Why Become a Christian?

 

     Every fourth Sunday our church hosts what we refer to as "Friendship Sunday."  Our intention is to provide a service where those unfamiliar with the church may hear a simple presentation of the gospel.  This sermon is an example of those messages.

John 10:10

Why anyone would become a Christian?

Pollster George Barna says you may no longer assume your neighbors will claim Christianity as their default religion.  Maybe you’ve seen the bumper sticker that says, “Love is My Religion.”  Christianity has become just an option, like one of the flavors at Graters.

Why would anyone become a Christian?  Is it because being a Christian makes you so popular?

I can’t remember a time when announcing yourself as a Christian invites more criticism.  I can’t remember a time in my life when certain newsmakers have been more willing to brand Christians as fools or losers, at best, or dangerous fanatics, at worst. 

There may have been a time when being a Christian would have made you popular but I think that time is past.  In one of his mysteries, Ian Rankin introduces a new character, Detective Constable Goodyear.  Goodyear is a rarity in the Edinburgh CID:  He is a Christian.  When he is introduced to Detective Inspector Rebus, Rankin’s hero, the cynical DI says, “So, you’re the Bible thumper.”  Although he’s probably aware that a detective constable is the lowest form of life in the CID, Goodyear musters the courage to respond, “Sir, I’ve never thumped a Bible in my life.”  But it remains clear that the young detective’s colleagues think of his faith as a liability, not an asset.

Being a Christian doesn’t win popularity contests.

Why would anyone become a Christian?  Is it because being a Christian allows you to escape problems?

We’re going through some tough times right now.  It’s not quite like the Depression but it’s no picnic either.  Christians are losing their jobs.  Christians are seeing their retirement funds dwindle.  Christians are taking brown bag lunches rather than eating at restaurants.

No, becoming a Christian will not allow you to escape problems.

Why would anyone become a Christian?  Is it because being a Christian allows you to hang out with church people?

Remember these words:

Making your way in the world today
Takes everything you've got;
Taking a break from all your worries
Sure would help a lot.
Wouldn't you like to get away?

Sometimes you want to go
Where everybody knows your name,
And they're always glad you came;
You want to be where you can see,
Our troubles are all the same;
You want to be where everybody knows your name.

That’s the Cheers theme.  It speaks about our isolation and our desire to be more than a cog in the machine.  It is a vision of fellowship.   But the words are about a bar, not a church.

Still, some think fellowship is the church’s big selling point.

There is something to be said about Christian fellowship.  When the church is what it should be men and women from all backgrounds become a part of this fellowship, this family of faith.  It can be a beautiful thing.

I value Christian fellowship but I know there are some Christians you would just as soon not have next to you on a trans-Atlantic flight.  Remember how Groucho Marx received a letter inviting him to become the member of some club in Hollywood.  He declined the invitation, saying, “I could never be part of a club that would have someone like me as a member.”  Some of those who have made it into the church are still pretty rough around the edges.

Someone once said, “the church is the only organization in the world for which the singular qualification for membership is being unqualified for membership.”  I like that.  But it’s a reminder that if you’re looking for some place where you’ll never be offended or annoyed, the church might not be it.

The truth is there are many places where you can get together with likable people and pursue common interests.  Most of these places will never ask you to sit for twenty to thirty minutes while someone offers observations on a 2000-year-old Book.  Most of these places will never ask you to take your turn in the nursery.  Most of these places will not ask you to roll out of bed on a Sunday morning when you’d really rather sleep.

The yearning to be “where everybody knows your name” runs deep in us.  I think the church offers that.  But if that’s all the church offers, we have some stiff competition.

Why would anyone become a Christian?  Is it because being a Christian is easy?

William Willimon once said that when you join the Rotary you get a handshake and a pin.  But when you join the church, they half-drown you and then tell you to pick up a cross.

Peter, James, and John were some of Jesus’ best-known followers.  Before their encounter with Jesus they had been fishermen.  Then, one day Jesus came to them and said, “Follow me and I will make you fishers of men.”  So, they left their nets, the business they had known their entire lives, and followed Jesus.

Years later, after traveling countless miles to share the gospel, after imprisonments, after persecution for their faith, I can imagine Peter saying something like this, “I’d do it all again, but to tell the truth, fishing for fish was easier.”

