The Dark Knight, Santa, and Baby Jesus

A man in a red suit, a large antlered beast, the sound of sleigh bells ringing on a snowy night, and a raised crossbow loaded for battle?!?! That’s right crew; you are not reading a typo there. Earlier this month DC Comics published a comic series (Silent Knight) featuring our big man in red, a.k.a. Santa Clause (though he prefers to be called Chris Kringle) showing up in a way that would get our D&D nerds amped for an impromptu session. One of the best parts of this series was the different heroes’ reactions to the reality that Chris was not a holly jolly guy, but an epic, battle-worn warrior. Turns out that Chris doesn’t just deliver presents to boys and girls, but fights off the things that go bump in the night for the sake of the world’s safety.  Reading through this series made Santa interesting for me.  Like I would look at pictures of Santa throughout Christmas and would automatically translate those images to Chris from the comics.

We have a bit of a habit in doing this with Jesus, especially around the holiday season.  As Ricky Bobby (Talladega Knights) prays, “Dear, nine pound, nine ounce…baby Jesus.” all because he prefers to pray to the baby version of Jesus.  But we tend to keep him like that or look to other images that feel less confrontational. Our tendency is to hover more on aspects or moments with Jesus that are the warm and welcoming images (kid blesser, outcast receiver) and forget/neglect the aspects where Jesus has some major call outs (table flipping, Pharisee bashing). In all of it we can’t forget that really Jesus is God in flesh (John 1:14), that in all He did was in obedience and reflecting what God would have done (John 5:19). We need to step out of our comfort zone and our dispositions to see the Jesus that is in the Gospels for what He truly is.  It is by doing that we have a richer understanding of not only what Jesus is like, but how we are supposed to be when connected to Him, the Father, and the Holy Spirit.

What have you read or heard about Jesus that gave you a mental shift in who He is and what He is like? How has that perspective shift changed the way you live, connect with God, and act in the world around you?

Comments

  1. AnonymousJanuary 5, 2024 at 8:32 AM

    Jesus came as a baby to die on the cross...ever thankful for the gift of salvation..He is my mighty King and my personal Warrior..

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Like this? You might also like these other Between the Panels posts

Ich bin euer schild!

Image
What's not to love about a character like Reinhardt (Overwatch tank hero)? He is a giant, older man who dives into the fray to protect his team in the middle of the fight.  This epic, German hero not only has a ginormous rocket hammer and massive armour, but also sports an immensely huge energy shield.  An energy shield that acts as both protection and a mobile fortress for the team to advance their ground.  However, this all pails in comparison to the enthusiastic battle cry from this mythically large brute, "Ich bin euer schild!" Translated from German to English (varified by our own German International Staff) "I am your shield!" As a player in the game I have seen this shield in action and it definitely offers a sense of peace as well as a drive to advance forward in competitive game play. I know in my life I have been in what feels like a battlefield.  A battlefield in my mind of what I think of myself or the worry of what others think about me.  The battle
Read more

What kind of Lantern are you?

Image
What kind of lantern are you ? Kind of a weird question to ponder on isn't it. You might respond back with "Well what's the purpose of the lantern? What do you mean by using the word 'lantern'?" These are valid responses/questions to bring up, but I pose this question in processing what Jesus says in Matthew 5:14-16 , " You are the light of the world - like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house . In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father." Not going to lie, this makes me think of Kilowag (a Green Lantern member and mentor), teaching Hal Jordan on how to be a GL ( Green Lantern ) and how to use his ring. Hal joined something that he had no idea what he was doing: how do you fight with light? Jesus is doing the same thing.  In other parts of
Read more

Talking with God: Shaman King and David

Image
Imagine you could have someone that you are able to just chat with at any point and time. Some of you may already have an image of a friend or you are reflecting on your last chill time with them. Don't get me wrong, that's awesome and we all need friends that we can connect with like that. However, that can only happen if that person is there or available.  What I am talking about is a connection that cannot be severed by distance, signal, or availability.  I am talking about the connection with you and God. My favourite example of this connection is Yo and Amidamaru from Shaman King . Yo is a high schooler who is able to connect with spirits and he makes a connection with Amidamaru to get stronger to become the Shaman King. What makes these two stand out is there communication between each other. Yo does not treat this spirit like it is something that can be ignored; there is a friendship/bond there that he connects with Amidamaru in sincerity. Whenever they face different
Read more