When Nice Guys Finish Last
We’ve all hear the expression: “Nice Guys Finish Last.” Of course, we know it’s not true, but if we are honest with ourselves, we often ask the question: “Why don’t nice guys always finish first?” After all, they’re…well, nice guys!
Christians are supposed to be “nice guys.” Jesus commanded us to be “nice guys.” I mean when you forgive you enemies and pray for those who persecute you…when you give someone your shirt when they only asked for you coat…when you walk two miles when you only have to walk one…that’s a nice guy. Right? So if you do all that stuff and love everybody, everything should turn out just the way you want it to. Right?
Wrong!
Let me confess something to you. I have the pleasure of coaching football at Brewer High School. We have a wonderful group of young men and we are trying to do things the right way. We have Bible studies and pray together as a team. We have devotionals and many of our players have made commitments to Christ. So when we stand on the sidelines on Friday nights and play great teams, we are supposed to win, aren’t we? After all, we are doing things the right way. We’re “nice guys.” My confession to you is that sometimes in my overwhelming dose of human-ness, I ask God, “Lord, why are we getting beat so bad? We are trying to do it your way, yet look at that scoreboard. What’s going on here?”
I imagine God can only smile at such a question from a sincere but far from understand servant who sometimes just doesn’t get it. One would think I would remember such truths as “my kingdom is not of this world” or “the least shall be the greatest.”
Jesus was a “nice guy.” And they crucified Him. And therein is maybe the greatest truth. Christians have suffered throughout history for Christ by simply doing the right thing. Who am I to think that trend stops in 2005? In our suffering…in our persecution, Christ is glorified.
Too often we want to follow Christ, but on our own terms. We want to serve Him but at the same time meeting the world’s standards of success. It’s wonderful to be successful in the world, to win all the games, as long as we keep our priorities straight and understand we are to glorify Him in the good and the difficult.
In the 5th chapter of Acts, followers are scourged and beaten for their public confession of Christ. They are warned to be quiet or else their punishment could be more severe. How do they respond? Verse 41 says, “So they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name. And daily in the temple, and in every home, they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.”
What a blessing it is when nice guys finish last and Christ is glorified!
In Christ,
Billy