Football, Idolatry and Exorcising Personal Demons

One may question the sanity (or loyalty) of a football fan writing a blog during what what may be the biggest football match up of a generation.Yet here I am in front of a computer, in different part of the house from my family, with my ear buds in.  And I'm writing what I sense may be my most candid blog.

One thing I want to make clear before I share my heart, is that I am not anti-football or some super-spiritual saint. In fact I am exactly the opposite, an avid football fan that struggles to keeping things in the correct perspective. So, what follows is not a "football is evil" diatribe, but rather an expression of the grace and mercy I've received from Christ and an explanation of the reality that I must work out that grace and mercy by not watching a game that would trash it all.

The best place for me to start is in Mt 4.  Jesus' first temptation, after fasting 40 days, is to turn stones into bread. Nothing wrong with bread, no rules against creators doing whatever they want with what they've made. So, why is this an issue? Because Satan was made the bread making, bread craving reality a test of Christ's divinity. If you are the Son of God. Just like in the Garden. Did God really say?  And Jesus' response? In the ultimate temptation blocking parry, Christ emphatically, scripturally states that bread is not the issue, dependence on God is the issue. So whether we trust God for physical food or spiritual, in the end, we must trust Him, and not our own abilities.

The question, of course, is how does this tie to football? In my personal world a football game where one team is a "favorite" is my bread. Did God really say no football? Won't a little cheering show team and family spirit? Are you some kind of legalist? I could go on, but I think you see the pattern. The draw and the power and the sheer emotionalism of watching the game takes me from honoring Christ to honoring my self and leaves me, in the end, wondering what kind of witness I have been.

As I stand back, I think of passages like Isa 45:20 "They have no knowledge who carry about their wooden idols, and keep on praying to a god that cannot save." Football, like anything, can become an idol. For me, when certain teams play it is just that. So, in order to honor Christ, and not the idol, I must stay away and do something that keeps my heart and mind on the One who lived and died for me and paid the price for the always near idolatry in my heart.

To God Alone be the Glory

Two thoughts - One theme

First, if I don't write again before the big day, Merry Christmas!

Second, thanks to God and Mike Bullmore of Crossway Community Church in Bristol WI. In his sermon dated 12/12 he compares the rich young ruler to the three wise men. The main focus is on the rich young ruler and his sense of need yet his tenacious clutching of his real god. In the conclusion though, the sermon moves to three rich men who gave much of their selves to honor and worship the new born Messiah. The full sermon is here: matthew-series

Third, thanks to God and Jon Bloom at Desiring God. His blog today (12/21) touched on a similar theme as the sermon and one that keeps pressing on my own heart: Modern day idolatry.  Here's an excerpt:

In fighting idolatry we must remember that we are not so reasonable as we might wish. This battle is often not waged on the field of truth, but rather on the field of cravings and fears. The desires of the flesh and the eyes (1 John 2:16) are battles of appetite not reason. And what of your last battle with doubt? Was it really based on a rational, fair comparison of truth claims? Or was it triggered by the fear-laden discouragement of circumstance, cultural consensus, or someone else’s confident contrary assertion?


Full blog entry is here: we-are-not-so-reasonable

So, the theme is idolatry; our personal, 21st century idolatry. Think about the rich young ruler the next time you say "No" to God or choose to sin despite what God's Word says.

But thanks to God! He has given us His Son to not only pay the penalty for our idolatry, Jesus can (and will) deliver us from it as well.

To God Alone Be the Glory!

Is Jesus Too Safe?

The following is a excerpt from a blog by Jared Wilson. You can find the full entry here Jesus and Imago Homo and a link to his book here Your Jesus Too Safe. SDG

'It was G.K. Chesterton who, in his defense of Christian orthodoxy, said, "I did not make it. It is making me."

Can we say that of Jesus? Can we say the Jesus we believe in, rest in, trust in is the Jesus who is making us? Or is He the one we'd prefer, the one who's most like us, who's safer and nicer, who reflects all of our personal or political values and idiosyncrasies? Is Jesus making us, or is he the Jesus of our own making?

It is quite possible to make an idol of Jesus. Which is not to say that Jesus is not to be worshiped. He is the only Man worthy of worship. What I mean is, it is possible to project a self-idolatry onto Jesus, to mistake our own satisfaction with ourselves for authentic discipleship, instead of worshiping the real, living God in the real, resurrected person of Jesus Christ.

Here's one personal test I subject my own reading of the Gospels to (which actually works quite well when reading any Scripture): Is it freaking me out? Am I convicted, challenged, impressed, scared, or inspired? Am I moved?

The Word of God -- both the living Word and the written word -- is transformational revelation. If we are not being transformed by the Christ of Scripture and the Scripture of Christ, we are not reading either correctly.' - Jared Wilson