In the beginning, after the fall, there began the war between the two lines - the seed of the serpent and the seed of the woman. The serpent desires his own name glorified, and he is willing to stop at nothing to have his purpose fulfilled. The seed of the woman calls upon the name of the Lord and humbly acts as an agent to bring God's ultimate purposes about on earth. The climax of almost every story in history is experienced when the seed of the serpent seems to win the day. The threat of evil ultimately triumphing brings each and every one of us anxiously to the edge of our seat. We long for good to prevail.
Many authors and screen writers pick up on this and build their plot around it. From Jerry and Tom, James J. Braddock and Corn Griffin (from Cinderella Man), He-Man and Skelator (I just went way back!), to Batman and the Joker; billions are spent depicting the murderous intent (a.k.a. enmity; cf. Gen 3:15) between the two sides, in order that we might see and experience, on a screen or in a book, the war that really lies within our own hearts. We so deeply desire the victory in our own lives that we will spend time and resources to see it in someone else's (fiction or non).
This is also why almost every young boy wants to be a policeman. This is why my son loves super heroes. They always win the day over evil. They are strong, saving, and heroic. They give assurance to us that good will win.
Somewhere along the temporal line, however, boys cease desiring to be the good guy and resort to watching the good guy. Somewhere in our lives we sink from wanting to fight against evil to purchasing movies about another fighting against evil. In our youth we want to be good, but in our adulthood we are just fine watching someone else be good. Why is this?
After considering it for a few days, I have a few thoughts concerning the matter.
One reason is that boys are not weighed down with worldly worries and responsibilities. They are so sure of their provision that they can focus on providing for others. They are so comforted in their father's protection, they can focus on protecting others. With all their needs taken care of, they can focus on taking care of the needs of others.
Another reason is that too many boys are going unprotected and uncorrected. The image of God in all of us desires good to win. But being born into sin that image is marred. If left without godly nurture and admonition, sin degrades from bad to worse. A boy who once loved He-Man soon sides with Skelator. He takes down his posters of Batman and replaces them with posters of the Joker. His deep desire for good, is debased into a deep love for evil. A boy who once amused us, becomes a man who lives to abuse us. He's not funny anymore - except maybe to himself.
A lot of it begins in the home. When fathers distrust the provision of their heavenly father, they simply don't have time to be the hero. Too worried about saving their own lives, they lose them. And a lost life always drags others down with it. A father obsessed with his own ultimate needs, denies the protection and provision of the Lord who has repeatedly shown himself sufficient for the task. Too many fathers today are too stressed to see the sparrow.
Consequently, too many fathers are teaching their sons to be obsessed with self - their own desires, wants, dreams, and even morals. Others are nothing more than expendable hindrances who get in our way as we make a name for ourselves.
In these cases the serpent has done his job. He began at an early age. He sunk his fangs in ever so slowly. But his time is short. His fatal wound, prophesied long ago (Gen3:15) and secured at Calvary, is now on the redemptive horizon. Our good Hero will come with a shout, and his white robes will be dipped in the blood of his enemies as he treads them in the winepress of God's wrath (Rev19:13). This is the true story of Christ. This is the great story of our good Lord.
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