Of all the adjectives used to describe the Tiger Woods mess, maybe the most apt is simply “sad.” Sad all around—for Tiger and Elin and their children, for their families and friends and his fans. For everyone.
But notice what the media isn’t saying. They’re not claiming it really doesn’t matter if married men fool around. They’re not saying Tiger’s reputation has to do entirely with his golf skills while his “personal life” is no one else’s business. They’re not suggesting we’ll all still cheer at his fist-pumping victories and buy Nike and Buick (etc.) just the same.
In fact, today’s media is oozing with morality: we as a people know—deep down we know this—that those who cheat on their spouses commit a grave offense. It’s not a question open for debate; no one’s out there arguing Tiger should really just feel free to set up a harem. The subtext of this whole frenzy is our world’s blaring cry that marriage matters, fidelity to your wife matters; wedding vows are profound and breaking them is dead wrong. Period.
How do people know this? Because God built us to respect his design for marriage: “What God has joined together, let no one separate” (Matt 19:6). He’s wired people to know that the marriage covenant is sacred. If you’re married, you and your beloved both said “I do.” But it wasn’t the two of you who formed the union, nor was it the minister who officiated. “What GOD has joined together…” At a deep level, people know this.
So on this gray day of dismay and disillusionment in which a “hero” has fallen (more accurately: when we’ve found out a hero had fallen), don’t miss the cloud’s silver lining: God’s image within us shines through!
Allow me to caution followers of Christ about how to respond to this debacle. 1) Don’t hate Tiger for his perverse hypocrisy—hate isn’t Jesus’ way (Matt 5:43-44). 2) Don’t congratulate yourself because you’ve done better (read Matt 5:27-30 and Luke 18:9-14). 3) Don’t say “Boys will be boys” and shrug it all off (but then again, above we’ve noted that we just can’t bring ourselves to do this). 4) Don’t say you can’t believe he was so stupid (Satan is very devious and he deftly lures otherwise intelligent people into sin and its misery; resisting sin isn’t just about brains).
Instead: 1) PRAY for Tiger and his family—to meet Christ, find mercy, and get a life! 2) Realize your vulnerability (“There but for the grace of God go I”; and see 1 John 1:8; James 4:7-8). 3) Make sure you’ve got Christian support and consistent accountability to help you say no to Satan’s seductive lies. 4) "Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes" (Eph 6:11).
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