING PROBLEM

In the 1982 war in the Falkland Islands between England and Argentina, the Royal Navy’s 3,500-ton destroyer HMS Sheffield was sunk by a single missile fired from an Argentine fighter jet. This caused some people to wonder if modern surface warships were obsolete. But a later check revealed that the Sheffield’s defenses did pick up the incoming missile. Although the ship’s computer correctly identified the missile as an "Exocet," it was programmed to treat Exocets as "friendly fire." HMS Sheffield was sunk by a missile it saw coming and could have evaded.

The Scriptures warn us that the judgment of God is coming and can be avoided. God in his mercy gives us the information we need to avoid hell. In fact, God does more than give us information, he gave us his Son who lay down his life so we can avoid the missile heading our way.

(From a sermon by Mark Armstrong, Are We Serious About Hell? 9/1/2011)