Do You Finally Believe?
If you’ve been following this blog at all then you know that I like rugby. If you’ve been following the “Chaplain Malcolm Rios” blog then you know that the 2011 Rugby World Cup was recently played in New Zealand. The Kiwi’s national team, the All Blacks, have always been favorites in matches because of the legacy they have continued to build upon over the years as the team who has won the most international test matches.
I few weeks ago I wrote in my blog about the New Zealand / Argentina match. Because the matches were played in New Zealand and because interest for rugby has not increased exponentially in the U.S., Americans were forced, for the most part, to watch all the matches over the internet, World Wide Sports, or only three times televised on NBC. The beauty of technology is that because we have smartphones we also have apps and “there’s an app for that” absolutely applied to the Rugby World Cup.
The app was great because it not only allowed you to see the Pool Play brackets but you could track scores, get news feeds, keep up with player stats, and get merchandise if you were so inclined. Because the games were being played in a different time zone, we could know the score before we could actually watch the game in some instances. The New Zealand / Argentina match was one such match.
Knowing the score was great but I really wanted to watch the match. The legendary All Blacks were playing the incoming member of the Tri-Nations tourney. The Tri-Nations championship would be no more. Now South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand would have to compete with Argentina … the last major player in the Southern Hemisphere.
So, in this match, it was safe to say that Argentina were the underdogs. New Zealand won the match but Argentina played well. I don’t know if you’re like me at all but sometimes, despite what you already know, you want an outcome to be different. You know it can’t and won’t be but it makes you wonder, “What if?” That’s how I felt watching that match!
But then I thought, “Man, most of us walk through life thinking that same thing! We think that despite what the Book says, we can change things. Something different will happen because we’re special.” HELLO! If you confess Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior then you know how the story ends and you understand that just as important as the ending is, how you play the game is every bit as important.
The crazy thing is that Satan spends a great deal of time and energy influencing people to buy into the lie that they will (1) face no consequences – “living easy, living free,” (2) they are immortal – “season ticket on a one-way ride,” and (3) that his way is the best way despite “going down, party time, my friends are gonna be there too.” And unlike what the Stones tried to sell us, time is not on our sides.
And despite how you or I feel throughout this thing called life … God will win. We will win! “But you belong to God, my dear children. You have already won a victory over those people, because the Spirit who lives in you is greater than the spirit who lives in the world” (1 John 4:4). We persevere because of the power of the Holy Spirit living in us!
Let’s go back to that deception that Satan uses so effectively. The other day, I was in Wal-Mart with Angus and on the way out we stopped in the little game area. Since he’s only two, he can’t play any of the games but he is drawn to the bells, whistles, prizes, and the Claw (just like his daddy). I’m always drawn to the Claw – like those little aliens in Toy Story.
But what really got me is that Angus was drawn to it. He liked playing with the toggle. I don’t think he really understood, much less cared, how the thing worked. I, on the other hand, stood there and was amazed at how God uses simple things to illustrate deeper principles. It’s almost like having a parable explained to you by the Man, himself.
Everyone who knows the Claw knows that it’s rigged; kind of like Vegas. The house always wins. You might think you’re the shiznit because you’ve grabbed something in your lifetime but I think the odds of anyone actually getting anything into the prize chute are stacked against you higher than the odds of you winning $100 million in the Tennessee Lottery!
But we still play it! And even worse … we kid ourselves into believing that we are going to actually win! The Claw of Death is like the life we so often try to live. It’s also similar to the match between New Zealand and Argentina. We know who’s going to win (in this case, the house) yet we keep trying to beat it. Sorry, sweetie. It ain’t gonna work!
We think that we can beat the system. We think we can enjoy sin – live a life of sin – and we’ll be alright. For instance (and I’m not bashing Zac Brown as bad as I was Bon Scott and my boys from AC/DC), take the song, “No Hurry.”
Heaven knows that I ain't perfect
I've raised a little cain
And I plan to raise a whole lot more
Before I hear those angels sing
(Gonna get right with the lord)
But there'll be hell to pay
But I ain't in no hurry
Kenny Chesney says it just as well: “Everybody want to go to heaven but nobody want go now.” Taken with a little bit of humor, the lyrics are a lighthearted look at how life is most often lived by everyone … yep, even the Christians. We have that same attitude that our penance is to “give a little bit” to CYA (cover your arrogance).
