Clothed With Power: The Superhero Costume Change

I. Clothed With Power

A. In Need of a Superhero Costume Change

Don’t go anywhere, my Clark Kent-style Christian super hero, until you have a superhero costume change. Because God won’t let you blow when you do things His way. By going into His phone booth, you will succeed in making that power connection. This is where the superhero costume change takes place. Once properly outfitted, the mild-mannered “nobody” transforms into a man or woman capable of great exploits. (see Daniel 11:32)

This has profound spiritual applications for believers in Christ, called to spread the gospel which can save a person’s soul (see Matthew 28:18-20). For this, the Christian must take on God’s full armor (see Ephesians 6:10-18).

B. Believers are Already Super

Just as mild-mannered Clark Kent is really Superman, believers in Christ are already superheroes – as ordinary as they may appear on the outside. Like young Jeremiah, they might not look like someone to take seriously, but within burns a fire waiting to come out (see Jeremiah 20:9).

We are not our own but are “strangers and aliens” upon the earth (Hebrews 11:13). Having been crucified with Christ, who lives in us, we live by faith in Him. (Galatians 2:20). If anyone is in Christ, he or she is a new creation. The old has passed away. All things have become new. (II Corinthians 5:17) The believer doesn’t need a superhero costume change to prove his or her true identity. But being clothed with power is another matter.

II. The Superhero Costume Change Itself

Jesus instructed his first disciples (the apostles) not to leave Jerusalem but to wait for power from on high (Luke 24:49). That’s what they were to wear before going anywhere.

“But you shall receive power after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and you shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.”

They received this superhero costume change on the day of Pentecost where Peter preached his first sermon. As a result, approximately three thousand people got saved. (see Acts 2:42).

Notice that they received it while meeting in one place – an upper room (see Acts 1:13). It’s sort of like a phone booth, if you think about it. This is where Jesus clothed them with power from on high. What were they doing? Praying (see verse 14) – talking with God. Except He didn’t answer with a flashing light like in the movies, but I can just imagine that mighty, rushing wind. Who needs special effect when you have the real thing, right?

Ephesians 5:17-20 commands believers not to be unwise but to “be filled with the Spirit, speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs. This is our superhero phone connection.

Speed of Sight, a Superhero Adventure, is about an ordinary boy, Pete Plain, who undergoes an amazing superhero transformation. It is available on Amazon and Kindle. Feel free to check it out and see how he accomplishes this costume change.

https://sightspeed.wordpress.com/boy-from-broken-home-gets-super-powers/

https://sightspeed.wordpress.com/healing/comic-book-pete-summer-vacation/

From Shards of Shattered Homes New Heroes Arise

I. Shattered Homes: Signs of a Villain at Work

His home life: shattered. His peace: stolen. The world as he knows it: blown to bits.

Jesus said, “The thief (meaning Satan the accuser, also known as the devil) comes to steal, kill and destroy.” (John 10:10). The major villain of the story, Satan works behind the scenes, taking every chance he finds to ruin people’s lives. Unfortunately, he often succeeds.

Yet from shards of shattered homes, new heroes arise. This is a common superhero theme. Take the comic book figure Superman, for example, the hero from the exploded planet. He gets torn from his parents and his home gets shattered – literally. But after he lands on earth, he discovers he has superpowers which he uses for the good of all mankind.

Moses is another example. The “thief” in his day, Pharaoh, stole the Hebrews’ joy, killed their male babies, and destroyed their happiness. To save his life, his mother sent him sailing away from home. After he grew up, he led his people – his “shattered home,” if you will – out of bondage. With power from above, he freed them from the evil Pharaoh’s grip. Moses was like the superhero of the story, while Pharaoh played the villain role.

From a Christian viewpoint, the devil was and is the real villain, however. His influence results in many a shattered family. He enjoys ripping homes to shreds, leaving children with no sure place on which to stand. After all, how can they build their lives on sinking sand? Such “houses” always crumble. When storms beat on them, they sink. “And great was the fall of it.” (Matthew 7:27)

II. Brokenness May Help Provide a Cure

The resulting brokenness, however, may serve as a vessel to release the new hero into his destiny. That’s because, as he bursts forth from the eggshell that once shielded him, he discovers a new level of freedom. People who “walk on eggshells” no longer step on him. The Spirit of resurrection life he’s found in Christ gives him breath (see John 10:10 and Romans 8:2). He doesn’t have to feed off bland egg white anymore, but feasts freely off kernels of truth he finds inside God’s Word (see Deuteronomy 8:3 and Matthew 4:4).

Moreover, as he grows, he sees he can’t fix windows shattered by idolatrous points of view. But as he gazes at the only Rock worth serving, he gains a new perspective: who he is and what he’s called to do. As he sees God work bad situations in his life for good, he learns to trust Him more.

Speed of Sight Book Release

I’m excited to announce that Speed of Sight by C. R. Flamingbush has finally arrived. This young adult fantasy book follows the footsteps of an awkward boy who can’t seem to excel at much of anything. Then one day he enters a different realm and his life is changed forever.

“Twelve-year-old Pete Plain is an ordinary boy with an extraordinary secret who lives in a crazy town called Jericho. On the last day of school, his friend Jack gives him a powerful but illegal comic book—not to read but to hide. That afternoon the school bully shoots Jack with toxic slime. Uncertain how to help him, Pete sneaks a peek at the comic and gets drawn into a different world. There he goes on an unforgettable adventure.

