Grace at Linebacker
This Sunday will be Super Bowl Sunday. Of course this is self-evident to anyone who hasn’t been living under a rock recently. The San Francisco Forty-Niners will do battle against the Baltimore Ravens.
In my column last week I offered some thoughts on the two coaches in the game Jim Harbaugh of the Niners and John Harbaugh of the Ravens. Both coaches, as the shared sir name suggests, are brothers and I speculated on how the parents might feel and used that as a metaphor for demonstrating the love God has for all his children.
There is another story line that is prominent in Super Bowl discussions and that is that this will be final game for Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis.
He is retiring at the close of the game. As far as the game of football goes, Ray Lewis is one of the best linebackers to ever strap on a helmet. Based on football talent Ray Lewis has certainly earned a place in the Hall of Fame.
Sadly, Ray Lewis has been noted for more than just football talent. In 2000, Ray Lewis was attending the Super Bowl which that year was played in Atlanta though his team did not play in the game. Lewis and some friends went to the Buckhead area of Atlanta after the game to participate in the night life offered there.
There was some sort of altercation between Lewis, his friends and some others in the area resulting in the death of two persons.
Lewis was originally charged with murder but those charges were dropped. Lewis pled guilty to obstruction of justice for not being forthcoming with the police. He then testified in the trials of his companions who were acquitted of murder charges. Lewis later settled monetarily with the victims’ families.
Is Ray Lewis a murderer? Legally he is not, in that he was put on trial and the charges were dropped. In our country one is innocent until proven guilty. Lewis was never proven guilty of murder. Of course, he knows the truth of what happened that night in Atlanta.
Today Ray Lewis proclaims himself to be a Christian. There are of course those who are skeptical of the claim. Some see Lewis’ claim as self serving. I suppose that is possible but I am deeply troubled by such talk.
The central message of the Christian faith is a message of love, mercy, forgiveness and redemption. None of us knows what happened in Buckhead in 2000. Yet, what I do know is that if Ray Lewis killed two people that night he can still receive the grace and forgiveness of Almighty God. That is the beauty of grace. There is no sin that is greater than God’s grace.
My late mother’s favorite hymn was a song called “To God be the Glory.” That hymn contains these words, “The vilest offender who truly believes, that moment from Jesus a pardon receives.”
(Emphasis added.) The scriptures tell us in the book of Romans that “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” (Emphasis added.) I don’t see the word “except” in that passage.
Ray Lewis’ faith has certainly brought forth fruit. He has done many good things personally and through his charitable foundation.
His coach, John Harbaugh, has been quoted as saying, “I’m just feeling an incredible amount of awe in the work that God can do in one man’s life. To me, Ray is the epitome of that. Ray is a guy that has turned everything over. He’s surrendered everything and become the man that he is today and he’s a different man than he was at 22.”
Ultimately it isn’t my call or your call to decide who is a Christian and who isn’t. That’s God’s call. What really troubles me is that there are some folks who can’t be content with being a part of the Kingdom of God unless there are some folks who are on the outside.
That is sad. Quite frankly, I am so thankful that God has shown mercy to let me in the Kingdom that I can celebrate anyone else who might come into the Kingdom. In as much as I haven’t earned my place in the Kingdom of God and am there only by God’s grace it is certainly not my place to determine who is in and who is out.
I offer that the proper response to Ray Lewis from people of faith isn’t skepticism but rather to welcome him as a brother in Christ.
I will be rooting for the Ravens this Sunday. I will not be rooting for the Ravens because of Ray Lewis. I will be rooting for the Ravens because Lewis’ partner at linebacker Dannell Ellerbee played his college ball at dear ole UGA. I also will favor the Ravens because I, like many of you, have been inspired by the story of Ravens tackle Michael Oher which was told in the movie “The Blind Side.”
The Ravens also have another Bulldog, DeAngelo Tyson on the roster and I’ve always enjoyed how hard Ravens running back Ray Rice plays the game. Plus, I just don’t like the Forty-Niners.
That said, should the Ravens win I will be happy for Ray Lewis on Sunday as well. Yet, as happy as I will be for Ray Lewis I will also remember those who lost their lives in Buckhead that night in 2000. However, what I will celebrate most of all is that the grace of God which is good enough for Ray Lewis is also good enough for me.