During the Second World War... - All The Good Seed Daily Devotionals for 2026

There is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself a ransom for all.
1 Timothy 2:5.6

During the Second World War an American B-17 bomber, a "Flying fortress", caught fire owing to an explosion on board. The crew were able to parachute to safety; only the pilot was unable to leave the burning aircraft, as his parachute was damaged by the explosion. So he had to attempt an emergency landing on the English coast.

The plane's instruments were also damaged, and the bombs on board could be detonated at any moment. However, in the darkness that night the pilot actually succeeded in landing in a field and escaping in time unharmed, even though the area was heavily mined. Perhaps you are thinking: "What incredible luck!" Then listen to what he himself told reporters: "The Man up there helped me to land. I spoke to Him a lot, and He answered me."

Strange phraseology! Yet it expresses the pilot's firm conviction that he owed his rescue to God's intervention. His mention of the "Man up there" was surely not meant to reduce God to the level of mortal man.

Incidentally, the thought of a Man to whom all power is given in heaven and earth corresponds to the teaching of the New Testament (cf. Matthew 28:18). Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, came from heaven to earth. He became a Man in order to die for us. And after His resurrection He returned to heaven as a Man. With Him, the Man in heaven, all believers are inseparably connected. Jesus' resurrection and ascension guarantee that they, too, will one day be raised to be with Christ in glory.

Today's reading: Exodus 26:15-30 · Luke 10:17-29