Five thoughts about the MAN of Steel

I saw the movie "Man of Steel," and I thought 5 things about it:

(If you haven't seen it yet, read this after you see it.)

1.  He was manly!  Definitely, undeniable manly.  Yes, still and outcast.  Bullied.  Misunderstood.  Rejected.  But without a doubt a man.  Not just the facial hair and hairy chest.  Not just him sipping on a beer and watching football (which are NOT what I define as manly...but you feel me,)  but his attitude.  He refused to be controlled.  He seemed immovable.  Manly.

2.  He was perhaps purposely a "Christ figure."  A Savior.  This movie, and the one before it don't try to deny it.  There is  a scene where Kal-El (Superman's birth name) is in church, seeking wisdom.  A picture of Christ is strategically placed behind him.  The only thing more obvious about this, other than his outstretched arms in one scene, is the scene in the previous movie, "Superman Returns," with Superman and Lois:

Yet not only is Superman seen as a Savior in terms of saving lives, but also in transforming people into his image, as expressed in the words of Kal-El's father, Jor-El:

Jor-El:  You will give the people an ideal to strive towards. They will race behind you, they will stumble, they will fall. But in time, they will join you in the sun. In time, you will help them accomplish wonders.

3. I noticed the very obvious connection between evolutionary assumptions and amorality, or immorality, as expressed in this quote from one of Superman's villains:

Faora:  [Beating up Kal-El] You have a sense of morality and we do not. And that gives us an Evolutionary Advantage. And if there's one thing that History teaches us it's that Evolution always wins. 

Of course, she was wrong.  But the assumption of evolution could not be denied.

4.  Again, in his manliness, there was an emphasis on manliness, or what it means to be a man.  Before he became a hero, he had to decide what kind of man he would be:
  
Jonathan Kent: You're not just anyone. One day, you're going to have to make a choice. You have to decide what kind of man you want to grow up to be. Whoever that man is, good character or bad, it's going to change the world. 

Jor-El: Every person can be a force of good.

5.  Perhaps the words that impacted me most, next to the words above from Jonathan Kent and Jor-El, are these words from the priest who spoke to Kal-El when he sought guidance:
 
 "Sometimes you have to take a leap of faith first. The trust part comes later."
 

This is where I am in my life, and what I'm doing.  

I've chosen the man I will be:  

An image and likeness of Christ, 

A force of good that will change this world.

I've taken my leap of faith.

I trust Christ to catch me.

To save me.

To make me like him:

 A man of steel--A Christ like man.

Was Jesus ever OBNOXIOUS?

The answer should be obvious to us.

But it isn't.

The word "Christian" means "Christ like."

If Christians are obnoxious, then they communicate to those who don't believe in Christ that they are being like Him; and that He is, indeed, obnoxious.

I was once accused of this, which means at that moment, I was not being like Christ.

According to dictionary.com, the word "obnoxious" means:
  
Annoying or objectionable due to being a showoff or attracting undue attention to oneself.

Let's focus on the word "annoying," which means:

To disturb or bother (a person) in a way that displeases, troubles, or slightly irritates.

Jesus was NEVER described as annoying or irritating.  Yes, some hated him to the point of killing Him, but not because He was annoying or irritating to listen to or be around.  Quite the opposite.  Notice these descriptions of Jesus from scripture:

People were overwhelmed with amazement. "He has done everything well," they said. "He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak." Mark 7:37 NIV

The Pharisees heard the crowd whispering such things about him. (That He was possibly the Messiah) Then the chief priests and the Pharisees sent temple guards to arrest him.

Finally the temple guards went back to the chief priests and Pharisees, who asked them, “Why didn’t you bring him in?”

“No one ever spoke the way this man does,” the guards declared.

“You mean he has deceived you also?” the Pharisees retorted. “Has any of the rulers or of the Pharisees believed in him? No! But this mob that knows nothing of the law—there is a curse on them.” John 7:32,45-49 Parenthetical note mine.

Notice, they didn't say that Christ did SOME things or MOST things well...except that sometimes His voice is irritating...AND OBNOXIOUS!  The guards, sent to arrest Him, couldn't stop listening to Him.

Now what makes me write these words are two experiences I've had recently where I've experienced obnoxiousness among my brothers and sisters in the Lord, the obnoxiousness of which I myself was accused one time in the past.

One is a musician...specifically a "Christian Rapper."

The others are ministers, speakers I've heard on "Christian Radio."

I'm torn with the Christian Rapper.  (I actually bought his CD for my birthday.)  I love the music and the words, but the WAY the words are spoken irritates me at times.  I've tried to be open minded to his style, or his accent, or his personality...and part of me really likes how he raps.  But part of me feels irritated for two reasons:

1.  At times I simply cannot understand what he is saying.

2. At other times, even when I do understand the words, I don't understand the references.  Alot of rap is highly slang oriented, as well as  American youth culture oriented, which is understandable because youth are usually the target audience.  But this doesn't lessen the annoyance of not being able to follow what the rapper is saying sometimes.

After all, as Paul said in dealing with the abuse or misuse of tongues in I Corinthians 14, all languages have significance in the context of COMPREHENSION.  In other words, it is pointless for the speaker to speak in such a way that FAILS to be comprehensible to the listener. 

Because of the target audience situation, I can bare the irritation of point two.  But point one is different entirely.  Part of the issue with not understanding the rapper seems to be his exaggeration of a southern accent...but at times it becomes ridiculous.  The way the rapper pronounces certain vowels is just plain WRONG!  Not simply an accent...but wrong!  To the point where English vowels simply lose their meaning.  Now this is not an issue of "proper English" or "Ebonics" or anything related to race or ethnicity.  Some ethnicities simply don't use vowels in their native languages the way Americans do.  I perfectly understand, respect, and even like this.   

What I'm speaking of is the EXAGGERATION that I hear in the rapper's communication.  It sounds like he is TRYING to mispronounce these vowels, as if he is REVELING in the inaccuracy of some of his southern accents.  For example, take the word, "ungodly."  This rapper pronounces it "an-Gad-lih."   

OK.  

I'm from the south, born and raised in Macon, Georgia.  Some say I don't have very much of a southern accent (which may be due to my mother being an English teacher.)  Yet there are words that betray my southern origin.   But there is NO excuse for "an-Gad-lih."  NONE! 

In addition to all of this, his voice sounds somewhat whiny and juvenile at times, which leads me to my issues with some Christian ministers on some Christian radio stations. 

Some of the male ministers sound like they just turned 13...whiny, cracking, grating voices.  It seems like they are trying to express sincerity, or passion, or intensity, maybe even comedy.  But they sound like they just reached puberty, which is not how Christ sounded.

I don't listen to these men or the rapper and think, “No one ever spoke the way this man does.”  

Quite the opposite!  I usually think, "This guy sounds EXACTLY like the last guy did!"  Or, "This rapper sounds like a Christian version of Lil' Wayne,"  aka "LIL WEEZY!!"

 (LOL!  I finally have an excuse to write those words!) 

I hope you are with me, that you "feel me."

I'm not saying Christians shouldn't use slang or can't have a southern accent, or pronounce things "wrong."  I'm saying that the effect we have on people when we speak or act should NEVER be obnoxiousness.  Of course this doesn't mean people will always like what we say, or like to listen to us.  But their hatred shouldn't be based on our inherent annoyingness.  Instead, they should hate us as they hated our Lord:  Because we live and speak the truth in such a convicting way that they know where they stand in their rejection of God.