Coachability

  

In keeping with my recent basketball theme, I happened to notice a quote from Phil Jackson of the LA Lakers. It seems that there has been some talk of bringing back Michael Jordan or (more likely) Scottie Pippen. Big news, right? Well, maybe on the sports page.

Phil helped me out by bringing religion into the mix. From the LA Times:

“The way they are playing now, it doesn’t matter who comes back,” said Lakers Coach Phil Jackson, obviously upset. “Jesus Christ could come back and we still wouldn’t have a chance because we’ve ruined the mix by not playing together.”

Now THAT’S a quote. He’s got people talking. And many are saying that he was disrespectful to say that. There are some folks who think that he’s giving Jesus some credit as a ball handler, but I digress.

In my last post, I talked about “coachability.” That’s what Phil is talking about here. See, when a team isn’t following the coach, then the win doesn’t matter. If the team doesn’t play well together as a team, then the win is pointless, if not impossible.

Despite the fact that Phil is a Zen Bhuddist, I think he’s addressing a basic truth.

Christian salvation isn’t held back until the end of time. The church has to follow the leadership of Christ NOW before the church can have its collective backside pulled out of the collective fire THEN. We’re called to function as the Body of Christ, paying attention to the needs of others before our own.

If the team isn’t willing to work together, it doesn’t matter who comes off the bench in the fourth quarter. The team won’t be prepared for the win.

Nice job, Phil. Even if you didn’t mean to…