Care Instructions for a Life Worth Living

Being a Servant in a Superhero World

The apostle Paul wrote two letters to the church in the city of Corinth. We must understand that Paul planted this church (Acts 18). He had shared the gospel with many of these church members; he had helped them grow in faith; he had disciplined them when they were living in disobedience; he had cheered them on when they were heading in the right direction. Paul had a special place in his heart for the church in Corinth and for the Corinthian believers.

If you read the first letter to the Corinthian church you realize that Paul had already mentored and helped these people through some pretty serious issues and problems. Now, a group of false teachers (or false apostles) had arrived in Corinth and stirred up dissension and disunity in the church. This young congregation was facing attacks from outside and from inside. Paul’s second letter came as a challenge to keep the main thing the main thing. He did not want to see this gathering of Christ followers distracted from the mission God had placed before them. So he takes on these false teachers who he refers to as “super-apostles” (2 Corinthians 11:5). You can almost see the big “S” printed on their togas. They were making claims that Paul was not powerful enough, not eloquent enough, not stately enough to be a real apostle.

In response, Paul paints a beautiful picture of a Christlike life of service. He reminds the people that he came not to be a super-apostle but to suffer and serve like Jesus. Then he calls the people of Corinth to this same pathway of humble service. In doing so, Paul is uncovering the sinister and ungodly spirit of the super-apostles.

It is sad to admit it but we need these same reminders in the church today. It seems the more things change, the more they remain the same. The culture of our time still lifts up the superhero and forgets the humble servant.

Just think about how this message is reinforced in the movies with every new season of releases. Each year brings new examples. Certain names conjure vivid pictures in our minds: Harrison Ford, Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise, Matt Damon, and Will Smith are just some of the male examples. Pick up a DVD in which one of these stars headlines and you expect to see things blowing up, extended chase scenes, and scenes where the sweaty hero needs to have his shirt off while engaging in muscle-flexing activities. By the end of the movie, the bad guys are dead and the hero stands triumphant among the wreckage of his victory. This is the superhero genre in a nutshell.

Very few of the movies are about the glory of being a servant. One exception is The Passion of the Christ. Into our superhero-loving world comes a countercultural invitation: Be a servant. Let your heart be captured with a desire to humbly follow the way of Jesus. 

We are not called to be super-apostles or even super-Christians. We are called to the way of service, and this begins when our hearts align with the heart of Jesus. When that happens, the world will be transformed — not by force, domineering power, or flexed muscles, but as ordinary Christians extend the love, grace, and presence of Jesus with humble and authentic hearts.