Bad Umps and Protecting Your Rights

Suggested Reading:1 Corinthians 6:1-8

When my son started playing little league baseball, it wasn't long before his team lost a game. His head coach was out of town and so things were already a little rocky. On top of that, the umpire was a 15 year old kid who was uncertain of himself and listened to the opposing team’s coach (I think they were somewhat acquainted with each other) when trying to make calls.  On one particular play, our pitcher barehanded a ball on the ground and ran over to tag the runner coming home from third base. Inexplicably, the runner was called safe.  Apparently, the opposing coach convinced the ump that the pitcher tagged him with his throwing hand when the ball was in his glove. It wasn’t. But the game was pretty much lost by that point anyway and so our assistant coach did something I was rather proud of. He taught the boys to respect the umpire and his call rather than creating a scene. He presented an example of good sportsmanship.

Whether you agree with the coach’s decision or not, Paul actually urged the believers in Corinth to follow a similar line of thinking when dealing with their own legitimate complaints. Apparently, there were several disputes that had broken out between members of the church and these people had taken each other to court. Paul argued that they should find someone in the church to resolve their disputes rather than take their disputes into the secular courts and present a bad witness to the world. Naturally, not everyone would agree to that and so Paul continued, “Why not rather put up with injustice? Why not rather be cheated? Instead, you act unjustly and cheat – and you do this to believers!” (1 Corinthians 6:7, HCSB).

We live in a society that treasures the rights of the individual and I am glad that we do. We should always respect other people’s rights. But when it comes to our own rights, we should be willing to let go of them when it would advance the work of the kingdom. When that person looks you in the eye and then cuts in front of you, will your witness be greater if you confront them and demand your proper place or if you graciously allow them in and strike up a conversation? When that woman takes your Avon order (and your money) and takes six months to get your order delivered, would the greater witness be to ask what happened and then forgive her or to demand a refund because you didn't get what you paid for when you paid for it?

I am not saying that you should let people run all over you, although it sometimes looks like that. I'm talking about willingly laying down your rights, refusing to cling to what you deserve because the kingdom will grow more through your self-denial. I'm talking about, in those moments where you could legitimately demand your rights, intentionally choosing to let them go. You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal's death on a cross (Philippians 2:5-8, NLT).

We should always protect other people's rights but we must also be willing to let go of our own.  Just as Jesus gave up what he deserved in order to reach us, we must be willing to give up what we deserve to reach others.

Losing Your Temper Hulk-Style

Suggested Reading: Ephesians 4:20-32

When The Avengers first came out, one of the characters my son was most looking forward to seeing was the Hulk. At that point in time, everything he had ever seen about the Hulk had been from cartoons or the movies where he only really hurts people who were trying to hurt him. So when Hulk made his first appearance because Bruce Banner got angry my son got scared. If you have heard anything about the movie already you know that the Hulk ends up fighting really well for the good guys but the incident reminded me of Ephesians 4:26, which simply states, "Be angry and do not sin" (HCSB).

Anger is one of those emotions we often misunderstand. We often either think of it as something entirely negative or as something we have no control over. Neither one of these concepts is true. Anger can be an extremely positive force for good if we use it correctly. Jesus used his anger to drive cheats and swindlers out of the house of God. Martin Luther King Jr used his anger to lead the fight against injustice. Anger, if used appropriately, can be the difference between saving life or destroying it, between doing justice and letting evil prevail.

Anger can cloud our judgment and make us reckless, causing us to lash out at anyone in our path like the Hulk does when he made his first appearance in The Avengers. But anger can also be used to motivate us for good when we see injustice or evil and then temper it with intentional, clear thinking. Not all anger is bad, but all anger must be directed in a positive direction or it will eventually tear us apart.

What have you been angry about recently? How did you handle it? If you are angry for a good reason, direct your anger. Don't let your anger direct you.