The death of the NASCAR racing legend Dale Earhardt at the 2001 Daytona 500 was tragic indeed. On the final lap of the race, he crashed into the wall at a speed of around 180 miles per hour after being tapped from behind. It seemed his death was not his fault but the result of the other driver bumping him from behind. The truth of the matter though is that Dale had refused to wear a special safety device called a HANS or Head and Neck Safety Device. This device was invented and designed to protect drivers from fatal injuries as a result of a serious crash.
The autopsy report stated that Dale died from a blunt force trauma to his head; exactly what the HANS device protects a person from. Dale decided against using the device complaining that it restricted his movements too much. His complaining led him to seek freedom from a device which probably would have saved his life.
Jude reveals that the ungodly are on a collision course with God’s judgment. Praise God, He has provided a safety device – the Word of God – which if obeyed will keep us from suffering fatal injuries such as Dale Earnhardt experienced. But, like Dale, we each must choose to accept and not reject the available safety device regardless of how uncomfortable it might cause us to feel or become. Dale though he would be better off with the liberty he had by not wearing the HANS device. He was dead wrong!