Al Davis passed away this weekend. I must confess, I CAN'T STAND THE RAIDERS! But I do have Al Davis to thank for the NFL as I know it today. He was THE reason why the NFL and AFL merged 41 years ago. Without him, my beloved Seahawks might not have ever come into existence.
When I think about the Raiders, two phrases come to mind: "Commitment to Excellence" and "Just win, baby!". I can't help but think that these phrases are somewhat contradictory. "Commitment to Excellence" has a very noble sound to it. Excellence. Commitment. These are two things that are now rare in a society today that emphasizes "Do whatever feels good" or "That might be true (excellent?) for you, but it's not for me.". It emphasizes the fact that there is something objectively excellent and that we should be committed to it. I couldn't agree more.
However, the flip side is the "Just Win Baby" slogan. "Just Win Baby" speaks to doing whatever it takes to win (even if it means cheating or playing dirty). This seems to be the antithesis to "Commitment to Excellence". Is that not inconsistent, maybe even hypocritical?
I don't bring this up to take shots at a dead man. Anything but. I bring this up to exemplify the fallenness of human nature. Even a man who, I would think, would agree that there is objective right and wrong would admit that in his life, did things that were wrong. I am guilty of this as well.
I pray that Al Davis had a saving relationship with Jesus Christ and that I will get to meet him in person one day in heaven. But we must all face the reality that some day, we will stand before God and have to make an account for the times that we weren't "Committed to Excellence" in our lives and fell into sin.
What will you say on that day when you stand before God? Will you try and depend on some "good" things you have done so that God will overlook the bad? The bible tells us that our good deeds are "filthy menstrual rags" to God. We can never do enough good things to undo the bad things we are guilty of. If a serial killer tried to get out of murdering 10 people by telling the judge that he saved 15 people from a house fire, does that make him innocent of murder? No. Justice must still be served.
Our only hope lies in faith in Jesus Christ (John 14:6, Acts 4:12). I urge you, please turn from your sin and trust in Jesus Christ to save you from your sins.
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