We Like Sports…

…and we don’t care who knows!

Matthew 16:13-20; Romans 12:1-8; Psalm 138; Isaiah 51:1-6

I make it rather obvious that, while I’m a little bit out of shape now, I really do like playing sports.  My sport of choice was volleyball in college, and I played on the school’s club men’s team.  I absolutely love football — both the American version and the international version.  There really are very few sports I don’t enjoy watching or playing, should the opportunity arise.  I’ll even watch bowling during the football offseason.

One thing that ties all sports together, no matter what it is, is pursuit of a win.  I can’t think of any sport where, at the end of a contest, there isn’t a winner and loser.  Now, in order to accomplish this, there are usually ways of keeping score.  In football, a rather odd-shaped ball has to cross an arbitrary line, and if it does, you get points.  In basketball, a more normal-shaped ball has to go into a circle, and if it does, you get points.  In bowling, a really heavy ball gets thrown in the general direction of some pieces of wood and you get points based on how many are knocked down.

Now in most sports, golf being the exception that comes to mind, whoever has the most points at the end of a certain period.  Now let’s use volleyball as the example.  In order to score a point, you basically have to make the ball hit the ground on your opponent’s side or they hit the ball out of bounds.  There are a handful of other methods, but that’s the jist of it.  Whoever scores 25 first wins.

In a way, our culture, and ourselves since we are very influenced by culture, applies the same rules to life.  We try to score points with God, so that at the end of our lives we “win”.  Even the church has been affected by this, as we have this idea that if we’re “good people” we go to heaven.

This isn’t how it works, while we are called to do good works, or as Isaiah puts it to “pursue righteousness”, it isn’t to score points, because the game is already won.  This is the faith that Peter confessed, even if Peter didn’t fully understand it at the time.  Jesus is “the Christ, the Son of the living God.”  Now, sadly, when Jesus explained what it meant that he was the Christ, namely that he would suffer, die, and be raised, Peter wanted nothing to do with that.  But that is indeed why Christ came.  To use the volleyball example again, the game goes to 25 points, and Jesus spotted us a 25 point advantage.

How does that work?  Well, to quote Isaiah, “Look to the rock from which you were cut.”  It might be a little obvious where I’m going with this, seeing as Jesus tells us what the rock is that we are to look to.  Now throughout history there have been three main interpretation of what “the rock” on which Christ will build his Church is.  First, the rock is Peter himself — this is the view preferred by the Catholics and what led to the rise of the Papacy in the first 500 or so years of the church’s existence.  Second, the rock is Christ and His teaching, which is a good possibility, but doesn’t quite fit the context of the statement.  Thirdly, and the one I prefer, is that the rock is the profession of faith Peter makes, that Jesus is Christ, the son of the living God.

So Jesus gives us a win, we’ve professed faith … now what?  We have to think, if we’ve won the game already, why bother playing?  See, I don’t think that way.  I loved playing volleyball, and still do, so even if I’ve already won, I still want to keep playing, and give it my all, even though I knew the outcome, not because I had to, but because I wanted to out of love of the game.  In the same way, despite already having been given eternal life, we now live our lives to honor God in the best way we can.  Firmly planted on the rock of faith, we serve our Creator who loves us out of love for Him.

This is why Paul says in Romans, “Therefore, I urge you brothers (and sisters) in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God — this is your spiritual act of worship.  Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”  Remember what Paul had been saying for the past few chapters.  Through faith we are set apart by God to be his chosen people.  So, that “therefore” is reminding us that as God’s chosen people, we live our lives as reflections of God’s glory.

Then Paul lists several ways to do that.  Every believer has a job in the kingdom.  Some people are prophets, proclaiming God’s Word.  Some are teachers.  Some are servants.  Some are encouragers.  Some are givers.  Some are leaders.  Some are chefs.  Some are musicians.  Some are drywall-hangers.  Some are toilet-cleaners.  It doesn’t matter what call we have, but we are all called to lovingly serve God — to keep in the game even though it’s already won.