At work this week we have undertaken what I think is the hardest and most time-consuming job that we do. We have an antenna interface inspection. During this inspection, we have to take every antenna and camera off of the plane. This requires scraping sealant, which goes on like a goo, but hardens into rubber. Then we have to find the screws that have been covered by sealant, and then finally try to pry the antenna off of the plane….separating the mesh, extremely sticky gasket from between the antenna and the aircraft skin. The purpose of the inspection is to look for corrosion.
Today I passed that job off and removed a few electronic boxes and a shelf that had been contaminated with battery acid from a leaking battery. Once again, all this work was done because of the possibility of corrosion.
Corrosion may be one of the biggest dangers in aircraft. Corrosion can eat through the skin, if untreated, causing millions of dollars in repair costs. Corrosion can come in many forms…..from moisture, to sea salt, to any other type of debris that can become trapped in nooks and crannies…..eventually resulting in the deterioration of an aircrafts surface.
So what does this have to do with anything? I’ve been recently listening to my Pastor’s series on Romans….and like corrosion, sin can start small…maybe one white lie, or one bit of envy towards a successful coworker…..but eventually eat completely through you….and break down your spirit and soul until nothing is left.
Paul warned of the dangers of sin….and turning away from God. “And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper, being filled with unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, evil; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice; They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, without understanding, untrustworthy, unloving, unmerciful; and although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things, are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them (Romans 1:28-32.)”
That’s a pretty scary and encompassing list if you ask me. And by no means am I here to throw the first stone…..because I know I have issues with some of these things. And as my Pastor says, even if you think you are a “pretty good” person, we were all born with this sin…..with the ability to fall prey to any one of these things.
Here is the good news though……if you are a born again Christian, when Jesus died on the cross all of you sin was forgiven……and not just the sin you have already committed, but the sins you will commit in the future. That however doesn’t give us a free pass to continue on in our sin….but through Christ we should strive to do better, knowing that sometimes we make mistakes, but are truly trying to be different from we were before.
And if you aren’t born again….the even better news is that it isn’t too late. And Jesus is always there….waiting for you….reaching out his hand. Jesus said, “You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me (John 15:3-4.)”
We all have our corrosion. We all have things that eat away at us. We all have triggers that set us off….sending us to bad places. But like airplanes…..it can be treated before it’s too late. Jesus can wash the corrosion away…..Jesus can make you clean.
So I pray for all of us….I pray that we can lay our sins down at the feet of Jesus. That we can trust him to take care of us, to wash away our sin…..to make us clean.
Tetelestai 