An air force pilot told Max Lucado about the time he forgot to put on his own seat belt.

He went through all the other checklists, but he forgot to do up his belt. His jet was designed in such a way that after it took off he couldn’t buckle up after the fact.

So if something went wrong mid-flight and he had to hit the eject button, the parachute would be attached to his seat—but not to him! He would have turned into a human projectile.

Lucado offers this comment: “Can you imagine flying a jet without a parachute? Many do.”

This story is meant to bring into focus the distinct role of Jesus as Saviour. He offers us something life-preserving and life-giving without which we don’t stand a chance.

Many of us mentally acknowledge this. But do we really live like its true?

-Do we just say Jesus is our Saviour for what he offers us in the next life, or also for this one?
-Do we say it because it’s a doctrinally correct statement, or also because we truly need his strength?
-Do we say it because we agree with his loving purpose, or also because we need his loving purpose for our lives?

When I say that Jesus is my Saviour, I’m saying that yes, without him I’m hell-bound. But I’m also saying that his plan for my life is better than my plan for my life; that his strength is better than my strength; that his loving purpose for my life is greater than anything I can cobble together on my own.

1 John 4:14-16 says, “And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.”

Rely.

Since we are belted securely in the plane of life, we can live each new day with a peace, passion and purpose that we could never muster on our own, flying in the light of the Son.

By Matthew Ruttan

—Don’t be lured: Helping our kids stay safe from human traffickers. That’s my latest blog and you can read it here.

—What we know about the end of the world. That’s my latest blog; it’s a summary to my most recent teaching series called Armageddon. Click here to read. Enjoy!

–Bible quotes are from the NIV.