Sports Films, Discipleship, and the Great Game of Life
by Dr. Marc T. Newman
September 15, 2006
(AgapePress) - - Blame it on the fall (the season, not the spiritual state), I suppose, but there seems to be a glut of sports movies. Fall is when young men's fancies turn to football -- or the baseball playoffs. Movies like Gridiron Gang, Invincible, and Glory Road (now available on DVD) are calculated crowd-pleasers. They are stories of tough coaches and underdogs who, through grit and determination, manage to make something of their lives. Action on the playing field serves as a barometer for his progress in the real world.But sports movies do not always mirror what actually happens in the world of sports, much less in the real world. Accusations of blood doping, exhibitions of unsportsmanlike conduct, and the sheer bad luck that befalls opponents tarnish and taint victories. So why are we drawn to sports movies? Perhaps it is because that, deep down inside, we are desperate to see stories that reinforce what all of us intrinsically want to believe the world should be: a place where if we discipline ourselves, if we play by the rules, and if we persevere, that we will be granted the rewards of our labors.
Discipline
Rocky, Remember the Titans, Glory Road -- just about every sports film begins, not with the great game-winning touchdown, but with the grueling aspects of practice. Whether it's gnarled old Mick making Rocky chase chickens, or Coach Herman Boone telling his troops that they are going to have to change everything they do because their goal is to be "perfect," you are certain to see that the process of becoming a winner won't be easy. There is effort, sweat, strain, and sometimes some blood as well. There is a goal in sight, the coach continues to remind the players. If they want to be winners they will have to work. It's never easy.
The Church finds itself infected with a kind of cheap grace, or what others have called "easy believism." One of the great "coaches" of the 20th century was Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who described Christ's coaching style this way: "When Christ calls a man, He bids him come and die." The Apostle Paul expressed it in another way. In his first letter to the Corinthians, Paul wrote of runners and boxers -- sports that an Olympics-soaked culture would understand. He argued for that same kind of discipline: we are to make our bodies our slaves, rather than be ruled by our appetites. One character in Invincible is a grossly overweight man in a green cape, who simply wanted "to be an Eagle, baby!" But he was unprepared and undisciplined, and in the end he was disqualified. Paul used sports as a way to argue for the disciplined life.
Play by the Rules
Sports films abhor cheaters or those who try to prevail by using unsportsmanlike conduct. People all over the cycling world were disappointed by the recent accusation of blood doping at the Tour de France, and were disgusted by the vulgar behavior of Marco Materazzi that resulted in a head butt by Zinedine Zidane. People who don't play by the rules are disqualified. In Glory Road, games are won or lost based on whether a player manages to stay in bounds. In the new release, Gridiron Gang, a player uses a racial epithet to try to demoralize his opponent.
We live in a world that is bound by rules. Fortunately, we have the Ultimate Referee, who sees everything and never makes a bad call. Paul writes to Timothy, telling him that athletes win prizes only when they compete according to the rules. These rules are not arbitrary. God has laid them out for us in His Word. The first step in playing by the rules is to become familiar with the rule book. The second step is to determine that, despite the cost, we will play by them -- and never give up.
Perseverance
Quitters can't win. One of my favorite scenes in a recent sports film is in Glory Road, when one of Coach Don Haskins' Texas Western Miners decides that he wants to quit. Haskins challenges the player, saying that if he quits now he will quit everything else for the rest of his life. What a contrast with the real-life Andre Agassi, who, plagued with an excruciating back injury, walked out on the court and gave his all in his third round at this year's U.S. Open. He came to play, not to quit. That is what makes him a champion. Through these kinds of stories we learn the importance of "keeping it up" even when you think you can't (and even when some fail, there are often second chances for the penitent -- in film, and in life as Agassi also ably illustrated when he came back to championship form after wasting many productive years).
The game of life seems long. There are endless obstacles and opponents. Enticements to lay down the burdensome life of an athlete in training are many and persuasive. In the midst of all of this, the writer of Hebrews reminds his readers to "run with endurance the race that is set before us." In other words -- Don't Quit! At the end of the race stands the reward, but one has to cross the finish line to claim it.
Rewards
People who persevere in sports films come out winners. This does not mean that they win every battle. It may not even mean that they take home the trophy, which is the world's idea of recognition. For Rocky, his reward was just being able to go the distance in order to prove to himself that "he weren't just some bum from the neighborhood." For Vince Papale, in Invincible, it was simply making the team. For the Gridiron Gang the disciplinary process was enough to turn them from "losers" into "winners" (of course, they did win games). For the Texas Western Miners, it was winning the NCAA championship. Hard work happens for a reason -- there is a goal in sight.
God likes goals. He has set before us what Paul calls "an imperishable wreath." Paul says that he runs with an aim, that he boxes to win. Paul is seeking victory. God knows us. He created us to respond to incentive. Sports films can remind us in a tangible way the rewards of discipline, playing by the rules, and perseverance. We do not yet see what God has prepared for those who persevere in the race -- but through the metaphor of sports, we are given a visible reminder of that invisible hope.
Time to Get to Work
The Apostle Paul did not use sports metaphors by accident. Sports, like many other areas of human endeavor, incarnate aspects of the spiritual world. There is much that is important in this life that we simply cannot see, so the apostle has to say to us, "See, it is like this." We are drawn to these aspects of sports because they bear close affinity to the kind of world we seek.
Just as in sports, the spiritual life requires coaching -- that is why God gives us spiritual coaches to labor over us. God expects us to exercise discipline, to play by His rules (contained in the Great Playbook), to persevere in the face of opposition (it is taken for granted that we are surrounded by hostile teams), but that if we endure great rewards await. The gift of salvation is graciously given -- some sports movies even reveal this facet of life when those deemed by others as unworthy to play are given a fresh chance. But what these movies ultimately reveal is the post-conversion experience, where we come to know that God will accept only one thing from us in response to his remarkable gift of life -- our all. So if you know people whose spiritual lives are lagging, sit them down to a good sports movie. When they cheer, ask them "why?" Draw some parallels, and then get to work.
Marc T. Newman, PhD (marc@movieministry.com) is the president of MovieMinistry.com -- an organization that provides sermon and teaching illustrations from popular film, and helps the Church use movies to reach out to others and connect with people.
