Growing up in northern New England, I was a die-hard fan of the Boston Red Sox. In those years, the Red Sox excelled at playing well enough to get your hopes up, only to see them dashed towards the end of the season. More often than not, the primary vehicle for dashing those hopes was the New York Yankees, who seemed to excel at winning World Series titles after crushing the Red Sox. As a result, fans of the Red Sox did not get along with Yankees fans. And while I wish that I could say that it was all in good fun, I have to admit that one of my favorite books during those years was titled “Diary of a Yankee hater.”
One of the things that we learn early on in life, whether it is through sports or other competitive endeavors, is that when there is one victor, there will be at least one loser. If your dream is to come out on top, it is easy to see those who defeat you as the enemy. It can be wonderful when you win, but if you don’t, it is because someone else kept you from getting what you really wanted. From there, it is a simple task to draw a line that separates the good from the bad, and then to rationalize that no one should cheer for someone on the bad side. You might even start to think that if they are bad enough to get in the way of your dreams, then they must be riddled with character flaws, and therefore are unworthy of kindness, grace, or mercy. You might even start to hate them, not because you actually know them, but simply because their pursuit of their dreams gets in the way of your dreams.
Christians are not afforded the privilege of such thoughts. Sure, we can have favorite teams, but when it comes to how we deal with people, it doesn’t matter if they have been defeating us every single day in every important worldly measure, keeping us from reaching the podium. The reasons for this are simple. First, the most important thing to a Christian must be to walk humbly with the Lord, and there’s room for others to walk along with you in that journey. Victory for the Christian does not come at the expense of someone else, so there is no competition in that sense. For that reason, the Christian should be encouraging everyone else to come along and meet the risen Savior.
The second reason takes on added significance in this time of heightened animosity. Jesus commands his followers to love their enemies and bless those who persecute them. Particularly as it extends to those who have different political or religious beliefs where we see such anger and venom, Jesus challenges those who would take up the moniker of Christian to respond with love, extending grace, mercy, and the truth of Jesus to those who wish to see them harmed. Jesus allows room for opposition to things that are evil and false, but he leaves no room for hatred towards the people who hold those beliefs. Jesus offered no clearer example of that than when he asked God to forgive the people who were executing him.
Dear friends, no matter what side of the political aisle, or what your favorite sports team may be, remember that those on the other side are people who were made in the image of God, and that the ultimate win in life is not some temporary title here on earth, but rather it is to be counted among the family of God in Heaven. So put aside partisanship and love them through the Lord – even if their team comes out on top this year.
Peace and blessings – Pastor Aaron