Spider-Man 2: With Great Sequels Comes Even Greater Responsibility

In a matter of weeks (at the time of this writing), gamer will finally get their hands on one of the most anticipated sequels to hit ANY console… Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, the follow-up to the best-selling Spider-Man titles (Spider-Man and Spider-Man: Miles Morales) lovingly crafted by Insomniac games. And because the first game did so much to raise the bar for the entire superhero game genre as well as open-world adventure games in general, this one is going to have some pretty massive shoes to fill. So, what does this mean for Peter Parker, Miles Morales, and all who dare to support them in their battle against crime? As you might expect, it means even MORE iconic villains, even HIGHER stakes, and a story that will push both of our friendly neighborhood protagonists to their mental and physical limits. From dangerous adversaries such as Kraven the Hunter, the Lizard, and the monstrous and iconic nemesis Venom, both Peter and Miles will have their web-slinging hands full… and in a proper sequel, that is what we should expect. I mean, who picks up the next game in a series and expects it to be easier? Sure, our main characters are stronger and have grown in their skills and capabilities, but this ALSO tends to draw even MORE challenging enemies out of the woodwork. And for characters like Peter and Miles, one has to wonder what else could they possibly lose after enduring so much pain in their young lives already? And the unfortunate answer for both of them is that those early struggles were just the beginning… because with great sequels comes even greater responsibility.

One of the reasons that the character of “Spider-Man” has been so relatable for generations is that whether it is Peter Parker, Miles Morales, or any other of the individuals who have donned the mask, they did not go out looking for trouble. They were not rich and ambitious like Tony Stark, nor were they selected by the government to save the free world like Captain America. They were just ordinary people trying to live their lives when a destiny they never asked for literally BIT them and dragged them into adventures they were not seeking out on their own. But that miraculous spider bite seemed to come with more curses than blessings… at a young age these characters had loved ones ripped from their lives, were caught up in wars that should have never been theirs to fight, and along the way they still had to find a way to operate as a normal student in school/employee on the job while hiding the wounds and scars of these epic battles underneath their clothes. And as these various “Spider-people” attempt to find their place in a world that both needs them desperately but typically fails to appreciate them and the sacrifices they are making to make their city a safer place to live, I think we all find a part of ourselves in their struggle. A struggle that will only get more difficult and demand even MORE from each of them in the next game.

In our real world lives, we find a very similar rule present as well… with higher callings and greater destinies comes increased adversity and an ever-growing list of battles to fight. Throughout the Scriptures, we can find countless examples of individuals who were given the honor of a mission or a ministry from the Lord that seemed to drag them into battlefields that they never asked for and through warzones that almost seemed punitive… those selected to serve the Lord from the highest of positions like Moses or Paul did so from a place that required the greatest of sacrifices, with Moses spending the final forty years of his life walking in circles across the desert (Joshua 5:6) while Paul endured the kind of imprisonments, beatings, and shipwrecks that would even make Spider-Man feel sorry for him (2 Corinthians 11:23-33). And even those who are simply attempting to serve the Lord from a place of good conscience like in the cases of Job (who endured the loss of his family, fortune, and health) or Mary, the mother of Jesus (who was forced to flee her home and raise Jesus in Egypt for years), will typically find that the Lord’s deepest blessings are often accompanied by a massive target on our backs. And that can lead to a very frustrating feeling… what is the point in serving the Lord if it is going to come packaged with all of this pain? Why seek out and fulfill a calling on our lives if it only brings MORE adversity into our already overwhelmed existence? What is the value in being “Spider-Man” if it only brings MORE hurt, MORE pain, MORE problems, and MORE responsibilities? It would be so much easier if we had never been bitten, or perhaps had even chosen to hide it and the abilities it gave us… ignoring the destiny that this “bite” thrust upon us and choosing to live a “normal life” instead. It is time for some answers…

