Friday, February 15, 2008

Clemens: In a Class By Himself?

Photo by Michael (mx5tx)
Roger Clemens is a Major League Baseball player, if you didn't know. And, as a pitcher, many believe he is in a class of his own. He has won seven Cy Young awards, played in six World Series championships, earned two World Series rings, an MVP, eleven All-Star nominations, 4,672 strike outs, and an ERA of 3.12.

And he cheated.

This week he testified before Congress about his alleged use of steroids, and his credibility took a nose-dive for me personally. In my opinion, Roger Clemens is not in a class by himself; he shares a class with Barry Bonds. Both have attained the lofty heights of baseball legend while arrogantly denying any wrongdoing. Both exude contempt for anyone who questions their integrity, despite mounting evidence to the contrary. And I know I am not the only one who noticed his lack of credibility.


Janine Driver, an expert on body language, teaches law enforcement officers how to analyze physical cues to determine someone's credibility. And Clemens rated an 8 out of 10 on her scale as probably lying. Not only that, Clemens was also obstinately disregarding the testimony of Andy Pettitte that Clemens was guilty. In each case, Bonds and Clemens, the testimonies and evidence points to guilt, while the accused arrogantly deny all charges.

Of course, I'm not in place to judge the truth of their claims, but we should exercise discernment. We shouldn't be gullible. What do Clemens' and Bonds' accusers stand to gain by accusing them? What do Clemens and Bonds stand to lose?

At the very least, Bonds and Clemens have earned the very unenviable reward of having their dirty laundry sorted through on a public stage. Unless, however, they put all their dirty laundry in Christ's hands, this will pale in comparison to the public trial they will face on the day of judgment. And in that day, Clemens will find himself not in a class by himself, but on a broad road with lots of company facing destruction.

"And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done. . . . And if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire." -- Revelation 20:12, 15


"Forgive them Father, and us, and do not judge us according to our lives, but find us in the book of life!"

Todd

5 comments:

Terry Delaney said...

Ya' know what bothers me the most is that they all claim some form of Christianity. I don't know if the truth will ever come out as to who cheated and who didn't, but I do know that the same guy who sat in prison for Barry Bonds is the same guy that when asked about Albert Pujols said, "Don't even bring his name into this conversation, everything you see about him is his natural talent and hard work ethic."

I hate that boys like Clemens and Bonds have tarnished the wonderful sport of baseball.

Charles e. Whisnant said...

Brother
Baseball has been a great part of ourfamily life for 60 years. Dad played semi pro with Detroit. I grew up with the Yankees, and the Reds.

I watched with joy McGuire and Sosa hit those home runs. The general knowledge they were juiced. Few were in disagreement then. It was a level playing field. I am a purest, and a fundamentials. Mickey Mantle was my idol, but he was a drunk. Is drinking any less sinful than what is thought that Roger or Barry does? No. If we are going to condemn sin than we must condem most players in baseball.

Baseball is not a Christian sport.

Charles

Unknown said...

Charles! Thanks for reading!

I agree wholeheartedly that baseball is not a Christian sport. The point of this post was about the sinful condition of humanity; Roger Clemens and Barry Bonds broke the rules (in my judgment) in order to succeed, and they are arrogant and contemptuous in their defense. I expect unbelievers to be sinful, but I believe we should root for justice and truth!

Maybe I was naive, but I did not "know" that McGuire and Sosa were juiced. I had my suspicions. I would vote to put an asterisk by every statistic of every player known to have used steroids. It's cheating! In school, if you get caught cheating, you get an F. What are we teaching our kids? In the real world, cheating is ok as long as you win?

But, again, my point was that none of us are going to enjoy the day of judgment if our names are not found in the book of life. Clemens and Bonds included.

Charles e. Whisnant said...

"I would vote to put an asterisk by every statistic of every player known to have used steroids" or cheated in some way! It wasn't cheating before 2003 or 2004 in Baseball was it?

But I do get the idea. So I guess we should not watch another baseball game or watch RAMBO new movie either. We shouldn't watch cheaters!

I blogged about this thought, but I don't think I came up with the right answer yet. ButI will try later.

Thanks for the post.
Charles

Charles e. Whisnant said...

I watch Andy Pettitte today, he is married to a Baptist preacher's daughter, who I knew well. I really believe he is sincere about what he did and why? I believe he has a good Christian life style. I wouldn't want an * next to his name about his accomplishment.

He most likely knows the truth about Roger>

Thanks