On the eve of the Eagles' first match of the 2008 season, I've been doing some thinking. Coupled with the fact that today is Good Friday, I've also been thinking about my Lord Jesus Christ (well trying to as much as overactive mind will let me). How does being a Christ-follower impact the way I am a footy-follower? Surely it must, as every aspect of my life must come under Jesus' lordship.
My musing about this topic started last year when my church did a series on the book of Ezekiel in the Bible. For those of you who haven't read Ezekiel before (I was one of them), it is basically the 'idolatry' book. The Israelites are in exile in Babylon because of their blatant idolatry, worhsipping foreign gods instead of the one true God and even bringing their idols into God's temple.
I think I can probably say that Ezekiel cut straight to the heart of many in my church as we looked hard at the idols in our lives. Those that are so subtle, that we don't even know they're there. Or if we know what they are, we are reluctant to part with them. Idolatry is sin in itself and also can cause us to commit sins - against God and each other.
I've also been reading the book The True and Living God by Kim Hawtrey. This simple, straight forward book examines the common idols in the lives of many Australians - family, money, careers, homes and possessions, television and the one this I'm going to concentrate on in this post........sport!
Whether it's as a player or a fan, sport is an idol for many Aussies. It may even be an idol for you.
What I've been struggling with is how do you know when sport becomes an idol for you? How should I play or watch sport as a Christian?
What God has revealed to me over the past six months or so, is that our lives cannot be divided into compartments. We must live for and follow Jesus in all aspects of our lives. We cannot have the 'Christian bit' where we are good and godly and nice, and then the 'sport bit' where we can act like complete twats and abuse people left right and centre. Whatever we do, we must do it for the Lord. We are for better or for worse representing him.
Kim Hawtrey's book calls sport 'a healthy thing, a good gift from God that we can enjoy to our benefit' (page 64). The problem is, as my pastor said, when a 'good thing' becomes a 'god thing'.
I love Aussie Rules Football but I realise that I cannot just fit in with the culture. I love the history of the game and the fact that it is uniquely Australian. But I'm also aware to many, that this sport is a religion and that's blatantly obvious when the MCG is referred to as Mecca, Gary Ablett is labelled as God, and team captains are called 'spiritual leaders'. This is also a culture that says umpires deserve to be abused, it's okay to be blind drunk at games (or anywhere really) and where people spend hours on the internet abusing other teams' fans on online forums.
Here's what I'm NOT saying. It's not wrong to enjoy playing sport or watching it. It's not wrong to buy a scarf or a beanie and go to games. It's not wrong to spend a few hours watching it on TV. It's not wrong to yell and cheer and wave your flag. It's not wrong to have friendly rivalries and ribbing between players and fans of opposing teams. I'm not saying we need to give up sport all together and spend all time praying or doing Bible study.
However, I do believe it's wrong when we talk about our team more than we talk about God. When it's what we live and breathe and spend all our money on. When we criticise others for not taking out membership, saying they're not real fans if they don't spend up. When we think Jesus doesn't care how we behave as sports' players or fans because, hey, it's our recreation time and we get to decide how we behave then. When parents go ballistic at their kids' sporting games and put so much pressure on them to become the champion they never got to be. When we justify paying sports' stars millions while people are starving. When people are perfectly nice off the court/field but become absolute morons during the game, abusing their teammates for making the slightest mistake. When we're so immersed in 'Australian male sporting culture' that we fail to take a step back and criticise, evaluate and decide whether fitting straight in would be the best witness for Jesus. When we sulk for weeks because our team lost. When friendly rivalries/ribbing turns personal and nasty.
Some people say it's helpful having others point out their idolatry to them, particularly in the area of sport where as Australians, face it, we can be so blind. But we must not be so quick to judge others for the speck in their eyes that we forget about the planks in our own. Don't be so quick to point the finger at others (and I know it's tempting) and neglect the idols hidden in your own closet. Turf them out. Idolatry is serious. It's dethroning God from his rightful place as King of our lives and replacing him with something else. While sport may be enjoyable, compared to God, it's nothing....worthless.
Sometimes we may realise that the only way we can live for God is to rid ourselves permanently of these idols. Sometimes we have to make a choice. I'm not saying all of us should quit watching sport, although depending on the level of temptation, for some it might mean drastic action. I remember when Joseph Gutnick (former Melbourne president) did not watch the 2000 AFL Grand Final either at the ground or on TV, because as a Jew, he believed it was breaking the Sabbath (Saturday - the Jewish day of rest). Imagine that - a dedicated footy follower whose team hadn't been in the grand final for years. My point is not whether or not Christians should keep the Saturday Sabbath, but that Joseph Gutnick put his Lord before his sport.
Maybe your conscience has been pricked reading this. Mine has been, that's what prompted me to write it.
I'm looking forward to the Eagles' first game tomorrow night. I'll yell and cheer. I'll pray for Christian footballers who are trying to be godly examples on the field and off. And I'll also be praying that I too will be godly and that I won't forget who I live for.
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