There are several definitions to this
word, hero, such as:1.
A person who is admired or idealized for
courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities.
2.
The chief male
character in a book, play, or movie, who is typically identified with good
qualities, and with whom the reader is expected to sympathize.
3.
(In mythology and
folklore) a person of superhuman qualities and often semidivine origin, in
particular one whose exploits were the subject of ancient Greek myths.
A special report that was done at WALB
News in Albany, Georgia several years ago asked people what they thought of
when they heard the word hero. Here are
some of their responses.
“When I think of a hero, I think of
somebody like Batman,” said Tyshon Murray.
“The people that we set up as heroes are
people that generally go above and beyond in terms of the call of duty, they do
things that are extraordinary,” said Dr. Nick Carden of the Renaissance Center.
“Superman, Spiderman, and Batman,” said
Haley Suggs.
Sarah Perry says, “A hero is a person who
saves the day. He’s the one who has all
the courage and he has responsibility.”
And there were many other comments made;
however, almost all the comments shared a central theme: A hero is selfless, a genuinely good person,
and someone who gets the undivided attention of all of us and causes
change. Someone willing to risk their
own life to save another.
That is a powerful definition and an
extremely high standard to obtain.
However, we all know ordinary individuals, perhaps who have touched our
lives personally, who we would describe as a “hero!”
We can see that today people want a
hero. They are constantly looking for
that special someone who is going to swoop into their daily lives and change
things for the better. More articles,
books, and movies are produced today with the theme of some type of “avenging
hero” to change the course of human history and make the lives of people in
general, better, more honorable!
However, most people don’t truly
appreciate that some 2,000 years ago such a “hero” was living upon this earth
and prepared the way for the vast majority of humankind to transform their
lives into a perfect state. That person was
the historical Jew, Jesus of Nazareth, an ancient City in Israel. Let’s briefly examine his life in light of
the above stated definitions of the word “hero” and see just how this is true.
Definition (1): A person who is admired or idealized for
courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities. Using the qualities that are highlighted here
we can see that by this definition, Jesus could absolutely be considered a
hero. Courage: Jesus stood up to the religious leaders of
his day without wavering in his integrity to God. He was also able to resist the temptations
made by the chief agent of evil, Satan the Devil. Even the Roman Governor, Pontius Pilate, was
amazed at the courage displayed by Jesus during his trial and execution.
Let’s consider the second aspect of this
definition: outstanding achievements. I don’t think anyone would disagree with the
fact that the teachings of Jesus have affected the lives of millions of people
over several thousand years. The changes
that have been made have improved lives, families, and communities beyond any
other teaching that has been available upon the earth. We recognize that after a period of time has
passed many teachings of humans have had to be changed or at least adjusted in
various degrees. But what Jesus taught has
stood the test of time as not only reliable, but greatly beneficial.
The third aspect of our first definition
is: noble qualities.
Again, it cannot be denied that Jesus (other than Adam at his creation)
has been the only perfect human who has ever lived upon this planet. Jesus completely reflected the moral
standards and teachings of his heavenly father who had sent him to this earth
to provide a means by which humans could be released from the condemnation of
death that Adam had brought into the world.
There could be no more noble cause than that!
Yes, according to the requirements of our
first definition, Jesus is definitely a hero!
Let’s consider our second definition: (2)
The chief male character in a book, play, or movie, who is typically identified
with good qualities, and with whom the reader is expected to sympathize. Jesus is certainly the “chief male character”
of the Bible. From the pronounce of the
first prophecy in the Bible at Genesis 3:15, Jesus would prove to be the key
character of the “seed” of God’s woman who would finally bring to nothing the
acts of the great adversary, Satan, crushing him out of existence. No other person can be “identified with good
qualities” greater than those displayed by Jesus during his life here upon the
earth. Under the most grueling of
circumstances to the point of a painful and unjustified death, his “good
qualities” continued to be expressed.
Upon his torture stake, immediately prior to his expiring, his words of
prayer were: “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” [Luke
23:34, NIV]
And
as flesh and blood creatures ourselves we can certainly “sympathize” with the
events of Jesus’ life when he was here upon the earth. We can understand and appreciate the need for
comforting words in our own lives and the need to display the “good qualities”
that Jesus showed to others.
Yes, according to the requirements of our
second definition, Jesus is definitely a hero!
And now, our final definition: (3) (In
mythology and folklore) a person of superhuman qualities and often semidivine
origin, in particular one whose exploits were the subject of ancient Greek
myths. Jesus lived at a time when
many mythological and stories of folklore abounded. However, he was not a myth and not the
subject of simply folklore of the past.
He was a real person who existed during the times as mentioned in the
Bible. Even his enemies never denied his
existence as a real person.
Jesu, by its basic definition, displayed “superhuman”
abilities. That is, “having or showing
exceptional ability or powers.” Although he never claimed to have these
abilities of his own initiative, Jesus displayed the ability to recall details
of events perfectly, he could walk on water, defying gravity, he could heal the
sick and raise the dead. He could even “read
the hearts” of those around him, knowing the true motives for their words and
actions. And there can be no doubt that
he had a “semidivine origin.” The
Apostle Peter, himself, when Jesus asked his disciples who they thought he was,
declared: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” [Matthew 16:16,
English Standard Version]
Yes, this definition also shows that Jesus
was indeed, a hero!
However, with so much evidence and
explanation, many still do not accept Jesus for who he really is. Since, he didn’t fly around in spandex,
wearing a cape, and crushing wicked people under his mighty blows, he doesn’t
fit the “picture” that many have in their minds of a hero. And unlike many of the comic book heroes and
those portrayed upon the “silver screen”,
Jesus does not appear to be the type of person that many want to emulate
today. He is not the example they want
to follow.
Even though we have more than enough
evidence to prove otherwise, Jesus is not the “role model” that younger ones
(or even older ones) want to copy.
Against our own best interests we often continue to make foolish
mistakes and do not look in the right place for his faithful model to
follow. That is exactly why we need such
a hero, because we’re only human!
QUOTE TO CONSIDER
THOUGHTFUL GEM
"There can be a hero in all of us."
