What makes a hero? A cape, a baseball bat, a sword, what about a scream in the jungle swinging from tree to tree? What makes a hero? A uniform with shiny stars on the shoulder, famous statements, unimaginable strength, ten-gallon hats with six guns riding fast horses, Olympic medals? What makes a hero? Courage, nobility, accomplishments, inventiveness, the list is endless. As children we all had heroes. As we get older it is harder to have heroes. Opportunities for heroism are sometimes limited in this world; the most we can do is at times not be as weak as we once were. The ordinary person usually is involved in action, the hero acts! To be a hero one must give an order to oneself and then perform.
Random events cause many of us to change our ways and alter our “Life-path”. Usually when there’s a catastrophe, a hero emerges. As fun as it is to pretend, Batman, Superman, Spider Man, Wonder Woman, and the many other “superheroes” are made up personae. Many of our hero’s live in costumes and live out fantasies at comic-con conventions. Their contrived histories are good for Hollywood with all the money they pull in, but what we need is real-life people with real-life flaws the morph into a hero. They wear ordinary clothes and live ordinary lives until a moment-in-time changes their DNA into hero stuff.
Just consider some of the hero’s in the Bible and their impact on our lives. Joseph in the Book of Genesis was assaulted by his own brother’s and “sold” into slavery and taken to Egypt! He was put into prison under false charges and became a model prisoner who helped other prisoners. When a famine affected his family back in Canaan, Joseph helped supply them with food. He was later instrumental in helping the brothers who almost killed him, and others, in finding a home and food and work in Egypt! And he did it all without an ounce of malice, cape or costume.
There’s Daniel in the Old Testament who was living in Jerusalem as a teenager until the city was attacked by the Babylonians, and he and others were carried off into captivity. He later became friends with the Babylonian king and displayed the highest morals. He helped the king interpret dreams and taught him about the God of Israel. He soon gained the respect of a new king. Daniel was above reproach in all his words and all his actions. And he didn’t have to fly at the speed of sound, bend steel, flame-on, be invisible, and have any magical paraphernalia.
Samson started off weak, but finished strong. King David was a man after Gods own heart. Elijah was a prophet of enormous respect in troubled times. Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah and countless others lifted up God. And they didn’t need secret identities, Hollywood’s special effects, fake storylines or character disguises. They were real-life people with real-life flaws guided by a real-life God!
Every superhero movie, idea, conception is an origin story. Why is that? Perhaps we like stories, that shows us the exact place and time when a normal guy goes from being 'just like us' to to being somehow smarter, stronger, better, faster. Look at it from another perspective. Perhaps origin stories show us not how to become super but how to be heroes, choosing altruism over pursuit of wealth and power. There is one real "supernatural" hero who actually came to earth, had all the characteristics of a 'superhero', who helped people, healed people, loved people, saved people, brought people back from the dead, overcame death himself and fought supernatural forces and defeated them. His name is Jesus. For you, he did this. Pretty "SUPER" huh?
Does your hero hide behind a mask or cape; reside in a comic, act out a script on cue, or behind the power, majesty, and glory of the living God?
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