As the temperatures get cooler and the days grow shorter, we say goodbye to summer as fall is upon us. I love autumn in New England. I love the cooler weather. The brilliant changing colors of the leaves and football season begins. This is the year! My NY Jets are going all the way this season! Super Bowl LIX here we come! I’ve been saying that same thing since 1969. The last time Joe Namath led my Jets to the Championship. They won that year. Our church Fantasy Football league has started as well. Pray for my Hartford Charter Oaks.
As I thought about football I wondered if the Bible talked about sports at all. I know it mentions baseball. Right at the start. In Genesis 1:1, the Bible says, “In the big inning…”
Actually, the only “sport” Scripture does mention is running. Paul writes, “Don’t you realize that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize? So run to win (1 Corinthians 9:24)! And he says to Timothy, “And athletes cannot win the prize unless they follow the rules” (2 Timothy 2:5).
So, there is a race and a prize. Yes, I guess we call it the “rat race.” The daily journey we undertake. Sometimes, from the get-go it doesn’t always start well. Maybe we didn’t sleep well. We might wake up with some aches, pains, or sniffles. It is allergy season again. Then, perhaps there’s no hot water left, and you end up taking a cold shower. Maybe you’re having a bad hair day. And you haven’t even left the house yet. When you do, there’s a long line at the Dunkin’ Donuts drive through. You’re getting later and later for work. When you do finally get your order, your coffee order is incorrect, and your hash browns are cold. Then, as you get on the on ramp you discover there is an accident on the highway and traffic is backed up for miles. You are literally living out the children’s book Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. This is indeed why we call it a “rat race.”
It’s on days like this that we need to remind ourselves what prize we are truly seeking. Salvation. And there is only one way to win it – “by following the rules” Paul says. Back in 1980, the year I graduated high school, Rosie Ruiz won the Boston Marathon. At least she said she did. It was discovered later that she jumped onto the course about a half mile before the finish line. She was stripped of all accolades and forever branded as a cheater.
It’s the same with our race. Jesus says in John 10:1, “I tell you the truth, anyone who sneaks over the wall of a sheepfold, rather than going through the gate, must surely be a thief and a robber!” Those people will never enter the kingdom of heaven. One cannot jump in with only a half mile left or sneak over a wall and win the prize. There is only one way to win – obedience. “Follow the rules.” Which ones? All of them? All 613 of them? Before you panic, Jesus condensed them for us. He says, “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments” (Matthew 22:37-39).
Love God, love your neighbor, and you win! There are no shortcuts. Yes, it can be hard to do especially when you’re having a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. But it’s still a lot easier than being a New York Jets fan, believe me.
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