Mission Impossible

John 3:36: Mission Impossible:

The last two months 33 miners have been entombed in the San Jose mine 635 metres (2000 feet) below the desert , in Chile, they have been entombed for two months/69 days , for the first 17 days the miners were believed to be dead, but when reached were extraordinary alive. These miners have been brought back from the dead!

Three shafts ABC were being drilled the estimated time scale was months (Into December) but it was shaft B which reached the miners earlier than expected , just two months, this shaft was a 24 inch wide . A rescue capsule (designed by Chilean navy) goes down a narrow shaft, to bring the men back to the surface, one by one these men have been rescued, through the shaft and in this one capsule called the Fenix .

This is a wonderful story of rescue ( brought up to the surface), reconciliation ( families) & redemption 9 being saved by others) of coming out of darkness deep in the earth to coming up onto the surface and into the light and being rescued , redeemed & reconciled with loved ones. One miner said, “My underground bunker was hell” Also one said “I have been near God, & I have been near the devil, they had a fight and God as won!” Another said, “I’ve been with the devil but I grabbed God’s hand & I knew he would bring me up!”

Friends this incident shines alight on the truth of God’s word for us this week; Jhn 3:36: whoever believes in the Son receives eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains upon Him.

All of humanity, we personally have been or are still entombed with our own depravity, close to death, close to hell close to the devil, some of us may still be, deep underground as it were, in darkness, separated from God, without hope, living a life with God’s abiding wrath still upon us, many of whom are oblivious to the seriousness others beginning to awaken to these spiritual truths. Many of us can testify to the amazing truth of being spiritually rescued.

Good News God has a established a rescue plan a mission which humanly is impossible . He sends His Son Jesus back down into this dark world, (God contracted to a span incomprehensible made man) in order to rescue us to redeem & reconcile us back to God. This way has been made through the cross (The only way – the shaft ) The capsule is Jesus himself, ( the only person who can save – atoning sacrifice). He paid the price for our sins & satisfied God Holy requirements God Justice & Love meet upon the cross.

I want us to briefly look at this text of God’s word here & see what we can see about this mission impossible ; Firstly on our part there are two human responses to the Son.

1. Two human responses to the Sons mission John 3:36

A) Belief in the Son ( Personally trusting ) Those miners were in darkness for two months deep in the bowels of the earth, they couldn’t save themselves, they were all personally trusting in others to rescue them and so when the rescue capsule arrived, this for them was a no brainer, were they too stay below the earth or were they to respond one by one by entering into the capsule? Of course one by one they responded by entering into the capsule lifting them up out of the pit onto the earth’s surface. They all responded positively, they believed that the capsule was able to save them, they trusted that the capsule would take them the 700 metres above the surface.

Friends spiritual application here is that capsule is Jesus and each one of us whether we believe it or not outside of Jesus Christ are in the pit, look what John says we will not see life (now & then), & the wrath of God abides upon us, (now & then),. Jesus is there waiting to save us, he doesn’t condemn us as John says we stand condemned already (3:17-18 Our condition is serious but Jesus has come to rectify it!). Jesus rescues us from this predicament we find ourselves in through his atoning death & resurrection.

The positive human response to Jesus Christ is turn form our sin , through repentance & believing in Jesus Christ ( personally trusting Him) to save us. It more than a mere knowledge of Jesus , after all you can have encoclepedia of knowledge about him but it has no bearing upon your life. You can also have a religious belief in him without actually knowing Him a mere accent . To believe here infers the idea of personally trusting oneself in a person. Whoever believes in His Son.