Oh, yeah, being a Christian is easy.

Why would anyone become a Christian?  Might it be because Christianity gives us a remarkable freedom?

Paul wanted to  help the Christians at Galatia better understand the purpose of Jesus’ ministry.  Those Christians had been toying with the notion that you couldn’t be a Christian unless you narrowed the parameter of your life.  Specifically, you would have to be circumcised and take on a much restricted diet and lifestyle.  Paul countered this by saying; “Christ has set us free to live a free life.” 

On the whole, Christians of varied cultures and backgrounds have had tremendous latitude in manifesting their commitment in their everyday lives.

While there have been small groups that have been confused about the matter, no one has ever said all Christians must dress one way, eat one diet, or pursue the same careers.  You can’t pick out the Christians in a crowd.

More important, you can’t identify Christians by their politics or their perspective on matters like the economy or immigration.  When Paul wrote the Ephesians, he reminded them of their past and then gave them an important instruction, “Once you lived in the dark, but now the Lord has filled you with light. Live as children who have light.  Light produces everything that is good, that has God’s approval, and that is true. Determine which things please the Lord.”

That last phrase—Determine which things please the Lord—seems to assume that Christians will be free to apply their minds to the problems of their day and conclude for themselves what the best solution might be.

This is why we have Christians on the right and on the left of the political spectrum.  Why we have Christians who would close all the border stations and throw open the doors of the nation, why we have Christians who would have us build fences and walls to regulate who might come into the nation.  Why we have Christians who believe the earth is just over 10,000 years old, why we have Christians who believe the earth is somewhere around 15 billion years old.

Yes, Christians have remarkable freedom.  There is no factory that stamps out Christians like cookies.  Still, that freedom in and of itself doesn’t explain why so many become Christians.  Many in the west have full freedom of opinion with no spiritual commitment.

Why would anyone become a Christian?  Could it be because becoming a Christian links you to Jesus in a marvelous way?

That would be my guess.

There is something remarkable about Jesus.  Often, those who have nothing good to say about the church admire Jesus.  Don’t get me wrong, recent years have seen critics trying to discredit Jesus.  But they’re relatively few in number.  I suspect there are many agnostics who would say to those who malign Jesus, “Have you lost your mind?”

Listen to what men and women across the ages have said about this Jesus.

Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne, and I founded empires; but upon what did we rest the creations of our genius? Upon force.  Jesus Christ alone founded his empire upon love, and at this hour millions of men would die for him.

Napoleon Bonaparte (1769–1821)

 In Jesus we have . . . the holiest man who ever lived, and yet it was the prostitutes and lepers and thieves who adored him, and the religious who hated his guts.

Rebecca Manley Pippert

Jesus Christ is the Completer

    of unfinished people

    with unfinished work

    in unfinished times.

Lona M. Fowler

Jesus Christ served others first; he spoke to those to whom no one spoke; he dined with the lowest members of society; he touched the untouchable. He had no throne, no crown, no bevy of servants or armored guards. A borrowed manger and a borrowed tomb framed his earthly life.

Charles Colson (1931–2012)

The Lord has turned all our sunsets into sunrise.

Clement of Alexandria (c. 150–c. 215)

The teaching of Jesus Christ does not appear at first to be what it is. At first it appears to be beautiful and pious and lukewarm; but before long it becomes a ripping and tearing torpedo which splits to atoms every preconceived notion a man ever had.

Oswald Chambers (1874–1917)

 To the dead he sayeth: Arise!

To the living: Follow me!

And that voice still soundeth on

From the centuries that are gone,

To the centuries that shall be!

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807–1882)

 

Read through the gospels—those memoirs of Jesus’ closest followers.  They aren’t biographies as you may think of them.  They’re like testimonials of individuals changed by Jesus.  The gospels tell record what impressed the writers most about Jesus.  But all four gospels lead us to some similar conclusions.

Jesus taught as no one ever taught.  Jesus loved the loveless.  Jesus embraced the outcast.  Jesus showed mercy to those who expected only judgment.  Jesus brought healing to a wounded world.  Jesus promised to transform those who followed him.  Jesus lived selflessly in a selfish world.  Jesus proved his love on the cross.  Jesus defeated death.  Jesus isn’t finished with us.

