When the Hero Takes the Fall

CBN.com - Just when I thought the coast was clear, former Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Terrell Owens (TO) has surfaced again, this time for mentioning that the Eagles would be a better football team with Brett Favre as their quarterback rather than Donavon McNabb.

What would Super Bowl week be without TO? While the focus should have been on the Pittsburgh Steelers and Seattle Seahawks, the unemployed Owens found himself in the spotlight again, this time for reigniting a feud that most sports fans wish would just go away.

It was just the latest in a long running squabble between Owens and McNabb, one that resulted in TO’s dismissal from the team last October. For those of you who have missed out on all the drama, Owens has now played for two teams, San Francisco and Philadelphia, that have released him for insubordinate behavior. Furthermore, his shenanigans have wrecked the chemistry both teams.

Yet Terrell Owens remains a hero. Despite his tremendous lack of respect for any type of authority, Owens has become “the” free agent darling this off season. During Super Bowl week alone, the Denver Broncos, Kansas City Chiefs, and Miami Dolphins, have all let it be known that they are very interested in acquiring his services.

Terrell Owens is not a hero. While his physical gifting is nothing short of sensational, Owens’ personal integrity is woefully appalling. What teams always forget is that while sheer athleticism wins games, lack of personal integrity ruins seasons. Just ask the Philadelphia Eagles. But for whatever reason, teams at every level are always willing to take that chance.

Who is a true hero anyway? The latest Merriam-Webster Dictionary says a hero is an illustrious warrior, someone who is admired for his achievements and noble qualities, one who shows great courage, and someone endowed with great strength or ability.

Ok, so cutting through the literary clutter, we are basically looking for someone who is strong, admirable, noble, courageous, and has great ability. A hero is also someone whom people can look up to, emulate their actions, and put up on a pedestal as a shining example of personal excellence.

Does someone like Terrell Owens and a host of other players around sports meet these criteria?

Somehow these definitions don’t add up in today’s sports world. Terrell Owens is widely considered a hero yet he is missing many of these qualities. Sure he is strong with great ability and some would even consider him admirable. However, he is severely lacking in the nobility and courage department. Thus, he must be considered inadequate in our search for a true hero.

At one time or another, I think we have all thought about how wonderful it would be to be considered a hero by someone. To be looked up to, to be admired, to know that someone has modeled their life after ours is intoxicating. We all remember those hazy, lazy summer afternoons in the backyard dreaming of being the player who hit the game winning home run in the bottom of the ninth inning, or the figure skater accepting her gold medal at the Winter Olympics, or the football player who broke 17 tackles with grit-faced determination on his way to a touchdown.

But you know what? As glamorous and dizzying as that would be, children and even some adults don’t realize that being a hero comes with an incredible degree of responsibility. It is a burden that most of us ultimately don’t want. Worse still, we could never live up to the expectations that would be placed on us. Yet today’s sports stars are placed in just that position whether they like it or not. The problem is, we put them there.

Baseball legend Ted Williams was considered to be one of America’s ultimate heroes. Beyond all the glory the Splendid Splinter achieved on the baseball diamond, he also served two tours of military duty that consumed five and a half years of his baseball career. These were prime playing days indeed. Yet, on the day he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1991, Williams made this statement:

"Everyone has tried to make me a hero over the Korean thing. I was no hero."

Despite flying 39 combat missions as a Navy pilot, playing 19 seasons in the Major Leagues, and being the last player to hit .400 in a season, even American icon Ted Williams did not consider himself a hero. So, if Teddy Ballgame is not a hero, then just who is?

I am not saying our society is devoid of heroes in the 21st century. I am only pointing out that we need to be very careful about how we use that word to describe people’s behavior. There is no doubt the New York City firefighters, policemen, and emergency personnel who lost their lives as well as those who survived the 9/11 terrorist attacks are heroes. Yet a recent trip to the mall provided a sobering discovery of just how society feels about our heroism. While I was able to locate an abundance of people wearing Owens, Kobe Bryant, and Allen Iverson jerseys, I was hard pressed to find even a few wearing NYPD or NYFD hats.

I believe we are completely inadequate to say who is and who is not a hero. But I am quite confident in saying that the only true hero who ever trod upon earthly soil was none other than Jesus Christ. No, other man has changed so many lives in a positive, life changing way than our Lord and savior.

The word hero is used only four times in scripture. But nowhere in the Bible is Jesus mentioned as a hero. Conversely, in Matthew 21 He was treated with a hero’s welcome as he rode into Jerusalem on a donkey. Most of the crowd threw their coats down on the road or spread palm branches before him in a form of hero worship. However, no one called Him a hero. In fact, Jesus rode through the city on the humble transportation of a donkey, not a white stallion usually reserved for a king, but a lowly donkey.

While Lance Armstrong, Cal Ripken, and the late Pat Tillman provide excellent examples of courage and valor here on earth, they are completely and utterly inadequate when compared to Jesus Christ. No man is perfect but the son of God.

Jesus Christ is the hero of all heroes. He is humble yet strong, a teacher and friend, a counselor and great physician, a savior, and the prince of peace. No one will ever compare or live up to His example. For this, He should be worshipped.

That my friends is what a true hero is.

Portions contained within this article from the Transformer Study Bible.