The term “Kobayashi Maru” was coined in the popular science fiction franchise, Star Trek. The Kobayashi Maru was a programmed computer simulation that created a scenario in which no winning outcome was possible. A real life example would be a pilot stuck on a burning plane without a parachute. The pilot could choose to jump or remain on the plane. Either way the outcome is fatal.

In a Kobayashi Maru situation, every effort put in, whether action or inaction is always countered by a force greater than and thus provides no opportunity of victory. It is an utterly no-win situation.

In Star Trek, the only person to ever triumph over the Kobayashi Maru was the famous officer, Captain Kirk. How did he do it? How did he succeed where all others had failed? Well, realizing that no winning outcome was possible, Kirk decided to reprogram the Kobayashi Maru altogether, changing the conditions of the simulation and thus creating a winnable outcome.

The bible says, “…all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23).” A sinner is someone who misses the mark of God’s perfection standard. We have all missed and continue missing the mark. Mankind is sin prone. Even on our best day, we remain sinners (Ecclesiastes 7:20). We can neither overpower sin nor avoid sin for it so easily besets us.  An individual might lay up in bed all day and not go out, inevitably, the individual is touched by sin. For sin occurs just as much in the mind as it does in the body. Sin is a deadly force greater than ourselves and as a result, the ultimate Kobayashi Maru.

If then we cannot overcome sin, what hope do we have of entry into God’s kingdom seeing as the standard of entry is perfection? The answer is Jesus Christ. God became flesh and offered himself as a sacrifice. The power of Christ’s sacrifice is in its ability to wash away our sins entirely without leaving a single spot. Sin becomes utterly powerless against the power of Christ’s sacrifice.

“Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” – John 1:29

 

Only God could pull off a sinless life and he did it through Jesus Christ and because of his sacrifice, we are made clean. His blood perpetually cleanses the sinner. The washing away of our sins by Christ, makes us appear perfect in the sight of God. Christ is our perfection and that perfection guarantees us entry into God’s kingdom. A winnable outcome over sin has been provided by Jesus Christ and the only criteria is that you believe in him (John 3:16).