Baggage Can Kill

90 seconds: the difference between life and death; salvation and catastrophe. In the unlikely event of an emergency evacuation of an airplane, the crew’s goal is to get every single passenger out of danger and onto the ground before one and a half minutes is up.

The target is taken very seriously. Before a new aircraft will be certified to fly, the manufacturers must demonstrate that all passengers can be evacuated within that timeframe. Hundreds of lives depend on it.

Sometimes the passengers don’t make it easy. BA 2276 to Las Vegas made the headlines a few years ago when a fire broke out and the captain ordered an evacuation. The captain and crew did a stellar job and were praised for their performance, yet reports suggest it took a full five minutes to get everybody to safety. The photos that emerged suggest why. Even as smoke billowed, passengers could be seen carrying bulky bags and wheeling suitcases down the runway. Passengers ignored crew instructions to leave their bags behind and defiantly rummaged through the overhead lockers instead. Thankfully no lives were lost, but 27 people required hospital treatment for their injuries.

There’s a reason why safety demonstrations tell passengers to leave their luggage behind. Retrieving items eats up precious seconds and even worse, bulky baggage can block the exits and trap passengers inside. To prioritise luggage over lives is madness, yet experience shows that it is a regular occurrence. It seems that when the panic starts, the instinct to protect possessions kicks in.

Events like this illustrate one of the Bible’s heartfelt pleas: “Lay aside every weight…looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith” (Hebrews 12:1). As a minister, I have met many people who know that they are in eternal danger, know they need to find safety, yet aren’t quite ready to look to Jesus for the salvation they need. In many cases, they are like the passengers on board BA 2276: weighed down by things that aren’t unimportant, but can be deadly when they are prioritised over safety.

Rather than turning to Christ in faith, their minds fill with questions. “What will others think?” “What does this say about how my parents brought me up?” “What does this say about the church I attend?”

Others weigh up the potential implications of becoming a Christian: implications for their jobs, their relationships, the way they spend their time. Tragically, many people allow these questions and these potential implications to blind them to the true urgency of their situation.

Aviation authorities are clear: luggage can be deadly. Clinging on to baggage can be the difference between getting to safety and perishing on board. If the warning sounds, the only sensible solution is to lay aside every weight and get to the exit.

That’s just as true when it comes to everlasting life. Jesus Christ provides a way of escape from the judgement we deserve. Clinging on to baggage can be the difference between life and death.

Perhaps, as we start another new year, it’s an opportune time to ask, “What’s holding me back from turning to Jesus Christ?”