A REAL LIVE HERO
Kathy Bernard - Publisher

WHY do we humans hold up another vulnerable human up to greatness? With the passage of time, we generally are disappointed to find all heroes have feet of clay which dry and crumble in the sunlight. We can admire their talents and knowledge but no human being is the perfect image we would like to believe exists. But still our search goes on and on, as we replace one hero with another, and then another. And always we are disillusioned. Even with our leaders we find defects and imperfections, some so glaring and disturbingly off kilter that we shake our heads with disappointment. But still we continue to look for that flawless being. He must be somewhere we cry silently as we search even our voting ballots for a name... someone we can look up to from afar.

I guess we are predisposed to want a leader, a hero we can admire and love. Someone we can worship and adore. There is that part of us that needs to see greatness. We require someone we can hope to emulate. We realize that we are not an entity to ourselves but are dependent on something to complete us and brighten our existence in this uncertain world we inhabit. At heart we are all fans of something or someone whether it be a president of our country, a baseball player, a movie star, a teacher, etc. We need that example to live by, that someone we can hold in high regard, something to aspire to; a guideline for our lives. Like all fans, we are usually the givers of our emotions. We get and expect nothing in return for it is enough to have that person to admire and adore. We lay our feelings at their feet. These heroes are generally the takers. And the person to whom we give our affections do not really care or reciprocate our feelings. They take our adoration from us and feed on it , build their egos with it without a care or backward glance our way.

BUT there is a genuine hero. A man among men who has re-written history. Whose exploits are still talked and written about even today, two thousand years later. And He doesn’t need a stand-in for the hard stuff or a makeup tech to touch up His radiance. He is the real thing. He is one who cares and loves us so much that He paid the price that set us free. And He asks for nothing in return but faith and trust. A true hero who does not seek to receive but to give and bestow. His ego does not need to be stroked. He does not need a stage to shine from because He is the Light of the World. He is not Hollywood’s version of a hero; He is  geniune. He is everything and more than we perceive Him to be, all that we envision. The central character in all life’s dramas, the giver of eternal life. His name is Jesus.

IF we who know Jesus were asked to define Him today we would call Him our Saviour, our Salvation, our Hope for tomorrow, our link to the Father. He is our friend when no one else wants to be associated with us. He is with us through thick and thin times and does not care what or who we are. He does not assess what we are wearing or what we have or do not have. Those the world consider undesirable Jesus takes by the hand and leads to the Father with care and love. Unlike our earthly heroes, He is true to us even unto death. When we fall, He picks us up. When we are sick and unattractive He tenderly administers to us. When friends turn their backs for fear our misfortunes are contagious, He steps in for us. And He humbly sacrificed Himself for all. Even as we turn away from His goodness, He remains stalwart and welcoming as He waits for us to recognize that we are totally dependent upon Him for every breath we take. Pretty terrific hero!

THE excitement that we feel when our earthly heroes light up the movie screens or stage is like an empty hologram compared to the excitement we feel when Jesus comes into our lives and changes it. The joy and the pleasure we can experience knowing Him far surpasses the empty, hollow pleasures we get from the people elevated into hero stature. In our quest for earthly leaders we tack on all the attributes human heroes do not deserve. Once we have the real thing we no longer need the earthly heroes in our lives.

WHAT king or queen do we know would stoop to console us and share our burdens? Or wipe away our tears when we are in pain? Modern day heroes seem to be bigger than life when publicists finish painting their glowing and sometimes inflated attributes. As children we were inundated with antics of the good guys of our time who always rode away into the sunset in the end. It is only with the wonderful entrance of God in our lives that we are truly fulfilled and recognize that God with His son Jesus are the true heroes who remain constant and alive forever. The Messiah, the son of the living God , with all His mighty power and glory would bend a knee to tie our shoes. And He is right there with us at all times, offering to share even the smallest detail that happens to us.

Full of sin, impurities, with all sorts of vile and evil baggage attached to us, Jesus gently cleanses, lifts us up and makes us special once and for all by the shedding of His blood which paid our ransom, giving us an inheritance which far exceeds any pittance we might receive from mere men who in the end become vulnerable like all mankind. For when one of our political or entertainment heroes die we are shocked to find that we are all the same; flesh and blood sentenced to the same fate. The only thing which remains steady is our Lord who is eternal and who is offering us a home with His Father where we will live forever in joy and happiness. He is our real live hero.