Syria and southern Turkey earthquake

From the Rubble

Last Monday, before dawn, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake caused widespread
destruction across northern Syria and southern Turkey. Thousands of lives
have been lost and thousands of buildings have collapsed.

Amid the destruction, there have been some marvelous rescues.

On Monday evening in Jinderis, Syria, a young girl was found alive, buried
in the wreckage of a building made of concrete. Video footage from the
White Helmets, a regional emergency service, shows a rescuer digging through
crushed concrete amid twisted rebar, uncovering the head of the little girl.
The little girl, whose name is Nour, looks up dazedly. The rescuer informs
her that her father is there. "Dad is here, don't be scared. ... Talk to
your dad, talk." The rescuer wipes dust from her eyes as she looks for her
father.

After additional, careful digging, Nour was rescued from the rubble and
reunited with her father. *

Another dramatic rescue effort was accomplished in the midst of an
earthquake. The lives at stake were yours and mine. The Rescuer was the
sinless Son of God. In order to rescue us from our condemning sins, Jesus
had to give His life for our sins by dying on a cross.

After suffering intense agony on the cross, Jesus cried out and "yielded up
His spirit" (Matthew 27:50). "Then, behold, the veil of the temple was torn
in two from top to bottom; and the earth quaked, and the rocks were split"
(Matthew 27:51). Perhaps the earth quaked because God's wrath was being
"poured out" on Jesus as He bore our sins on the cross (1 Peter 2:24). The
veil of the temple being torn from top to bottom indicates that Jesus was
opening up the way for man to be reconciled to God. The fact that it was
torn from the top points to the fact that it was God who made the
reconciliation possible (see 2 Corinthians 5:17-21).

Nour's timely rescue pictures our rescue by Christ: "You see, at just the
right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly"
(Romans 5:6 NIV).

And we are also encouraged to look to the Father. He is the one who has
made salvation and eternal life possible at tremendous cost: the precious
blood of His Son (1 Peter 1:18-19). He awaits with open arms those who will
accept His rescue through their trusting obedience.

God will save, welcome to His family, and give eternal life to those who
place their faith and trust in Jesus (Acts 16:30-31), turn from their sins
in repentance (Acts 17:30-31), confess Jesus before men (Romans 10:9-10),
and are baptized (immersed) into Christ for the forgiveness of sins (Acts
2:38). He will continue to cleanse from sin those who continue to walk in
the light of His Word (1 John 1:7-9).

In our sins, we are found in the rubble, dying. Yet through the sacrifice
that Jesus made for us, God is calling to us: "I am the Father. I love you
and want to save you. Take My hand. Accept My offer of salvation. I will
care for you for an eternity."

-- David A. Sargent

* Information gleaned from "A newborn was found alive in the rubble after
the earthquake in Syria" by the Associated Press, as shared in www.npr.org.