Adjust To The Umpire

"Are you blind?' "Open your eyes ump, you are missing a great game!" You have probably heard these and many other colorful statements at baseball games. We can all see the same pitch or play and still have major disagreements. Even with video review we often still hold our positions. Our viewpoints are often directed by which team we are pulling for. We see everything in light of what is best to help our team win and all other calls are just wrong.

Then the yelling begins. We try to convince a very blind and stubborn umpire that he has made a major mistake and is hurting our team. As a matter of fact, the ump is really making things unfair for our team. some fans will try informing the umpire of the real rules of the game. After all, our little all stars would never make an error or let a strike sail by without a swing. These little ones will be major league players one day so don't call them out now! Perspective is funny. Perspective ruins reality. Perspective can be blind and just plain wrong.

I wish this were true only for the baseball field but it creeps into the church. We shouldn't be too hard on ourselves, this has been going on since the fifteenth chapter of Acts! The great disagreement was over salvation. Who and how were the debatable pitches. Who could be saved and how could they be saved. The Jews didn't think the Gentiles could, or should be saved, unless they became Jewish first. You must follow all the laws and rituals including circumcision in order to be a follower of Jesus, said the Jewish people in the church. The only problem was that Jesus proclaimed something different. Christ alone. Nothing added to faith in Jesus.

In the church their  can be so many arguments over things that do not pertain to salvation. We can replay scriptures with our biased viewpoint. While the purity of the Gospel must always be protected, there are other matters that require grace if there is to be unity. The Jews and Gentiles in Acts 15 learned how to have unity amid diversity. The Gentiles were asked to change some "habits" that were offensive to the Jews, and the Jews were not to add a burden beyond faith in Christ for salvation of the Gentiles. Wow! the early church had to deal with a mess.

The good news is that we have a spiritual umpire called the Holy Spirit that always accurately applies the rule book of life called The Bible. There is really only one "right" person on the field and it isn't little Johnny the superstar. It is the Umpire! His call and rulings are final. Argue if you will but their word stands. What you may not like you want to change but the final call has been made. God will NEVER change His Word. Our lives are to adjust to the umpire. We are to adjust ourselves to the Word of God. If you need an interpretation of the rules, then God has provided the Holy Spirit.

The only way to win in this life is to trust in Christ alone, by faith alone, through grace alone. Jesus really is the ONLY way, Truth, and Life. From there we daily adjust our life to the Word of God. By the way, aren't you glad things aren't really fair? If they were we would all be on our way to hell. Grace is an interruption to fair!

From the Heart,
Pastor BR