Of course, you’ll also find Jesus saying some remarkable things about himself. 

One such incident took place the night before the crucifixion.

Philip, a disciple who wasn’t particularly quick on the uptake said to Jesus, “Show us the Father and it will be enough.”

I don’t think there was any guile or false humility in Philip’s statement.  It was probably a statement of genuine religious longing. 

Jesus becomes so direct at this point.

Jesus replied, "Philip, don't you even yet know who I am, even after all the time I have been with you? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father! So why are you asking to see him?

Don't you believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words I say are not my own, but my Father who lives in me does his work through me.

Just believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me. Or at least believe because of what you have seen me do.

Jesus gets right to the point, “He who has seen the Father has seen me.”  There had been so may hints, so many clues, in all Jesus said and did;   they should have guessed but didn’t.  If you want to know what God is like, look at Jesus. 

And when you become a Christian, you are linked to this Jesus in a remarkable way.  All that he has to offer is yours.  You will discover what his followers across the ages have discovered:

 Jesus is the Way…to life, a life he describes as abundant. It is a life one translation says is “real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of.”  What are the dimensions of that life?

Jesus is the Way…to peace.

Jesus is the Way…to hope.

Jesus is the Way…to truth.

Jesus is the Way…to purpose.

Jesus is the Way…to God.

Jesus is the Way…Who wants to be known.

So, if anyone should ask you, why would anyone become a Christian?  The answer is Jesus.

 

Oops again.

The sermon bug bites again. The text for the last sermon was mistyped. It should be Mark 2:17. Vsorry.

LIving Like Jesus In An Angry Time

Mark 2:17

Preachers aren’t supposed to take advantage of their time in the pulpit to grouse about those things that irk us.   But maybe you’ve been vexed by this too.

What is it with drivers and their horns lately?  It’s like the horn is suddenly a luxury accessory and drivers want to let as many as possible know they have one.  I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve been paused at an intersection and the instant the light turned from red to green the driver behind me beeps his horn.  Apparently they were all unpleased that I didn’t start off like a NASCAR driver when the light changed.  Sometimes these folks have honked at me even though a child has been in the crosswalk.  Sometimes the drivers have roared around us, maybe on the berm, so they could get ahead.  Pat usually points that they are angry at us for wasting their time and their time is probably more important than other people’s. Occasionally, these angry drivers offer a less-than-friendly wave as they rush on.

Those kinds of behaviors—the honking, the line-breaking, the obscene gestures—are aggravating but we can live with them.

Bosses are venting their anger at employees, in part because in these tough times they know no one can afford to quit.  Or maybe they think it’s a new management technique.  After all, we do tend to make heroes of those winners who have short fuses. We might not let losers get away with outbursts of temper, but winners are another matter.  Do I need to remind you of John McEnroe or Woody Hayes?  Yet, sometimes I think it’s because they just have no inner restraint or maybe they’re borderline psychotic.  We’ve also read of stories where anger has exploded with deadly consequences. People drive cars at other people when they are angry at a store or restaurant.  People will throw bricks though windows when they are angry at a store-keeper or neighbor, never mind that a child or another innocent might be in the path of the flying glass. 

I’d like to tell you this morning that I have a cure for this anger epidemic.  But I can’t.  If you and I incorporate what I’m about to say this morning we will still be victims of the anger and rage all around us.  What I can say is that if we embody what I’m about to say, we might help keep the anger from spreading.  And, in some cases, we might even help someone else become immune.  So, what am I proposing?

In this angry time, we need to learn to live like Jesus.  But how?

If We Would Live Like Jesus in an Angry Time We Should Consider

 His Attitude Toward People

1.  At the foundation of Jesus attitude toward people is one great truth:  Jesus really loved people.

Someone once described a famous writer by saying, “He loved humanity; it was people he couldn’t stand.”

Jesus’ love for people was evident in everything he did.  He embodied love.

Some people initially followed him, not because they were thirsty for knowledge, but because they were thirsty for love.  It is possible to utter great words about love without living in a way which demonstrates that love.

Whatever Jesus said about love he demonstrated in his life.

We are going to meet many people who need love.  During Bible study last Sunday night Jerry Olds mentioned the old saying, “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.”  A good point.