I said, “Preacher maybe you didn’t see me
Throw and extra twenty in the plate
There’s one for everything I did last night
And one to get me through today
It’s absolutely nuts that we continue to kid ourselves and call ourselves believers when we in no other way give our lives to the Lord! Am I perfect? No but that’s not an excuse to continue in ways that do not glorify the Lord.
”It was by faith that Moses, when he grew up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. He chose to share the oppression of God’s people instead of enjoying the fleeting pleasures of sin. He thought it was better to suffer for the sake of Christ than to own the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking ahead to his great reward” – Hebrews 11:24-26.
And just in case you forgot this one: “The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord” – Romans 6:23.
So, we’ve talked about knowing the outcome of the game and we’ve talked about allowing ourselves to be caught up in the lies that we can actually win the game that Satan is trying to pull us into. Now let’s talk about winning the game and how to “get ‘er done!”
For the 2011 Rugby World Cup Championship match, New Zealand faced France. France has always given the All Blacks a tough time. For some reason, a mental block seems to come into play during their matches. This time seemed no different. France seemed to be on every move that the All Blacks attempted to make. The phases were shut down time and time again.
The beauty of this match was that I didn’t know who was going to win. (I found out later that it was not a live feed that afternoon. The game had streamed live at 3 a.m. that morning). I was rooting for the All Blacks but, as I said before, France played well the entire game and in all actuality, I thought they would win. Ultimately the All Blacks went on to win the game 8 – 7. Obviously, it was a low scoring game but the game itself was what head to head is all about.
It was a great match because the two teams that deserved to be there this year were there and they were evenly matched. Neither team gave much ground to the other. Only two tries, an extra point’s field goal, and a field goal were scored. Everything else was blood, guts, and glory! The last five minutes of the match were testimony to the strength, teamwork, determination, and resiliency of the All Blacks. Ultimately, they wanted it more and they proved it by a strategic hold at the end of the game. Things clicked for them in that last five minutes in a way that exemplified everything that they had accomplished throughout the tourney.
Their struggle to win this final match reminded me of the words that Paul wrote to the Romans. Allow me to break it down like this:
Romans 5:1-5
1 Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us.
· The All Blacks organization had painstakingly selected the players for the 2011 RWC team. Once chosen, these guys – who were already the best in their field – trained to become even better and unified as a team. They were “made right.” They were ready to play at the first whistle.
2 Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of undeserved privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory.
· Because of the preparation – the pain they had endured to be ready for the RWC – the All Blacks defeated every other team in their Pool Play. They were poised to enter the elimination rounds with no loses. They were in a place of “privilege” and were “confidently and joyfully” looking forward to sharing the glory.
3 We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance.
· Elimination rounds were challenging but the All Blacks continued on their relentless pursuit of the Ellis Cup.
4 And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation.
· Everything they did, everything they had experienced to this point, led them to – prepared them for – this final match with France. They had endured. The strength of their character as a team was evident. And their hope became the momentum that carried them to victory.
5 And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.
· All Black hope, confidence, and conditioning carried them to a victory that will be talked about in rugby circles for years to come. It was a show of strength – a show of rock solid resolve.
Paul wrote these inspired Words of God. And God is so good to remind us more than once of He has in store for those who believe. Like that rugby match, we will face trials. We might even think we’re going to lose from time to time but God encourages us otherwise. “I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world” – John 16:33. The funny thing is He said that because of the previous two verses. “Jesus asked, ‘Do you finally believe? But the time is coming—indeed it’s here now—when you will be scattered, each one going his own way, leaving me alone. Yet I am not alone because the Father is with me’” – John 16:31-32.
Ultimately, that’s what we have to ask ourselves. Do we finally believe or have we scattered, gone our own way, and left him alone? Are we like the Israelites in Judges? “In those days Israel had no king; all the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes” Judges 17:6; 21:25). Are you doing what’s right in your own eyes or do you finally believe?
