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September 26, 2004
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Hebrews
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Pastor Brian Shimer
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"Jesus, our Hero!"
Hebrews 2:5 - 3:6
- At our dinner table during one of the parsonage dinners this year, I asked this question: "Could you name one or two heroes or heroines in your life?"
With that question I am asking people to identify the names of those people who have impacted their lives. They will name all kinds of people, from parents or siblings, to doctors and scientists, or famous people from the past or famous people from the present. The answers are as varied as the people who are present.
But always those named are somehow significant to the person speaking.
Who would you name if I were to ask you that today?
- Culturally in American society today heroes are often the wealthy and famous - such as sports stars, movie stars or music groups.
These are the ones greeted with screams, shouts and loud acclaim.
But beyond those there are others.
The heroes of the 9-11 attack were those who died or risked their lives for the sake of others. Ground Zero in New York City was renamed "Ground Hero" by the locals because of the courageous way heroes had given their all.
In the dictionary we find heroes defined four ways:
- They go beyond the call of duty
- They act wisely under pressure
- They risk their life, their fortune or their reputations
- They champion a good cause
Such people who risk life and limb to help others are people we admire.
I came across the story of Dennis Devitte, a Las Vegas police officer who had been on the force for 20 years. On December 5, 1999 this 41 year old was sitting at a bar with some buddies having a beer while off duty. At 1:22 a.m. three gunmen burst into the bar, shooting into the crowd. Devitte pulled a small handgun out of his pocket and ran toward the gunmen, drawing their fire. Devitte's gun was too small to be accurate at anything but near pointblank range. So he kept his finger off the trigger and pressed forward even after one bullet shattered his free hand, two others slammed into his thigh. When he got close enough to fire, he hit one gunman fatally and scared off the others before collapsing with eight bullet wounds. Devitte thought he was dying and said, "Please tell my wife I love her. I did the best I could. I hope I didn't' hit anybody else." http://www.usnews.com/usnews/doubleissue/heroes/heroes.htm
Devitte lived and was honored for his courageous, self-sacrificing actions.
Aunt May in the movie Spiderman 2 says we need such people in our lives for they set an example for us. Such heroes teach us, she tells her nephew Peter Parker, "to hold on for a second longer in life."
And that is all a hero can teach us, if they are the kind of hero whose actions we can just admire or emulate. They may be able to rescue us from a moment's danger such as Spiderman swinging down and pulling you off the tracks before being hit by a train, but they cannot walk with you day by day.
And even the superhero Spiderman needs rescuing we find in this movie, and someone does. So we may have many who have been heroes to us or who are our "heroes," but we still need something more, we need a unique kind of hero.
- And that is the kind of hero we find in Jesus. Not that Jesus is swinging on webs or wielding a gun, but he sacrificed his own life to save us and lives for our sake.
In chapter 3 verse 1 we are told to fix our thoughts on Him -- the author tells his readers that Jesus is worthy of their consideration.
How focused has your thinking been this week? Have you had moments of being muddled and befuddled?
These early Christians to whom the author of the Hebrews was writing were having that problem. They had raised angels and Moses to a level of importance far above Jesus. So, the author calls them to consider Jesus.
That is to gain a fuller knowledge of this hero by thoroughly pondering who He is, by attentively weighing his dignity, His Excellency, His authority. This kind of pondering is more than just giving Jesus a passing glance or occasional thought, but by having a heart fully occupied with Him. As Jesus says to the bride in Songs, "Set Me as the seal on your heart" (Songs 8:6), so the author writes here.
And what do we note when we fix our thoughts on Jesus, the greatest hero?
First, Jesus is passionate about us because he is kin. Jesus, chapter two says, is our big brother(12), made just like us (11), sent to help us(16), able to help us when we are tempted (18).
I am one very experienced with big brothers, but I have never had a big brother like Jesus. Although my big brothers knew the difficulties in life, they did not take an interest in helping me avoid them. The first big brother kind of experience I had with Roger and John was when I went skiing with them when I was in 8th grade. It was my first time on the slopes. I took the lessons and was getting the hang of the snowplow. I could make my way down the slope so took the lift to one of the higher runs for the last time down the mountain that day.
Well, I got going too fast, missed a turn, went out of control and crashed. The back of my ski stuck into the snow while my body turned. The bindings were not the kind that release in that era so my while my body spun and my foot stayed stationary; my knee gave way ripping the ligaments. Well, Roger and John were right there, grieved at my injury because they cared. They got the ski patrol, I was placed on a sled and taken to the medical unit and then put into the back of our station wagon for the longest ride of my life to the Modesto Hospital were I was put in traction.
Jesus is such a hero. There are bullies in life Jesus understands for he lived here. He knows how to free us from them.
The second thing we can note about Jesus is that he is passionate about us because he is the ski patrol as well: he came to rescue us.
Now Jesus doesn't swing in on a web or pull a gun but instead sacrificed his life for this rescue.
Read in v. 9 how he tasted death for everyone.
In v 10 how he was made perfect - or mature in His human character
through what he suffered
In v 15 we read of his battle with the devil.
Jesus shared our humanity to die our death, and in that dying, defeated the devil who held the power of death. Before Jesus came there was bondage for humanity. All of humanity was still under a task master enslaved by a fear of death.
Unbelieving humanity is still enslaved. Again and again people seek to know the secret of longevity. They look for the secret potion, the Holy Grail, the fountain of youth. Many are familiar with the history of Nazi Germany, how all they did was based upon a belief system. Yes, that they were the Aryan race, but also that there was a Holy Grail to be found which was the secret of eternal life. Their archeological explorations sought to find it.
As the hero Jesus has freed everyone, but they will not experience what he has done unless they look to Him, unless they have faith in Him. Like those destined to die in the wilderness because of the bite of the serpent could not be saved unless they looked at the bronze serpent raised upon the pole, so this great saving act is ineffective without faith. It is the descendants of Abraham Jesus helps - those are the ones who believe.
Jesus is both brother and rescuer if you but believe.
Don't you need to be rescued some days? Aren't their times when you have tried a hill too big for your abilities and you find yourself in pain crashed about half way down?
Don't you need a hero?
Actually there is not a day that goes by that I don't.
On Thursday Jesus surprised me with a rescue. I had had some especially difficult things happen, was slogging through the muck of my own sin and failure, and looking toward Jesus but was down for the count when he reached down to rescue.
It happened through a song actually.
Susanna had said before I was leaving the house, "Hey Dad, I have this CD you have to hear. Especially 4, 8, 9, 10 and 12." I was willing to hear it so she sent it with me. I was sitting in the car waiting for Grace to come and put on the CD.
The song reminded me just how big God is, how much love he has for me, for you, and so, I thought I would share it with you this morning.
Do you need rescuing?
We have a hero who loves you.
Fix your thoughts on him this week, won't you?
Let's listen.
(When God Ran by Phillips, Craig and Dean, from their Restoration CD, c. 1999)
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