When Christian Celebrities Fall

If you are at all a sports fan, you've heard the news that hit on Monday that Ohio State football coach Jim Tressel had resigned from his position amid the scandals that had swirled around his program for the last five months.  This news, and even more so the details that prompted it, hit many in the evangelical community especially hard as Tressel was an outspoken Christian who had started Bible studies and written books on character and integrity.

My friend and fellow-pastor Jonathan Weyer, who happens to work on the campus of Ohio State, shared his take on the whole issue in a thought-provoking column today.  He points out that far too often, it seems Christian celebrities fail us in their example.  But Jonathan suggests that this kind of scandal often not only exposes sin in their lives, but in ours as well.

I hate what Tressel did. I hate that he lied. But even more, I hate that I put him in a position to break my heart so much. He should never have been there in the first place. Tressel is just a guy, a good football coach who messed up for a variety of reasons. He should never have been my idol and it's not fair to blame him for my own sin, the sin of making an idol in my life.

Jonathan goes on to ask us to examine who we look to as icons.  Are they those who are powerful and popular, or are they those who are meek and poor in spirit?

The nature of the Gospel tells us who should be in our icon gallery, those who are like Christ. Those who know they are sinners, admit it, and brag to the world about their failures. When we get to that point, Tressel and the long list of Christian celebrities will no longer haunt us. We will know they are fellow patients under the same Physician with no special powers to fight temptation. We will know they are having one of their "bad days" that all of us have and that they need extra care. We will drop our stones and embrace the naked prostitute, because she is us, in need of grace and the love of Christ. We will no longer blame the celebrities for our own failings. We will no longer be shamed in the public eye because Christ will be our focus, not moral values, fame or celebrity. 

Click here to read the whole column.