I know that it is only Jesus Christ who fulfills the definition of a true hero. I looked up “hero” in the dictionary and this is what it said:
1. A man of distinguished courage or ability, admired for his brave deeds and noble qualities.
2. A person who, in the opinion of others, has heroic qualities or has performed a heroic act and is regarded as a model or ideal: e.g., He was a local hero when he saved the drowning child.
3. The principal male character in a story, play, film, etc.
When I first read that definition, I thought, “Wow, that really fits with what I know about Jesus.” So I thought I would explore this definition with you in the hope that we can connect more intimately with our Lord. First, let’s look at the phrase, “a man of distinguished courage.”
What did it take for Jesus to make the correct choice to follow the will of God when he came to a crossroad in his life in the Garden of Gethsemane? There he agonized about doing what he knew God needed him to do, and finally he said, “…Yet not as I will, but as you will” (Matt. 26:39b). I say it took courage! I pondered what it must have been like for him to know he was going to be handed over to the authorities to be tortured and crucified. After all, this was not the first time anyone was crucified, and surely Jesus was very aware of the agony he would have to endure. Yet he made the freewill choice to obey God and go to the Cross for you and for me. Now, that’s a hero!
Here is a definition of courage that we used at our “Men of Courage” conference a few years ago: That quality of the mind that enables people to face difficulties or danger with firmness. Some synonyms of courage are: bravery and valor.
Back to the definition of hero, and the phrase, “admired for his brave deeds.” What did Jesus do that fits with that part of the hero definition?
I thought about the fact that he always did what was pleasing to God (John 8:29b). He healed the sick, spoke the truth in love, walked in