By now you’ve heard about the Opening Ceremony of the 2024 Olympics in Paris. The outcry has been over the decision to have a group of LGBT+ folk seated at a table, with the person seated at the center having a halo. Further, the Greek god Dionysus (called Bacchus by the Romans), the god of wine-making and self-indulgent partying, shows up center stage.
The organizers claim otherwise, but it is difficult to see an image of it and not immediately think of the famous Leonardo da Vinci painting “The Last Supper”. Anyone even remotely familiar with Western history would recognize the similarities between the scene at the Opening Ceremony and the famous painting, particularly given France’s own Roman Catholic history. Those involved insist they were not trying to offend anyone. Some have claimed the scene was more reminiscent of the painting “The Feast of the Gods” but that seems a more thematic resemblance than the visual resemblance it has with “The Last Supper” painting.
Whether the organizers were intentionally trying to offend or not isn’t the issue I want to address. Even if they weren’t, the god Dionysus represents self-indulgence. If this scene were intended to resemble “The Feast of the Gods”, the entire scene, then, is about self-indulgence. What does self-indulgence have to do with the men and women who have denied themselves, who have gotten up in the wee hours of the morning for training, who have refused that extra helping of dessert, and have spent a tremendous number of hours to train and prepare for this international competition? Celebrating self-indulgence is hardly a way to honor the commitment of the Olympians and their years of dedication to their sport. 2 Corinthians 4:1-6 ESV
Frankly, I thought the Opening Ceremony was not very good. I thought it was in poor taste.Then again, I think China set the bar in the 2008 Olympics with their 2,008 drummers drumming in sync. That was a tremendous Opening Ceremony! Again, that’s not what I want to address. When I see the reactions of Christians around the world, I am a bit perplexed. The outrage that has been expressed about unbelievers doing unbelieving things feels a bit extreme. As our very own Erik Martin posted on social media in response to this offense,
Has outrage over the world being worldly ever brought anyone to repentance and faith?
Erik Martin
I’m going to answer his question: no. Well, perhaps. The Lord once spoke through the mouth of a donkey; surely he can speak through the mouths of donkeys still today. It is possible—God is God, after all—that someone at some point was brought to repentance and faith through moral outrage. This is not justification for acting in this way.
I have seen some with an oversized presence on social media reference Jesus flipping over tables as justification for their brash manner in addressing current events, often in the form of moral outrage. You know the story; Jesus enters the temple mount where people are selling animals for sacrifice and profiting off the worship of God. Others were there to exchange currency for the temple currency as many worshipers traveled to Jerusalem from all over the world. This exchange was also at a profit. Jesus was having none of it so he flipped their tables over and chased them out of the temple mount. What we often fail to see is the reason Jesus does this.
In Mark’s Gospel we have what has been called “a Markan sandwich”. Mark frequently introduces a story, switches to another story, then returns to the original story. He does this to highlight the center of the “sandwich”. In his account, Jesus flipping tables is the center of the sandwich and the “bread” reveals the point of it.
In Mark 11, he says Jesus was hungry and saw a fig tree. When he got closer to the fig tree he saw it had no figs and cursed the fig tree to never produce figs again. Mark says the disciples heard this. They knew, as Mark indicates, it wasn’t “the season” for figs! The time wasn’t “right” for figs! Then he turns to the story of Jesus entering the temple and chasing out those who would profit off the worship of God. Mark returns to the other slice of bread, so to speak. The next day the disciples discover the fig tree had withered from its roots. Then Jesus speaks and reveals the central point of Mark’s “sandwich”.
And Jesus answered them, “Have faith in God. Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.”
Mark 11:22-25 ESV
This is in direct response to seeing the fig tree withered up and dead. He tells them that the response to him clearing the temple mount of those profiting off worship must be faith in him. New Testament scholar James Edwards points out that while the Jews believed the Messiah would purge Jerusalem of foreigners, Jesus was clearing the temple for Gentiles. This is why he said this house “shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations” (Mark 11:17). Jesus was purifying his temple so that his people—Jew and Gentile—might worship him faithfully.
When Christians express outrage at the world acting worldly, they miss the point entirely. When Christians are offended by unbelievers doing unbelievable things, they miss the point entirely. Jesus came to create for himself a people. To do this, he had to purify for himself a people. This is why he offered himself as the sacrifice that takes away their sins.
When a person uses the story of Jesus flipping tables to justify their brusque manner, they miss what he was doing. Jesus never acted this way toward unbelievers! Jesus never dealt with the lost in such a manner. He told the woman caught in adultery that he did not condemn her, though he was the one standing there who was without sin and therefore had the right to throw the first stone. Jesus reserved his harshest words and actions for religious hypocrites, not for those who were lost.
In First Corinthians, Paul indicates an earlier letter he had sent them. He wrote this:
I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people—not at all meaning the sexually immoral of this world, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one. For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge? God judges those outside. “Purge the evil person from among you.”
1 Corinthians 5:9-13 ESV
Here Paul urges the Corinthians “to flip tables” and purify God’s temple. Just two chapters prior to this he told them they were, in fact, God’s temple and God’s Spirit dwells among them and warns them if anyone harms God’s temple, God will destroy that person (1 Corinthians 2:16–17).
It is important to see what Paul says here. So many want to withdraw from even watching the Olympics because of the Opening Ceremony. Paul says, essentially, good luck with that! If you want to avoid associating with people who have no faith in the one true God, you will have to leave this world altogether. Paul never intended for them to withdraw from unbelieving pagans. He did, however, urge them to cleanse the temple. If one who claims to be a follower of Christ lives in unrepentant sin, this is the one who is to be removed. This is the one who is to be avoided.
Christians have no business judging outsiders. Moral outrage directed at those outside the church is misplaced! God will deal with them. If we want to express our moral outrage, let’s direct it at so-called celebrity pastors who are profiting off the worship of God. Let’s direct our moral outrage at those who overlook abuse in the church and sweep it under the rug. Let’s direct our moral outrage at those who have public platforms who claim to speak for God yet do not exhibit fruit of the Spirit. Let’s direct our moral outrage at those who turn the good news of who Jesus is and what he has done into a message of anger and hate and condemnation.
The world around us does not need our moral outrage. This world, filled with those who are lost, does not need our condemnation. The world needs our Jesus. It needs the message of mercy and forgiveness, the promise that God in Christ through his Spirit is making all things new. Our public moral outrage directed at lost sinners does not proclaim hope for the sinner. It proclaims disgust and anger and hatred. We are not called to proclaim that sort of message. We must proclaim Jesus.
Whether the Opening Ceremony were intended to be a mockery of “The Last Supper” or it were intended to be reminiscent of “The Feast of the Gods”, the world doesn’t need to know what we think about it. The world needs Jesus. Dionysus and the other Greek gods cannot save. They cannot offer hope. They cannot do anything for they are not real. There is only one God and his name is Jesus, and to him I owe my entire allegiance. I don’t need to be publicly offended to be faithful to the one true God.
Rather than outrage, let’s be known for our ministry of reconciliation, of our message of hope. Here’s how Paul described this ministry.
Therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart. But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways. We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God’s word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God. And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
2 Corinthians 4:1-6 ESV
We do not hide the truth. We do not seek to manipulate or control anything. We don’t aim to be cool or hip or “relevant”. We aim to be faithful and we proclaim the pure gospel of Jesus. If the world cannot see the gospel of Jesus, it is because they are blinded by the god of this world, and no amount of public outrage can heal this blindness. The only reason we can see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ is God has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. Let’s reflect Jesus. Church, it ain’t about flippin’ tables; it’s about Jesus.