The Danger of ‘Me and Jesus’

When the US men’s relay team dropped the baton and was disqualified from the finals of the 4 X 100 relay, the commentators spent time talking about the relay team and the concerns they had about the team.  The major criticism of the team seemed to be that there was a lack of team spirit among those on the team.  Every member of the team was a superstar in his own right, but their inability to get the baton around the track was a symptom of something deeper than skill or ability.  It was their commitment to the team.   Among the criticisms the commentators noted was the unwillingness of team members to stay in the Olympic Village with their teammates and other athletes.

When Kobe Bryant was interviewed last week about the 2004 Men’s Basketball team, he was asked what he believed contributed to that team’s demise.  Though the United States was the reigning gold medalist from the 2000 games, they lost to Argentina in 2004 and ended up with a bronze medal.  Kobe Bryant’s answer attributed the loss to the team’s lack of focus and lack of team spirit.  While there were plenty of superstars on that team, he said they lacked a commitment to the team.   Each individual was more concerned with his own performance than with how the team performed together to achieve their goal.  This year’s team, he claimed, is different.  They have learned from that experience and have worked hard to build team focus and team spirit.   It seems to have paid off.  The United States team defeated Spain to capture the gold medal in Beijing.

In speaking to the church in Rome, Paul points out that, within the church, there are many different members with many different gifts… gifts that differ according to the grace that is given.  Some have gifts for prophesy… and the word “prophesy,” for Paul, has more to do with a “revelation from God” more than “foretelling the future.”  Others have gifts for teaching… serving… encouraging… leadership… and so on.  Everyone should use their individual gifts, says Paul, not to elevate themselves above others, but to contribute to the whole.  We are all part of one body and, therefore, members of each other.  It is not that the word “I” does not exist in the Christian context… it does!  But the “I” that exists in the Christian context is part of the “we” that forms the body of Christ.  My part of the body may do its individual thing very, very well, but if my part of the body is not supporting what the entire body is working to accomplish, then the body suffers… and the result is that the body does not achieve what it might achieve if all were united.

And it is not that every individual contribution is not important.  Paul clearly says that each person has different gifts and that those gifts need to be used.  If your gift is to serve, you are to serve.  If your gift is to teach, you are to teach. Every individual’s contribution is important.   Do you remember the old nursery rhyme:

For want of a nail the shoe was lost.
For want of a shoe the horse was lost.
For want of a horse the rider was lost.
For want of a rider the battle was lost.
For want of a battle the kingdom was lost.
And all for the want of a horseshoe nail.

Every individual’s contribution is important, for even though we are all members of the same body, we don’t all have the same function.  We were given different gifts that we might perform all the different functions that the body needs.    But, if we lose sight of the fact that we are all part of the same body, then the function we perform may… or may not contribute to the functioning of that body.  We may each be superstars in our individual function, but that does not insure that the entire team will bring home a gold medal.

            Where do we find the focus that we need to perform as a perfect team?   Paul says that we are to present ourselves as a sacrifice to God.  It is God’s will that determines what is good… and acceptable… and perfect.  And, the only way that we can determine… discern… what God’s will is… is for us to allow our minds to be totally transformed… or renewed… in him.    God does not think or act in a way that conforms to the patterns of this world.  “For as the heavens are higher than the earth,” God told the prophet Isaiah, “so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”   If God’s ways are so different, how are we to determine what those ways are, so that we know how to live?   That is precisely why God has given us a community of faith to live in… that together we might study God’s Word and God’s words in order to discern God’s will for us and for our church.

            It would be difficult to find any athlete who did not have a team helping them to achieve the heights that they strive for in their sport.  There were years when Michael Jordan did not win any NBA championship rings.  Most Chicago commentators believed that those were the years when Michael thought he could do it all himself.  It was only when he applied his talent to helping his teammates succeed that the entire team began to perform at a championship level.   Even seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong will tell you that his Postal Services team was a key factor in his ability to perform at the top of his sport.  Two of Michael Phelps’ eight gold medals came as a result of the performance of a swimming relay team and he was quick to give them the credit for that eighth gold medal.  Those of you who watched the Olympics also know that it was not just his teammates who were important to his success.  He also had the strong support and presence of those sitting in the stands… and that was a factor in his success as well… even though they were not swimming with him.

            Now, some of those sitting in the stands might not believe that they are important to the team… that their effort is important to the outcome… but what if Michael Phelps’ mother had decided that he should not receive swimming lessons as a youngster?   What if each member of that relay team had performed just one-tenth of a second slower in their laps?   How can we judge the importance of each person’s contribution to the whole?   In mathematics, there is a concept called statistical significance.  There are times when a measure of 0.05 is considered to be statistically significant.  But what if the difference between "statistically significant" and "not statistically significant" is not in itself statistically significant?  There is essentially no difference between something significant at the 0.049 level or the 0.051 level, yet one is considered statistically significant and the other is not.    Michael Phelps won one of his races by one-one hundredth of a second.  Dara Torres lost one of hers by the same margin.  When interviewed later, both said that they swam the best race that they could on that day at that time. Yet one will be remembered for all his gold medals and the other will be quickly forgotten.

Is that what the Christian life is like?   Paul says no.  We are not to judge our lives… or the lives of others… by the world’s standards.  God is our only judge and, as God told Samuel, “the Lord does not see as mortals see.  They look on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.”

            Everything that we do either contributes to the whole or detracts from its functioning.  We may believe that what we do or say is not significant, but we have no way to truly measure that.  Small waves in the water may not capsize the boat, but they do affect the way in which the boat functions.  Paul told members of the church in Rome and members of the church in Colossae that each individual should work to not be a stumbling block to another Christian.  We should focus on is what is best for the whole… not for any individual.   God is not looking for superstars.  God is looking for individuals with gifts that they can contribute to the body of Christ… those who are more concerned about the functioning of the whole than about themselves as individuals.  While God may call us as individuals, God does not call us to a “me and Jesus” relationship.  God calls us to life in a community of faith… that we might together discern God’s will for ourselves and for his church in this world.  It is not a solo act.  It is not even a “Me and Jesus” duet… it is a chorus of strong voices singing in harmony together.  And it is the mind of Christ that binds us together as one.  Let us be transformed by the renewing of our minds to this community of faith.  Amen.

Romans 12:1-8