Tebow and the Conversion of Bended Knee...

So the title is sorta cryptic, but it is what I want to talk about: the phenoma of Tim Tebow.  The celebrity-obsessed nature in man is shown at its absolute worst and its absolute best when people talk about Tim Tebow.  This entry is a response to a long facebook conversation about Tim Tebow as a "Pharisee".

Now, why would someone who wants to blog to young Christians bring him up.  Well, one major reason is that there is a large amount of evangelical missionic fundamentalism in Tim.  Those big words basically sum up his background: grew up in the Phillippines with his evangelical Christian missionary parents and grew up with a very real and active faith being preached and spoken about in his home.  This upbringing where faith is prominent and ingrained is something I completely understand, well, short of the international missionary work piece.

I see Tim Tebow wear his faith on his sleeve and when you do this it seeps into everything you do.  Tebow is a man of faith that plays football.  That does not make him special.  Take Ray Lewis a man of great faith who wears his faith on his sleeve, most people smile and move on.  But, what is it with Tim that when he prays the camera zooms in and singles him out.  I submit to you that the reaction to Tebow is mostly racial.  It is because the NFL is approximately 70% African-American players people take for granted their faith heritage.  Even when there were devout Muslim prayers fasting through Ramadan the reaction to them were muted.  Faith to African-Americans has generally been taken for granted, because everybody "knows" Jesus and "goes to church".  So when Maurice Jones-Drew, Larry Fitzgerald, Ray Lewis, or even Demarius Thomas of the Denver Broncos point to the sky or cross themselves or pray there is nothing said because that is "who" they are.

But let this young white quarterback kneel and pray it gets a new nickname "Tebowing".  No my friends its called praying and its been around for a loooooong time.  Again, post-modernism in America has been predominantly "white" and faith has been rationalized out of the intellectual circles, where access is mostly monochromatic.  When celebrities express faith it is usually rationalized or glossed over.  Tebow is scrutinized both for his faith (which is on his sleeve) and his play on the field.  Never before have we really seen a young white quarterback who is so up-front about faith and his relationship with Christ.  So the world does what the world always does, picks the person apart as they lift them on a pedastal.  A friend offered some verses in Matthew as a judgement against Tebow: "5 “And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. 6 But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you." (Matthew 6:5-6 ESV).

So I want to close this with some encouraging exegesis.  In the context of these verses Christ is comparing the walk that he desires a follower of his to have and the walk of a Pharisee.  Remember that this is still the Sermon on the Mount.  Jesus wants to make clear that there should be a difference between the motives of a disciple and the motives of a Pharisee.  This is to be taken on two different levels: 1) Maintaining a private relationship with Christ is preferred to a deliberately public one; 2) But, do not avoid opportunities to express your faith not for the glory of man but for the purposes and glory of Chirst.  Using this scripture to judge Tebow or anyone else is incomplete revelation.  Christ says repeatedly to not be ashamed, David says in the Psalms repeated that he will make the name of God glorious, countless other examples.  Remember, that our responsibility is to not become hypocrites.  Hypocrisy is the sin and hypocrisy is rooted not only in our actions but our motivations which only God can judge.  I admire Tebow for working very hard at humility in the face of superstardom.  My prayer that all of us would learn to do the same in the face of life.  Humility is knowing our abilities and our value but then yielding to a God who has all power and knowledge to direct our lives.

There is more but just a few thoughts:
Ernest

Ten Insights About Worship (1-5)

Well, I am thankfully back with some God-Given Insights.  When I took the position of lead musician of the Wake Forest Gospel Choir in May, 2006...I spent the next summer praying deeply about what I gotten myself into.  As the summer wore on, God never directly revealed what I would encounter in my new position of leadership, but He affirmed things that I had learned that hard way.   It was a season of flashes of journaling and logging what I have learned and what I had gathered from studying and spending time with God.   What came out of this is ten insights about worship and the life of a worshiper.

1. Worship is NOT a song: Worship in the church has been reduced to a song or singing or playing an instrument, but biblically that is not the case.  Although the musical craft is a major part of the corporate and the private moments of worship, it is not the width, depth, or breadth of worship.  God wants our lives to be worship, "I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. (Rom 12:1 ESV)"
2. Worship is NOT a service: I grew up believing that my worship was really comprised what happened in church.  But, really the corporate worship experience is the beneficiary of what I offer in my life outside the church.  The depth of my experience corporately is connected to what I offer God when only he is watching.
3. Worship is NOT a style, tempo, or display of musical skill:  I think this is one of the biggest misnomers in the Church.  Worship music is slower and Praise music is faster.  WRONG, music that has been produce with the heart to worship, magnify, edify, glorify God is all worshipful.  The music that I choose to worship God with I chose taking it account musical style and tempo and the excellence of craft; but if the heart of worship is not in it, the music is nice noise.  As a worship leader, excellence of my offering is my goal, but I have to place my heart and my focus on God and what HE has done.
4. Worship is NOT a moment: Tied to worship is not a service, worship needs to be boundless and perceived as outside of time and flowing in and through my life.  Why? because it was begun in eternity.   The Angels (Seraphims and Cherubims) are around the throne of God as we speak worshiping in heaven (Isaiah 6; The Book of Revelations), which is timeless and boundless.  Our lives can be shaped and fed by boundless worship that is not constrained to a time limit.
5. Worship is egalitarian: Worship is egalitarian, meaning it is demanded of all God's creation.  Praise and worship is what we were designed for.  With the very image and life of God inside of us, we seek out something to worship.  Theologians have called a God-sized void.  I believe that, and that's why worship is egalitarian.  We are all seeking God, regardless of our races, creeds, color, economic position.  God expects HIS sons and daughters to worship him and to honor him and to love him.

Peace for now...I will finish the list tomorrow.  God bless.

Ernest