This is a short post on why I dislike the sports analogies when dealing with our sanctification (our journey with God after our conversion). The catalyst of this rant is found here, where the tagline is:
In the Win Every Battle® seminar you will learn the basic building blocks of indeed winning every battle regardless of the circumstances. There really are basic, very powerful biblical forces which need to be understood and released in your life to win – really win1
I don’t know about you, but this type of theology/philosophy seems to be marketed (and I use ‘marketed’ intentionally) to those that want a quick fix to all their problems, or someone who wants a ROI that is beyond earthly standards… this, this and this also comes to mind when thinking about this type of marketing.
Why does this bother me so… Well, I think it is because IT’S A SCAM!
It promises more than “Christ” can deliver. God is not a genie in a bottle… to be rubbed when our circumstances are less than favorable or our purses less than bountiful. It saddens me that many are duped into this philosophy and pay their hard earned cash to go to conferences like this, which promise easy success if only you follow the newest 10 step plan. It is bothersome because the words of Jesus do not mirror this perspective, in fact, most times His words are quite the opposite, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” 2
It seems that Jesus rarely talked about individual success, but rather emphasized giving, sacrifice, and love in the context of community. Jesus’ words constantly challenged us to look outside ourselves, to do nothing out of selfish ambition3 rather He pleads that we show mercy to the marginalized just as we have been shown mercy. And this is my biggest contention with this winning every battle philosophy – it is just so selfish. We live in a individualistic culture, one that has skewed the teachings of Jesus, into a “Gameplan for Success” and has marginalized the beauty of sacrifice.
What do you think? How do you see the scriptures? Is it a Playbook, a Gameplan for winning, or is it something more….
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1. Winning Every Battle® http://www.wineverybattle.com
2. [youversion]Matthew 6:19-20[/youversion]
3. [youversion]James 3:13-18[/youversion] and [youversion]Philippians 2:3-11[/youversion]
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Hebrews 12:1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, we must get rid of every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and run with endurance the race set out for us,
2 Timothy 2:5 Also, if anyone competes as an athlete, he will not be crowned as the winner unless he competes according to the rules.
1 Corinthians 9:24 Do you not know that all the runners in a stadium compete, but only one receives the prize? So run to win. 9:25 Each competitor must exercise self-control in everything. They do it to receive a perishable crown, but we an imperishable one.
9:26 So I do not run uncertainly or box like one who hits only air. 9:27 Instead I subdue my body and make it my slave, so that after preaching to others I myself will not be disqualified.
The NT is full of sport metaphor/analogies, I think primarily because people easily relate to them. As incarnational folk, we should be speaking in language that the people understand. If that's sports — so be it!
Now the NT also has words for/about the scammers:
2 John 1:7 For many deceivers have gone out into the world, people who do not confess Jesus as Christ coming in the flesh. This person is the deceiver and the antichrist! 1:8 Watch out, so that you do not lose the things we have worked for, but receive a full reward.
Actually 1 John – Jude is great lesson in the false teachers, etc.
and remember — as much as he may or may not be overemphasized, you can't take Paul out of the Bible
We need to get a beer and dinner sometime relatively soon. I wanna hear what's up with you
Also: do i want to sign up for IntenseDebate?
Hi Brandon,
I think the title of the post is misleading. I agree that there are many sports analogies in the Bible, but the majority of the article is talking about a certain philosophy of ministry but of the interpretation of the those passages to mean that we can win all the time.
My point was simply that you can't negate the entire analogy because of a few bad apples. I think both the opening and closing lines of the post call for such a response (and the fact the brunt of the post is a direct 1:1 association of that analogy to bad theology when it's not always such). Don't worry though — I hate those health/wealth postulations just as much as the next guy — just ask Sam about that.
I'd also venture to say that we can in fact win all the time. Taking away analogies like "winning every battle" make this harder to see for some folks. Biblical "winning" is just very different from what Joel Osteen would call "winning". I think Sam does an excellent job talking about this in his post though so I won't rehash it.
Brandon, yes… you'll love IntenseDebate.
and that is kinda my point – everything you have quoted is from the NT… yet I don't think Jesus uses sports analogies (may have to research that a bit more), we hover on Paul's words and forget the foundation of Jesus' words that reframe "winning the prize."
As context in the above verses show, the point is winning a prize that is eternal and not temporal. 'Winning' comes by focusing on the rules/boundaries/discipline that athletic endeavor brings out, and not on the temporal prize that winning in athletics can bring –> money, fame, success, et cetera.
good stuff.
See my other comment as it would work fairly well in reply to this I think, particularly paragraph 2