The Blame Game

THE BLAME GAME

INTRODUCTION: We’re good at being blame-shifters. We blame fast food restaurants for making us fat. We blame tobacco companies for giving us cancer. We blame the church for our lack of spiritual growth. We blame God for the results of our poor choices. But the question is: do we consider ourselves better off because of playing the blame game? Let’s see what playing the blame game really accomplishes for us?

1) We play the blame game with others.

• Let’s play the "Blame Game": You are driving 75 mph in a 55 mph zone. You are pulled over and given a ticket that gives you enough points to have your license suspended. Who is to blame? Not you. It’s the officer’s fault; he should have been a little more sympathetic to your situation. You pull through McDonald’s for some hot, yes hot coffee. While trying to drive your car and eat your Egg McMuffin, you spill your hot coffee all over yourself. Who is to blame? Not you. It’s McDonald’s fault for making that coffee too hot! How about this one: a man decided to try a stunt that required him to swallow razor blades. He ended up at the hospital for emergency care and a huge bill. He took responsibility right? Guess again. He ended up suing the hospital for subjecting him to harmful radiation during x-rays. Unfortunately we live in a society where it’s not only acceptable, but also profitable to shift the blame. But does this mean it’s acceptable and profitable in God’s eyes? It’s hard for us to accept blame. It’s a defense mechanism to keep us from having to deal honestly with our mistakes. We see it in sports. Athletes blame their poor performance on anything and everything. It was my equipment, it was my teammate, it was the field, etc. We see it in politics where they play ‘pass the buck’. We find the blame game being played just about everywhere; including the bible.

• Gen. 3:12&13. The blame game started being played right after the fall of mankind. (set up situation leading to verses). (Talk about their blame shifting). One thing I took away from this example is you don’t have to lie to play the blame game. Adam and Eve responded truthfully to God. Eve had given Adam the fruit and the serpent had deceived Eve. So, being that what they said was true, don’t they have valid excuses? Adam, “Don’t blame me, I didn’t take the fruit from the tree; she gave me some fruit and I ate it. I wouldn’t have eaten it if it hadn’t been for that woman.” Eve, “Don’t blame me. I was tricked into eating it. I wouldn’t have eaten it if it hadn’t been for that serpent.” So how can they be held responsible? A) They knew the rules (2:16&17, 3:17). B) They had a choice. Since they knew the rule and the consequence for breaking that rule, they were given fair warning and therefore, left without excuse. The serpent played a role in Eve eating the fruit and Eve played a role in Adam eating the fruit but ultimately, the choice was each of theirs. They didn’t have to give in. They were perfect. They had all the power necessary to resist temptation. They were given incentive to stay away. Spiritual death should’ve been a good incentive to stay away from something. Besides, they had access to everything else. They just had to stay away from one tree. Adam and Eve had a choice-obey God or disobey God. And they chose to disobey Him. If we’re in Christ, we have the ability to choose right or wrong. We can do wrong and say we had no choice but that’s not true. 1st Corinthians 10:13 says that God will not allow us to be tempted beyond what we can bear. But when we are tempted he will provide a way out.

• Let’s look at another biblical example of someone who played the blame game. Exodus 32:1-8, 19-24. Aaron’s like, “Hey, these people wanted a god. You know how they are; what was I supposed to do? You were gone, up on that mountain all this time; don’t blame me. In fact, blame the furnace because all I did was throw the gold in there and out came this calf.” We will go to great lengths to try to shift the blame. We concoct elaborate stories to keep from owning up to our wrongdoing. Then, when the heat is on we need to come up with new lies to collaborate with the old lies. What a tangled web we weave when our desire is to deceive.

• Another way the blame game is played is when we get caught at something, and our first response is, “Who told?” Instead of accepting responsibility, we want to know who blew the whistle. As if to say, ‘If it wasn’t for them telling on me, I wouldn’t be in this mess.’ No, if it weren’t for our actions, we wouldn’t be in this mess. We need to stop blaming the one who did the right thing when we do the wrong thing.