One
of the interesting aspects of the superhero genre for me is the origin
story. The origin story is almost like
the prologue before the main event. For
example, a young Bruce Wayne witnesses his parents brutally murdered right
before him. This forever changes the
course of his life. He wants to pursue
justice. It takes him decades, but he
ultimately puts on a cape and cowl and becomes Batman. But that’s only his origin story. Any superhero has a story of their humble
origins, but it’s only the beginning act.
Many battles are still going to be fought.
In
a similar way, the account of Christmas is really just an origin story. Mary, although a virgin, is used by God to
give birth to the Savior of the world, Jesus Christ. By the way, don’t forget Joseph’s role in all
this. He was Mary’s devoted husband, who
was also used mightily by God. How could
Mary have done everything she was called to do alone? The answer is she couldn’t; so God provided
Joseph to her. But so many seem to
believe that the entire saga ends with Jesus in a manger; this is simply not
the case. This was only the beginning,
the prologue, the origin story. Jesus
grew up and lived out His destiny.
What
was Jesus’ destiny? From the moment
Jesus was born in that manger, it was His destiny to give His life on a cross
to pay the penalty of the sin of mankind.
Why would His death accomplish this?
Because Jesus is God incarnate, or to put it in simpler terms, God in
human flesh. Every Christmas we hear
these words, and it’s easy for us to gloss over them, but listen to this
again. “All this took place to fulfill
what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin shall be with child and
will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel – which means, “God
with us.”” (Matthew 1:22).
Jesus
was fully man, He was also fully God.
Immanuel – God with us. That’s
why His sacrifice on the cross is so important.
Only Jesus, the God-man, could take on the role of sin-bearer for
mankind’s sin. This Christmas season,
I’m remembering Jesus’ sacrifice made for you and me, out of pure love. Let me illustrate this:
I
was so intrigued by a storyline in a recent episode of “The Flash”. Two villains teamed up and hatched a near
perfect plan. They placed one hundred
bombs throughout the city. They
threatened to detonate them and murder thousands of innocent people. But what they actually wanted to do was
destroy The Flash. Check out this choice
they give to the hero.
“Here’s
how it’s going to be: you are going to stand there, and let me end you, very
publicly and very painfully, and I’ll let everybody live. But if I see if a little flicker of
electricity on you [in other words, if he attempts to run], casket makers in
this town are going to have a very merry Christmas. So, Flash, what’s it going to be?” Selflessly and heroically, The Flash concedes
and lets the villains pummel him. Blow
after blow hits him, and even though he has the power to fight back or flee, he
doesn’t.
As
I watched this unfold, I was thinking, “He intends to give his life as savior
for the city.” Ultimately, The Flash
doesn’t die. Thanks to the quick
thinking of his friends, the bombs were diffused; the crisis was averted. But I hesitate to even mention that
detail. The fact is, he was ready to
give his life for the citizens he loves.
This is a Christ-like scene. Romans
5:8 says, “But God demonstrated His love for us in this: While we were still
sinners Christ died for us.” 1 John 2:2
says that Jesus is “the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours,
but also for the sins of the whole world.”
I am so thankful for Jesus’ atoning sacrifice on the cross for my
sin. Without that, I would have no hope.
Kevin
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