Speaking to a conference of British pastors in 1656, Richard Baxter challenged pastors to focus on “the greatest, most certain, and most necessary truths. . .If we can but teach Christ to our people, we shall teach them all.”1 He warned against “unprofitable controversies” and challenged pastors to remember the “one thing needful” and “to keep close to the ancient simplicity of the Christian faith.”2 I am suggesting that to stay true to Baxter’s call for apostolic simplicity, Christians ought to think about sports. I can’t see how we can avoid thinking about sports. Baxter says, that to teach Christ to our people we shall teach them all, means that even sports comes into play. Sports is one of our major cultural preoccupations; a phenomenon that increasingly defines who we are.

How does Sports factor in to the Christ and culture reality? But when the subject is raised we tend to get defensive and dismiss the issue with a set of cliches:

“Don’t you think it’s okay to get excited about something?”

“We ought to be able to have a little fun.”

“You can make an idol of anything.”

“It’s always easy to see the idol in someone else’s life.”

Download PDF: A Meditation on Sports