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Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

If you’ve walked by my office you probably know I’m a fan of superheroes.  I have a lot of them lined up on my shelves … but, Batman and Ironman are my two favorites.  They’re pretty much normal, everyday guys.  They have superior intellects they know how to use.  But, day-to-day, they’re pretty normal.  They couldn’t do the “super hero” thing, without their “suits.”  The suits transform them into superheroes capable of saving people from evil villains. 

There are superheroes like this in the real world too.  I’m thinking of the regular people around us who, when equipped with special suits and tools are transformed to do some pretty incredible things to save others from trouble they find themselves in … for example properly trained and equipped firefighters, paramedics, law enforcement personnel, and members of the military are pretty much normal people who do remarkable things to help others in need.  But, still, these people only have limited superpowers. In fact, I would argue, all of us are like this in some way. 

God's Word shows many people just like us … normal, average, run of the mill people who are called to be superheroes in a sense by doing the will of God our Father, our Creator.  Ezekiel was the son of a priest living in exile until called by God to be His personal messenger to Israel.  He was a normal guy with no special powers until God spoke to Him, “Son of man, stand on your feet, and I will speak with you.” (Ezekiel 2:1) God gave Ezekiel the superpower of His Spirit so He could proclaim God’s word of truth into the world of “rebellious people” in order to save them from sin and eternal death.  In 2 Corinthians 12:1-10, St. Paul describes how he, a “tent maker” by trade and persecutor of Christians, was made strong enough to proclaim God’s word of truth by God Himself despite his weaknesses in the flesh.  And Jesus, the Son of God, took His crowd of uneducated, unimpressive disciples and sent them into the world clothed ONLY with the superpower of His word of authority to battle sin and evil.  We hear these superheroes “cast out many demons and … healed (many).” (Mark 6:13) In faith, God called all these people, just like you and me, and gave them the gift of His word to proclaim in truth to the world.  He made these average folks into superheroes through whom He saves a lost and sinful world from eternal death through faith in Jesus Christ, His Son, by the power of the Holy Spirit.

You and I are normal, average, unassuming people.  Alone, we’re truly weak and unable to do much in the way of eternal consequence.  However, in Baptism God our Father clothes us in Christ, fills us with the Holy Spirit, and gives us the power to believe and proclaim His word to a lost and sinful world.  As we turn to Him … trust Him … and let Him work in the world through us … He transforms each of us with the unlimited superpower of His word into superheroes He uses to save the world.

                                                                                    In the Love of Christ,

                                                                                    Pastor Jim