Get Out of The Stands
I. Introduction
Everything leads up to this. Long hours. Early hours. Late hours. Exertion and often exhaustion. Sweat. Soreness. Mundane. Taxing. It is called practice. Athletes young and old put themselves through grueling and mind bogging disciplines and crazy routines that are designed to prepare the body and the mind for one purpose and one purpose alone. All the practice, all the drills, all the efforts for one thing alone . . . Game Day. It is game day that makes all of it worth it. It is game day that allows the athlete the opportunity to discover whether or not the practice has paid off. It is game day that reveals holes in preparation that must be addressed. It is game day that becomes so important that the pains of practice disappear.
However, in our society we have developed such an aversion to practice that what we want to do now is skip all the hard work and become experts from the stands. Haven’t you met someone who has never taken a snap, never thrown a pass, never studied a playbook but they sit in a recliner and become arm chair quarterback. That even happens outside the confines of sports doesn’t it? This person has never balanced a budget, made major decisions that other people’s livelihood are tied to, set policy or hired/fired and yet from the water cooler they have all the answers. This has lead us to a proverbial “we”. When the guys or girls that put in all the hard work day after day take the field and all the practice pays off and they come out on top . . . we say “we won.” Or if they came up short on game day we duck our head because “we lost!” When the truth is “we” didn’t really do anything. The reality it is the people on the field/in the driver’s seat/in the big chair sitting at the big desk who won, lost, triumphed or came up short. In the stands, but convinced we are in the game.
I have observed some things about the stands. Even when I am the one in the stands I have learned that . . .
In the stands you can critique.
Family can talk about family but let someone who isn’t family talk about my 6th cousin on my uncle’s aunt’s grandmother’s side and its on man. Right? Why do you think players get so upset at reporters when the reporters seem to have all the answers? Why do you think players get angry when they hear an analyst criticize one of their teammates? The player gets angry because they know the outsider doesn’t see all that effort, time, study and strategy that has gone into the game plan. It is easy to snicker from the stands. It is accepted (especially in this day) to make judgements from the cheap seats. We can be cruel from the crowd. The distance from the stands to the field causes us to feel safe to critique. From the saftey of the seats we feel entitled or enlightened to criticize.
In the stands you can root with no risk.
We want our team to give every ounce of energy and hold nothing back. We demand every ounce of effort. We want them in the weight room. We want them to watch their diet (while we are holding popcorn and sugar water in our hands.) We don’t want them to ever take a day off. Never let down. Work. Prepare. Stay focused. But those who root have no requirements. We just want to walk in on game day. We forget about the game until the next one. We don’t prepare. We don’t have to focus. We don’t have to plan. We just want the game to be good when we get there. I want the worship team on key. I want the preacher holy. I want the greeters friendly. I want the kids team funny. I want the sound right, the temp right, the length right. But I want it that way with no personal investment or effort.
In the stands you don't really win!
The stands are safe. The stands are easy. The stands are optional . . . You can show up late and leave early. Although in the stands you may experience excitement you will never experience a win. Not really! You don’t get the trophy. You don’t get the invitation to the White House. You don’t get the parade. You don’t get the ring. You don’t get your jersey hung in the rafters. You don’t get the bonus. To win you got to get in. Fear keeps many of us out of the game. We are afraid of the criticism or the risk. Maybe we are afraid to get in the game because we have experienced failure in our past. So, the result is we sit in the stands and we never get to experience the win. We have even done this to church. We have turned church into a spectator sport . . . I show up and watch you sing at me, you preach at me, you charge me a little entry fee then I go home. If church was good or if you hear a story of someone in the crowd who had an incredible experience, then you can say “we won.” But the truth is your life hasn’t been changed. Your sickness hasn’t been healed. You family has been transformed. Why? You aren’t winning until you personally get in the game yourself. The fruit of winning comes from the seed that is planted behind the scenes.
TO WIN . . . YOU GOT TO GET IN!
Jesus refused to let people stay on the sidelines. He had a tendency that wherever He went (and still does) to force people to make a decision - take up your cross, let the dead bury the dead, leave your nets and follow me. He was a pro at forcing people to get in the game!
Luke 19:1-10 (TLB)
As Jesus was passing through Jericho, a man named Zacchaeus, one of the most influential Jews in the Roman tax-collecting business (and, of course, a very rich man), tried to get a look at Jesus, but he was too short to see over the crowds. So he ran ahead and climbed into a sycamore tree beside the road, to watch from there. When Jesus came by, he looked up at Zacchaeus and called him by name! “Zacchaeus!” he said. “Quick! Come down! For I am going to be a guest in your home today!” Zacchaeus hurriedly climbed down and took Jesus to his house in great excitement and joy. But the crowds were displeased. “He has gone to be the guest of a notorious sinner,” they grumbled. Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood before the Lord and said, “Sir, from now on I will give half my wealth to the poor, and if I find I have overcharged anyone on his taxes, I will penalize myself by giving him back four times as much!” Jesus told him, “This shows that salvation has come to this home today. This man was one of the lost sons of Abraham, and I, the Messiah,* have come to search for and to save such souls as his.”
There is no indication that old Zach wanted in the game. He simply wanted to attend on a Sunday to see. He was planning on hanging out on the fringe. He was was expecting to gain perspective but no indication that he planned on participation. Just get a good seat and watch. Experience the overflow. Experience the excitement of the crowd. But no personal involvement or investment.
Jesus found a man in the stands and asked him to get in the game. Notice what happens . . . People from the stands critique. He was safe in the tree from the snarky remarks. Once in the game he becomes a target for sarcasm. You are going to let him serve? Don’t you know who he is? Don’t you know about his past? Man, if they knew where you were Friday night. So, if you are going to get in then game you better get some tough skin . . . He apparently was so focused on the call of Jesus and the fact that Jesus was in his house that the remarks didn’t bother him. You know if you are really in the game for the right reasons when what other people say doesn’t bother or stop you! Getting in the game requires risk. I realize that I am going to have to pay the price. Zach determined that having access to Jesus was worth the cost. We can tell you are serving for the right reasons when the cost never really concerns you. Have you ever met one of those who serve but are martyrs about it? You begin to wonder if they hate it so much why are they even doing it. When you serve for the right reasons you are just thankful to be in the game. Why?
It is as you serve that you truly see! In fact, if you really look at the text this man gets out of the stands and it brings salvation!
No more tree huggers! Climb down. Get out of the stands. Serve. Take a risk and see if it doesn’t come with a reward. Quit playing it safe or you will never score!
Card - I’m IN! I may get in in the wrong spot and have to try something else but I refuse to stay in the stands because I want to win! Jesus is calling your name. It isn’t enough that your wife, husband, kid, friend or row mate is in the game. Are you?
