Who's Your Hero?

Who’s your hero? –is the question I asked the teenagers this past weekend while speaking for Newburg Retreat. Several youth groups gather each year at the Doubling Gap Retreat Center for their annual spring retreat. I was excited to return for my second year as their speaker.

While everything from the games, Saturday night’s dinner, and skits were themed around Superheroes, the focus was on equipping the teens to discover their ultimate superhero, tapping into their superpowers, and then become a hero by telling others about THE Hero.

From Villain to Hero – Before Paul was Paul he was Saul. And Saul as we know was a ruthless killer of Christians. At the start of the early church Saul was a villain of his day. But something happened while traveling to find, capture and imprison more Christians; he met THE Hero face to face. As a matter of fact his encounter with THE Hero was so powerful Saul was struck blind for three days. That day THE Hero stepped in to do battle by revealing the evil that was plaguing Saul and then rescue him from that evil.  Saul was being tugged from all directions by sin and so are we. Check this out…

“The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions.” (Galatians 5:17)

We all have a sin nature inside us that is constantly trying to pull us towards rebellion against God. But there is good news. There is a hero that wants to rescue us! The only way you and I can defeat sin is through Jesus Christ – THE Hero. Like Paul, it’s impossible to defeat sin on our own. We need THE Hero.

Jesus’ death and resurrection is the only cure for defeating sin. Look at what Paul said about our ongoing battle against the villain – SIN.

“Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death? Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Romans 7:24-25)

After his face-to-face encounter with THE Hero Paul was no longer the villain Saul, he became a hero. But how and what did his role as a hero look like?

Where does your Superpower come from? – We need to tap into the Word of God and draw our superpowers from scripture. Why? Because…

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. (Ephesians 6:12)

The Green Lantern needed his ring in order to use his superpowers. Without the ring he was powerless. In order for you and I to defeat sin and Satan’s lies we need the power of God’s Word. Did you know that even Jesus, God in the flesh, used and relied on his own words to do battle with Satan? In Luke 4:1-13 Jesus is being tempted by Satan and with every swing and attack Jesus responded by quoting scripture. So if Jesus himself used scripture, how much more should you and I be using it to defeat sin?

The bible is a very powerful tool. No amount of books or blogs any man writes will ever out weigh the power of God’s Word.

For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. – Hebrews 4:12

Paul used scripture to become a strong hero sidekick for THE hero. He read it and studied it. The scriptures were Paul’s training ground and it’s ours also. Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching. – 1 Timothy 4:13

Jesus, who is God, battled Satan using his own Word’s from the very book he wrote. Are you going to tap into this powerful source in your daily life? Are you ready to become a hero like Paul by telling others about THE Hero?

With great power comes great responsibility – To be a hero means telling others about THE Hero (evangelism).

How far would you go to save someone? Jesus went as far as giving up his life for you and I. In John 15:13 Jesus says that there is no greater love than a friend giving his life for a friend.

For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. – Mark 10:45

“With great power, comes great responsibility.”  As a Christians, what is our responsibility?  When it comes to fighting evil in the world, what are we willing to do? Paul was effective at sharing his faith NOT because he was a scholar, but from the evidence of a changed life. – Acts 9:22

What kind of hero are you going to be? Are you ready to introduce your friends, family and neighbors to THE Hero. Today I’m praying for all the students from the Newburg Retreat that will be taking the challenge today to tell one of their friends about Jesus – THE Hero.