Jesus: Ultimate Unlikely Hero Series

INTRODUCTION

The late Senator John McCain, who was a prisoner of war, recalled an incident of patriotism and heroism inside the Vietnamese prison camp, the “Hanoi Hilton.” In 1971, the North Vietnamese moved him and some other prisoners from isolation into large rooms with as many as 30 to 40 men to a room.

One of the men moved into his cell was Lt. Cmdr. Mike Christian. He was a commissioned, naval flying officer and was shot down and captured in 1967.

The uniforms they wore in prison consisted of a blue short-sleeved shirt, trousers that looked like pajama trousers, and rubber sandals made out of automobile tires. As part of the change in treatment, the Vietnamese allowed some prisoners to receive packages from home. In some of these packages were handkerchiefs, scarves, and other items of clothing. Mike got himself a piece of white cloth and a piece of red cloth and fashioned himself a bamboo needle. Over a period of a couple of months, he sewed the American flag on the inside of his shirt.

Every afternoon, before they ate, they would hang Mike's shirt on the wall of their cell and say the Pledge of Allegiance. One day, the Vietnamese searched their cells and discovered Mike's shirt with the flag sewn inside and removed it. That evening they returned, opened the door of the cell, called for Mike Christian to come out, closed the door of the cell, and, for the benefit of the others, beat Mike Christian severely for the next couple of hours. Then they opened the door of the cell and threw him back inside. He was not in good shape. They tried to comfort and take care of him as well as they could.

After things quieted down, John went to lie down to go to sleep. As he did, he happened to look in the corner of the room. Sitting there, beneath a dim light bulb, with a piece of white cloth, a piece of red cloth, another shirt, and his bamboo needle, was his friend, Mike Christian, sitting there, with his eyes almost shut from his beating, making another American flag.

He was not making the flag because it made Mike Christian feel better. He was making that flag because he knew how important it was for them to be able to pledge their allegiance to their flag and country.

Lt. Commander Michael Christian serves as a heroic example of dogged determination and allegiance despite circumstances, persecution, and torture. But is there anyone else who has shown more? There indeed is!

BACKGROUND

Someone may question why I have chosen Jesus to be an “unlikely hero.” But in one way He was, and that was through His earthly existence. Everything about His earthly life, from beginning to end, screams the unlikeliness of Him ever being a hero, and isn’t that what we have seen with each of the others?

From what we know of Jesus’ deity and His heavenly existence, we know His very purpose for coming here was to be a hero! And what a hero He is!

The Apostle Paul recognized what it cost Jesus to come to this earth and to suffer and die as He did. In 2 Corinthians 8:9, Paul said, “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich.” Yes, Christ left the glories and splendor of heaven for us.

Our passage today speaks of Jesus in terms of His earthly existence and what it means for fallen man. Philippians 2:1-11 is a well-known Scripture passage that teaches us much about our Savior. READ

I. Jesus Was Heroic in His Earthly Life (Philippians 4:7-8)

The start of Jesus’ earthly existence speaks volumes concerning Him ever being considered a hero. The first thing we see is His humble beginnings. He was born to common, ordinary Jewish parents, who themselves were of small means. His birth took place in a dirty stable rather than in a nice, clean environment. Rather than being born among family members in Nazareth, the hometown of His earthly parents, he was born almost 90 miles away in the city of Bethlehem. Shepherds herald his birth instead of family and friends. If that isn’t enough, because of the anger and jealousy of King Herod, the family has to flee to Egypt for a while before they can return home. He was raised to be a common laborer, probably working long days for little income.

Is this the way a hero’s story begins? Not usually. But it is the way this hero’s story is initiated. Nothing in His first thirty years of life on earth, other than His teaching the rabbis at twelve years of age, even hints that He will be anything other than a commoner. Our passage states that He “made Himself nothing, taking the form of a servant” and that He was “born in the likeness of men.” But we know the rest of the story, don’t we?