I enjoy apologetics, the study of how to defend the faith.  But, we all know the best defense for Christianity is not a battalion of “know-it-alls,” it’s a multitude of “love-them-alls.”

2.  As Jesus’ love demonstrated itself in his day to day life, it became clear that Jesus cared about the outcasts.  (Mark 1:40f)

 40.  A man with leprosy came to Jesus. He bowed down and begged Jesus, ``You can heal me, if you want to.'' 

 41.  He felt sorry for him. So, he reached out and touched the man. Jesus said to the man, ``I do want to heal you--be healed!''

 42.  Immediately the leprosy left him; he was healed.

Lepers were outcasts, suspected of being under God’s special judgment.  No one would deliberately touch a leper.  Jesus shocked those around him by touching this man who was not used to a sympathetic human touch.

There are “outcasts” in our society:  The young man or woman with tattoos and multiple piercings, the radical feminist or the right-wing reactionary.  In some communities, during an election year the outcast might be that person with the “wrong” bumper stickers. 

Howard Belden:

“Occasionally someone is heard saying that he thinks it is a pity that so many ‘odd bods’ are found in Christian churches.  It is not a pity:  it is a cause for joy.  The presence of such people is one of the greatest tributes that can be paid to the Church of Christ.  Others may have no time for them, but they know that Christians have, for Christians know that they must never say of anyone, ‘I can’t be bothered with him.’  The Christian knows that everyone mattered to Jesus, so everyone must matter to him.”

3.  While there’s no doubt Jesus took sin seriously--after all he died taking sin seriously--it’s equally clear Jesus was slow to condemn.

Remember the story of the woman caught in adultery.  Jesus disarmed her captors, and then said to her:  “I don’t condemn you, go and sin no more.”

Jesus wouldn’t leave her caught up in her self-destructive behavior but he also wouldn’t beat her over the head with her past.

Throughout history, Jesus’ followers have been quicker to condemn than their Master.  That fact has begun to cause a lot of people to get angry at the church and some in the church to leave it.  Of course, there are also those who get nervous when we talk about compassion; in their minds compassion leads to compromise. We seem to have forgotten there are alternatives to both laid-back approval and pitiless denunciation. 

Unlike Jesus, we seem surprised when sinners act like sinners.  It’s not theology as such but consider this exchange between the somewhat dim Bertie Wooster and his worldly-wise valet Jeeves.  Jeeves is trying to explain the meaning of a French phrase and Wooster says:

“These Frenchmen, why can’t they talk English?”

Jeeves replies, “They are possibly more to be pitied than censured, m’lord.  Early upbringing no doubt has a lot to do with it.”

Most of the French speak French because they are born French.  Sinners act like sinners because they're born sinners.  All of us are.  We need to look at others and be ready to show compassion, the same compassion Jesus showed us. 

4.  Another aspect of Jesus’ attitude toward people was seen in his encounters with ordinary people where it is clear Jesus viewed people as they might be.

Jesus saw the potential in the people he met, even if no one else shared his vision.  He appreciated people, even those with rough edges, rude manners, and weird thinking.

In the rough, unstable Peter Jesus saw the Rock.

In Mary Magdalene--whom he freed from the chains of the demonic--he saw a woman who could inspire others in her devotion and faith.

Mary’s role brings up an important matter.  Jesus saw the potential of an entire group of persons who were largely ignored in his day, persons who weren’t even allowed to testify in court.  I’m speaking of women.  Jesus’ attitude toward women was revolutionary.  He saw in them a potential to think, to learn, and to reason which was largely ignored by most teachers in his day.

I think some people are so angry because at school, at work, at home they know nothing but disrespect and scorn.  We need to learn from Jesus and not just look at what stands before us, but look at what might be there through Jesus’ grace.

5.  Then, of course, as the disciples could certainly testify, Jesus did not give up easily.

The disciples were so slow to learn.  Other teachers might have said, “Enough. I’m going to start over.”  Jesus didn’t.  He certainly didn’t give up on us.

We need that kind of patience.

If We Would Live Like Jesus in an Angry Time We Should Consider

His Approach to People

How did Jesus attitude toward people shape his approach to them?

