Tuesday, November 16, 2021

Hero

   

     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."



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