L*** AND Saviour

All good things must come to an end, and so it is, with the English Premier League Season. I can already hear the collective sound of despair from scores of football fans who have to agonizingly wait for the action to resume in August. Fans have the unenviable prospect of finding out what to do with their weekends. However I think this will pale in comparison to the plight of hordes of Liverpool fans who will be forced to bid farewell to their Iconic no.8, Steven Gerrard.

Gerrard otherwise known as Stevie G was an exceptional player for Liverpool. Never mind the costly slip that took away the EPL from his grasp, his numerous other exploits rightfully earned him the status of legend. Who can forget that typical Gerrard strike against Olympiakos that saved Liverpool from early elimination from the Champions league or that rasping drive from long range to save Liverpool from FA Cup final heartbreak against West ham United.  Another classic moment was that bullet of a header against Milan in Istanbul to begin the unlikeliest of comebacks in Champions League history. Many times, He pulled Liverpool out from the jaws of defeat and on to the sweet taste of victory. It’s what made him the ultimate captain.

His other alias, Captain Fantastic tells it all. Stevie G was their leader on the pitch and his influence was astronomical. He was the one-club man, dedicated to the Liverpool cause, perhaps you could say he had Liverpool blood or even more fitting was that he was the heart of Liverpool. On numerous occasions he pumped with frenzied activity and gave the team life. He was their go to man when sails got rough, like every captain was. However as age caught up with him, he was forced to play less and at times watch from the bench as his teammates found the going tough on the pitch in his absence. It was frustrating to say the very least. This was most apparent during his last game against Manutd at Anfield.

After a tepid first half that saw Utd lead into the break, Gerrard was brought into the game at the start of second period.  Liverpool let Utd have too much of the ball in the first half and Gerrard rightly felt that for the Reds to get a result, he needed to impose himself.  He need to make his mark on proceedings, he had to, how can I say this kindly, STAMP his authority on the game!(hehe).  He took it upon himself to put his foot down and say,  “Enough is enough!” Too bad Herrera was nearby and bore the full brunt of his studs. There was only ever going to be one result; a straight red card.

Sometimes I feel that Christ shares Gerrard’s frustration, not getting sent-off obviously but having us to see us struggle from the bench. We have accepted him as our saviour but rather than give him the throne of our life as our Lord, we disrespectfully put him on the sidelines, as we flounder on the pitch of life with him  desiring to intervene if we would only let him.

How much better  would we perform if we ceded Lordship to him and allowed him to exert his influence on us but sadly we prefer more that he is that loving saviour that died on the cross rather than the sovereign Lord we should obey, who has duly earned  our submission as result of his death on the cross.

I think it gets lost on us that Jesus is all-knowing. All knowing encompasses all facets of life; family, relationships, career, finances, health and of course our spirituality. God’s word is inferred to be all knowing when in 1 Timothy 3:16-17, all scripture is said to be useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness to thoroughly equip the man of God for every God work. Sadly, somewhere down the line we have disregarded this truth.

Often,  his word has been described as old-school, no-longer relevant in today’s modern world. By forsaking it, it’s quite easy to lose Jesus’ guidance; it’s even easier falling into temptation. God’s word is taken to be absolute, the foundation of our Christian life  and if substituted for relative truths that change every now and then, we no longer have a robust ground to stand on but a flimsy ground that will cause us to slip or slide in our walk with Christ.

As John found out in Revelations, his word isn’t all sweet but bitter as well. That could explain why many of us are hesitant or reluctant to submit to Christ’s total lordship. Usually the world tells us what we want to hear, Jesus tells us what we don’t.

Jesus tells you to go out, witness, share the gospel  and make disciples of all nations(Matthew 28:19) while the world will tell you to keep it quiet, tone it down, and let church stay in church.  Scripture tells you not to have selfish ambition but consider others better than yourself (Philippians 2:3-4),that you should seek the good of others(Ephesians 4:17) the world teaches you to put yourself first above others. The world advocates vengeance, retribution when you have been wronged, Jesus advocates for forgiveness, forgive seventy times seven, which in essence means forgive a lot.

The world will stuff you with lust,  drunkenness  through its contemporary urban culture via music, TV, movies, fashion ,advertising while scripture will tell you to stay away from the lust and tell of Job’s example not to look lustfully at a girl(Job 31:1) and focus on sobriety.(Ephesians 5:18)

“You deserve to be wealthy, to have it all, you need the flashy car, loads of clothes, shoes.” world says. Jesus tells you to be moderate, not to be a lover of money (1 Timothy 6:10) and not  to wear yourself out to get rich; have the wisdom  to show restraint. (Proverbs 23:4)

It must seem the world has my back, the world cares for me, wants the best for me but it doesn’t, my Lord Jesus does. He cares because he saw that I was doomed to a death in hell, but chose instead, to die on the cross as an atoning sacrifice for my sins so that if I just confessed and believed he did so, I would have life.

Why then the restrictions, why the limitation of freedom if he came on earth to liberate us? It took me a while but I realized we are on the same team and in order to win in life, my captain needs to be at the helm. I may be confident in my strategies but Jesus knows how to win, He defeated the opposition before and if I am to share in his victory it’s only achievable if submit to him.

With Jesus as lord over my life, I have slowly come to have the psalmist’s perspective of the word in Psalms 119, a delight to follow. The world tells you rules are meant to be broken and here is a guy in Psalms  saying rules are to be loved!!!! I thought it was ridiculous but I have come to see why. Those precepts, laws, are full of  Jesus' wisdom and when applied actually give one freedom.

Application of Jesus teaching has brought various results for me. In forgiving others, I have learnt that by holding a grudge and seeking retribution, I am the prisoner not the person my hostility is directed towards and by forgiving,  end up setting myself free. In ignoring the desires of my body and avoiding lust, I have been taught of the love of giving without receiving or expecting anything in return, a love focused on the other person’s good not just my own, a love that isn’t just about how she makes me feel or how she looks. I’m not the perfect picture of 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 but I’m a work in progress.

With Jesus as Lord, I have focused more on others as opposed to myself. His precepts have made me realize that as much I can get joy by helping myself, to have God get the glory plus the joy of the other person because I chose to focus on them rather than myself is way better.

Like Paul, I have also learnt contentment. It is especially difficult when the world will constantly bombard you with advertisements showing what you lack and cause you to be envious and stressed. With Jesus as Lord, I tend to realize that my perceived shortcomings in material wealth have all been made up for in numerous other blessings such as good health,  fun friends, and a loving and supportive family. As a result I complain less because I have so much to be grateful for when I count my blessings.

It’s hard to put our captain on the throne sometimes because we struggle to let go of our little comforts and pleasures. It may be hard to let go of some things. It could be hard kicking away lust, pornography or masturbation. It could be hard staying sober.  It could It could be hard leaving that guy or girl who is all physical in the relationship but nothing else or the relationship where you are the only one giving time and affection while the other just takes advantage. It may be hard leaving that job that pays so well yet causes you to compromise so much. The struggle is real for me and for every Christian but when I remind myself of the cross and Jesus’ cleansing blood and ultimate sacrifice, I know that he has more than earned his role as captain. I know that his love dying for me on the cross is sufficient proof that he cares for me when He tells me to deny those thrills that only end in disappointment and regret. With that in mind in as much as it will be a struggle, I will let him be Lord and reign over my life rather than relegate him to the bench.