The world loves Superhero’s. Since the first silent film in 1920 about one (Mask of Zorro) the trend to depict the age old battle of right verses wrong and the strong defending the weak, continues to bring millions of dollars in sales at the box offices. The hero’s come in all shapes and sizes from normal men with advanced technology, genetically altered human beings, aliens and even animals. The story is the same though, good versus evil and good wins. We love it, even crave it and no wonder! Humanity is threatened daily more and more by enemies both outside and within areas that were once believed to be safe. The cry of every man’s heart is that there is a Hero out there somewhere that will rescue them.
So where are we Church? In Luke 4:18, Jesus said “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me; he has appointed me to preach Good News to the poor; he has sent me to heal the brokenhearted and to announce that captives shall be released and the blind shall see, that the downtrodden shall be freed from their oppressors, and that God is ready to give blessings to all who come to him.”TLB
That was Jesus’ commission and it is now our responsibility because He said that those who believe in Him would do the same and even greater works (John 14:12)
So let’s see; we have Good news to share, we offer healing for broken hearts, freedom for prisoners, sight for the blind, freedom from oppression and blessings from almighty God! Even the Avengers didn’t do all that! The Body of Christ contains all the Super Heroes this world needs but instead, people are looking for hope in some kind of fantastical ways because the Church as a whole, is failing to demonstrate this. Why is this? Perhaps like Wolverine in the X-Men we have forgotten who we are and therefore remain powerless.
Jesus said the Holy Spirit would come on us and give us power to be His witnesses to the ends of the earth.(Acts 1:18) Was that just to tell people about Him? The Disciples didn’t think so. The first Act of power was demonstrated in Chapter 3 after Peter had healed the lame man. It caused no small stir and they were arrested by the authorities and charged under threat not to speak the name of Jesus again. Listen to the prayer of the church when they returned from prison,” After their release the apostles went back to their friends and reported to them what the chief priests and elders had said to them. When they heard it they raised their voices to God in united prayer and said…Now, Lord, look on their threats, and grant to your servants that with all boldness they may speak your word, by stretching out your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of your holy servant Jesus. ’Acts 4: 24, 29 & 30 Paul said himself in 1 Corinthians 4:20- For the kingdom of God is not in word but in power. Jesus gave His disciples power to cast out demons and to heal all sickness and disease-Matthew 10:1,Mark 3:15,Luke 9:1. And just so we don’t think it was just for them, there is Mark 16:17 & 18-And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”
So to us has been given the authority to offer this world healing from disease, deliverance from demons and freedom from oppression. Why? To spread the message that there is a God who loves them. Couple that with the hope of an eternal life that will never be darkened by those problems again and you got all the makings of a box office hit. Like our digital heroes, we will have enemies to fight. We will face opposition even from those we are trying to help and rejection from others who choose to fear what they don’t understand. In the end though, our victory is assured. It’s not about us though because unlike our fictional characters, we won’t do it for fame but out of gratitude, pointing humbly to the one who has done it for us
Perhaps that is the question to raise. Do we know everything that The Heavenly Father has provided for us through the sacrifice of His Son? Do we know who we really Are? In my series of the same name, I talk about the new identity that God has given us and I believe this will really help you. In Philemon 1:6, Paul prayed “that the sharing of your faith may become effective by the acknowledgment of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus“. We have to know what we have before we can give it away. This teaching will open your eyes to who you are in Christ and why we can and should be the hands and feet of Jesus. For God so loved the world that He gave…It’s our turn now. Let’s go Saints; Capes on! Click on the link below!
https://passionministriesinc.tygstudios.com/category/passion-ministries-tv/
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