“Ref, I Was Fouled”

The other day we were watching some of our grandsons play basketball. The other grandmother who was also in attendance commented that the players never think they commit a foul; they get called for a foul and their arms go up, with a look of shock on their face, and a cry of “no way….. auuuugh”.  

This reaction is not limited to our grandsons in 4^th grade, it goes all the way to the professional level. On one hand no one ever commits a foul and on the other hand, they are always getting fouled…. football, basketball, tidily winks. One of the best players in the NBA, Jason Tatum, is a classic whiner… he should be a dramatic actor… he’s always getting fouled and he never fouls.

We see this reaction in today’s reading from the first book of Samuel. King Saul tries to defend himself against the “foul call” brought forth by the referee Samuel. Samuel finally has to blow the whistle on Saul ….. “Stop! Let me tell you what the Lord said to me last night….. you disobeyed the Lord? Saul keeps trying to defend himself….. “I did indeed obey the Lord and fulfill the mission on which the Lord sent me.” Eventually Saul admits his foul. “And Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned; for I have transgressed the commandment of the LORD and your words, because I feared the people and obeyed their voice.”(1Sam.15:16-24)

This defensive attitude goes back to very beginning, to the Garden of Eden. Adam & Eve tried to pawn their wrongdoing on Satan …. the devil made me do it. Cain tried to deflect his guilt for killing his brother by lying to God…. “Where is your brother Abel…. I don’t know; am I my brother’s keeper?” (Gen. 1-4) 

So where does this leave us? When my brother Tommy would confront our brother Brown about eating the ears off his chocolate rabbit, Brown would quickly go into “Garden of Eden mode” and say, “I did not eat the ears off your rabbit.” Everyone knew he was lying. When asked, “did you foul that guy……we may too quickly respond,  “absolutely not”. Hmmmmm. 

We need the action of the Holy Spirit to help us admit our guilt and ask for forgiveness. Because of the mercy of the Lord, we don’t have to be  ejected from the game because of our foul…. we can be given another chance. Sin doesn’t have the last word. By the mercy of God, our sins can be forgiven and we can begin anew. 

So the next time you get called for a foul, just raise your arm, take your medicine and move on to the next play. If we do, all will be well with our soul.