It took a long time, but I finally moved beyond Kobe Bryant as a person and began to appreciate him as a basketball player. I have fallen back in love with the NBA and have rekindled an old flame with the LA Lakers. I even went to a game this year and Memphis and began taking part in the Kobe vs. Lebron arguments with the high school players I help coach. I took Kobe's side and defended him as the best player in the league. All the while being very skeptical of him as a person. There's something that just doesn't quite feel right.
While driving home from work and listening to sports radio, I heard a story about Kobe charging $50 for access to his blog.
Kobe, why do you do these things?
13 comments:
"All the while being very skeptical of him as a person."
Hmmmmm...Did your skepticism have anything to do with him having sex with someone who was not his wife--a woman who then accused Kobe of raping her. Adultery is one thing, but charging $50 to read a blog cannot be tolerated.
I'll put this post in the "unintentionally funny" file.
James Hayes
i believe people change. i believe in grace. i believe we are all adulterers and whores. i hoped he had changed.
i'd love to see all your other files.
I believe in grace. I believe people can change. But I'm not sure that one who has not committed adultery can be labeled an adulterer. Am I a thief even though I haven't stolen? Am I a murderer even though I haven't murdered anyone?
We've all sinned, and the Bible writers have described our sins as analogous to adultery and other things. But Kobe committed actual adultery. I haven't.
I have all kinds of other files. "Lunatic SEC Fans"; "Obama Lemmings"; "People Who Call a Trash Can a Waste Basket"; "People Who Are Already Wearing Masks So They Won't Contract Swine Flu" and many others.
James
James, your life isn't over and you will probably have kids and grandkids. I would suggest a humility file. (I am teasing you - not being critical...just so you know!) At some point, you may be a whole lot more thankful for grace.
I think we interpret the sermon on the mount differently.
Will I be judged according to what I have done (II Cor. 5:10) or will I be held responsible for the deeds of all mankind?
James
And...my first comment was intended as light-hearted, and I thought Danny would understand that. He made Kobe's character an issue first.
But now I evidently don't understand grace, humility or the sermon on the mount. (BTW--Jesus addresses the spirit of the laws in the S.O.T.M., not just the letter of the law, yet it is still possible not to commit certain sins--whether they be actual or "in the heart")
Shari, I think Paul somehow wrapped his mind around grace without having kids. But as you said, I still have a chance. You said you were teasing, but I didn't take it that way at all. Sorry.
James
you will be judged for everything you've done and everything you haven't done.
just because i didn't bring up kobe's past sins doesn't mean i didn't allude to them. i mentioned the past subtly. i didn't see the need to be as direct as you were in your comment.
if you have hated, you're guilty of murder. if you've lusted, you're an adulterer. if you've gossiped, you've stolen.
forgiven adulterers, thieves, and murderers make for exceptional saints. he who loves much has been forgiven much.
There is no way out but through the Cross. Our fellow murderer and adulterer, King David said it best when he spoke: "my sins are ever before me..." Ps 51 Where can I go but to the Lord? May I go to my goodness I've worked for? May it never be! And the reason for that is that even any goodness that is 'worked' for is tainted by sin. God have mercy, and thankfully, He most certainly does.
I'm sorry I offended you James. That was not my intent. I hope you will forgive me.
By the way, I think you misunderstood my comment about kids and grandkids. I was not suggesting you could not wrap your mind around grace without having kids. Your statements implied to me that you didn't need as much as grace as some others, who had committed more serious sins than you have. I was simply trying to stress that your future children may not possess such a flawless record and you may be ever so thankful for mercy when someone you love needs it -- even if your own record has been spotless. Again, I'm truly sorry I was offensive.
Shari- When did I say I had a flawless record? I am fully aware of my sins. But I have not committed EVERY sin and neither have you--that is a matter of fact, not a statement of pride or a misunderstanding of grace.
I hope Kobe has confessed his sins and repented as David did. None of us know him personally, so all we know is what he has done--which is one of the drawbacks to being a celebrity.
We don't even know if Kobe is a believer. All we know is that he believes in himself.
I meant that even if you did have a flawless record. I'm sorry if it sounded like I was saying you had claimed it. I am very sensitive to Pharisee type "attitudes." It's deeply rooted in my old background. That probably entered into my interpretation of your comments. I'm sorry if I misunderstood what you were trying to say.
I haven't necessarily committed every sin, but I am an offender of the law and I am ever-conscious of the many ways I have failed God throughout my entire life. I have been humbled so many times; even when it is through God speaking quietly and privately to my heart about my thoughts and motives. I used to base everything on behavior. I don't do that anymore. I constantly try to examine my heart and see the ugliness that is in there. Because God has enabled me to see, I can never feel superior to anyone -- even if they have committed a more serious offense than I have. The way I look at such cases is "there but for the grace of God go I."
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