You’re familiar with the early morning stares, right? That mental fog when you’re somewhere in-between awake and asleep, trying to put the upcoming day’s anticipated events in order while waiting for the first cup of coffee to kick in? Well, at times the news can have the same effect as you sit there stunned, saying to yourself “did I just read that?” Such a moment occurred a couple of weeks ago when this headline crossed the wires:
Kendra Wilkinson Plans To Be Strict Christian Mother
Well all righty then.
It’s more than a little tempting to take snarky potshots at someone whose sole basis for public notice to date has been her willingness to prove she doesn’t have a thing to wear now coming out with proclamations she’s a member of the traditional school of child rearing. However, such an approach is both unfair and spiritually inconsiderate. Ms. Wilkinson, who has been married to Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Hank Baskett since late June of this year and is expecting the couple’s first child this December, may well be sincere in her profession of intent. Only God knows what is in her heart.
Unfortunately for her, God gave most of us the ability to count.
An item often misunderstood in evangelical circles is the need to differentiate between the penalty of sin and the consequence of sin. The penalty of sin is death. It is what Christ took upon Himself on the cross so we could be freed from death, instead being given life eternal through what He made possible. This duly noted, there is nothing in Jesus forgiving the eternal penalty of sin that translates into the temporal consequences of sin being magically whisked away.
The Basketts have more than a few issues in life they will be forced to deal with as a result of their actions. These are not the offspring of overzealous hypocrites passing judgment on others when they themselves are equally guilty of sin, but rather simple facts. Hank Baskett will have to deal with the fact most if not all of his co-workers have seen pictures of his wife in the nude. This will be amplified by his working in the hyper-macho world of professional football. One can only imagine the trash talk he will hear from the defense every time he steps on the field. For Mrs. Baskett, there will be moments of dealing with dagger looks from wives of men who have her centerfold tacked up on their garage wall, plus the first time her child comes home after having been at a friend’s house where they were shown what Mommy looked like in a magazine. Won’t that be fun. And as a capper, both Basketts will be confronted with the fact their first child was conceived well prior to their wedding day.
One of the fundamentals of faith is no one is outside the reach of Christ’s love and forgiveness. This is true for Hank and Kendra Baskett. The sniggerings of pop culture perps is of no concern to Jesus. That said, for their sake it can only be hoped the Basketts are genuine in their faith. They’re going to need it in every way imaginable.