1.  Had we been able to follow him around, we would have seen Jesus offering his friendship.

Many people we meet are lonely and that loneliness can easily translate itself into anger.  It won’t always work but a genuine offer of friendship might change some people.  But what do I mean by “a genuine offer of friendship?”

I can’t picture Jesus buttonholing someone, reading them a couple verses from the New Testament, delivering a memorized speech, and moving on to the next “prospect.”  Jesus was willing to be friends to the people he sought to help. 

One of the charges his enemies leveled against him was that he was “friend of publicans and sinners.”  I like the way Peterson paraphrases the opening verses of Luke 15.

“By this time a lot of men and women of doubtful reputation were hanging around Jesus, listening intently.  The Pharisees and religious scholars were not pleased, not at all pleased.  They growled, “He takes in sinners and eats meals with them, treating them like old friends.”

As Jesus put his love into action, he taught his disciples and us an important lesson:  People don’t want us to treat as objects or prospects; they want us be treat them as persons.

Few people today respond to evangelistic blitzes, the respond to the witness of someone who has taken the time to get to know them.

2.  Had we been able him around, we would have seen Jesus affirming the value of people.

Jesus affirmed their value by starting where they were.  He sought common ground with them.

Jesus affirmed their value by listening to them.  He took the time to hear what they had to say.  He took their questions seriously.

So, we need to let people know we have ears as well as mouths.  The questions people ask, the comments they make, the arguments they put forward may reveal the deepest longings and insights of their hearts. And reveal their greatest hurts.

Jesus affirmed their value by daring to challenge and correct them.  He was inspired by love when he did so, but he did so.

The disciples certainly knew that kind of challenge and correction.  Jesus’ correction implied he saw the possibility of their doing better.

Jesus affirmed their value by asking them to help.  Whether it was accepting hospitality, donations of food, or the occasional cash donation Jesus allowed ordinary people to feel as if they had a part in something bigger than themselves.

Conclusion

As I close, let me return to a warning I made earlier.  Having a Christlike attitude toward and approach to people won’t protect you from this angry world.  After all, angry people eventually managed to crucify him.

Remember this.  His crucifixion changed the world.  Yours probably wouldn’t have the same impact.  You can’t always escape certain angry people.  You may have to take that class with the bitter teacher who will never get tenure.  You may have to keep going to work for that boss who plays at being a dictator.  You can’t get completely away from them but maybe you can minimize their impact. 

At the end of the day, try not to take them home in the car with you.  Don’t set a place for them at the dinner table.  Don’t invite them along on your weekend outing. 

Yes, you may have to unload after a day of abuse.  But do that wisely.  Maybe you need to set a timer.  Then, start talking to someone or writing in a journal about your day. When the timer goes off, change the subject or lay down your pen (or turn off the word-processor). Enjoy the respite.

And, remember this.  You can’t fix some people.  When Jesus was confronted with the angry demoniacs in Gadara, he cast the demons out of them.  Unless, you’re an exorcist, you won’t be able to do that with some people.  They’re too happy being angry.  They relish the payoff too much.  Your best response is to recognize them for what they are and refuse to let them recruit you. 

And, finally, remember this.  What I’ve said in the past few minutes might tempt you to say, “If being like Christ, won’t protect me from angry people, why bother?”

Well, I can understand.  In this angry time, there are plenty of angry people.  They seem to be all around us.  There are many more victims of angry people, victims who are among the walking wounded; waiting for someone’s healing touch.

Bur there are very few like Christ—people who, though wounded, are making a difference, who sometimes get to offer that healing touch.    Wouldn’t you like to be one of those?

Who Are We? We are Athletes

I Corinthians 9:24-27

For the past couple weeks the world has been watching the Olympic Games in London.  For all the emphasis on London and the UK, we are regularly reminded that the games have their roots in Greece.  As a Jew, Paul would have had some objections to the culture associated with athletics but he still saw how those games could be a picture of the Christian life.

Paul’s use of running, boxing, and other athletic feats (1 Cor. 9:24–27) as metaphors for spiritual discipline was suited perfectly to the Corinthian culture. Corinth hosted numerous athletic events, including the prestigious Isthmian Games, one of four major athletic festivals of the Greeks.

