If You Could have Superpower

It seems like there are an awful lot of movies out the last few years centered on super heroes.  I am thinking of movies with characters like Captain America, Spiderman, Superman, Thor, Ironman, Hulk and Batman just to name a few.  And there are many more of these movies coming in the next few years.  What is with all the fascination with superheroes?

Maybe audiences are simply enthralled with superpower.

There’s Captain America with the power of incredible strength and speed and the ability to be frozen for decades. He can bench press over 1000 pounds and run at 50 mph.  He also heals very quickly. Spiderman has the power of super speed and agility and strength with the ability to stick to walls and shoot out spider cords.  Thor has an extended life span, can travel through time, control weather, and even regenerate damaged parts of his body. 

Now maybe you have no interest at all in superhero movies.  But even so, as you look out at our world and the state it is in, wouldn’t you for just one minute entertain the idea that it might be nice to have a certain superpower to make things all right or at least a little better?  Maybe you have seen some injustice recently and felt so powerless to deal with it.  Wouldn't a little superpower here or there have done some real good? 

So just thinking for one moment, if you could have any superpower, what would it be?  Maybe you would like to fly like the Man of Steel or have his x-ray vision. Or how about just that powered suit of armor that Iron Man uses to protect the world? And I know you.  You would want to do some good with it.  So what great good would you do?  Or what evil would you stop?

Maybe you would have busted down the door of the cockpit of that airplane doomed to crash into the Alps recently. Maybe you would have swooped in and saved those 200 girls in Nigeria that were kidnapped.  Or perhaps you would have stopped that young man in Santa Barbara last year from taking his anger out on a college town and rampaging a sorority.  Some of you would intervene and prevent some act of greed on Wall Street or halt an act of adultery that would soon rip a family apart or intervene when some kid was about to try drugs for the first time.  Aha, here’s one: what would you do if you walked into the US Congress with all that superpower!

What superpower would you choose and how would you use it?

Would you be like Rambo (not a superhero) and just go on an angry rampage?  I wonder if the recent spate of young men going on killing sprees is from an inflated desire for power or a complete feeling of powerlessness?

But what would you do?  What if you woke up one morning and you found that you were the most powerful person in the world?

This did happen to someone, of course, and that is what this letter to you is really all about.

It says in the Good News story written by a man named John that Jesus came to an understanding that God had put all things under His feet.  There was a point at which Jesus realized He was the most powerful person to have ever existed.  The Father had given Jesus power over sickness, weather, hunger (feeding 5000), demons, sin (forgiveness), authority over tradition, matter (water into wine), blindness, and even death (raising Lazarus). 

But then late in his biography of Jesus John writes, “Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under His power…”  So it seems that at that moment Jesus came to fully realize that He was the most powerful man in the universe.  And what did He do?  That is why I asked you what you would do.  What did Jesus do the moment He realized He had unimaginable power? Just ponder that for a moment.  Do you remember what John says Jesus did? 

Did He go out and battle the Romans?  Did He blast away His religious antagonists?

No, nothing like that at all in fact.

The very next sentence John writes says, “[Jesus] got up from the meal, took off His outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around His waist.  After that He poured water into a basin and began to wash His disciples’ feet.”

When Jesus realized He was the most powerful He lowered Himself and He served.  Amazing! But that is what superheroes do…real superheroes.

Would you do that if you realized you had ultimate power?  Would I?

 In our own American history good leaders actually did follow the pattern of Jesus.  I just love these two stories so forgive me for sharing them with you, they make me weep and I don’t quite know why.

In the days towards the end of World War II it is easy to argue that Harry Truman was the most powerful man walking in the flesh on the earth.  He had just ascended to the presidency of what was soon to be recognized as the most powerful country in the world.  And within a couple of months he was going to demonstrate the power of “the bomb.” One evening he was hosting a banquet in which probably the second and third most powerful men, Stalin and Churchill, were guests.  As was normal there was some entertainment before dinner was served.  A quite accomplished pianist, Sergeant Eugene List, sat down at the piano to play.  The chosen piece of music by Chopin was not familiar to the pianist and he asked if someone in the audience would be kind enough to turn the pages.   Without hesitating, Harry Truman, the Commander-in-Chief, got up in front of his distinguished guests and stood next to the sergeant, and turned the pages of the music.  The most powerful man in the room became the humble servant. 

These stories inspire me so much so here is one more.

General Omar Bradley is probably the unsung hero of the invasion of Europe in 1944-45.  Most have heard of General Patton for his flamboyance and General Eisenhower who became president.  Few ever hear of Bradley.  But this humble general was the leader of the American ground forces as they fought their way across France, the Battle of the Bulge, and into Germany.  Bradley made the day-to-day strategic decisions and made sure they were carried out.  He was in authority over one of the most powerful military forces in history.  Three days after D-day when there was much movement of troops and supplies onto the continent there was a terrific traffic jam.  Transports were trying to go in all directions at one particular intersection.  A young soldier was trying to direct traffic.  Somehow this poor young man had lost most of his uniform.  It was windy, wet and cold.  He was shivering.  At one point General Bradley’s jeep pulled up to the intersection.  He said to the young man, “Son, you look mighty cold to me. Where’s your coat?”

“Lost sir,” said the soldier.

