Are we the Champions?

Here's my article for the September magazine:

Image by Keith Johnston from Pixabay  

With the World Cup and the Commonwealth Games as well as all the normal events, this summer has been a great one for sports fans, although perhaps not as good for others in their homes who don't like sport!

Sports fandom comes in many forms; some just enjoy watching sport, others get heavily invested in it. But when there are major sporting events like the World Cup or the Olympics even armchair sports watchers can get swept up in the excitement, and we identify with our team or our national team.  So their successes become our successes; 'we' win, 'we' are the champions.  Even when our best sporting days (if we ever had them) are behind us, we share in the victory of others as if it were our own.  For those in a crowd at an event, it could be an argued that their support spurred the team or athlete on to victory, but for those watching online or on TV (and sometimes not even live) no matter how much we shout, it will have no impact on those who are actually competing.  And yet we still claim that 'we' have won.

This helps us to understand something that often puzzles people about the Christian faith.  We believe that Jesus' death and resurrection is the means by which our sins are forgiven – but how can the death of someone almost 2,000 years ago have any bearing on our guilt?

Jesus said that his death would be a ransom for many (Mark 10:45); he was named the 'Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world' by John the Baptist (John 1:29) which links him to the figure of the Suffering Servant in Isaiah 52-53 who “was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.”  So Jesus took the punishment we deserve for our sins: “He died for our sins and rose again to make us right with God” (Romans 4:25 The Living Bible).

But how does what Jesus achieves on the cross get applied to us personally?   The answer is similar to that corporate sense of identification we see with sport.  Paul teaches us that “We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life” (Romans 6:3-4).  Baptism is the symbol of repentance, faith and trust in Jesus, and through that faith we become united with Jesus in his death and his resurrection (Romans 6:5).  Like someone watching or listening to sport via the media, we contribute nothing to the victory Jesus wins, but through faith Jesus is our champion, we win in him.

“Thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 15:57).

How to be free from desire

Here's my article for June:

It's time for another football World Cup: which will be a cause for rejoicing for those who can't get enough of football and despair for those who have had enough of football!  I've mentioned previously about football chants but as well as adapting lyrics to popular songs, football fans also adopt songs as their own.

Famously, Liverpool fans sing “You'll never walk alone” from the musical Carousel; West Ham fans sing “I'm forever blowing bubbles”; Hibernian fans sing “Sunshine on Leith”; and Newcastle fans sing “Blaydon Races.”  Other songs transcend individual clubs and are sung by many fans, such as “We are the Champions” and “Sweet Caroline.” Another song in this latter category is “Freed from desire.”

When I was chaplain to the Scunthorpe United Academy, the U18s team would often play this song as part of their pre-match playlist.  This always struck me as slightly odd as although the the music and rhythm are invigorating, the wish to be freed from desire doesn't seem to be the best motivation for going into a competitive match!  I'm sure that it will be said many times during the World Cup that poor performances from teams are because of a lack of desire.

The song itself is actually a reflection of Eastern spirituality, especially Buddhism – that's the 'strong beliefs' referred to.  The singer's love has been freed from the desire for money, power and fame, and his mind and senses have been purified, unlike other people who just want more and more.  This seems to be similar to Jesus' teaching “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.  But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven” (Matthew 5:19-20), and also to the apostle Paul's “Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things” (Colossians 3:2).

However, the reason these desires should be avoided in Buddhism is because never-ending desires and cravings that cannot be quenched cause suffering.  Buddha taught that even the desire not to desire is in itself a desire, and as such a source of suffering.  Therefore the solution is to cultivate non-attachment to everything – including the idea that there is a permanent essence of anything.

In contrast, the Bible teaches us that the created world was good and that humans made it very good, because we are made in the image and likeness of God (Genesis 1 and 2).  We are created to be in eternal relationship with God, but humanity's sin has corrupted us and the world.  Therefore our desires are now not for God but for earthly 'treasures.'  The good news, however, is that through trust in Jesus' death and resurrection, we can be freed from those desires and enjoy the abundant, eternal life with God that we were created for.

image by Prawny from Pixabay