World and Life articles
New Messiahas
The red postcard has long been removed from our fridge door. In large white letters it read, ‘Cometh the Hour…’ alongside a picture of a man’s face. The ‘hour’ was last summer’s World Cup, held in Japan and South Korea; the man was David Beckham. The postcard captured the expectation felt by so many English football fans. Here was their messiah - the man who could lead the team and the nation to victory.
We do not have to search far to find people looking to others for deliverance and the fulfilment of their hopes. The worlds of sport, music and politics provide many examples. Some are self-proclaimed deliverers; others become messiahs in the minds of their fans. Years ago I heard on the radio of housewives ensuring that they had a Barry Manilow cassette to play in the car for reassurance as they stepped out into a new day. The thought may bring a smile to some, but I am sure that today many people place a similar dependence upon the likes of Robbie Williams or Britney Spears. People feel frightened; they are looking for someone to give them courage. People feel trapped; they are looking to someone to help them escape. People are pessimistic; they are searching for someone to give them hope.
If we are Christians, then in one sense we should feel encouraged by this. It merely confirms the Bible’s description of the human condition. Men and women without God are without hope; they are in the dark; they are weak slaves, needing to be rescued. As people look to and long for secular christ figures we at least see that they show a profound need for help beyond themselves. What an opening for the gospel! We must be courageous in pointing others to Jesus as their true deliverer. But how does he compare with contemporary messiahs?
Messiahs are meant to be strong. The media portray them as people who are above the pressures and pains of this world. They are like the people the psalmist envies: They have no struggles; their bodies are healthy and strong. They are free from the burdens common to man (Psalm 73:4-5). That is why David Beckham’s foot injury prior to the World Cup caused such a sensation. It was as though a nation suddenly realised their hero was human after all – weak and vulnerable like the rest of us! In his biography, Jonathan Edwards tells of the unbearable weight of expectation placed upon him to win triple jump gold at the Atlanta Olympics in 1996. The pressure was too great. He failed to deliver. By contrast we have Jesus the Messiah, who deliberately became weak, riding into Jerusalem on a donkey, yet conquered death itself. He is now able to save completely those who come to God through him (Hebrews 7:25). He copes with the expectations of millions.
Modern messiahs are bound to disappoint us. This summer at Wimbledon, Tim Henman failed (again) to fulfil British hopes of a British Champion. It merely illustrates the continual cycle of hope and disappointment experienced by so many people today. If you place your ultimate hope in anyone other than Jesus you will end with frustration and cynicism. It is possible to regard a friend or spouse as the answer to all your needs. But no human relationship can stand the pressure of that level of expectation. That is why many relationships fail. By contrast, the Bible presents Jesus as the one who will never disappoint us. Peter knew this by experience. He quotes words from Psalm 118 and applies them to Jesus:
See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone,
And the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame
(1 Peter 2:6)
Others need to see and know that our Messiah will never fail them if they put their trust in him.
So often the modern messiahs have little time for ordinary people. They preserve the distance between themselves and their followers. At the opening ceremony of the Commonwealth Games we saw David Beckham walk with a frail little girl, whose illness demands that she be linked constantly to an oxygen tank. They presented the Jubilee baton to the Queen. Apparently the Beckhams have done a great deal to help this child in her battle with illness. It was a touching moment. But I am reminded of the Lord Jesus’ compassion towards the sick, the troubled and the ‘nobodies’ he came across. He paused to speak with the sick woman who had just touched the edge of his coat. He is the personal Messiah, who invites the weary to come to him for rest. That is why Christians can sing today of Jesus in personal terms: ‘My Jesus, my Saviour, Lord there is none like you…My comfort, my shelter, tower of refuge and strength.’ He gives personal care and attention to all his followers.
Today’s messiahs have a short shelf life. They ultimately fail to satisfy the deepest longings of the soul. Earlier this year there was speculation over who would become the new manager of Preston North End. One rumour was that Kenny Dalglish, the famed Liverpool and Scotland striker of the 1970s and 80s, was among the favourites to take the post. When I mentioned this to my seven-year-old son, he replied, ‘Kenny who?’ One generation’s hero is unknown to the next! And the search continues for the true Saviour!
However, 2000 years have gone since our Lord Jesus entered our world. Today millions of people have found in him both deliverance from sin and the living hope of eternal life. They eagerly await his glorious return. The psalmist’s words are being fulfilled: one generation will commend your works to another (Psalm 145:4). And yet there remain so many in our own land, and further afield, who know nothing of the true Messiah. How can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? Let us rejoice in knowing him! Let us resolve, with God’s help, to make him known.