The Isthmian Games were held every other year and attracted athletes from all over Greece. The competitions were between individuals, not teams, who vied more for glory than for tangible prizes. At the Corinthian games, victors were crowned with pine-needle garlands, the “perishable crown” to which Paul referred (1 Cor. 9:25).

However, when the heroes returned home, their cities might erect statues in their honor, have a parade, and write poems celebrating their feats. Sometimes a champion was even exempted from paying taxes, given free meals, and placed in the seat of honor at public events.^[1]

Our Olympic champions might not be exempt from taxes but they are still treated as heroes.  Whether a diminutive gymnast or a massive wrestler, if you bring home the gold, you stand head and shoulders above the rest of the world.

No wonder Paul seized on the world of the athlete to provide a way to understand how to be a Christian.

Of course, the Christian athletes Paul had in mind would not win the culture’s praise but that wasn’t the reward they sought.

Let’s look closer at our identity as Christians.

What Being a Christian Athlete Doesn’t Mean

In describing us Christians as athletes Paul and others are using an analogy.  An analogy is a figure of speech that focuses on the similarities or like features two things in order to make a comparison.  They capture our attention and help our understanding.

Robert Burns might have said, “The woman I love is really quite beautiful, strikingly so.”  Instead, he said, “My love is like a red, red rose that’s newly sprung in June.”  That gets the point across and is more memorable.

But what if you asked: “Bobbie, lad, are you sayin’ your lass has aphids?” Roses sometimes have aphids and in another poem Burns does remind us that women can sometimes be a little “buggy.”  Still, that’s probably not what he has in mind here.

When we press the comparisons found in an analogy too far, the analogy is said to break-down.

Even Biblical analogies can break down.  The picture of Christians as athletes can be pressed too far.  Let me point out some ways.

1.  During the recent Olympics, some athletes were disqualified because they had been doping, taking performance-enhancing drugs.

As far as I know, there are no drugs you can take to make you a better Christian than you really are.  There are some things you can say and do to give the impression you’re more pious than you are.

But that’s hypocrisy not real spiritual athleticism.  Being a hypocrite suggests another analogy.  A hypocrite is an actor wearing a false face.

The Christian Athlete knows that real spirituality calls for us to be—real.

2.  After years of making headlines by winning, some athletes make headlines by retiring.

Michael Phelps, who’s won an unprecedented 22 Olympic medals, will spend more time on dry land.  British cyclist Victoria Pendleton will probably ride her bike again but at a more leisurely pace.  No doubt they will be rushing here and there to make endorsements and public appearances.  Even that will eventually come to an end.

Of course, every baseball and football season sees players who retire and never return to the game and who are never asked to endorse anything.

Being a Christian athlete doesn’t offer that option.  Sure the form of your service may change but you don’t just quit.  The Christian athlete knows retirement isn’t in the future.

3.  Due to the competitive nature of athletics, most athletes are content to accept the fact that their winning means someone else losing.

The Olympics involves thousands of men and women from all over the world coming together, hoping to run faster, leap higher, or perform more gracefully than someone else.  When an American gymnast made a costly error, another gymnast, her chief rival, couldn’t keep a slight smile from her face.  And who could blame her?   After all, she didn’t cause the error, but her rival’s error meant she would go home the winner. 

You’ve heard the familiar sayings.  “Winning isn’t everything—it’s the only thing.”  “Second place is for the first loser.”  “If it doesn’t matter whether you win or lose, why do they keep score?”

Despite what may sometimes seem to be true, in our relationship with our fellow Christian athletes, there is no room for “trash talk” or attempts to psych-out our fellow athletes.

When we look at the Biblical picture, the goal is finish the race, not leave others in the dust.  Listen to Paul deal with the matter as he approaches the end of his life.  He mingles two athletic images, boxing and racing, to make his point.

 Now the time has come for me to die. My life is like a drink offering being poured out on the altar.   I have fought well. I have finished the race, and I have been faithful.
So a crown will be given to me for pleasing the Lord.  (2^nd Timothy 4:6-8)

Paul’s focus is not on outrunning anyone; it’s on his finishing the race.

Paul told the Philippians they should be “striving together for the faith of the good news.”  The word translated “striving together” literally means “to engage in an athletic contest.”  One writer points out that most athletes strive against each other but Paul was asking the Philippians to work together as a team.  It’s the same verb Paul uses to describe how the quarrelling women Euodia and Syntyche were once part of his ministry team in better days.