When Jack discovers what Pete has done, he takes the book from him. Pete wants it back, but the forces of evil that haunt his hometown are determined to keep it from him. When Pete glimpses the ghostly grizzly dividing his family, he knows he must do something to stop it. The author of the forbidden comic books gives Pete special gifts of super sight and super speed, but will the boy from the broken home fully use those gifts or will he let himself be overcome by the bitter malady known as Sadly Absent Dad Syndrome? Much is at stake, for the slime is deadly, and catching the bullies behind it will prove to be no easy task.”

You can preview the first three chapters at Dove Christian Publisher’s website, https://www.dovechristianpublishers.com/catalog/christian-fiction/Speed-of-Sight/

The book is also available through Amazon

Kindle version $2.99 ; https://www.amazon.com/Speed-Sight-Superhero-C-R-Flamingbush-ebook/dp/B07D5HTCHP/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8

Print version $13.95 ; https://www.amazon.com/Speed-Sight-Superhero-C-R-Flamingbush/dp/0998669067/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1528251386&sr=1-1

You can also buy it through Barnes and Noble.

I hope you enjoy the book. If you like it, please feel free to post a review on Amazon.

King Jesus the Barrier Breaker

King Jesus the barrier breaker

Demolished the entrance to hell.

He shattered the gates and destroyed every chain

So that by His stripes we are made well.

Though He had no physical children,

Because that wasn’t His goal on earth,

He promised someday to return for His own,

The ones who’ve received a new birth.

“But that’s silly,” replied Nicodemus,

Well-versed in the script of the law.

“How can you be born again when you are old?

Do you have to return to your ma?”

“Does she have to get pregnant all over again,

So that you might return to her womb?

Why, you might have to shrink to the size of a pea

To reenter that dark little room!”

Christ’s metaphor puzzled this teacher

Who had studied so hard and so long

But knew little of praise perfected by babes

Or how to begin a new song.

But nevertheless, Jesus helped him,

Crashing through the locked gates of his mind

With pictures of water and wind and the bronze serpent

Moses raised up just in time

To heal people dying in darkness.

All who gazed at that pole were made well,

For it spoke of the sacrifice Jesus would make

To save His believers from hell.

Like Jonah who slept through a terrible storm,

But to calm it dove into the sea,

Jesus bore the gale’s lash as he felt the whip crash.

For our peace He hung on a tree.

With his last dying breath, “It is finished!”

He tore the great curtain in two,

So that people could now enter God’s holy place,

Through a living way trusted and true.

The barrier breaker has done it!

Through His death he atoned for our sin

And carried it into the depths of the earth

From the grave that they buried Him in.

The grave had no victory over Him though,

For the barrier breaker broke through,

Reigning over his foes as from death He arose.

Now He lives to make everything new.

But you don’t have to strive to receive it,

Though it may sound too good to be true.

Just repent and surrender your heart to the Lord,

And believe in your heart He’s for you.

Yes, the greatest superhero of all time, Jesus the barrier breaker, is for you, not against you and He wants to give you a breakthrough! In order to receive it, you must believe it.

“Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; and deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.” Hebrews 2:14-15

https://miracle-times.com/healing/king-jesus-superhero-healer/

When King Jesus Swoops In

When King Jesus swoops into your midst, it changes everything…

When King Jesus swooped into their midst, they were stunned

At how quickly he rescued the man they had shunned.

For they had desired to keep the dude down,

Ignoring his pain like the rest of the town,

While fixating on their own fame and renown.

At first, they weren’t scared when King Jesus came in.

Then they saw his cape shedding light on their sin.

“Is it lawful to do good or bad on this day?”

He surprised them by asking. “Which one is okay?”

But their sad, hardened hearts didn’t know “yea” from “nay.”

“Would you rescue a donkey that fell in a pit?”

He questioned the leaders. “Or just let it sit?”

He exposed their identities once and for all,

For unmasking villains was part of His call,

Besides saving hungry souls hurt by the fall.

Though the king’s divine nature stayed carefully concealed,

His powerful words got the poor fellow healed.

The crowd gasped, astounded, at His bold command

When they saw new strength enter the man’s shriveled hand.

His accusers shrank back at the king’s reprimand.

Like those who had Daniel thrown into a den,

They didn’t want healing but wished for revenge.

They envied King Jesus and wanted him dead,

And soon ugly thorns would encircle his head.

They seemed to view God’s wrath as nothing to dread.

As they plotted to murder this innocent man,

Did they realize their actions fit into God’s plan

For rescuing all who would one day believe

And by the Lord’s mercy forgiveness receive

Through the great superhero they’d chosen to grieve?

Like the rest of us, they had to make a decision

And chose to push God in a well of derision.

They hated the donkey that fell in the pit,

And if no one was looking, they’d just let it sit.

King Jesus they didn’t respect – not a bit!

But one day, King Jesus again will swoop in,

This time as a ruler whose reign has no end,

Administering justice and bringing correction,

He’ll unveil the power of His resurrection,

And rescue all who trust Him for protection.

Not everybody likes a healing. Religious people who have a problem with pride, like the Pharisees in Jesus’ day, may actually dislike such miracles. When Jesus healed a man’s withered hand as described in the third chapter of Mark’s gospel, the Pharisees hated him for it and plotted to kill him. They’re the villains in the story, but Jesus is the superhero everyone can trust.