Toruk Makto – The Pandoran Messiah

In the movie Avatar the greatest hero was the Toruk Makto, one who could ride the great Leonopteryx. This status had been granted to five heroes in Pandoran history. In the process of the movie Jake Sulley became the sixth Toruk Makto. He did this because he had successfully become a man among the Na’vi, the Pandoran indigenous population but had become disgraced because of his connection to the human population who destroyed the Home Tree of the tribe he had entered. To allow a new start in the “people” Jake felt he needed to do something that would grant him credibility and a renewed status among the “people”. To get there he had to connect to the largest, and most dangerous, predator on the planet of Pandora.

To accomplish the task of becoming Toruk Makto, Jake needed to be able to get close enough to the Leonopteryx and be able to get on its back, and then connect with its queue before it could turn on Jake and kill him. Jake concluded that because of its size the Leonopteryx was not going to be attacked by anything and it had no need to be alert. So Jake flew on his Ikran and approached the Leonopteryx from above. As he approached the great dragon he flew low enough to jump off of his Ikran onto the back of the Leonopteryx and connect with his queue. When he had control of the great dragon he flew to the meeting place where the Na’vi were weeping over the destruction of their Home Tree, and the potential loss of the Tree of Souls. When Jake saw the “people” he flew into them in such a manner as to cause the greatest amount of respect and awe that could be generated. The symbolism was sufficient and the people received him as the Toruk Makto. Jake had become the Pandoran Messiah and thus had the authority of leading all of the Pandoran tribes against the Earth peoples.

In addition to being the military leader of the Pandoran peoples, Jake also felt a need of being the spiritual leader as well. He knew what the Na’vi did not know and that was that the Earth military forces were still too much for the Na’vi to handle. To win the fight not only would the Messiah need the military forces of the Na’vi, but would need supernatural help as well from Eywa. Therefore, Jake came to the Tree of Souls, the connecting site between the Na’vi and their goddess Eywa. Jake prayed for special help and was submissive to the goddess of Pandora.

As the movie continues Jake, Pandora’s Messiah, leads the collected representatives of the tribes of Pandora and although fighting furiously are being relentlessly massacred. At the crucial moment when all looks lost the large animals of Pandora suddenly join the fight and with the help of Eywa, and the animals, the battle is won and the Na’vi are victorious. Thus Jake’s position in Na’vi history is secured – the Toruk Makto had accomplished the task that Eywa had raised him up to do.
Again, it is remarkable that the symbolism between the theology of Avatar and that of the Bible is so strong and so clear. In the Bible the phrase of Toruk Makto is not present, but the concept is clearly there. In the Bible there is a clear need, and a clear promise of the coming of the Messiah – the hero sent by God to deliver the people of Earth from the evil enemy of Satan, and his forces.

In the Bible the Messiah, as with the Toruk Makto, must be one of the people. The Bible records that Jesus, the True Messiah, was born of the flesh of Abraham and of David. Hebrews 2:9-18; Romans 1:3. He came to live among men and to be a man Himself. This Messiah had to feel the needs of the people and to be able to lead the people as well.

In the Bible there are a number of people who are considered Anointed ones. We know that Aaron was an Anointed one and he served as Priest in Israel. King Saul was the first Anointed King of Israel, and he was followed by King David who functioned in the position of a Prophet, a Priest, and a King. We also know that Cyrus, King of Persia was considered an Anointed one in Isaiah 45:1. Of this group David was the individual most connected with the concept of the Anointed One. As we see above, David was the great grandfather of the Messiah – Jesus of Nazareth.

