Preach the Gospel

Preach the Gospel
           
Lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified. -1 Corinthians 9:27b

It is with pride that we often look back on our past accomplishments. While it might feel amazing to win a 1st place trophy, be named MVP or to be accepted into the Hall of Fame for our sport, it will be even more fulfilling at the end of our Christian race to hear Jesus tell us “Well done, good and faithful servant.” (1) We want to know that our lives have counted for something important. Francis Chan has said that “our greatest fear should not be of failure, but of succeeding at things in life that don’t really matter.”

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We read in Hebrews chapter 11 about “God’s Hall of Faith”. Although these faithful ones faced many hardships and many did not see the promised outcome, they remained true to their calling. We cannot “allow fear – fear of change, the unknown, failure, ridicule, not following the crowd, our own inadequacies, or dozens of other things – to set the course for our lives.” (2) If we do, we’ll miss the many blessings the Lord has for us.

We were each created with a purpose. God knew us before the foundation of the world, before we had any knowledge of Him, He knew who would come to be His by faith. We were predestined “to moral conformity to the likeness of his son.” (3) We are called to a holy life by the grace given to us in Christ which was planned from the beginning of time. (4) Each person who is saved by faith has an eternal purpose. What is this “holy calling” we have been given?

This “holy calling” was given by Jesus in the Great Commission. Jesus has invited each of us to fulfill a heroic role in His kingdom. In the early church, Jesus’ followers were called Christians which meant “little Christs”. In Jesus’ final words, He charged His disciple with the task to go out into the world and make disciples of all people groups, baptizing them and teaching them to obey all He had commanded. (5)

As athletes, coaches and sports fans, we often strike up conversations about our favorite teams or sports. We might want to ask ourselves, however, how often the Lord is the center of our conversations with friends, coworkers, teammates and family members. It’s easy to stay in our own corners and only speak about the Lord on Sunday mornings and Wednesday evenings. We need to remind ourselves that the “Great Commission” given by Jesus Himself wasn’t only for certain days of the week. He commanded us to share the good news of salvation with all nations, which includes family, friends, neighbors and teammates. (6)

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Paul wrote in Romans 1:16 that he was not ashamed of the gospel because it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes. Being part of a team means wearing the team uniform. Being identified as part of a team can cause us to feel proud or more confident. Even if we don’t participate in a sport, we still often like to wear the colors or jerseys of our favorite sport’s team. As competitor’s for Christ, we are called to put on His uniform. (7)

There are many places in the world where the gospel message cannot be shared freely. Those who love the Lord and want to share His love with others must do so carefully. By proclaiming the name of Jesus as Lord and Savior, a person could lose their job, their home, their family, their freedom or even their life. Getting a Bible, visiting a church or holding a revival is almost impossible. People worship in small homes late at night. While many are fearful of sharing the gospel due to repercussions, others are willing to continue because they know that the Lord commanded us to do it. (8)

The best sports teams are made up of the best players; and they are constantly looking to add others to their team who will help the team perform their best. This is also true of Jesus’ team, the church. We are called to the relentless mission of pursuing others to join us in the life transforming relationship we enjoy with God through Christ. (9)

We can do this by focusing our attention on Jesus. “Just as a runner concentrates on the finish line, we should concentrate on Jesus, the goal and objective of our faith.” (10) We should always be ready to share the hope we have in Christ. (11) If we want to end up in the Hall of Faith, we must not remain on the sidelines, but go! (12)

The gospel is the good news about Jesus. Who can you lovingly pursue to join Christ’s team? Pray and watch for opportunities to share God’s love.


(1) Matthew 25:21
(2) FCA Resources, “Take the Challenge” (Kansas City, MO: 2010); http://fcaresources.com/bible-study/session-8-take-challenge
(3) Romans 8:29
(4) 2 Timothy 1:9
(5) Matthew 28:19-20
(6) FCA Resources, “The Great Commission” (Kansas City, MO: 2010); http://fcaresources.com/devotional/great-commission
(7) FCA Resources, “Wear the Colors” (Kansas City, MO: 2010); http://fcaresources.com/devotional/wear-colors
(8) FCA Resources, “The Great Commission”
(9) FCA Resources, “Relentless Mission – I Pursue Others” (Kansas City, MO: 2010); http://fcaresources.com/bible-study/relentless-mission-i-pursue-others
(10) Hebrews 12:2
(11) 1 Peter 3:15
(12) FCA Resources, “Take the Challenge”

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