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sermonette: Underdogs

Joseph B. Baity
Given 31-Oct-26; Sermon #1899s; 15 minutes

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What comes to mind when you hear the word underdog. You know, for most of us, I think our minds turn to the sporting world. The American Heritage Dictionary defines underdog as one that is expected to lose a contest or a struggle. One that is that is at a disadvantage or a competitor thought unlikely to win. And over the course of sporting history, there have been many underdogs made famous when they beat the odds and claimed victory over some heavily favored team. Think of the 1980 Olympic men's hockey team, a group of amateurs and college players who became famous for defeating the big, bad, and heavily favored Russian squad, what's been commonly known ever since as the Miracle on Ice. Now most of us who were indeed alive and old enough in 1980 can still remember where we were when we either watched the game or simply heard that we'd beaten the Russians. It was one of those rare days where Americans were unified for a really a fun and enjoyable reason, and all because our underdog won. And one of my favorite memories of that particular contest came in the seconds just before the clock expired, seconds before the game ended. While the faces of the coach and the members of Team USA were about to erupt into a great celebration, the faces of the Russians, both the coach and the players, looked perplexed, astonished, even shamed. They could not believe what was about to happen. And most who enjoy viewing the NCAA men's basketball tournament tournament, what is known as March Madness each year. Most confess that they typically watch in the hopes of seeing a major upset, an underdog team maybe from a small unheard of college that takes down a major power from a major powerhouse university like North Carolina, Michigan, Kentucky. We just love seeing the perplexed faces of the mighty powers as they are shockingly tripped up and defeated by a lesser team. Now besides sports, historians also characterize certain military engagements in a similar fashion. Consider the American Revolution where a ragtag group, the colonial army under George Washington, took on the most powerful nation in the world and won despite the incredible odds against them. And there are fascinating accounts reporting of just how perplexed and shocked the British generals were at the resilience and effectiveness of the colonial army. And historians, they love to study and marvel professors love to lecture while novelists and scriptwriters love to write books and movies, all spotlighting one of mankind's favorite subject subjects it's the underdog who is taking on the mighty and powerful. Whether it's a tiny nation, a struggling team, or a lost cause, humans of every ilk love to watch the mighty as they are shocked and perplexed by the underdog. In fact, our novels, TV shows, and movies are replete with victorious underdogs, some true, some fictional, but typically we are always enamored with the narrative of the little guy, the Cinderella, the underdog fighting so hard, never giving up while facing what appears to be impossible odds and a sure defeat, struggling against the bigger, better, faster, stronger, smarter, struggling but somehow winning anyway. Think of Rocky, The Karate Kid, Rudy, Hoosiers, Braveheart, 300, Remember the Titans, and the movie about that 1980 Olympic hockey team simply called Miracle. And how could we forget the 10 Commandments depiction of the Red Sea crossing, a classic piece of cinema depicting the underdogs winning, along with the perplexity upon the faces of the mighty Egyptian soldiers. In fact, there are quite a few good underdog stories in the Old Testament. Think of Moses and Joshua and how their lives were devoted to leading the faithless Israelites not only through the Red Sea but against other adversaries who always appeared to be so much stronger from a carnal perspective. Think of David versus King Saul or Daniel versus the lions, and then there is Shadrat, Meshack, and Abednego versus the fiery furnace, Elijah versus Jezebel and the priests of Baal. And there are so many others. And of course there is one thing each of these stories has in common, and that was God's intervention, which will come into play later in this sermonette. But when we think of underdogs, there is another biblical narrative that is almost always used to describe a contest that is predicted to be extremely lopsided and even unfair, and that is David versus Goliath. It's a story that regardless of one's religious beliefs or background rarely fails to resonate in a memorable and positive manner. Why is that? Why are we so enamored with the underdog, especially the rare one, that finds a way to win? Why do we gain so much pleasure from watching the proverbial David knock down the proverbial Goliath? Well, The answer really is pretty simple. Just as in our opening definition. The underdog usually loses. He's expected to lose. And think about it. Regardless of the type of competition and the individuals, teams, or armies involved, the favored side, especially the heavily favored side, wins almost all of the time. And therefore the inferior side, the underdogs, lose. But on the rare occasion. Where those tables are turned, something interesting happens inside of us. We discover something inherent in ourselves, in our very nature that we derive a certain pleasure from. So let's turn to a very familiar scripture to help us figure out where this might come from. Let's turn to I Corinthians chapter 1, and again, very familiar scripture