One of the best Biblical examples of a young person having their gifts turned into a series of unfortunate events is Joseph, a boy who was gifted with a spiffy new coat and a couple of interesting dreams that had the undesired outcomes of turning his previously comfortable life upside down (Genesis 37:1-9). Joseph was living a pretty cozy life as one of his father’s favorite children when the jealousy of his brothers resulted in him being stripped of his precious coat, carried far from his family and home, and sold into slavery in a foreign land. His fancy gifts and dreams didn’t seem to be helping him out too much… even when he tried to make the best of his “new normal” as a slave, he was falsely accused of a crime and thrown into prison (Genesis 39). But while it seemed that everything that Joseph valued was being stripped away (his family, home, life, job, that coat, etc.), the reality was that each of these uncomfortable places his destiny was carrying him to was giving him the opportunity to build and cultivate the skills that he would have never gained sitting comfortably on a couch eating grapes in his fancy coat. Skills that he would DESPERATELY need when it was time to face the “final boss” of his particular predicament… a global famine that would decimate the country and cost countless lives (including that of his own family), if he didn’t take action to do what he had been secretly preparing for through these adverse experiences his entire life. The happy ending to the story is that these events placed Joseph into a position to save EVERYONE that mattered to him… and when his brothers stood before him in shame and in fear of his response to their villainous actions, Joseph shared the wisdom that could only have been gained from his obedience through these trials. Joseph learned that the evil that was intended to harm him was powerfully used by the Lord to help him save those he could not have reached any other way… a mission he could NOT have achieved by simply staying safely at home wrapped up in his colorful coat.

Genesis 50:20 But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive.

The truth is that Peter Parker, Miles Morales, and every other soul in any other timeline or multiverse who has carried the burden of being “Spider-Man” in their world has been forced to graduate from being a “friendly, neighborhood Spider-Man” to a galactic super-hero, growing from battling low-level crooks and bullies to taking on Avenger-level threats… all while still trying to find a way to pay the rent on time and afford groceries. The mission of being “Spider-Man” didn’t make those who wore the suit rich or comfortable… it actually cost them any opportunity to live what could be considered a “normal life”. And in the sequel to their previous adventures, the stakes will only climb higher because that is what sequels DO. But despite the cost to what they may have originally thought was “normal life”, they will dive headfirst towards danger once again… because that is what HEROES do. 

I hope this encourages you today in whatever “neighborhood” you find yourself serving the Lord from today… the devotion that we demonstrate to serve the Lord and the destiny we have each been called to will many times feel like it is bringing even more adversity into our lives than if we had chosen to simply ignore that “spider bite” and the new responsibilities it is asking of us. That’s because it IS bringing more adversity into our lives, and for every challenge that we overcome, entirely new and more difficult ones will ABSOLUTELY take their place… Paul said we should count on it (2 Timothy 3:12). But let’s not grow weary in our service to Christ (Galatians 6:9-10), even when it seems like every action we take on His behalf only causes the target on our backs to grow in magnitude. The beauty of Spider-Man 2 is that while the villains and obstacles that our heroes have to face are only getting more challenging and dangerous, Peter and Miles are not jumping into this game as rookies nor are they going to face these obstacles alone. They carry what they have learned from their previous adventures into this new game and will only grow stronger as the game progresses. And in His infinite mercy and grace, the Lord will never lead us into battles that He has not already planned and prepared for us through the trials we previously endured… trials that were designed to grow our dependence on Him (1 Peter 5:10) as well as strengthen us for the next step on our journey (James 1:2-4). 

The fact that our adversaries are growing in difficulty and our adversities are increasing in intensity should not be surprising… that is the nature of sequels. But it is ALSO the nature of sequels that the Lord sends additional helpers to support us (such as Silas and Luke for the Apstle Paul) as well as an abundance of grace far beyond our enemy’s most devious strategies to destroy us. As every Spider-Man has learned the hard way, this great power has come with more than just a “great responsibility”… it comes with even greater adversity. But as every friendly neighborhood servant of Christ has also found, our ongoing adventures in obedience to Him are what place us into intersecting paths with those we were sent to reach (2 Corinthians 1:3-4)… and He even uses the machinations of those who seek to do us harm to move us out of our positions of comfort and into a place where we can do the greatest good. And while we will rarely appreciate the “Bullseyes” that this calling may feel like it brought into our orbit, the reality is these villains were coming for us and those we care about one way or another… and through the Lord’s power and authority that He has given us we will not only engage these undesired difficulties (2 Peter 1:3), we will OVERCOME them (Revelation 12:11).

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