One of the things that is unique about David as the Anointed one is that he fulfils all of the prerequisite issues of the Messiah. David was clearly born a man. He grew up simply and he experienced a personal relationship with God at a young age. One of the unique components of David was that he was Anointed by Samuel after being hand selected by God Himself. David was then brought by the providence of God to a unique testimonial experience. In I Samuel 17 we are told the story of a battle between Israel and the Philistines. The then king of Israel was Saul who had been officially rejected by God as being the Lord’s Anointed. When the Philistine champion came on to the battle field, no one dared to fight with him. The Champion of Israel, the King of Israel should have come forth to fight the greatest opponent. When it was clear that no one in Israel would dare to fight Goliath, God brought forth David. David was small compared to Goliath’s height of nine feet. David had no armor other than faith in God as compared to Goliath’s armor of Brass. David had no fear of this giant and strode out onto the battle field in the name of God Himself. When David defeated the Giant all Israel accepted David as their king in their hearts. Most of Israel did not know that God had already Anointed, as well as chosen David, to be their king. David was the type of the Messiah to come – his great grandson Jesus of Nazareth.

In the process of time, God also revealed Cyrus as a type of Messiah as well in that he used this king as the deliverer of Israel from Babylon. Cyrus responded to the instructions of Daniel and he chose to follow through the instructions given to him by God a hundred years before his birth. Cyrus, when he had conquered Babylon, gave directions and financial support to allow Israel to return to Canaan and reestablish their nation and their city in accordance with Isaiah 44:27-45:13 and Daniel 9:24-27.
But the focal point of all of the prophecies of the Messiah as of that of Jesus the Christ (the Anointed One) of Nazareth. He is the unique and comprehensive Messiah. Jesus is the I Am of the Bible as clearly stated in John 8:58. He was the One who spoke to Moses in Exodus 3. Jesus is also referred to as the Creator God the One who created the whole earth, and the universe. John 1:1-3; Colossians 1:13-17. This Creator God promised to come as the Seed of the woman spoken of in Genesis 3:15. As time continued He was incorporated in many other prophecies including that of Abraham and of David. He would come as God, and He would be fully man, a concept that is beyond our understanding. Yet when He came He was announced by an angel, and given the name of Jesus – the Saviour, and the name of Emmanuel – God with us. Matthew 1:21-23

Jesus’ life was marked by many unusual things but especially that of being so humble and loving that no one could identify anything physically unusual but that His Spirit was that of God. When He was about 30 years old He was baptized by the prophet John and when He came up to the banks of the Jordan River, He was Anointed by the Holy Spirit and was blessed by His Father. Luke 3:21-23. This happened in 27 AD in fulfillment of the 70 week prophecy of Daniel 9:24-27. In accordance with the 70 week prophecy Jesus was to be Anointed in 27 AD and then after a three and one half year ministry then He would be cut off from His people. During this ministry Jesus would meet His Goliath – Satan. He would have to defeat this giant the same way His great grandfather had done by the weapons of God. He would conquer the great dragon of Scripture that great Serpent Satan. Revelation 12:7-13 Jesus was the One who bound the strong man of Matthew 12:22-30 and thus won back all that was lost by father Adam.

Jesus won the great battle against Satan in the wilderness, in the Garden of Gethsemane, and on the Cross of Calvary. Jesus also won the battle in the grave and came forth from death in His own power. In the end Jesus will win the battle again when He returns to gather His people whom Satan is seeking to destroy. Jesus will win each and every battle for He is the Messiah of God.

One of the interesting themes of the movie Avatar is how many symbols the movie borrows to move the hearts and minds of the people. But what Avatar borrows in order to tell an imaginary story, the Bible tells of the true story. We are involved in the fight with the great dragon Satan to this very day, and Jesus, the great Messiah is preparing to come again to gather His people to Himself and take them to heaven, and then return to them to Earth a thousand years later. The difference is that Avatar is pretend, and the Bible is real. The Toruk Makto of Avatar is a wonderful hero, but none the less he is a pretend figure, but the Messiah of the Bible is not only real but He offers all of the wonderful gifts spoken of in the Bible to all who will honestly seek Him with a heart open to truth. This offer Messiah will confirm when He returns in the very near future. This gift is free to all who want it today.