“Where Have All the Heroes Gone?”
By Pastor Ron Buxton
It all went down on September 29th 2006. Most reading this now have never heard about it. And, sadly, it is my opinion that many of today’s cultural elitists want it that way. You see, we live in the age of the “anti-hero”. Instead, we are shown–over and over again–that all the heroes of the past were just deeply flawed individuals. And so, allow me to push against that trend today.
His name was Petty Officer Second Class Michael Monsoor. As a member of the elite US Navy SEALS, he was assigned to Task Unit Bravo in Ar Ramadi in Iraq. What he did there places him, undeniably, in the category of a modern day hero. And we desperately need to understand his story and its significance.
On September 29th 2006, Monsoor was upon a rooftop to provide early warning and protection from insurgents in that area of Iraq. And he was not alone. Two other fellow soldiers were also positioned on that same roof with him. And, tragically, they were not alone either. Suddenly, an insurgent from an unseen location threw a hand grenade which bounced off Monsoor’s chest! I now borrow the words of President George W. Bush: “Although he could have escaped the blast, Petty Officer Monsoor chose instead to protect his teammates. Instantly, and without regard for his own safety, he threw himself onto the grenade to absorb the force of the explosion with his body, saving the life of his two teammates.” Those words were read on April 8th 2008 at Monsoor’s posthumous awarding of the Medal of Honor.
Folks, very few people would have reacted as Michael Mansoor did. No doubt, if a person felt a grenade bounce off their chest, the most common reaction would be to flee. And nobody would blame them for doing so. But what Monsoor did was not without a precedent. In fact, it was an almost literal imitation of Jesus Christ Himself! Some of you already knew this. However, sadly, far too many people do not. Christ declared: “Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15:13) And that is exactly what happened on September 29th 2006.
I conclude with this question: Where have all the heroes gone today? Well, I submit to you that ignorance of the Bible has led to their absence. And many cultural elitists want it that way. How can I say that? The self-evident truths, that we once took for granted to inform morality, are now evaporating among all that anti-hero propaganda. It’s the whole deconstructionalism that I’ve referenced in previous articles. And so, most people are conditioned to just collect “participation trophies” in life rather than go beyond themselves into something heroic. Folks, the Bible inspires us to a life much more fulfilling than that! My prayer is that you would encounter the “Hero of all heroes” today: Jesus Christ! You’ll find that inspiration from Him in the Bible.
