Many of you know that I spent a few months reading straight through the New Testament. Now, I have read the Bible many times, but never in a methodical manner, taking notes, truly studying. Well just like those songs that get stuck in your head – you know like “Somebody yell 911, shorty fire burning on the dance floor…” there was a verse that I just kept coming back to. It was if God was saying, “Dude, this is important, don’t skim over it”
That verse is Philippians 1:27: “Whatever happens, as citizens of heaven, live in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or am absent, I will hear about you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind, working side by side for the faith of the gospel.” One translation starts “Just one thing…”
Now let me first give you some context. It is so important when you are reading and studying the Bible to make sure you know the context of the passage. It will help tremendously when dealing with passages that talk about ancient customs or traditions. Paul is writing to the church in Philippi (current Macedonia which is adjacent to Greece) while he was imprisoned in Rome.
Why is that important? Philippi was a very highly regarded city which modeled itself after Rome. In fact, the city was founded by the father of Alexander the Great. They thought they were the stuff. It was the place to live back in the day – sort of like Ballantyne or Myers Park. Everyone looked to them as model of how to live and aspired to be like them. What they did and how they conducted themselves set the tone for the whole region.
Since Paul is in jail and doesn’t know if he will be able to come there to teach them, he gives them a singular instruction to guide their entire lives – “live in a manner worthy of the gospel”. So if Paul, arguably the greatest teacher of Christ’s life and ministry, says it all boils down to 1 thing, I want to know what that one thing is and how to do it. We spend our lives trying to find meaning and purpose when all we have to do is “live in a manner worthy of the gospel”.
OK, so what in the world does that mean? Is this going to be another one of those messages that sound good, but is impossible to live out as a teen in today’s world? I mean, doesn’t the bible spend a ton of time telling us we are not worthy and that is why Jesus came. How can we do it? Is it possible?
Let’s start with the basic definitions. I love finding the true definition and origins of words. It is amazing what you can learn from the derivation of a word:
• Definition of the word Gospel? It literally means “good news”
• So what is the good news of Christ? The word Christ means “anointed one” and in the Jewish translation, “Messiah or Savior”. God sent his son to be a substitute for us, so even though the penalty for our sinful life is death, Jesus took all of the sin on himself and away from us so if we believe in Him we could be adopted as citizens of heaven.
I also think it is important that we note that it says LIVE. Our walk with the Lord is filled with ups and downs, twists and turns. Sometimes we have a clear direction of what our life looks like and sometimes we throw up our hands and say “I have no idea”. The question is whether or not we go to school, play sports, hang out and live our lives without fear or do we isolate ourselves from all potential evil. I believe God intends us to be in the world as an example of his grace and to do his will. Remember Jesus said that he came to seek the lost and we are commissioned to make disciples of all people. We can’t do that by only talking to other Christians.
So if we follow the definitions, because we are citizens of heaven through the acceptance of God’s free gift of grace and by faith in his son Jesus, we should live in a manner worthy of the good news of the Savior and our salvation. We should live to honor the blood shed on Calvary and not to waste it.
What are the practical ways we can do that every day? Just like a recipe, we want the steps. Paul spells it out for us in Ephesians 4:1-3 when he says to live with
Humility
Gentleness
Patience
Bear each other’s burdens
And being united for the cause of Christ (the great commission)
Guys, these principles aren’t new to you or me. I would hope that as you go through your day you try to treat others with respect and kindness. Help each other, not out of what it will get you, but because it is the right thing to do. But I hope you now realize the reason
Let’s apply to this to everyday. As athletes, you are a role model whether you like it or not. God has given you a gift that most don’t have. Less than 50% of HS students play sports and less than 5% go on to play in college. If you play a sport in HS, you are a role model and other kids look up to you. Does your attitude toward your coach, teammates and opposing team reflect Christ and the values we just mentioned? As a coach, I am all for aggression and tenacity and those who have seen me coach know that to be true, but we must also never hesitate to be encouraging, and humble. I often told my teams that we have to be humble in victory and gracious in defeat knowing that we gave our best for God and for the team.
What would happen if we didn’t follow these prescribed characteristics? Would the world end? No. Would your life be easier if you didn’t have to be nice to everyone? Yes. But if we are citizens of heaven and the only reason I have a passport to get in is because Jesus came and died on the cross for my salvation, then man, I tell you what, I don’t want to disappoint Him. I want to thank him for his love and forgiveness.
His command to us is to spread the word about Him. What will leave a more lasting impression on our non-Christian friends? The strength of our arguments against sin and the temptations of this world? How many scriptures we can quote? Or, will it be our gentleness, our respect and our interest in their well being?
Because God, the creator of the universe, loved us so much to send his son to live as we do, to be faced with the same stresses and temptations, and to pay the penalty for all of the bad choices and poor decisions we made and will make, we should live our everyday lives in such a way that we honor Him by being humble and giving Him glory, and by putting others’ needs ahead of our own. Honoring him with the way we live is our way of showing our thanks and love back to him.
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