Tag: baseball
Baseball Players of Advent: Joseph the Sacrifice Out
What young boy hasn’t stepped onto a baseball field, stood beside home plate, and pretended to swing for the fences? We picture ourselves in the pressure of batting in the 9th inning, with two outs, the bases loaded, and then knocking the ball out of the park to win the game in clutch fashion. We dream of living that moment depicted in the movie the Natural starring Robert Redford. However, more often than those dramatic moments, baseball games are won through the small details – the sacrifice flies, the executed bunts, the hits and runs. Instead of telling their player to swing for the fences, crafty managers will sometimes ask players to hit the ball in a way that will get the batter out while advancing the runner. It’s a strategy known as small ball.
This year for Advent, we are focusing on the “baseball players” in the story of Jesus’ birth. We’ve looked at Zechariah the Captain, John the Baptist the leadoff hitter, Simeon the Franchise Veteran, and this week, we’re taking a look at Jesus’ adopted father Joseph – the batter who was asked to sacrifice.
Imagine being engaged to a girl and finding out she’s pregnant. Imagine for just a moment all the thoughts that would run through your head? How could she do this to me? Who is the father? What if my church community thinks I did this? What will they think of me? How do I explain this to people? You can imagine Joseph’s desperate dilemma.
We’re not told much about Joseph, but we’re told that he was a righteous man, and instead of publicly humiliating Mary (which he was entitled to do), he decided that he would break-up with her quietly. However, just as he had made up his mind to divorce Mary, an angel of the Lord visited him in a dream and informs him that Mary’s child was conceived by the Holy Spirit, and this child would save his people from their sins.
In obedience and trust in God, Joseph married Mary. It was a decision that required a lot of sacrifice. Every husband dreams of a wedding night with his bride, yet, Joseph waited to consummate his marriage until after Jesus’ birth. Every father looks at their child, mesmerized with the idea that they co-produced this human being. Joseph would look on Mary’s first born knowing the baby was not biologically his. One of man’s oldest traditions is to name their son, but Jesus’ name was chosen for him. On a couple of occasions, Joseph would have to move his family and pick up his life in order to protect his adopted son.
Joseph is like the superstar power hitter that was asked to bunt. You can imagine the important game. There’s runners on base, the team is behind, only an inning or two remain. This is the moment to be clutch. However, instead of telling the all-star power hitter to swing for the fences, the coach says, “I want you to bunt the ball. I want you to advance the runners and in the process give yourself up.” It might infuriate a big hitter. Not only will they miss their opportunity to shine in the spotlight or make ESPN’s Top Ten, the decision won’t better their personal batting statistics. You can imagine how much the home crowd would boo the manager if they saw their best hitter square up to bunt the ball in a clutch moment. A decision like that would send many all-stars into the eye of the camera or the Twittersphere to vent their displeasure about their coach’s decision. But the best team players understand that the game is much bigger than just one person. They understand that more often than not in baseball it’s the sacrifice out that wins the game.
Joseph teaches us what humility and service to God looks like. He had so much at stake – his career, his reputation, his own satisfaction, and instead of thinking about himself, he sacrificed everything for the Kingdom of God. While Jesus, as the Son of God, didn’t need an earthly example to follow, He certainly received it in His biological father Joseph. Joseph committed his life to serving his adopted son and Messiah. He may not have realized it at first, but that became his life mission and his legacy.
Living Sacrifice Day 35 – Shepherding: the Heart of Church Leadership
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Begin by reading 1 Peter 5:1-4
A number of summers ago, my wife and I spent time in a remote region of Morocco with some missionary friends. Nearly every day we would watch shepherds lead their flock of sheep up and over the mountain pass near the home where we stayed, or we would see them in a field near a highway we drove by. It is not a glamorous job. It is a job of caring for these animals and leading them to places where they can find water and pasture. As they walked up steep hills, it looked like a never-ending exhausting job. Often times the shepherds were dirty, they looked vigilant but tired, and they seemed to give no indication that the destination was nearby. It was like their job and their only concern was keeping the sheep safe and well fed, wherever it led them.
Over the past few days, I have been challenging you to not think of yourself as an average Joe just helping your pastor, but rather as a called member of the clergy, qualified for service – whatever that service may be. Today I want to talk about the heart of leadership.
Peter very intentionally uses the analogy of shepherd with church leader for a couple of reasons. First, Peter wants us to understand what church leadership is all about. Like those shepherds in Morocco, church leadership is not about being a glamorous CEO, it is about walking the trenches with the sheep. It is about putting them and their needs first and helping them find pasture.
