This is the Endgame

I’ve given it about a month now to really let people process Avenger’s Endgame and to avoid spoiling it for people. I will be doing a few posts regarding Avenger’s Endgame. First I want to address that there will be spoilers in this post if you still haven’t seen the movie and have managed to dodge any spoilers, you are fairly warned now.

This movie hit me hard from the first 5 minutes.  The thought that my family just disappearing in front of my eyes, and being left alone horrifies me. Way to go Marvel for making Dad’s across the world cry the first 5 minutes of an action-packed superhero movie. I mean I thought that Infinity War hit me hard with Spidey saying “I don’t feel so good”

As a longtime comic fanboy and seeing every Marvel movie in theaters since day one, this movie and journey have been a long and bumpy journey all leading up to this one moment. Cue up the Phil Collins drums, as I have been waiting for this moment all my life….well not all my life, but it has been anticipated for a very long while.

I’m glad God has blessed me the ability to see Him in all things, to take things of this world that were not necessarily meant for the Kingdom, and point people to Him.  I found a lot of biblical truths in this movie, and I plan to write about them all, but for this post, I want to focus on the subject the “Endgame” itself.

About halfway through Avenger’s Infinity War, Doctor Strange looks at 14,000,605 possible outcomes of the future and only one possible outcome for it to end well. The small band of heroes stranded on Titan, then face off against the Mad Titan Thanos himself, and to surprise held their own, until they made a mistake out of emotion.

Strange had a plan, and at that moment, gave over the time stone to Thanos in exchange to spare Tony Stark’s life. Tony lashes out at Strange “Why did you do that?” and Strange responds “We’re in the endgame now.” The good doctor is then turned into dust before he can reveal what he sees in the future….and all hope is then bleak as the next few moments that whole would lose more than half of its population.

We sat in the theaters and waited for a year to see what hope was to come. We knew the story wasn’t over and that characters that we rooted for, that literally became dust in the wind would come back (Spider-man, Groot, Star-Lord, etc). It seemed like a dark world, but we had hope that it was going to be saved, and everything was going to be redeemed. As a follower of Christ, this is started to sound familiar.

One of Jesus’ disciples John(who we believed wrote the book of Revelation), did not have the time stone, but was gifted with being able to tell us how the future was going to play out for us, so he did leave more for us than just saying “We’re in the endgame now.” (To get an overview of  Revelation to check out these two overview videos by The Bible Project Rev Ch 1-11 and Rev Ch 12-22)

In the movie, the remaining heroes mourned and grieved with the rest of the world, and they thought that they defeated Thanos, but still, struggle with the consequences of the snap. All hope seemed lost, until Antman, who was stuck in the quantum realm during the event of the snap, was released to find out that that seemed like 5 hours for him, was actually 5 years for the rest of the world. He then purposes the idea of time travel and reversing everything. Great Scott, now there is some hope!

The remaining Avengers rally up and decide to continue the fight even after Thanos brought death so devastatingly on their team and their world.

 

we owe this—to everyone who’s not in this room—to try

– Black Widow                                              

Sometimes the darkness of the world can make us lose all sorts of hope. Death and mortality can blindside us, it can be hard to get up, to hope again. The revelation that John shares with us, is the one possible outcome. Those that choose the Kingdom, past and present will be restored and reunited in Heaven, and the ones that choose to deny the Kingdom will be eternally separated, not being allowed to corrupt or taint the world.

Think about the last battle in Endgame. Hulk put on the gauntlet to snap everyone that was turned to dust, and then the alternate timeline Thanos comes with an army and destroys the place. Captain America, Thor, and Iron Man team up and go toe to toe, and at the moment when it seems like the Thanos has the upper hand, then Doctor Strange appears and has recruited an army of the other heroes that were snapped out by Thanos in Infinity War. They all came together and reunited to fight the biggest battle that they have ever seen.

In Revelation, Jesus appears to John, and John collapses like a dead man. But Jesus tells him, “‘

Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades.”

– Revelation 1:17-18

Jesus is essentially saying, “Why fear death? I died—but am I dead? No, I am alive forever and ever! And more than that, I hold the keys of death. Death is subject to me, but I am not subject to it. And because of me, neither are you.”

Here is the cool thing, the name Thanos comes from the Greek word Thanatos, which is the god of death. Thanos = Death. Jesus says that death is subject to Him. Paul tells us the Endgame here

For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet. The last enemy that will be abolished is death.

-1 Corinthians 15:25-26

Then we see it fold out in John’s vision in Revelation

“Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire This is the second death, the lake of fire” 

-Revelation 20:14

The final battle in Avengers ends with Thanos getting hold of the new gauntlet, and then Tony Stark cleverly getting it back for one last snap. Tony sacrifices himself and snaps Thanos and his army away. This was the moment that Doctor Strange know would end the battle. The moment he was waiting for. Ironman and the Avengers defeat Thanos.

Like this Jesus defeats death, but unlike Tony, His sacrifice was not for good, He will not leave those behind, sad, hurt, and alone. Followers of Jesus get to live with Him.

He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.

-Revelation 21:1

I’m not going to end this with a super hard “The end is near” hit over your head. But to quote the good doctor “We’re in the endgame now” and the great battle will come someday, and even if it’s beyond our lifetime, we will be snapped back in. What side do you want to be on?