Superheroes

I went and saw the Dark Knight Rises this afternoon.  It reminded me what a spiritual awakening experience superhero movies can be.  I know the last sentence might sound odd to many, "A spiritual awakening at a secular movie?"  I can understand such a question.  But I also know that God can be seen anywhere we look.  If you can't see God, you may not be looking hard enough.  He can be hard to see sometimes, but His fingerprints are never far.

Of course, I do think that we should avoid gorging ourselves on media, especially media that plays to our temptations.  Movies and television shows can send people into sinful tailspins.  I know by my experience and other conversations with men that one image can lead to a series of lustful thoughts.  I would suppose other people struggle with other sinful behavior as a result of exposure to media.  However, I believe we are to be somewhat in the world, while not of the world.  Understanding the culture is crucial to understanding how God's revelation relates to it.  Not only must we have a sense of the culture to share God's truth with it, we can actually learn lessons about God through exposure to the culture.  Once again, we must be prudent, but lessons are there to be learned.

As I mentioned earlier, I was reminded of some truth today while watching the latest Batman movie.  There is something about stories and especially movies that deliver messages with power.  One of the truths I gained a greater appreciation of through the movie was the destruction that follows selfishness.  In the movie (I will not spoil it), there is a revolution that occurs.  Revolutions can be good.  Sometimes there is evil that must be revolted against.  However, this revolution was selfish and its lack of stability was apparent.  In this case the selfishness was so blatant that its negative outcome was apparent to all onlookers.  As I look to human history I see a struggle of selfishness versus selflessness.  Ruthless dictators have been selfish and people like Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King Jr. have been more selfless.  It is the more selfless that have left a positive legacy, while it is the selfish that have left carnage.  The essential human question is and has always been: "Are you going to be selfish or selfless?"  I believe this has always been the question because God has made it the essential question.  Are we, our possessions, our job, or our families going to be our gods, or are we going to let Him be God?  When looked at objectively, God deserves worship far before any god.  The question is, are we willing to let ourselves be second?  This question was at the center of much of Jesus' teaching.  Jesus explained that it is the spiritually sick who need a doctor, not the well (Matt. 9:12; Mark 2:17; Luke 5:31).  The funny thing is, we are all spiritually sick, so the real question is: who is smart enough to go to the doctor?

Another lesson reinforced during the movie was the magnitude of God.  As a Christian, especially a Christian that has been around Christianity my whole life, I can become desensitized to how big God is.  A superhero movie helps me refocus on God's might.  Superheroes are incredibly impressive.  They are doing things that go beyond our everyday experience.  They have strength, intelligence, courage, and power that we marvel at.  However, all of their attributes do not begin to compare the attributes of the God who reveals Himself through the Bible.  I wish it didn't take me seeing a movie to refocus on God's power, but sometimes it does.  Focusing on God's character is an aspect of being in relationship with Him and I pray it comes more natural and with more consistency.  No matter how much I fail to focus on it, however, I will always know that God's might far surpasses the might of all men, corporations, nations, and empires.  I will also know that He rewards man for selflessly seeking Him in every area of their lives.  In fact, He wants man to make it their mission statement.  "First Name Last Name: Selfless Seeker of God"