CNN reports that more than 1,300 persons died during this year’s Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, with most of the deaths attributed to extreme heat and circumstances exacerbated by persons making unofficial pilgrimages. Temperatures soared to 125 degrees Farenheit on Monday (6/17/2024).
Saudi Arabia requires every Muslim pilgrim to acquire one of the 1.8 million available licenses to legally access Mecca, which can cost several thousands of dollars. Unlicensed pilgrims typically don’t travel in organized tour buses with air conditioning, with easy access to water and food.
The CNN report may be read in full HERE.
My brothers and sisters, I am so very thankful for Jesus Christ! He is the one and only Savior! He went willingly to the cross of Calvary, suffered, bled and died as the once-and-for-all sacrifice (propitiation) for the sins of mankind (see Hebrews 10:10-12 and 1 John 4:9-10). He was resurrected, overcame death and the grave (see Revelation 1:17-18), and sits at the right hand of the Father!
When we believe upon the name of Jesus (the greatest and only name by which man can be saved) and confess Him as our Lord and Savior, then we have the absolute assurance of salvation and eternal life with Father God in heaven (see Acts 4:12, Romans 10:9-10 and Romans 10:13). We become the children of God (see John 1:12). And, according to the bible, the Father loves you and me just as He loves Jesus (see John 17:20-23)!
Let’s pray for those who have chosen to serve a ‘god’ who requires life-threatening pilgrimages which bring no assurance of salvation and eternal life. The one true God (the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob), through His Son, Jesus Christ (the Anointed One), brings the only means for man to be redeemed from his sin. This is a gift from God, as works, such as required pilgrimages, are not needed in order to be saved, but it is faith in Christ only which brings salvation – then our good works, as evidence of our salvation, flow from us in abundance, strength and joy, because of our thankfulness for the goodness of God (see Ephesians 2:8-10)!
Let’s never forget that we were ALL made in the image and likeness of God and that it is the Lord’s desire for ALL to come unto salvation (see 1 Timothy 2:4-6)!
Here are the above-referenced scriptures:
Hebrews 10:10-12 (NLT)
“For God’s will was for us to be made holy by the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ, once for all time. Under the old covenant, the priest stands and ministers before the altar day after day, offering the same sacrifices again and again, which can never take away sins. But our High Priest offered [H]imself to God as a single sacrifice for sins, good for all time. Then [H]e sat down in the place of honor at God’s right hand.”
1 John 4:9-10 (NKJV)
“In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins [emphasis mine].”
Revelation 1:17-18 (NKJV)
“And when I [John] saw Him [Jesus], I fell at His feet as dead. But He laid His right hand on me, saying to me, ‘[d]o not be afraid; I am the First and the Last. I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen. And I have the keys of Hades and of Death.’”
Acts 4:12 (Amplified Bible)
“And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among people by which we must be saved [for God has provided the world no alternative for salvation].”
Romans 10:9-10 (NKJV)
“…if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”
Romans 10:13 (NKJV)
“For ‘whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved [emphasis mine].’”
John 1:12 (NKJV)
“But as many as received Him [Jesus], to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name…”.
John 17:20-23 (NKJV)
Jesus Prays to the Father – The Father Loves Us Just Like He Loves Jesus
“I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me. And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one: I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me [emphasis mine].”
Ephesians 2:8-10 (NKJV)
“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”
1 Timothy 2:4-6 (NKJV)
God Desires All To Be Saved
“[God our Savior] desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a ransom for all…”.