SUPERCHARGED

Time with Jesus - 28 Nov 2013

Hi all,

On occasions, I’ve wondered about the cartoon character most of us loved in the years BC (before computers) More particularly, I’ve wondered where the idea for the “man of steel” originated. 

Clark Kent

To refresh our memory, Clark Kent worked for the Daily Planet newspaper as some non-descript news hound. He was always just too late to get a scoop. But it wasn’t surprising. Even Superman couldn’t be in two places at once. His girlfriend was Louis Lane. They lived in a city called Metropolis.

When the crisis arose and there was one just about every week in the comic, Clark Kent would disappear into a room or a telephone box and emerge as Superman, the Man of steel himself. What always amused me was how the bulging muscles of Superman were somehow compressed into the frame of Clark Kent. Certainly, during his metamorphosis from Clark Kent to Superman, his shirt and suit was far too small. The buttons should have ‘”popped”.

Lois Lane

He was the first of the superheroes and is considered an American cultural icon. Superman was created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, high school students living in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1933; the character was sold to Detective Comics, Inc. (later DC Comics) in 1938. Superman first appeared in Action Comics #1 (June 1938) and subsequently appeared in various radio serials, television programs, films, newspaper strips, and video games. (Courtesy Wikipedia)

The idea of two people in one body was made famous by the Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson in his book published 5 January 1886 called “The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde”. The big difference was that Superman was a superhero and Mr Hyde was a super-crook! Poor old Dr Jekyll was the medical “expert” who concocted the weird brew which transformed him from being a “normal” medical practitioner into the crazed Mr Hyde. No mirrors and no phone boxes.

Those who are familiar with one of UK’s longest running TV programs will remember Dr Who. This program had a different angle on the telephone box. It was his spaceship the “Tardis”. Oddly enough, when you stepped into the Tardis, it was much bigger than the phone box. Mind you, Dr Who, a fictional character, focussed on Science fiction whereas Superman and Dr Hyde were pure fiction.

Dr Who and the Tardis

Where do these ideas come from? Superman, the superhero; Mr Hyde the super-crook and Dr Who. I really don’t have any evidence for this, but I somehow suspect they originate from characters in the Bible. Samson is a case in point. When the Spirit of the Lord came upon him, he was empowered to carry out amazing feats of strength. It is recorded in Judges 15:15 that he killed 1000 Philistines with the jawbone of a donkey. Today he would have a problem with the SPCA for abusing donkeys. The SAP would want to arrest him for murder and the Court of Human Rights would want to know if this wasn’t perhaps genocide against the Philistines.

Other characters might also have had major problems. Noah might well have been charged with steering an ark under the influence of alcohol. The Port Authorities would want to see his ship’s captain’s licence and the building inspector would have stopped him building the ark until he had a certificate from a qualified architect.

Samson

Killing the Canaanites by the Israelites would cause a great furore’ in the UN. Israel is in sufficient trouble today. Wiping out Palestinians previously called Philistines by some, would be widely, if not internationally, condemned and may result in punitive reprisals by the UN.

There is one Biblical Character who has universal approval by all nations with the possible exception of the Jerusalem Jews. Jesus Christ towers above all of humanity as a religious leader and reformer par excellence. 

His ideas were and still are, revolutionary. The only reservation anyone may state is that the moral standards are so high that they are impossible to keep. That is correct. They are impossibly high. He is the only person who has ever succeeded in living up to what He taught. The very best the average human being can do today is marvel at the comprehensive detail He has set before us. We gaze at His requirements in awe. Many set out on a quest to live up to them. They fail again and again. Failure only makes them more determined to succeed. They drive themselves onward, determined to “do it”. Their best efforts are doomed to failure. I know because I was one of them. I was determined to live up to the requirements of Jesus Christ in Scripture. After 2½ years I quit. The decision was “simplified” by an unhappy experience with a young lady. It was easier to blame her and God than to see how foolish I’d been trying to achieve the impossible. In short, I quit because I found I was unable to live up to the standard I thought God required of me. It was a wrong idea; a bad idea; but there was no one to turn to and ask. 

Dr Who - Different Actors
since 1960's

There wasn’t even a Clark Kent. Dr Jekyll was outside my circle of friends. Robert Louis Stevenson was dead. Dr Who was science fiction, so there was no point in looking for him. So it was, my own shortcoming “cut off” my “spiritual locks” and, blind to my own errors, I spent the next 16 years without being able to see the truth of Jesus Christ. Very sad!

