Is a competitive spirit a healthy spirit?
Beloved Wifey and I have been casually watching the Olympics the past few nights—”But figure skating IS a sport, dad!”—and it’s been fun to get caught up in the stories of Shaun White, Lindsey Vonn, and Apolo Ohno as they continue to build up their Olympic legacies. I’m a fan of the Olympics (competing to be the “best”), a fan of all sports (competing for championships, records, and contract values), and work in an industry that’s highly competitive (most assets under management, number of high net worth clients, fattest paycheck)…which leads me to wonder, “Is being a competitive person a Christ-like quality?”
Competition in the Bible
The Bible is full of competition—in fact, much of the Book of Genesis oozes it. The serpent encourages Adam and Eve to compete against God (Genesis 3). Cain competes against his brother Abel for God’s approval (Genesis 4). Jacob first
Even two of Christ’s disciples showed their true colors a bit when they pressed Jesus to honor each of them with reserved spots in Heaven. Jesus simply responds, “I cannot choose who will sit at my right of my left; those places belong to those for whom they have been prepared (Mark 10:40).” In Luke 9:48, Jesus settles an argument among his followers about who’s the greatest by simply saying, “Whoever is least among you all is really the greatest.”
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The Bible is also filled with God’s followers constantly clashing with non-believers. In the Old Testament, Jews are constantly fighting enemies such as the Philistines and Assyrians. In the New Testament, Christians fight not only with the non-believing Romans and Gentiles, but they also have spats with Jews—God’s chosen people! That’s irony. Christ’s message to his followers in Luke 9:51-56 was that they should attempt to help others whom they disagree with rather than make them even more helpless…in this case, by calling fire down from the heavens to destroy a village that did not welcome them.
How competition has distracted the Church
Today, there’s an endless selection of churches for you and I to choose from, and each do their best to cater to the needs of their church body…in fact, they spend considerable amounts of time and resources competing and distinguishing themselves from other churches–and doing so, lose focus of what Acts 2:42 says should be the church’s mission statement:
“They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”
According to this verse, the purposes/activities of the church should be 1) teaching biblical doctrine, 2) providing a place of fellowship for believers, 3) observing the Lord’s supper, and 4) praying.
Should we, as believers, be a competitive people?
No doubt that competition is healthy for each of us…so long as we’re following some of these principles:
The Bible cheers us on in 1 Corinthians 9:24: “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it.”
Keep your focus on Christ: Colossians 3:23 “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men.”
Be honest and honorable: 2 Timothy 2:5 “An athlete is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules.”
Give God the glory and honor…be humble! 1 Corinthians 10:31 “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”
Exercise self-control: 1 Corinthians 9:25 “Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable.”
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i think you need to read this at AWAKEN sometime soon…very good. you could do it live, or we could film you reading it…either way, its something many would benefit from!
-ross