Jesus Loves the Packers

I have a bit of a confession to make. Maybe even an addiction to admit to. For the past year or so, whenever I'm alone and driving, I can't help but...

Listen to sports talk radio.

Colin Cowherd, Scott Van Pelt, Mike Heller, and my personal favorite, Dan Patrick. They all talk about the same things for the most part, but whether they're discussing football or NASCAR racing, I could generally listen to it for hours. (Okay, maybe not if it's about NASCAR racing.)

There's one guy in particular that I listen to based out of Milwaukee that I think, due to his age and wisdom, brings something to the table that no one else does.

That is, every single show (and probably even every hour or so), he bursts out in exhilaration,

"The Packers are WORRRRRRRRLD CHAMPIONS!!!"

It's now over three months past the Super Bowl, and even though several other sports have started their seasons and generally dominate the topics of conversation, he never forgets to remind us that the Packers are Super Bowl champions.

*Okay, so while I'm sure Jesus doesn't "hate" the Bears, it's probably similar to how he uses hyperbole and the word "hate" when comparing one's love for their family with their love for him. Compared to his love for the Packers, his love for the Bears looks like hate. :)

As phenomenal and potentially life-altering as the Super Bowl victory was for Wisconsin sports fans, and as terrific a story line as their overcoming injuries and improbable victories is, there's an even greater and more significant Story that we must remind ourselves of every day. And this Story should never get old.

While the danger in letting the Gospel get old and not reminding ourselves of the Story seems to lie mostly in our emotional connection to what Jesus has done for us, I believe there's much more at stake.

Because if the Gospel is "old hat" or something we only think about on Sundays, we in essence align ourselves to a completely different story that is anti-Gospel.

The story of having to earn love and affirmation, do all the right things to please God, have all of our needs met by our spouses or friends, follow all the rules, read the Bible for 30 minutes every day, or find our identity and significance in what abilities we possess or what job we have.

Or, like Homer, who doesn't want to forget about the Packers being Super Bowl champions for even a day and who wants to celebrate it for all it's worth, we can choose to align ourselves to the story of the Gospel each and every day, and regardless of circumstances, choose to be filled with joy because the resurrection is real and our God is very much alive!

Christ is Risen! (...and the Packers are WORRRRLD CHAMPS!)

-CK

The Osama bin Laden Question

When I first heard the news about Osama bin Laden's death, my mind and emotions seemed to be confused about how I was supposed to react. While celebration and joy didn't feel quite right, neither did mourning his murder.

And while images of teenagers celebrating in the streets of D.C. and chanting "USA!" succeeded in putting knots in my stomach, I also curiously scanned several social media outlets waiting for dialogue that might be sparked by people offended by Christians posting Bible verses about "loving their enemies." And it appeared that many other Christ-followers didn't quite know how to react either.

I can understand both reactions. If Jesus Christ hadn't changed my life seven years ago, I would've been elated and toasting with anyone in sight. The man was responsible for the deaths of thousands of innocent people, used religion to manipulate people, and will go down as our generation's Adolf Hitler. Non-believers would be crazy to act any differently because outside of faith, there is little basis for the sanctity of human life, especially a life as evil and abused as Osama bin Laden's. On the other hand, my life has changed and been centered around the Kingdom way of life, one that is ushered in through weakness, peace, and love.

Yet, while I'm not trying to soften Scripture and what it means for us, I don't think it's as simple as "love your enemies" = pacifism and "turn the other cheek." And though I didn't feel like it was appropriate to celebrate bin Laden's death last night, thousands of soldiers and families impacted by this man might beg to differ. And did the Israelites not celebrate when David killed Goliath or their enemies were defeated countless other times? Every person was created in the image of God, but by that same merit, shouldn't we also do whatever possible to preserve life?

These are the questions that theologians like Dietrich Bonhoeffer and C.S. Lewis have long tried to figure out and that bring about that feeling I was attempting to describe.

Tension.

And it doesn't just come from issues like war and peace.

Politics,

Free will,

The end times,

Evangelism,

Poverty,

Sexuality,

And so on.

They all bring about tension.

I find that the closer I get to Jesus and thinking I know more of who He is and what He's about, the less I know about theology and life.

...and the more that tension grows.

But I think that's where we're supposed to be as Christ-followers. We can't even begin to pretend that we have the answers to all of those questions. And more importantly, Jesus has already lived the PERFECT life that we were SUPPOSED to live, was crucified, and resurrected. Because of that, we now have the FREEDOM to, by his Spirit, try to figure out how to best usher in the Kingdom through love and grace. In essence, being a Christ-follower means living in and embracing that tension.

By wanting things to be black and white, and being able to know EXACTLY what we need to do and how to behave, is to choose to live by the law, by religion. By this we will always fail. But by accepting that tension and working out our salvation with fear and trembling is to choose grace, and the Gospel.

As for the Osama bin Laden question, I pray that God might somehow use this to bring peace and that the anger and mourning that bin Laden has caused all around the world might somehow be replaced by the hope of the Gospel.

-CK