Over the last few days we have seen an unprecedented cyber-attack which has hit more than 200,000 victims worldwide across 150 different countries. In the UK, the National Health Service was hit hard with 48 health trusts sufficiently compromised that they had to turn patients away, close down their IT systems and resort to ‘pen and paper’. The culprit was the WannaCry malware virus (or worm) which had the innate ability to encrypt people’s files and lock them out of their computers. People may not have literally felt like crying but it was extremely annoying, disruptive and potentially had the capacity to put lives at risk. Although the majority of PCs were safe, older systems without the appropriate software patches and up-to-date antivirus solutions left their users with the dilemma of either having to rebuild their systems from backups or possibly pay ‘the ransom’ demanded by compromised machines. Despite the scale of the attack, the evidence suggests that very few people actually paid the ransom (usually $300 (£230 per machine) in a virtual currency known as Bitcoin). This was probably because; firstly, purchasing Bitcoin is a very difficult process and secondly, ‘a lucky break’ by a software engineer found a way to stop the ransomware, and ‘kill the virus’ containing the spread of its contagion. Well done that man!
This whole episode demonstrated just how ‘interconnected’ we are in modern society and how dependant we are upon the good services of others. When one person or area is attacked, the implications for the wider community can be vast (rather like an earthquake, or the ripples generated by a stone dropped into a pond). Our ability to function is severely impeded, our relationships are broken, sometimes resulting in a lack of confidence, hope and trust. Sometimes, people prefer to either ignore the problem and hope it will go away or pay any cost to simply get on with their lives again.
It’s not difficult for the Christian to see immediate parallels with the theological concept of ‘sin’ as described in the Bible. Sin is that innate part of the human psyche which seeks to put itself first before anything else and often at the expense of others. It’s the selfish ‘I’ which lurks deep within and doesn’t usually care if something is right or wrong as long as it satisfies the self. Sin is often selfish, greedy and manipulative and is usually the very opposite of genuine, generous giving and sacrificial love. Like a virus, sin has the capacity to spread out and ‘take down systems’ and its consequences can be disastrous; it’s often the root cause of a lot of anger, hurt and mistrust. It spoils our relationships with one another, our communities and even with God himself. The difficulty is that without genuine regret, remorse and repentance it’s usually difficult to find a way to move on, to be positive or find forgiveness. Sin enslaves the individual and makes them less than they were ideally meant to be. They are ‘bound’ by it and effectively held to ransom!
This is why the Christian story is such ‘good news’ and so wonderfully positive, because despite our sin, we are told that God still loves us, and literally steps into this sinful world of ours in the person of Jesus, and through his death upon the cross, Christ absorbs within his own body the terrible pain and consequences of all our sin. He bears the hurt that our sin has caused, freely, lovingly and generously so that we can be spared its consequences and find forgiveness. The Bible says that by his death upon the cross Jesus paid a ‘ransom’ for our sins setting us free when we put our faith and trust in him. This is wonderful news and doesn’t simply change who we are before God, but our hearts and our perspective. We are set free and given a brand new, fresh start! So how do we pay the ransom? We can’t and we don’t have to – because it’s already been paid. All we need to do is embrace it and say thank you.
“The Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” Matthew 20.28
Stephen Thorp 