Bradley got out of his jeep traipsed across the mud and handed the soldier his general’s coat.  “Well here, you take mine.”  What a way to exercise authority!  And that is probably why you never hear much about Bradley; he was humble and not self-promoting.

I want to serve like that!  Just see the need and humbly and unhesitatingly meet it with the resources I have been given.

But so often when things don’t go the way I want them to I use the authority I have to “take charge” or “run off with my mouth” or “show someone a thing or two.”  My gut reaction to something going wrong is to use my authority to push.  Or too often I am just thinking about my own wants and comforts. Jesus lowered himself and served.  And the humiliation is so shocking that it throws the whole universe off balance.  And that is how Jesus “overcomes evil with good.”  This is how Jesus “makes all things new” or “restores all things.”  He does it by serving.  Yes, Jesus is about the business of saving souls.  And He is also defeating all evil. He does this by overcoming evil with good.  That is the amazing counter-intuitive way God works and He has employed us in this process.  

I hope the point of this letter is obvious.  Let us go out and serve others.  We don’t necessarily need to find some program in which to sign up to serve.  We just need to humbly look for people in need.  They are all around.  Maybe it is your neighbor across the street that needs a meal or a lawn mowed, or worse, needs a plumbing problem fixed.  Perhaps a person at work is behind on a project and needs a hand.  No fanfare is needed when we serve, no announcement on FaceBook. Often people that need to be served are in that place of need because of their own doing and they don’t deserve your service.  But then Jesus, well, He came to us when we did not deserve His service.  Many times these opportunities to serve another come in the form of inconvenient interruptions.  Those are the times we most need to draw deep draughts of Living Water and step into the good resources of Jesus.  My friend Mark Henderson has taught me that one way of summarizing the commands of Jesus is “Be interruptible.” Jesus certainly was that. 

Maybe it is my students that just need me to listen or to take an extra ten minutes to help with a chemistry problem outside my office hours when I am in a hurry to get home.  Maybe they need me to give them a word of encouragement.   I just need to forget myself long enough to see the need.

Maybe I just need to serve my wife and kids.  (Not maybe, definitely!)

I want serving whenever the need arises to become my second nature. 

And so many of you my dear friends already are serving and maybe you don’t need to do more.  Maybe you are tired and drained from serving others.  I know that might be the case for some of you.  Perhaps you need to reconnect with your Source of superpower.  In Paul’s second letter to the Corinthian Church he says that God is able to make all grace overflow to you so that you will have everything you need to abound in every good work.  That is your supply of super power!  Read 2 Corinthians 9 if you need a recharge, it is such a beautiful letter to us.  And our God is also a God of rest. 

In many ways the Gospel, the Good News, is all about how the most Powerful came to serve the most pitiful.  And we tell that Gospel, we replay that Good News when we go out and humbly serve others, even when they don’t deserve it, and will never repay it.  And it throws “the world” just a little bit off its axis.  And it overcomes evil with good. 

Maybe, just maybe when we use our superpower of service “audiences” will be enthralled with the source of that superpower, Jesus.

I want this to be my gut reaction like it was with Truman and Bradley, like it was with Jesus.  I want to learn to grow from my usual, “me first” and live “you first.”  Just think if we had that attitude, “you first.” 

How would something as simple as our freeways change if we, the people that call ourselves by the name of Jesus, had a “you first” attitude?  How would your work environment, your neighborhood, your family change if we all said, “You first”?  What if the republicans said to the democrats (or reverse), “Your first.”  Would the church be different if we all took a “you first” approach?  Your music first.  Your program first.  Your needs first.  Your interests first.  Your ministry first!

I want that attitude.  Paul said to another church he cared for, in Philippi, that we should have an attitude like that of Jesus. “Who, being in the very nature God, did not hold onto His equality with God but made Himself nothing taking the status of a servant.” 

His whole purpose was to come and serve. 

I am writing this to point out the beauty of Jesus and to encourage you to just serve in His power.  I am encouraging myself to serve, to take on a posture of serving.  Just serve the everyday people that come into your “realm of influence”, your spouse, your roommate, your students, patients, parishioners, the guy in the car that wants to move into your lane, and people waiting in line with you at the supermarket.   And soon we will see that serving is good.  Jesus is quoted as saying, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.”  The word blessed is the Greek word “makarios”.    It means, the highest state of well-being, or “it don’t get any better than this”.  It is the ultimate good.  And it is often translated, “happy”.  It is more happy to give than to receive.  As we serve with Jesus we will become glad people.  And God loves a cheerful giver.  You are certainly that!

The other reason I am writing this is to thank you.  Each one of you has washed my feet.  And I will never really be able to repay you.  I feel so served by all of you. In some ways this has been a challenge because I was brought up to be self-sufficient.  And I want to repay you, but I know I cannot.  But in other ways I have felt the love of God as I never have before, albeit through you my dear friends. Most of you have served me with encouraging words.  Recently I was in one of your homes struggling with an emotional problem and you gave me such deep, soothing, words.  On a separate occasion one of you took a couple of hours to mentor my kids on finances, something I am not as wise at.  You served me.  I cannot repay you.  I am so grateful to the way all of you have washed my feet in a significant way. And it was Jesus Himself flowing through you to me. 

Friends, let’s just go out and serve!  And the audience will be enthralled with the Source of your superpower!

HAPPY EASTER!