Comic Book Faith

As a kid I loved comic books - most kids do, but why am I still drawn to comic book hereos at my age? Superman fought for truth, justice and the American way. Captain America was just a mortal man with extraordinary abilities. I believe that in each of us is a desire to be the hero, to stand apart from the crowd, we want to make a difference.

I don't mean to trivialize our faith, but why don't more people embrace Jesus as the superhero of our faith. Think about the nature of our Savior - God in the flesh. He is all-powerful, vanquishing his enemies, rescueing the poor, down-trodden, those who are unable to save themselves. We are all helpless in our battle against the great serpent, the evil one incarnate, until Jesus comes riding in on his white horse.

And yet like our t.v. or comic hereos, he is vulnerable. We see the humanity of Jesus as he cries out on the cross, "I Thirst." We understand the struggle as he pleads, "if you will let this cup pass from me." We relate as we see the anger and frustration he shows towards those who cheat the poor and take advantage of the weak.

Hebrews 11 records a lot of our hereos of faith, but only one superhero ever conquered death and paved the way for us to have eternal life. He has defeated our adversary and extended to us hope and promise. Maybe a comic book faith is not such a bad thing after all.