The True Superhero

If you’ve watched the TV or surfed the internet at all in the last couple of weeks, you know that another Marvel movie is in the theatres. This one, Avengers: Endgame, is the culmination of all the story telling that Marvel Studios has been doing over the past 11 years. What they have accomplished is unprecedented in cinematic history. They have told 21 different stories while building a shared world full of interesting characters and concepts. Endgame is the 22nd and it is supposed to tie together everything that has come before it and give this era of stories a conclusion.

While, what Marvel Studios, has done is impressive as far as movies go, it’s not quite as rare in the world of literature. In fact, we all know of an example where a similar feat is captured in a single book – the Bible. If we look, we can see some interesting parallels between Marvel’s work and superhero movies in general to what’s done with the Bible. Much of this is likely unintentional. However, the influence of the Bible even on works of fantasy such as the Marvel stories cannot be denied. For example, Spiderman is one of Marvel’s most popular heroes and the heart of his story is built on a Biblical foundation. We’ve all heard the “With great power comes great responsibility” tagline. It is essentially just a restatement of a portion of Luke 12:48: “To everyone who has been given much, much will be expected. (NIV)”

The Marvel movies have told many stories that have varied in genre from run-of-the-mill superhero flicks to space epics to heist films. Similarly, the Biblical stories cover a variety of genres. For example, we get an origin story (Adam and Eve), a disaster story (Noah and the Ark), a story of ill-fated romance (Samson and Delilah), and likely one of the greatest rags to riches stories ever (King David). What’s, perhaps, more interesting than the individual stories themselves is the underlying narrative that connects them together. With the Marvel stories, we see characters of varying powers and capabilities rise to stand for what they believe is right and to serve the greater good. They are eventually driven together by the actions of a great enemy, Thanos, who is acting in the background. The Biblical stories are much the same. We learn about a number of characters empowered by God to varying degrees that stand up to execute His will and serve all that is good. All the while, they are battling against sin, an underlying force that has proven to be mankind’s greatest enemy.

Eventually, the Marvel heroes had to take a stand against their foe. That confrontation happened in the Infinity War movie and Thanos proved to be an enemy that seemed almost impossible for the heroes to overcome. In fact, Dr. Strange, one of the heroes, states that out of more than 14 million possible outcomes of their confrontation, the heroes only had one chance for victory. For us, sin is just that great of an enemy. At times, it seems almost impossible for us to overcome. Matthew 7:13-14 tells us:

“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”

Jesus is saying something similar to Strange here. There are plenty of outcomes that lead to destruction, but only one to salvation, and that path is opened to us by the one true superhero – Jesus Christ. The story of him as a man on Earth is told through the Gospels, and in them he exhibits all the typical traits of a superhero. He has many powers including telepathy (Matthew 2:6-8), weather control (Mark 4:35-41), and matter manipulation (Matthew 14:13-21). He was an unerring symbol of good. He was willing to sacrifice everything including his life for the well-being of others. Most importantly, like any good superhero he never gave up. Even when it seemed like the enemy had him beaten and he died on the cross, he returned showing that he had dominion over death itself. He spent his whole life selflessly trying to help people and save them from impending doom. What is more characteristic of a hero than that? Jesus is the superhero than can give us lasting victory against sin, and unlike the Marvel heroes, he can not only save our physical lives but our very souls too.

We may not have the powers of the Marvel heroes, and we certainly can’t be the superhero that Jesus was and still is. However, we can be his trusty sidekicks. We can live faithfully by his teachings showing the world what righteousness looks like. We can do good works and love our fellow people. We can share the Word and knowledge of Jesus’ greatness. All these things would be blows against sin and Satan, its greatest perpetrator.

Like with this era of the Marvel movies, the Biblical storyline has an end. Many have tried to read the signs given by the Bible and have declared that we are now in our own endgame. The Bible tells us that no one knows when the end will come (Matthew 24:36). Still, it would be wise for us all to behave as though we are close. The end of the Biblical story has already been spoiled. We know that God and his forces will prevail over the Devil and sin. Only one question remains. When the endgame does come, which side will you be on?

Chris Lawyer

Image Courtesy of the Heroes Overcome ministry