God's Coaching #65

God's Coaching #65

In 2010, a basketball player named Jeremy Lin created headlines for two reasons: he made it to the NBA after playing college ball at Harvard University, and he was Asian American. That may not seem like that big of a deal, right? But Jeremy became the first former Ivy Leaguer to play in the NBA in eight years and the first Asian American NBA player since Wataru Misaka played three games for the New York Knicks in 1947. The six-foot-three-inch guard didn’t get drafted, but he made the roster with the Golden State Warriors as a free agent. Jeremy’s parents were from China and emigrated from Taiwan to California, where he was born and raised.

Perhaps the most famous Asian player ever is Yao Ming, the seven-foot-six-inch center whom the Houston Rockets selected No. 1 overall in the 2002 NBA draft. In 2007, seven-foot center Yi Jianlian was drafted sixth overall by the Milwaukee Bucks. Both Yao and Yi were born in China.

What’s the Score?

Jeremy’s family background received a lot of attention when he made it to the NBA. But race or ethnicity shouldn’t receive any attention when it comes to how we treat others. The gospel—the Good News of forgiveness of sins through Jesus Christ—is color blind. It crosses all racial boundaries and any ethnic lines. God doesn’t favor one race of people any more than another. All people, the Bible says, are created in God’s image.

We see a great example of this in Jesus’ parable in Luke 10 about a Samaritan traveler who helps a Jewish man who was beaten by robbers. Jesus told his Jewish audience to treat others in the same way. The story would have shocked Jesus’ listeners, because Jews and Samaritans in first-century Palestine hated each other. In fact, they often wouldn’t even travel through each other’s countries. But true followers of Jesus have no excuse for any type of racial prejudice. We should not make jokes about another race or exclude someone from an activity because of his or her skin color. Any unkind remark against another race is really like telling God, “You messed up when you created those people.” And that’s not what Jesus taught.

On the Ball

Make friends with someone from a different race and learn about that person’s culture. You’ll be surprised at what you can learn!

Coach’s Comment

A despised Samaritan came along, and when he saw the man, he felt compassion for him. Luke 10:33