The writer of Hebrews also seems to suggest that the race is, to some extent, a community matter.  He says, “Therefore, surrounded as we are by such a vast cloud of witnesses, let us fling aside every encumbrance and the sin that so readily entangles our feet. And let us run with patient endurance the race that lies before us, simply fixing our gaze upon Jesus, our Prince Leader in the faith, who will also award us the prize.” (Hebrews 12:1-2)

So, as Christian athletes we know we run the race not to be the winner but to be one of the millions of winners who have run it before us and will run it after us.

What Being a Christian Athlete Means

Now, we’ve seen how the athlete analogy doesn’t fit but what are the legitimate comparisons?

1. Being a Christian athlete demands disciplined effort.

Some in the Corinthian church sat rather easy on their identity as Christians.  They freely adopted attitudes and behaviors that had no place in the Christian lifestyle.  Using himself as an example, Paul challenged them to give a more disciplined example.

Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air.  But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified. (I Corinthians 9:25-27)

The language is challenging.  When Paul says that he keeps his body under control he is literally saying, “I make it my slave.”  Those athletes we watched in London did not get there by having extra helpings of pie following every meal or smoking two packs of unfiltered cigarettes every day.  They avoided some things.

The Greeks loved athletic competition.  They gave the Olympics to the world.  And they took it seriously any individual who planned to compete in the games had to swear by Zeus to follow 10 months of intense discipline.  For the young men and women we watched in London, that discipline lasted for years.

Paul used boxing do describe the need for this discipline.  Craig Keener describes the sport as it would have been known to the Corinthians.

Boxing was one of the major competitions at Greek games; boxers wore leather gloves covering most of the forearm except the fingers, and boxing was a violent sport. Shadowboxing or “beating the air” was insufficient preparation for a boxing competition; a boxer had to discipline his body better than that to win. In the same way, Paul had to discipline his life to sacrifice what he needed to sacrifice for the sake of the gospel, lest he himself be disqualified from the race and fall short of the wreath of eternal life (9:25).^[2]

Paul’s concern about being “disqualified” probably doesn’t mean he is concerned about losing is salvation.  More likely, he means he is thinking about failing in his calling, failing in his ministry. 

In the face of the many temptations we face in the world we must be disciplined.  In a culture that mocks chastity and considers self-denial a fool’s game, we need discipline.  In body, yes.  But also in our minds.  We must refuse to submit to the cynicism and indifference of the critics.  We must stay strong to avoid capitulating to the mindset that says one worldview isn’t to be preferred over any other. 

The discipline the athletes in London have shown include following a strict diet, getting out of bed when they would prefer to sleep in, and practicing when they’d rather do anything else.  The disciplines the Christian athlete displays might include self-denial, prayer, Bible reading, corrective fellowship, and introspective confession.

This kind of discipline leads to endurance, the endurance Paul speaks of when he wrote the Philippians: “I keep on running and struggling to take hold of the prize.”  He knew commitment to Christ isn’t a hundred-yard dash; it’s a marathon.

2.  Being a Christian athlete means we are striving for a prize.

The Greek athlete set out to win a prize—a crown of various leafy stems.  Depending on the location of the games, the crown might be made of laurel, wild olive, parsley, or pine.  The crown had no intrinsic value but symbolized a great accomplishment.  That crown would eventually wither and decay.  The Christian athlete strives for an eternal prize.  Paul mentions it in this text and in his letter to Timothy in the passage I mentioned earlier. 

I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.
Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.  (2 Timothy 4:7-8)

Other New Testament writers mention Christians receiving crowns but it’s not always clear if the writer is referring to an athlete’s crown.

àAnd when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.  (I Peter 5:4)

àJesus promises the church at Smyrna:  Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life. (Revelation 2:10)

Occasionally, the Christian athlete receives the crown in this lifetime.  Paul refers to his converts in Philippi as his “crown.” (He calls them, “my brothers and sisters, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown.”)^[3]  Sometimes, it is a matter of sensing God’s commendation (I Cor. 4:5).  Remember, Eric Liddell’s story in Chariots of Fire. Liddell would later die as a missionary in China during the Japanese occupation.  A hero of the 1924 Olympics, he once said, “When I run, I feel God’s pleasure.”