Sadly, sometimes this point is forgotten among many church leaders. Instead of seeing the church as a ministry to serve, sometimes it can be treated merely as a corporation with success as its only aim. When pastors and elders lose the vision of shepherds and treat their jobs as though they were CEOs, attitudes quickly switch to “it’s my way or the highway.” I heard a story recently about a pastor who barged into a meeting, proclaiming, “You will pay me more, and all I’m going to do from now on is preach!” Sadly he had forgotten that being a pastor is not a calling to be Steve Jobs but to be more like Mother Teresa.
In some churches this happens because the congregation has unbiblical expectations of their pastors and leaders. Instead of seeing them as shepherds, they cater to the corporate mentality. They want their leaders to build a thriving empire of perfection, rather than a ministry of love and relationship building. They’ll roll out the red carpet and offer a free Mercedes, but when the leadership doesn’t grow the church in numbers, they’re out the door looking for a new flock with which to wander. Peter wants us church leaders and congregations to realize that leading in God’s ministry is a ministry of shepherding.
Secondly, Peter’s words remind us whose sheep we’re caring for. We are told that these are not our sheep but sheep that God has entrusted to us for a time. He tells us that our attitude should not be to do this service because we have to but because we may do it. One day, the Lord will return and hold us to account. Why should we be proud to say, “Look at the building we were able to build!” if our sheep are skinny and unfed. Why should we feel proud to say, “Look at the vision statements adorning our wall!” if our sheep have not been led to healthy pastures. Why should we feel proud to say, “Look at how large our church is!” if our sheep are all sickly and deformed. The point is that God cares primarily about His sheep. Sure, we must be good stewards of our building and facilities, but we must recognize that the true church, bought with the precious blood of Christ, is not made up of bricks and mortar, rather it is made up of human beings.
These human beings form the one body, which Paul talks about in Romans 12. Our calling as shepherds (whether it be elder, ministry leader, teacher, etc.) is to feed the flock by allowing them and encouraging them to use their gifts. Some churches don’t trust the congregation to do this because of fear that they’ll screw something up. But I think it would be wise to understand the job of a shepherd. Their job is not to merely get the flock into a pen ten miles away and say, “I’ve arrived.” Their job is to feed them. It is a calling marked by journey and never by destination.
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Living Sacrifice Day 34 – When You Have to be Clutch
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Begin by reading Mark 11:12-26
I’m an avid baseball fan and am looking forward to the upcoming season. You know, I really love a game that comes down to the wire. It’s during these games that strategy becomes important, and we often see managerial moves that otherwise wouldn’t occur. One of those moves is bringing in a pinch hitter. This is someone who is not in the starting lineup who replaces a batter. Managers will do this to throw off the opposing pitcher from what he was expecting. Sometimes he will do this if the regular batter doesn’t fair well against the pitcher and in the situation. Or sometimes the manager just wants to try his luck. There’s nothing more exciting than a pinch hitter coming through with a clutch hit to extend or win the game. Well, as long as he’s on the team you’re routing for.
Being a servant of God, sometimes we’re called to be a pinch hitter. Take a look at the gifts that are listed in Romans 12:6-8 – prophesying, serving, teaching, encouraging, giving, leading, showing mercy. What do you notice? Well, hopefully, you’re doing these to some extent or another. You may not be gifted at giving, but if everyone used that as an excuse not to give, we would be in a pretty sad state. Likewise, you may not have the gift of encouragement, but we are all still called to encourage each other.
It may help to think of it in terms of a baseball team. You might not be the starting player or the captain when it comes to teaching, but that doesn’t mean that you’re off the hook. You never know when the Coach will call upon you to teach. Maybe it won’t be a sermon, but it might be a one-on-one situation.
In today’s reading, we find what might seem an unreasonable Lord. How can a fig tree be expected to produce fruit out of season? Well, Jesus was teaching us a lesson and used a tree to make the point. We are sometimes out of season. Maybe we aren’t prepared, maybe we’re not in playoff form, or maybe we’re not gifted in an area. But the Lord still expects us to produce. While it’s important to know your calling and focus in that area, don’t let that become an excuse for not serving when needs arise.
I think here the phrase living sacrifice is especially fitting. Often times, a manager will bring in a pinch hitter who is good at laying down a bunt. This player is expected to put the ball gently in play, and his role is to advance the other player. It is a near certainty that the batter will get thrown out in the play, but this is why it’s called a sacrifice. Sometimes, God may call on us to serve in areas and situations where we may not feel best suited. Maybe we just flat out don’t want to do something. These are the moments we need to remember our primary calling. We are living sacrifices. This is where we need to say, “Not my will, but Thine be done.”
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