Who's Your Hero?

            This weekend (February 22 & 23), we will be exploring heroes.  Who are your heroes?  What are the essential qualities that a hero must have?  Although the word, “hero,” is common enough, I suspect that most of us have not reflected very deeply on precisely what the characteristics of a true hero are.  Frequently, we use the hero without thinking too deeply about the term.  For instance, I sometimes use the term, hero, in order to be exceptionally complimentary about a particular person.  In those cases, I’ll say, “Oh, I really admire X, he’s a real hero of mine.”  In reality, the term “hero” is a very important term, which should be applied carefully—and sparingly.

            In my message this weekend, I will suggest that a hero must have the following essential characteristics:

1.      A strong moral character that is beyond reproach

2.      Deep love for God, for humans, and for Creation

3.      A passion for justice and a compassion for the vulnerable and the hurting

4.      Courage

5.      Deep Faith

Heroes become our role-models, showing us how God intends for us to live.  We look up to heroes and strive to be like they are.  Even more, heroes inspire us to live nobly, stretching to live lives of the highest ideals. 

            Potential heroes can be all around us; persons whom we know and interact with already.  Heroes may be our parents or other family members, our coaches or teachers, work colleagues or neighbors, Sunday-School teachers or other members of our community of faith.  Concurrently, some of us have heroes whom we have never met.  These heroes may be historical figures or scriptural figures or contemporaries whom we have heard about but never actually met.

            As we reflect on heroes this weekend, I will suggest that we should intentionally choose our heroes.  In choosing our heroes we must choose wisely, selecting persons whose lives we would most like to emulate.  We should also be conscious that those around us may be selecting us as one of their heroes.  In other words, we should conduct our lives as though someone else is looking to us as a role-model and a hero.

            To illustrate my reflections this week, I have chosen an unlikely scriptural hero:  the prostitute, Rahab, in Joshua 2.  Biblical scholars believe that Rahab had turned to prostitution because all of her family, including her father and mother, was living in abject poverty and in danger of losing their home in Jericho.  That is, Rahab and her family were desperately poor and marginalized in society.  Yet, Rahab’s love for her family was so great that she was willing to do anything to keep them together. 

In the story, Joshua sends two spies to infiltrate the city of Jericho and to scout it out for a potential takeover.  When the King of Jericho discovers that there are hostile spies in his city, he sends his soldiers out to find and capture them.  The two Hebrew spies seek refuge with Rahab and her family.  Rahab deceives the King’s soldiers, sending them in the opposite direction, away wfrom here the spies are going to flee.  Then, she helps the Hebrew spies escape safely from Jericho.

Although it is an unconventional choice for a hero, I think that Rahab displays some important qualities of heroes:

Ø  A deep love and care for her family

Ø  Compassion for the vulnerable and a passion for justice

Ø  A deep faith and trust in God

 

Come, join us at Meriden United Methodist Church this weekend as we reflect on our heroes and on what it means to be a hero for someone else.  Our church is located at the corner of Main and Dawson Streets in Meriden, Kansas.  We have two worship services each weekend:

Ø  Our contemporary service starts at 6 pm on Saturday evenings.

Ø  Our classic service starts on at 10 am on Sunday mornings.

Everyone is welcome and accepted because God loves us all.