The Celtic’s Boston Garden. The Bull’s Madhouse on Madison Street. The Laker’s Forum. These are a few of the most famous arenas in NBA history. The reason those arenas are so famous has nothing to do with the types of materials used to make them. There were no magic powers infused in the structures. The reason these arenas are so famous has to do with the fact that they were the places where the NBA’s greatest competition was put on display. Whether it was Bird’s Celtics, Jordan’s Bulls, or Magic’s Lakers, these arenas put on display some of the most incredible basketball games known to humankind. The NBA plays all their games in arenas, but only a few arenas standout for the competition that they’ve housed.
Our lives are a little bit like this. Although every “arena” in our lives should display our love for Jesus—whether we are eating, drinking, or whatever we do—there are a few key arenas that stand out above the rest (1 Cor 10:31). There are a few key arenas where our love for Jesus faces its greatest competition. So as you make your way through 2015, I’d like to offer 3 arenas to focus on showing your love for Jesus.
Show Your Love for Jesus Through Personal Bible Consumption and Prayer It doesn’t matter if you have a “date night” every week, if there isn’t genuine, focused listening and talking, your marriage relationship won’t grow. Checking things off a list won’t grow a relationship, real communication will. And this isn’t unique to marriage. If you want to grow any relationship there has to be talking and listening.
The same is true with Jesus. If you say you love Jesus but you don’t consistently spend time listening to him through his word and speaking to him in prayer, you don’t love Jesus. Your relationship with Jesus won’t grow. This doesn’t mean you have to read the whole Bible through. There isn’t a verse in the Bible that says you need to read the Bible through in a year. I’d rather see people read Ephesians over and over all year than read 30 chapters of Genesis and never read the Bible again. Your personal Bible consumption and prayer life are a key arena to display your love for Jesus in 2015.
Show Your Love for Jesus Through Your Work
I knew Tom was a spy. At least, I thought I knew. Tom is the husband of Elizabeth Keen, one of the central characters on the show Blacklist—a show filled with spies. But it was difficult to know if Tom was a spy for sure. After all, he acted like a normal husband in a lot of ways. He had a job and a wife and friends.
But over time, we began to see actions that let us know that he was indeed a spy—he was controlled by someone outside of his immediate situation that impacted the way he acted. His devotion to another controlled his work.
Christians are called to work like that. Only, instead of being controlled by evil direct reports outside of our context, we should manifest the righteousness, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, and excellence that our real direct report—Jesus—values. Sure, most of the time there won’t be any difference between us and our co-workers, but over time our love for Jesus should become clear. The way you approach your work—whether paid or unpaid—is a great arena to display your love for Jesus in 2015.
Show Your Love for Jesus Through Your Money Management
One of the main ways private investigators help spouses catch their spouse cheating is through the finances. The reason why this is such a consistent part of a PI’s work is because it is such an accurate indicator of what our heart loves. Sure, many of us spend our money on similar expenses—housing, gas, food, fun. But amongst these cheating spouses there is usually a strange pattern of giving that gives their true heart’s affection away.
Similarly, the Christian’s spending habits should indicate a heart affection that seems strange—not because of some love affair with another person, but because of our love for Jesus. A Christian’s spending patterns should reveal obvious indicators of their love for Jesus and his ways in the world. Whether that is 10% of your pre-tax income or more, we’d be hardpressed to look at the New Testament (Acts 2, 4, Heb 10, 2 Cor 8-9) and come to the conclusion that we should give less than 10% of your income toward the advancement of the mission of Christ. The way you handle your money is a great arena for showing your love for Jesus in 2015.
How are you doing in these key arenas for love of Jesus? Are you making a strong performance? Is there evidence that you love Jesus more than acclaim, security, power, control, and your reputation? If you’ve failed at these, don’t walk in shame and condemnation. Confess your shortcomings and sins to Jesus, experience his forgiveness, and walk in the freedom he has purchased for you on the cross in 2015 (1 Jn 1:9; Rom. 8:1).