Perhaps Paul would have said, “As I preach in foreign lands and to society’s outcasts, I feel God’s pleasure.”  For him, that would have been a crown.

But usually the crown the Christian athlete receives is given in the future.  The exact nature of these crowns or rewards isn’t spelled out.  So, we shouldn’t say more about them than the Bible allows us to say.  What can we say?

Crowns (or rewards) shouldn’t be confused with salvation.  Salvation is the free gift of God’s grace.  Rewards are recognition of our service. 

Not everyone will receive a crown.  There are not trophies or crowns for merely participating.  Some Christians never seem to grow beyond the stage that asks “What’s in it for me?” when it comes to following Christ.  They are believers but they never outgrow the self-centered infantile stage.  Even those Christians who seem to be working for the Kingdom can be inspired by the wrong motive or build out of the wrong material. Although he used the picture of a builder rather than an athlete, Paul makes this point when writing to the Corinthians.

10 According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master-builder I laid a foundation, but someone else builds on it. And each one must be careful how he builds. 11 For no one can lay any foundation other than what is being laid, which is Jesus Christ.; 12 If anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, or straw, 13 each builder’s work will be plainly seen, for the Day will make it clear, because it will be revealed by fire. And the fire will test what kind of work each has done. 14 If what someone has built survives, he will receive a reward. 15 If someone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss. He himself will be saved, but only as through fire.

Paul even suggests there are those who fail to gain a crown because they were guilty of cheating.  He wrote Timothy, “No one wins an athletic contest without obeying the rules” (2 Timothy 2:5).  I can’t help but think of those outwardly successful ministers who build their ministries on flattery, false promises, coercion, and mind games. 

Then, our crowns ought to bring glory to God.  Picture this, the athletes in London won their medals as representatives of their homelands.  As much as we may dislike politics being involved in the Olympics, we know that the success of our athletes reflects on our nation.  In an even greater way, any crowns worn by those who minister faithfully brings honor to God.  This is why Paul is especially on guard against pride.  He knew whatever success he had enjoyed as an apostle was due to God’s grace working through him.

Some Christians find it difficult to talk about rewards for our labor.  I admit I’m among them.  I’ve known teachers to carefully define and describe all the varied crowns Paul mentions and explain who will receive them.  I find it a little embarrassing.

Still, the New Testament underscores the idea of rewards or crowns for those who labor on Christ’s behalf.  So, I have no intention of trying to deny the right of a gracious God to act graciously in ways I might not understand.

I think the best perspective on these “crowns” is found in a picturesque passage in the Book of Revelation.  I’m going to introduce the passage with a couple observations.

First, the passage mentions “Twenty-four elders.”  These almost certainly represent all the believers in heaven, Old Testament believers and New Testament believers.  They stand for the believers of all ages.

Second, this passage is the last time there is any reference to believers wearing crowns.

Now, here’s that passage.  It’s found in Revelation 4:9-11.

The living creatures kept praising, honoring, and thanking the one who sits on the throne and who lives forever and ever.  At the same time the twenty-four elders knelt down before the one sitting on the throne. And as they worshiped the one who lives forever, they placed their crowns in front of the throne and said,
“Our Lord and God, you are worthy to receive glory, honor, and power....”

God’s people placing their crowns before the throne represented their devotion, humility, and recognition that all they might be and might have done was the product of God’s work in their lives.

For countless Christian athletes through the centuries this is the definitive statement on crowns in the Bible.

Conclusion

Years ago I had a young professor who led our class in a discussion of the believers’ crowns.  He laid out the arguments for the crowns being literal and the arguments for the crowns being figurative.  He seemed to favor the second interpretation.

He ended the discussion by reading the passage from the Revelation and then saying, “Whether they are real or figurative, I’m not planning on wearing mine very long.”

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^[1] Thomas Nelson Publishers. (2001). What does the Bible say about... The ultimate A to Z resource fully illustrated. Nelson's A to Z series (380). Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson.

^[2] Keener, C. S. (1993). The IVP Bible background commentary: New Testament (1 Co 9:26–27). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.

^[3] The Holy Bible: New Revised Standard Version. 1989 (Php  4:1). Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers.