Paul's Time-Travel Superman Adventure

Suggested Reading: Acts 14:8-20

There is an episode of Smallville (a show about Clark Kent before he became Superman) where Clark decides the time has come to reveal himself to the world. He does an interview, gets his story printed, and is an immediate celebrity. People begin giving him free coffees and newspapers because of all the good he does in saving people. Crowds applaud as he walks down the street. Girls throw themselves off of buildings just so that he will catch them. He is seen as a hero who selflessly gives of himself to the world at large.

Until another reporter prints a story claiming Clark Kent is the first wave of an alien invasion and fabricates evidence linking him to a murder.

Suddenly, Clark Kent goes from admired hero to renegade outlaw. The police try to round up all of his friends, looking for a weakness to use against Clark. The S.W.A.T. team arrives at his farmhouse to bring him in for questioning. Overnight, Clark Kent becomes a wanted outlaw. Eventually, Clark has to pull the tried and true sci-fi time-travel technique in order to set things straight and keep the whole scandalous episode from happening. In the end, Clark decides that the world simply isn't ready to know about him yet, at least not by his real name.

Clark's journey from admired hero to wanted outlaw in less than a day parallels a similar journey in the book of Acts. Paul and Barnabas were in the city of Lystra, preaching the Gospel, and Paul healed a crippled man. When the crowds saw what Paul had done, they immediately proclaimed that Paul and Barnabas were gods in human form, naming Barnabas as Zeus, and Paul as Hermes, because Paul did most of the speaking. Paul and Barnabas tried to explain to the people that they were ordinary human beings and that God alone was responsible for the miracle, but it was all they could do to keep the people from making sacrifices to them. Shortly after that, some of Paul's Jewish adversaries from Antioch showed up and turned the once adoring crowds against them until "They stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, apparently dead. But as the believers stood around him, he got up and went back into the city" (Acts 14:19-20, NLT). In just a few short days, Paul went from being considered a god to being stoned by a rioting mob!

Now, none of us can claim to be either Paul or the Man of Steel, but we should never be surprised when people who are really excited about us then turn on us. Too often, we place very unrealistic expectations on other people and when those expectations are not met, disappointment and even anger soon take the place of that initial excitement. Jesus experienced the same phenomenon when the expectant crowds from Palm Sunday realized that Jesus was not the kind of political messiah they had been hoping for.  Ministers have the same experience when congregations expect them to come in and, by their sheer presence, to radically transform their church or youth group overnight, becoming extremely disappointed when it doesn't happen.

If you feel like people have turned on you and that all the good will you once had has been forgotten, remember that you are not alone and don't try to gain back their approval by being what people want you to be. Follow Christ, live out your calling, and allow God to work through people's disappointment and disillusionment.  We can't control people's emotional highs and lows. We can only control whether or not we live consistent, Christ-centered lives. 

What Might Have Been?

Suggested Reading: Philippians 1:3-18

One of the most interesting questions to ponder is "What might have been?" Numerous stories have been told and movies made about the question. It's a Wonderful Life explores what might have been if George Bailey had never been born. The Family Man explores what might have been if a corporate CEO had made a priority of the woman he loved rather than his career. Numerous science fiction shows experiment with time travel to the past and attempt to picture what might have been if just one little thing had been different in the course of human events.

One of the reasons this theme has been so prevalent in popular fiction is the fact that people are constantly wondering "What might have been if…?" What might have been if I had majored in something different in college? What might have been if I had taken that risk rather than banking on the sure thing? What might have been if I had married someone different? What might have been if I had gotten that promotion? What might have been if I had said something when I had the chance?

Acts 25 gives us a biblical example of a "What might have been different" story.  Paul had been speaking in his own defense before Festus because he had been accused of a number of crimes against the temple and against Rome. His primary accusers had requested that Paul be sent back to Jerusalem to face the charges and Festus had asked Paul about the request. Paul, knowing that a conspiracy to kill him was probably underway, declared that he was under no obligation to go back to Jerusalem and then, as was his right as a Roman citizen, Paul appealed to Caesar, ensuring that he would be taken to Rome and not back to Jerusalem.

Festus, later, discussed Paul's case with king Agrippa, seeking his advice on writing his report to Caesar and Paul was given the chance to share his story with Agrippa. Once Agrippa heard Paul's defense, Agrippa declared, "This man could have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar" (Acts 26:32, NIV). In the following years of imprisonment waiting for his appeal to be heard and the many hardships that accompanied those years, I am sure Paul must have wondered, "What might have been different if I had not appealed to Caesar?" Would he have been sent back to Jerusalem and killed? Would Agrippa have simply freed him, allowing him to resume his missionary work?  Would he have spent so much time in prison cells or under house arrest? How many things would have been different?

In Philippians 1:12, however, Paul discussed not what might have been but what had been, He wrote, "Now I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel" (NIV).  Paul went on to describe how his continuing imprisonment had led many of his guards to Christ and how other believers had been encouraged by his example. I'm sure Paul wondered what might have been, but his questions did not keep him from seeing what was. Paul didn't allow the missed possibilities to blind him to the ways God was moving in the present.

Have you been stuck, wondering what might have been different or what could have been better? There is nothing necessarily wrong with those questions. But don't allow them to sidetrack you from what God is doing in your life right now. Don't miss the blessings that are right in front of you because you are distracted by uncertain possibilities of what might have been. We are not given the knowledge of what might have been. All we can do is make the most of what is.

Additional Reading: Acts 25-26