The relationship between pig soccer and a life of faith

In the summer of 2005, a "svinoball" game, also known as pig soccer, was held in the suburbs of Moscow, Russia. The ten pigs—five on each team—obviously would not have had any knowledge of soccer, so they would not have had the idea or desire to win by kicking the ball in a certain direction toward the opposite team’s net. The pigs, nonetheless, played “soccer,” and the game is now being held annually. To be more precise, the pigs aren’t really playing soccer, but their actions, like running on the field and chasing the ball with their snouts, make it look like they’re playing an actual game. Because the pigs’ sole interest is food, the operators coat the soccer ball with mashed carrots, and therein lies the secret of the game. Wanting to eat the delicious mashed carrots, the pigs follow the ball, pushing it with their snouts, falling over and squealing along the way. In the meantime, something similar to a soccer game starts to unfold, and sometimes, the ball goes into the goal. Whenever a team “scores,” the spectators cheering for the team that scored show their happiness, and the spectators cheering for the opposing team become sad. However, the pigs themselves have zero interest in winning or losing, but are solely focused on trying to eat the food on the surface of the soccer ball. The pigs simply work hard to get something to eat, but unexpectedly, their actions result in a soccer game. It’s funny enough just imagining it. But if someone were to tell you a similar phenomenon is occurring in the church, would you believe them?

Believers should not demote themselves to the level of the pig soccer players. Many people attend church and say they believe in God, but their only concern is their own power, glory, need for wealth and pursuit of pleasure. If the church continues to do well and grow in size despite all of these problems, the church itself becomes a pig soccer field. In such a church, the members work passionately for their carnal desires and worldly successes about which they can boast, and the church enjoys its expansion and active state, praising and comforting the congregation, despite the believers’ spiritual condition. Not only that, the church is making every effort to boast of being a good church. As human beings, we all want to boast of something. However, unlike King David, who realized his error of commanding the census and humbled himself before he was rebuked by God, many church leaders today are not even equipped with such basics. They also boast about things they shouldn’t be proud of. Like the spectators who enjoy the pigs running around the field playing “soccer,” church leaders bless their people unconditionally, cover up their wrong attitude in the name of love, give them authority and satisfy their human desires through various activities, all while applauding them, flattering them, and tailoring everything to their needs. As a result, the church is growing at a frightening rate. However, akin to the pigs who had no knowledge of soccer and unintentionally made a fun game by running to eat food, many churchgoers work hard to make their wishes come true, pray solely for their health and wealth, praise to gain personal pleasure and comfort, offer collections to maintain their reputation, and perform community service for bragging rights. Those who have been Christians for a long time are no different. We compete with each other about how much we pray, how many days we spend fasting, and flaunt our wealth. We also boast about our social reputation and exchange business cards to promote our establishments under the guise of doing mission work. That’s not all. We attend worship service in order to calm the wrath of God before it may hit, offer collections like they are public utility fees, give tithes as investments for greater blessings, and give thanksgiving offerings feigning generosity. We also do everything we can to make sure there are no disqualifications blocking our path to claiming lofty titles. We bring all kinds of entertainment into the church and also build a multi-level sales network within the church under the pretext of scraping together mission funds. In the meantime, churches enjoy watching their membership grow, revel in financial rejuvenation, boast of their state-of-the-art facilities, and speak of their programs as if they are the best. As the church grows in size and becomes a mega-church, we insist that the growth itself is a way of glorifying God. Moreover, we go one step further and boast of the enlargement of the church as if it is the meritorious deed of the pastor and church members. We bask in our glory and push God out of the driver’s seat. “How can you believe since you accept glory from one another but do not seek the glory that comes from the only God” (John 5:44)? Deliberately or not, we are effectively downgrading ourselves to the level of a pig soccer player.