verses 26 through 28. And I'm going to be reading this from the ESV. For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble are called. But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put the shame, to put to shame the things which are mighty, and the base things of the world and the things which are despised. God has chosen, and the things which are not to bring to nothing things that are. And for right now we will just stop right there. Now let's look real quickly at the Greek word used for put to shame or in the King James Version to confound. It is Katahi shuno. Good word there. It's strong as number 2617. It's from number 2596 and number 153, meaning to shame down, that is disgrace or by implication, and I love how this is worded, put to the blush. To confound dishonor, to make ashamed. And I think we could add to perplex. And when I read this, I can't help but believe that our great God derives a certain pleasure from watching the mighty of this world being humbled. Or shamed or perplexed by the weak and the base things, particularly when the mighty are so proudful and truly delight in and often parade their self-perceived superiority in opposition to him just as the ruler of this world has done for so long. And Since all of us are made in God's image, whether the world believes it or not, doesn't it make sense that virtually all of mankind is also capable of experiencing this same pleasure. The world may not know why, but this desire to pull for the underdog seems inherent to virtually everyone alive, except perhaps for the most evil among us. It's universal in its appeal. As I discussed in my feast sermonet, I believe God has gifted all of his creation with the capacity to empathize, and I believe that's at least a part of what's on display when we watch a David taking on a Goliath. And while it's only a tip of the proverbial iceberg, is not it remarkable how our loving creator, as we read in Romans 1:20, reveals to all his creation certain of his invisible attributes of his divine nature. And for those of us that he has called, you know, the weak and the base things. He gives a taste, a preview, if you will, of what lies in store if they, if we, if we become and if we remain humble, submissive, and faithful and prepared to endure to the very end. So, it's time to sort of point towards a conclusion. Some of the strongest thoughts and images that I kept in the foreground while I was writing this all revolved around the troubling days that still lie ahead. We do not know the timing of the arrival of what we call the great tribulation, the day of the Lord, or as some would call it, the end of the world, but we are all cognizant of the passage of time. That time is linear in nature, thus we move closer to the arrival of the end every day. And since I believe that most of us aren't really confident that we are where we need to be spiritually, the question that we all at some time ask is what do I need to do to get from where I am today to where I need to be tomorrow. And in my way of thinking, We have long been directed to continue following in the footsteps of our forerunner Jesus Christ to better understand his life as an underdog as he was in my mind. While he walked this earth, the epitome of what it is to be an underdog. And not simply that we understand, but that we are. Ready and prepared to take on the role of the underdog and not just to take on the role but to embrace it humbly, happily, willingly, just as he did, knowing that by design we were selected by God in this manner. Low and despised so that no human ever might boast in his presence. We must carefully consider how Christ made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bond servant. He washed his disciples' feet. Without a fight he submitted to his arrest, trial, scourging. And crucifixion And became obedient to death, even death on the cross. And prayed to the Father. Not my will, but yours be done. We must recognize and accept, even rejoice, that as long as we walk upon this earth and remain in this carnal world, we will eventually be regarded by the world just as Jesus Christ was, as losers, rejected as weak, ignoble, and foolish, and we will suffer loss. And some, and though some of us, as we understand it, will be kept from the hour of trial. Most of us, I believe, will likely suffer confrontation by a violent world that hates us. We will be despised, abused, persecuted, and some perhaps even martyred. And I've always read that the, the last 5 or 6 verses of Hebrews 11, the, the faith chapter that described the horrific treatment of so many nameless but faithful Christians is not simply historical, but likely prophetical. And along with the accounts of Christ's final hours as a man, as an underdog, verses 35 through 38 of Hebrews 11 are some of the most difficult verses to read in the entire word of God. In these times The tough times will continue. We will suffer loss after loss after loss. Until we do not And that will be Because of the grace of God in the short term or the triumphant return of Jesus Christ in the long. Underdogs no more. Our losses will be turned into victory. And in the faces of those who opposed God and who opposed us when we were underdogs who were once mighty proud and always favored to win. We will see great perplexity. And in their eyes great confusion. By our very presence alongside our king, they will indeed be shamed, confounded. And put to the blush. And we will have fulfilled the role our Savior has chosen and appointed for us to be the humble underdogs today. And triumphant kings and priests worthy of worship by our former opponents for all eternity.