The Resurrection Open

It had to be a mixture of thrill and relief on Monday for Lucas Glover when he holed his final putt, claiming the 2009 US Open. Glover struggled early in the final round but recovered down the stretch, and showed the kind of steely nerves that are necessary to win our national championship. It was a great story in the middle of a week filled with great stories.

But for me, one of the most fascinating stories was that of David Duval. The 882nd ranked player in the world coming into the Open, Duval showed flashes of the brilliance that had helped him score a 59 in competition and climb the ladder to become the No. 1 ranked player in the world in the late 1990s. Then, he suddenly lost his game and it seemed he would never find his way back. When he did play in a tournament, he struggled badly—making it almost painful to watch. But his life, and his game, has come back together. In fact, his showing at the Open, along with good play from Lucas Glover and Ricky Barnes, was such a remarkable turnaround that NBC golf analyst Johnny Miller said that they should call this year’s event “The Resurrection Open.” It sure did seem that, at least for one magical weekend, David Duval’s golf game had come back to life from the dead—and his 2-under-par performance at the 2009 US Open proved it.

In a far more significant arena, the follower of Christ has been brought from death into life by the power of Christ’s cross and resurrection. But where is the proof of that spiritual resurrection in Christ? We can talk all we want and say what we will, but the proof of the resurrection is not in the talking—it is in the living. In 1 John 3:14, John writes, “We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren.” There, we get at least part of the answer about what stands as evidence of new life in Christ. One of the dominant characteristics of the person who has been “raised from the dead” is that they will love what Christ loves—most specifically, His people. It is not enough to simply talk a good game. Loving like Christ loves can show a watching world that the resurrection of Christ has changed our lives forever—and for right now.

Bill Crowder, Sport Spectrum Chaplain