Think carefully. What are you running for? For what are you passionate and eager? For whom do you boast? What is your goal? Is it not very similar to pig soccer? If you live and work to fill your instinctive desires, you cannot escape the level of a pig. You need to learn to think beyond your natural instincts. Faithful believers who are able to think beyond their natural instincts desire Jesus and boast about Him. Why do they desire and love Jesus and boast of Him who was born amidst suffering and died in great pain? Because Jesus was not merely suffering; He chose to bear the cross knowing the meaning, the process, and the outcome that would come with his suffering. That is why Jesus said, “Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me; weep for yourselves and your children,” toward the women who wept for His sake. If Jesus had been forced to bear the cross after being caught running away, He should be pitied, but we cannot help but adore Him because He voluntarily bore the cross obeying God’s will. In short, the meaning behind a forced death and the meaning behind a voluntary one differ diametrically. An individual who goes through hardships as much as the next person but does not understand the significance behind the suffering, is pitiful. Therefore, truly pathetic individuals are those who unintentionally nailed Jesus on the cross, the pigs who are unknowingly playing soccer, and the laboratory mice who are contributing to public welfare, not Jesus Christ nor the first believers who walked the path of suffering. The mice that are being raised for laboratory use are pitiful even though they may look comfortable lying inside their cage with an abundance of food. That is because the mice ultimately die with no idea as to what they are doing. They do not know of their contributions to public welfare, they do not know why they become sick, healthy, and delirious, and simply live their lives in complete oblivion until they die. The same is true of people. Who are the people we should have pity on? Are they the poor, the sick, and the disabled? Absolutely not. The people we should truly have pity on are those who act upon their instinctive desires, just like the pigs who play pig soccer—those who do not understand who they are, why they were born, why they live, the significance behind the work that they do and where they are headed, but live only to satisfy their instinctive desires. Spiritually speaking, pathetic people are those who attend church without a reason, delude themselves into thinking that salvation is guaranteed and consequently live as they please, do not appreciate the salvation that was provided for them in the death of Christ, and are oblivious to God’s expectations for those who are saved and the spiritual responsibilities required of them, not the poor, the sick, or the ill-bred. These people characterize God’s love as sentimental and work day and night to satisfy their humanly desires, just as they had done before they were saved by His grace. The church is no different. We often do not understand the role we should play at church and the special work their church is called to do, but rather, try so hard to assume and increase power like secular institutions. That is why Jesus so earnestly encourages us to live with discernment. “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” (Matthew 6:33). Through this verse, God is basically telling us, “You are not like pigs, but are children of God. Do not live like pigs, but live in a way that is fitting for children of God. Then God will take full responsibility of you and fulfill your needs, give you power, honor, and joy.”

We must be thankful that God does not treat us like pigs, but treats us as individual human beings. If, in a hypothetical sense, God is cheap and lowly like us humans, he might use us as objects of entertainment, treat us as slaves, or use us only to build His kingdom, giving us a taste of what we desire every once in awhile just to goad us along. He could also give us fun programs, work that will bring us honor and authority, and exciting social gatherings so that we could find pleasure in serving the church, and use our enthusiasm to expand the church and make Christianity powerful enough to dominate the world. However, God did not create man and the church as mere temporary and insignificant beings, but as children of God entrusted with carrying out His work. Animals or slaves can be used as tools of entertainment, but no parent would do so to their child. If there is, he or she is not the true father or mother of that child, or is a psychopath. Therefore, God, from the beginning, gave us the freedom to eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, and told us in John 15:14-15, “You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.”

We have to wake up from our illusions. If perhaps you find yourself asking the question, “Isn’t it good enough if we are blessed, the church expands, our brotherhood is strong, we are successful, and God is satisfied as well?” please acknowledge your ignorance, get on your knees, and repent. If this was the result Jesus wanted, why would have Jesus died on the cross? Does God not have the power to build churches on every street corner of the world? If God were to assemble Christians in the same way a farmer herds pigs, there would be no one but Christians in this world. How difficult could it possibly be for God to attract as many people as He would like when thousands of people followed Jesus around to crown Him king after Jesus fed them fish and bread? The people God is looking for are those who are willing to take on the yoke of Jesus, walk alongside Jesus, and work together toward Jesus’ goal with their entire heart and soul, and with joy and thanksgiving. Otherwise, no matter how many people belong to a church, they cannot escape the level of an aggregate of pigs. We must know that even though we live according to the flesh and work hard to gratify the desires of the flesh, the church in which we belong will actively move and expand. However, we must also understand that that expansion, in fact, is not an actual growth of the church, but the growth of the pig pen and the field for pig soccer.

“For it is God who works in you to will and act in order to fulfill his good purpose. Do everything without grumbling or arguing” (Philippians 2:13-14). In this verse, Apostle Paul is commanding the Philippians to never forget God’s wishes and the goals He has given them. We are all people who are running the race of faith. However, we must not start the race without a sense of direction. The goal in this race of faith is not competition, nor is it a means for entertainment. The Lord, especially, is not a spectator who enjoys the race, but is the head commander who fights the good fight with us. We must learn how to follow Jesus like Apostle Paul. “I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:14). This is the verse Apostle Paul gave to the members of the Philippian Church, who were in prison but were still deeply occupied in carrying out their mission. As a racer of faith, Apostle Paul shows us the image of an individual who is fighting in spiritual warfare with the same motive and purpose as God, doing his best to move forward. That is to say, Apostle Paul was one with Christ. Us believers and the church we belong to should also be like Apostle Paul. We must not run around captive to the desires of the flesh and successes of this lifetime, but look back at ourselves and think of the Word of God and His will. When we become one with God, trusting and obeying Him with prayer, He will fight the good fight with us. Carefully and humbly look around yourselves and your community to see if there are any pig-like elements, and try to live as the bride of Christ and as children of God.