Nine years after “The Miracle on the Hudson,” a tragedy took place on the Hudson as five lives were lost in a helicopter crash. The New York helicopter crash, which killed everyone on board except the pilot, was caused by a series of safety failures. The ill-fated flight had been chartered for a private photo shoot by the five passengers.
The fuel shut off valve was intended to be a safety feature but was accidentally engaged during the flight, forcing the helicopter into an emergency landing. The floatation devices were intended to keep the helicopter from sinking but inflated improperly, causing the craft to flip on its side and quickly take on water. The harnesses were promoted in advertising to reassure those who might feel skittish about leaning out of an open door helicopter flight but instead served to trap the five passengers, sealing their tragic fate.
Three separate safety features actually worked together to do exactly the opposite of what they were supposed to do — save lives. They promised security but delivered disaster. [1]
Every year there are those who attend Easter service believing that they are spiritually secure. After all, they call themselves Christians. They were born in a Christian family. They attend church services during the important holidays. They try to be a good person. They give to charity. They treat others the way they hope to be treated. As they look at all the things they do, they feel they’re going to land safe and sound at their eternal destination.
What they don’t know is that the very things they’re counting on to securely deliver them will end up working toward their demise. That’s because their confidence in church membership, church attendance, and their own good deeds can’t replace the only real source of salvation — the finished work of Jesus.
For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith — and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God — not by works, so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9).
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[1] “NTSB Releases Preliminary Report On Deadly East River Helicopter Crash,” CBS, March 26, 2018, < http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2018/03/26/ntsb-east-river-helicopter-crash-report/ >.