Amazing Grace, Transforming Lives!

This week was the 10th anniversary of the execution deaths of Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, the two men arrested, tried and sentenced to death as the ringleaders of the, so-called, Bali 9. They were organising for heroine to be brought from Indonesia to Australia. They were sent to prison and spent 10 years awaiting their final fate as appeals were made. There were legal appeals, appeals from Australia, Human Rights organisations and even the Warden of the Kerobokan prison. In an all too common story, these were young men who had challenges at school, fitting in and losing their way in life, drifting along and attracted to a dream of wealth and being comfortable through ‘easy money.’ They were lured into drugs and the drug industry and the culture it brought – until they were caught and arrested. Their lives changed in a moment. The easy money and flashy life no longer there. Their freedom was lost and their future uncertain as the appeals happened around them. There are a variety of stories around these two men of the changes within them and the work that they initiated in that God-forsaken place. One account has Andrew in his cell pondering life and his fate, perhaps remembering glimmers of faith from his childhood and then praying to a God he isn’t sure about, seeking some kind of sign. The next day his brother arrived to visit with a friend, a Salvation Army Minister. They talked and Andrew asked for a Bible. He began to read. I imagine the stories of Jesus, of his death and the faith and hope he inspired. Something in Andrew began to change and he recognised that Jesus’ life was a blessing to others. He helped others and gave hope, life and transformation. Andrew converted to Christianity in prison. He and Myuran began a variety of education opportunities for other prisoners. They created a zone in the prison that was drug-free and where inmates could find a different way in life and make the most of new opportunities to turn themselves around. Andrew was visited and encouraged by various Christian leaders and studied theology within the prison. He led worship and provided pastoral care and counselling to others. He was ordained in prison. Myuran also converted to Christianity. He discovered his gift of art and reached out to renowned Australian artist, Ben Quilty for guidance and support with technique and colour. He set up and art studio in the prison and used it to work with and help other inmates. Exhibitions of his work provided some funds for the prison ministry these two men were so deeply engaged in. Their lives and work were so significant and transformative that they were recognised as ideal inmates with a vital role in the rehabilitation of other prisoners. The prison warden appealed to the Indonesian President, Joko Widodo, on their behalf but to no avail. He wouldn’t be moved, and they were executed by firing squad. On the day of their execution, they provided interpretation and comfort for the other 6 executed with them. They refused a blindfold and sang the hymn, Amazing Grace before their death. They then began to sing the contemporary Christian song, ‘Bless the Lord O my Soul.’ They never finished the song as the bullets tore into them and their dead bodies crumpled to the ground. I imagine the remainder of the song ringing out in that eternal Realm of which we speak, where there is peace and hope, and all tears are wiped away. This story of transformation echoes the story Luke tells of Saul/Paul who was on his way to persecute the Christians in Damascus. Saul/Paul was a fanatical religious figure, belonging to the very serious party of the Pharisees. He was driven by his belief systems that focussed on the legal requirements of the law, as articulated through the Hebrew Scriptures and the various interpretations. He was obsessed with this blasphemous and dangerous sect, as he understood them. The Christians were peddling dangerous ideas and leading people astray. It was a threat to the true faith and the laws of God. On his way to round up and imprison Christians, Saul/Paul was blinded by a light and fell to his knees. He heard a voice calling out, ‘Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?’ ‘Who are you, Lord?’ asked Saul/Paul. ‘I am Jesus, whom you persecute.’ This interaction, however, it happened, and whatever Saul/Paul experienced, turned his whole being upside down. It confused him and left him helpless, blinded and desperate. He was told to go to a particular place and a disciple would tend to him. Ananias had to be convinced to go anywhere near this Saul/Paul, who had a reputation. When he went, he found a helpless, confused and desperate soul. He laid hands on Saul/Paul and prayed. Scale-like things fell Reflection Notes – 4/5/25 3 rd Sunday of Easter – Geoff Stevenson from Saul/Paul’s eyes, and he began to see, not just physically but with deeper insight and wisdom. He recognised how wrong he was and that there was grace and life that he never recognised in his intellectual pursuit of the law. He was being transformed through this experience, this encounter with the Living God. It took time for him to embrace and embody the fullness of this revelation and the way of Jesus as a fulfilment of the law through grace and love. He was transformed from violent fanaticism to one who embraced powerlessness and vulnerability, trusting this Spirit of God to guide and use him. He recognised that in his weakness, when he was naked before the world, God would use this in ways he could never comprehend. He was flogged, shipwrecked, abused, imprisoned and finally executed under Rome as he reached out to spread the Love and Grace of God across his world of the Roman Empire. He encountered resistance and opposition from religious figures, political figures and the powers of the world but he never let go of this hope and life that had been given him through the experience of Grace on the road to Damascus – and everything that flowed from that. The stories of Andrew and Myuran, as they encountered a Living God who transformed them and used their powerlessness and vulnerability to transform other lives in the harshness of prison, is inspiring. The story of Saul/Paul being brought to his knees and opened to grace is a story of radical transformation of the human heart and being. Their witness to us is that Grace is freely available and transforms our world if we will allow ourselves to be vulnerable before life, before God and surrender to the Love that will not let us go. This is Amazing Grace!