The Chicago Bulls recently released Jaden Ivey over posts expressing his Christian beliefs on sexuality during NBA Pride Month. In a league where serious misconduct has often drawn less severe punishment, Hope Bonarcher argues that his case reveals a striking inconsistency: where some sins are tolerated, the Gospel might get you fired
Would modern Christians support John the Baptist or revile him?
As the biblical story goes, John was not afraid to confront the unrighteous lifestyle choices of the rich and powerful. Not only was he brave enough to challenge a powerful leader like Herod Antipas for his illicit marriage to his brother’s wife, he literally lost his life for the sake of righteousness. Ultimately John payed for his bold adherence to God’s law as soon as the cunning, crafty wife in question, Herodias, saw a green light for the retribution of his offense – his head on a platter.
Most Christians look at John the Baptist as a biblical hero; Jesus Himself called him the greatest man ever born of a woman (Matthew 11:11). But do Christians who behave similarly in today’s climate receive the same acclaim by the church?’
What is unacceptable?
The current predicament of ex-Chicago Bulls guard, Jaden Ivey, is a good case in point.
This week, the world famous NBA team announced in a statement they were waiving (a fancy word for firing) the player “due to conduct detrimental to the team”.
What affront did Ivey commit that was so harmful to his fellow players? Was it brandishing a firearm? No, that was Memphis Grizzlies guard, Ja Morant, who received back-to-back multi-game suspensions for appearing to have brandished firearms on social media videos in 2023.
There are also former Washington Wizards teammates, Gilbert Arenas and Javaris Crittenton who reportedly pulled guns on each other in their team’s locker room on Christmas Eve 2009 – Arenas received a 50 game suspension and was later traded, but not fired.
Maybe Ivey was arrested for and pleaded no contest to domestic violence charges involving his children’s mother? No, that would be Charlotte Hornets forward, Miles Bridges. His actions resulted in a 30 day suspension, but no firing.
In fact, domestic violence, sexual assaults and child abuse are so prevalent in the NBA, the New York Times reported the organisation implemented a new joint policy with the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) in 2017 on these issues. They agreed to potential suspensions, counseling and intervention for their players, not terminations.
In 2019, multiple NBA players were suspended for the use of performance enhancing drugs, in violation of the NBA/NBPA’s Anti-Drug Program, but none of them were Jaden Ivey. Ivey’s sin was merely taking Holy Week a bit too literally. He was fired, not for bringing guns to work, beating a woman or drug abuse, but for espousing orthodox Christian views on abortion and sexuality.
You can go to Ivey’s social media account (@poisonivey on Instagram) and see the posts in question. It is easy to look at short outtakes of what has been described as “offensive” language and sling arrows, but in actuality, the live streams would more accurately be described as a modern day equivalent to street preaching.
When truth brings trouble
Ivey repeatedly glorifies God, shares the Gospel call to repentance and belief in Jesus Christ for salvation and explains the Biblical definition of unrighteousness – quoting directly from 1 Corinthians 6:9-10: “Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.”
This is what got him into trouble. The world is happy to receive an open armed, accepting picture of Jesus, but when condemnation of sin and repentance comes into the picture – eg the full Gospel, Christians can talk to the hand.
It is specifically because of the innate offensiveness of God’s Word that Christians need to speak out and defend the rights of other believers to freely share biblical truth. If we only defend speech when it is comfortable, we will no longer be able to defend scripture. This runs deeper than Jaden Ivey.
Recently in Finland, former Interior Minister, Päivi Räsänen, and an evangelical Lutheran Bishop were convicted of hate speech because 22 years ago they circulated a church pamphlet that criticised homosexual practice. They now face fines of around 8,000 euros.
In Canada this week, the House of Commons passed a bill that would change religious (including biblical) defenses to language described as hate speech. Some worry this could lead to criminalising the sharing of Bible verses that convict or offend hearers, like Ivey did.
In a world where violent weaponry, battery and intoxication won’t get you fired but reading the Bible will, Christians would bode well to heed the times. The Bible, the truth of God’s Word, is not all-inclusive. It convicts, it offends, it ruffles feathers, if you’re as bold as Jaden Ivey, it can get you fired and if you’re as good as John the Baptiser, you could lose your head.
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