Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
In the first Avengers movie, there is a scene in which the villain, Loki, forces a crowd of people to kneel before him, and then gives a short speech. He says this:
“Is not this simpler? Is this not your natural state? It’s the unspoken truth of humanity, that you crave subjugation. The bright lure of freedom diminishes your life’s joy, in a mad scramble for power, for identity. You were made to be ruled. In the end, you will always kneel.”
Our heroes save the day, of course; but, the cringe-worthy truth is that Loki wasn’t far off the mark. Throughout human history, no belief is more common than the one that says, “What we need is strong leadership!”
Given the choice between the chaos of anarchy and the tyranny of dictatorship, humans go with the strong leader every time. And, wouldn’t you know it, when a firm hand is needed, there are always people eager to “serve” in that capacity, like Loki. The fact that democratic societies perpetually vote for increased government control proves that the Asgardian was onto something.
The Bible documents this instinct to dominate and be dominated in many places. We have Israel’s rejection of self-rule under God, in favor of a human king who would crush them, in 1 Samuel 8. See also the parable told by Jotham in Judges 9:1-15, where we learn that those who seek to lead are often the ones who aren’t producing anything of actual value. The producers are too busy to care about controlling people. This may explain the plethora of lawyers in Congress.
When God created man in God’s image, he made them male and female and told them, together, to exercise dominion over all the creation. (Genesis 1:26-28) However, he never gave one image-bearer the authority to dominate another one.
That doesn’t mean there should be no leaders, or no one with authority. It means that Biblical leadership is not the same as Loki’s vision. In Loki’s mind, leadership means providing orderliness in society by coercion, threats, and force. For Jesus Christ, leadership meant making himself a servant; liberating people in need; and, boldly telling the truth, even in the face of Loki-clones.
Christian, do you need someone to keep you in line? Seriously? Your heart has been changed through the Gospel of Christ, right? You no longer desire to disobey God. You have come to love his commandments. You are indwelt by the Holy Spirit, who gives you the power to do right. You grow in the fruits of the Spirit from Galatians 5, including self-control. Do you need a strong, threatening, human hand to tell you how to live?
Well, no, pastor, I don’t. But it’s all these other people!
It’s the unwashed masses who are either too dumb or immoral to live right. And so (brilliant idea!) how about we put Loki in charge? I mean, sure, taxes will be high, but he’ll make the trains run on time.
George Orwell captured the essence of Loki government: it is the perpetual image of a boot stomping a human face. The Bible’s solution to evil in society is not more government, but more Gospel.
I need to be better about sharing that message of freedom in Christ. I hope you join me in that conviction.
Gordan Runyan is the pastor of Immanuel Baptist Church in Tucumcari. Contact him at: