Superman came out a couple months ago with big waves and is now available on Blu Ray…which is how I watched it today. I saw it in theaters and had wanted to see it again before writing a blog post from it. This new adaptation on the popular hero is showing us life with Krypto the Super Dog…who is not a very good dog. For first time in live action, we get Guy Gardner (played by Nathan Fillion!), Metamorpho (played by Anthony Carrigan), and even the Engineer (played by Maria Gabriela de Faria).
Spoilers!
Nicholas Hoult gave us a great performance as Lex Luthor. In one scene he blatantly tells Superman:
“I’m not dim. I’m aware envy consumes my every waking moment…. I know when they mention Galileo or Einstein or one of these other twits in the same breath as me, I feel a tide of vomit burn the back of my throat! But at least Galileo did something. He wasn’t some dopey Venusian catapulted onto this planet just to have the world fawn over him! Because his strength illuminates how WEAK we all really are! So, my envy is a calling! It is the sole hope for humanity, because it is what has driven me to annihilating you!”
Lex is aware that envy drives him in his hatred for Superman. He knows that he is driven by vice rather than love or compassion. He has no respect for other humans which we see in how he treats people; keeping his exes that wisely turned against him in prison in a pocket universe. So, he purposely used an invasion by one country into another country to get Superman riled up so he’d have leverage to get the US Government to approve his plan to take Superman out of the picture.
He certainly does have intelligence in this movie. I think his version of Lex does seem more interesting and intelligent than some other versions, including the version played by Jesse Eisenberg. He showcases how deep humanity can really go into darkness.
James 4:1-3 warns us about our own inner motivations.
What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.
We have seen a lot of “us vs them” attitudes around our country for the last few years. We’ve also seen nations attack other nations. But most of us have even seen ugliness in our own circles. Friends who betrayed other friends, people we lost to arguments, but also our own foolish choices. Our focus on pushing people instead of listening. James then gives us a remedy not by human minds, but responsive to human honesty.
Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.
James 4:7-10
Healing comes when we see our own depravity and, unlike Lex, we actually seek help from Christ. When we humble ourselves and confess our sins, He is present with us. When we stop laughing at our stupidity and mourn our false choices, He is present with us. It is only with His hand and presence that we can resist the devil. That order is important.
Superman isn’t God. He can’t save us from our sins. But Christ is God and offers both forgiveness and His own Spirit to sustain us. Superman can remind us of who God is. Even as a fictional character he can inspire us, but he cannot do what Jesus did on the cross, bearing our sins to bring freedom to us. Enjoy the inspiration from Clark (and from Pa Kent) but keep your eyes on Jesus. Compare the fantasy-based efforts of Superman with the real-life victories of Jesus.