Earlier this year, NBA
player Jaden Ivey was traded from the Detroit Pistons to the Chicago Bulls.
Shortly thereafter, he was dismissed for “conduct detrimental to the team.”[i]
This is not unheard of, but it is rare because he’ll get paid whatever is
remaining in his contract. The Bulls were so fed up with Ivey, they fired him, with
pay. Normally, if he was not in their future plans, they would either try
to trade him, or let him play out his contract and then not offer a new one.
What did Ivey do that was so odious, that Chicago was willing to pay him $10
million just to walk away? He talked about Jesus.
Of course, this is too simplistic of an explanation, but
it is how Ivey justifies his actions that led to his dismissal from the team.
What Ivey actually did was post videos on Instagram. Sitting in his car, he
made a series of statements deemed to anti-LGBTQ+ by many in the media.
Instagram is there for the world to watch. The NBA’s official stance is to
welcome all fans. As a part of this effort, the league officially celebrates
LGBTQ+ pride month. Ivey sees this as sinful and contrary to scripture. In his
attempt to tell the good news of Jesus Christ, he condemns the LGBTQ+ community
and any who support them.
I need to establish a few things. This column I am
writing is not a statement about the LGBTQ+ community. I know Christians whose
faith I deeply respect who believe that people in same-sex marriages can follow
Jesus and honor him in their marriages. I know other Christians, also people I
respect, whose faith is essentially like Ivey’s. They vehemently condemn
anything outside of Cisgender and heterosexual, monogamous marriage on what
they believe to be Biblical grounds. And, I know people who fall between these
extremes. For me, the biggest question is how do we share our faith
effectively and lovingly?
The other thing I need to assert is that if Ivey was
scoring over 20 points a game and leading his team into the playoffs, they
would have gladly tolerated his rhetoric. Professional sports teams tolerate a
lot from star athletes. Ivey is a good enough that the Bulls traded for him,
but not good enough to be a distraction.
On the night before Easter, after the Bulls had cut him,
he was near Auburn University. He with a number of other street preachers. His
presentation of the gospel included judgment and Hell for those who reject the
gospel. Is that approach effective? Is that the approach Jesus took? Jesus’
preaching definitely included fiery images of condemnation. Matthew 13:42 and
13:50 are but a few of many examples of this. Moreover, repentance was a key
message that he preached (Mark 1:15, 38). However, often today’s street
preachers and hard-core fundamentalists sound notes more condemnatory than
those offered by Jesus. Whatever your LGBTQ+ theology is and whatever your
thoughts about judgment and Hell are, you don’t want to be more extreme
than Jesus was.
Jesus loves all people – gay or straight,
short or tall, male or female – all people. Jesus doesn’t want anyone going to
Hell. I think, in our time and place in history, the best way to help people
pay honest attention to Jesus is to walk with them in their pain and listen to
their stories. Someone will only trust you with their pain and their stories if
they think you are safe. Our pain makes us fragile and our stories expose us.
We need to be handled gently.
Jaden Ivey claimed that on
Judgement Day, he’s going to be judged for how he represented Christ, not how
well he played basketball. He’s right. However, I don’t think his approach is
safe enough to draw in broken, vulnerable people. My vision for the way we do
evangelism at Hillside Church is based on the qualities Paul refers to as the
Fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22). Note what’s included in that virtue list
– patience, kindness, generosity, and gentleness.
I believe that when we
embody these qualities, it will put others at ease. It will be a gospel gift to
them, because the world rarely gives these qualities. In a state of emotional
relief and spiritual rest, they will then feel free to reveal their true selves.
At that point, we don’t have to point out their sin. They’ll see it already.
They’ll acknowledge it and repent. If they don’t have language for repentance,
then we can step in and read Mark 1 with them. Zacchaeus was a “chief tax
collector,” which meant that he was a professional, state-sanctioned swindler.
Jesus did not condemn him. He just joined him for dinner. He made Zacchaeus feel seen and welcomed.
After that, Zacchaeus did all the confessing unprompted (Luke 19:8), and Jesus
pronounced him saved (19:9).
I shared the account of
Jaden Ivey as a cautionary tale. I urge all Hillside members to be
evangelistic. Share the gospel in the world. However, do it in a way that is
patient, kind, generous, and gentle. Enter people’s pain and listen to their
stories. As you do, the Holy Spirit will reveal that moment when it is time to
help them see how their lives are a part of God’s story and they need Jesus.
That’s our approach to evangelism.
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