Shalom

Jim & Phyllida Strickland 

This is the Real Superman - Jesus Christ

Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give		Time with Jesus – 28 Nov 2013			Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give
©	These devotionals are the intellectual property of Jim Strickland and copyright protected. You are welcome to copy and distribute them to anyone provided it is for non-commercial Christian purposes					©
INTRODUCTION			DAILY LIGHT EVENING SCRIPTURES	SUPERCHARGED
My grandson and his father are motor car racing “crazy”. They attend every local meeting that’s within driving distance from their home in Pretoria. They are aficionados of Motor Sport. In some respect I admire them. But I’ve never really taken much interest in people driving at high speed round and round a race track. Something happened in the late 1950’s that put me off forever. A friend and I decided we’d hitch-hike from Port Elizabeth to East London for the SA Grand Prix. The big attraction was to see Sterling Moss driving in the competition. Two things spoiled it for me. The first was we got a lift with a couple who had a baby in the car. One too young to control his inner workings. Not a problem except that the soiled nappies were put in a bag immediately behind our heads on the rear window shelf. So my friend and I travelled all the way accompanied by “enchanted pheromones”! We said nothing. We needed the lift and were fighting for fresh air. The second disappointment was the race itself. We couldn’t afford the fancy price of tickets close to the start and finish line. So we sat out somewhere in “left field” as the Americans put it. We saw cars going round the circuit. But who was driving which car and who was winning? We had no idea at all. My friend was more enthusiastic than I was, so he wasn’t badly put off. But it was my first and only grand prix. After watching all the different cars going round and not knowing who was who put a real damper on the occasion. We knew Sterling Moss was somewhere there. But where he was and which car he was driving remains a mystery to this day. I don’t even remember who won. But we did manage to hitch a ride back to Port Elizabeth later that day. Funnily enough, I can’t remember if our respective parents even knew where we were. Signs of a misspent youth! To this day I’m not much of a car enthusiast. All the models look just about the same. But the resurrection life model body the Lord has promised us is something else! Watch what Jesus could do in His! It was supercharged! Walk through walls. Rise from the grave! Ascend into heaven. Now He can even live in all of us at the same time! Travel faster than the speed of light (If He made it He must be able to exceed it!) Now that really is neat. There’s a whole bunch of space, stars and planets out there. I’d rather like to spend about 100 million years just loving and worshipping Him. Then I’d like to take a tour of the universe. I’d like to visit the Crab nebula. How about a face to face meeting with Orion! His belt is fine, but what about the rest of him? I’d like to make the tour with people I’ve met and loved here. My wife Phyllida would be my first choice. How could that work in eternity? I’ve no idea. Jim & Phyllida Strickland			14 Because God's children are human beings--made of flesh and blood--the Son also became flesh and blood. For only as a human being could He die, and only by dying could He break the power of the devil, who had the power of death. 15 Only in this way could He set free all who have lived their lives as slaves to the fear of dying Hebrews 2:14-15 NLT.	He had to make Him human. Yes, Jesus Christ the Lord, Had to be a human to wield His Father’s sword. Some fancy little robot could never ever do. He had to be in every way the same as me and you. A twenty foot gorilla, with teeth and jaws of steel, Couldn’t fight the devil. The difference too unreal. Satan took on Adam and beat him with one bite! It follows that our Master must beat him in a fight, Where there was no advantage, in favour of each side. The only way for Christ to win, was to be crucified. He had to see the contest through; let Satan think he’d won. There wasn’t an alternative ‘til everything was done. Satan was ecstatic when Jesus passed away. “I’ve beaten God Almighty” was all that he could say! He sounded like a donkey. Like that and nothing more. He hadn’t seen his error; his one gigantic flaw! The Jesus dying on the cross was really me and you. And Satan looking at Him just didn’t have a clue! His hold on death was slipping and he didn’t even know. The fact is Jesus has the keys, so death will have to go. We’re not sure when it happens. It will be in His time. From then on Satan’s tactics will not be worth a dime. The earthly tent we live in will shortly be antique. When Jesus gives us new ones, then Satan’s going to freak! We’ll have eternal bodies, not made by human hands. God Himself is making them inimitably grand. Until the day it happens, we’ll keep on keeping on. Believing without seeing is how we get along. So let us all be confident, in spite of our abode. Our bodies may be aging and our reactions slowed. But God is making new ones; the prototype He’s tried; And we can hardly wait to have our spirit man inside; The turbo-charged edition that simply walks through walls, Travels at the speed of light and never ever stalls; Runs on “Holy Spirit” and not on gasoline, Proving just how generous the Lord our God has been! Never mind a “Cadillac”, a “Lexus” or a “Rolls”. Don’t let your heart be troubled; new bodies for our souls! Jim Strickland Written 28th November 2012
			55 O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting? " 56 For sin is the sting that results in death, and the law gives sin its power. 57 But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 15:55-57 NLT
			16 That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. 2 Corinthians 4:16 NLT
			1 For we know that when this earthly tent we live in is taken down (that is, when we die and leave this earthly body), we will have a house in heaven, an eternal body made for us by God Himself and not by human hands. 2 Corinthians 5:1 NLT
			6 So we are always confident, even though we know that as long as we live in these bodies we are not at home with the Lord. 7 For we live by believing and not by seeing. 8 Yes, we are fully confident, and we would rather be away from these earthly bodies, for then we will be at home with the Lord. 2 Corinthians 5:6-8 NLT
			1 "Don't let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in Me. 2 There is more than enough room in My Father's home. If this were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? 3 When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with Me where I am. John 14:1-3 NLT