What Football Can Teach Us About Faith

Is your view of God that of a celestial football referee?

Traditional Thanksgiving weekend contests have taken place, and college football season is steaming toward bowl season and the College Football Playoffs. So there’s still time to consider what this uniquely American pastime can teach us about everyday life.

I used to wonder why the game’s still called “football,” when so little of it actually has to do with the foot. Yes, there’s placekicking, kickoffs and punting, but rules changes have substantially reduced the impact of foot on ball. But then a speaker pointed out that in this sport, almost everything revolves around where the football is located.

The “line of scrimmage,” for instance, is determined by where the officials place the ball. Penalties, such as “offsides,” also depend upon the football’s location and whether defensive players cross the “neutral zone” around the ball. The “goal line” comes into play when the football crosses it – or doesn’t – to decide things like touchdowns, safeties, and touchbacks.

When a quarterback drops back to pass, he’s throwing the football. And his intent is for a receiver to catch and advance it down the field. Conversely, defensive players either want to knock down the football so no one can catch it, or catch it themselves so their team will take over possession of the ball. The job of running backs is to hang onto the football and try to move it forward for first downs and touchdowns. 

Yes indeed, everything revolves around the football.

Why, when considering spiritual insights into everyday life, should we care at all about a silly game called football? Because as people created in God’s image, our lives – everything we do, say, and even think – should revolve around Him. 

When God gave Moses the 10 commandments to pass along to the Israelites, the first four specifically dealt with our relationship to Him. We’re not to follow other gods; we’re not to bow before manmade idols (“graven images”) in worship; we’re not to profane the name of the Lord in any way; and we’re to set aside one day of the week as “a Sabbath to the Lord your God” (Exodus 20:3-11).

A skeptic friend once commented that he thought God must be “pretty egotistical” if He demands our worship. I countered, “Well, if He created the entire universe and everything in it, keeps it functioning as intended, and provides for our every need, isn’t he deserving of honor, worship and praise? We recognize athletes for stellar performances, actors and musicians for their talent, and people holding elective office for their positions of leadership. Is it wrong for the Lord to expect recognition for everything He has done and continues to do, which dwarf any human achievement we can imagine?”

But there’s another, very different aspect of football also worth considering. It’s the role of the officials who maintain order, enforce the rules, and make it their aim to catch someone doing something wrong. 

We never see a referee running up to a player, patting him on the back, and saying, “Man, that was a great run!” or “What a clutch tackle that was!” or “Nice catch!” Do something wrong, however, and they call you on it immediately. First they throw the yellow flag, then announce for all the world to hear exactly what you did.

Sadly, this is how some people perceive God – as a divine “referee,” watching intently from the heavenly realms poised to throw the flag on anyone that gets out of line. Some people refer to the NFL as the “No Fun League,” and those with this perception of God might see Him as the No Fun Lord. Nothing could be further from the truth. 

God’s not surprised at all that we fail consistently to meet His holy standards. The Bible makes it clear: “There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away” (Romans 3:10-18). So when we sin, which literally means “to miss the mark,” He’s not surprised at all. This has been the case since the beginning of time, humankind determined to function as its own god.

Unlike football referees, who dutifully enforce the rules by imposing prescribed penalties, God instead has provided the remedy – Jesus Christ’s sacrificial death on the cross – to offer forgiveness to anyone willing to receive it. As 2 Corinthians 5:21 declares, “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” In the Old Testament we’re told, “We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him [Jesus] the iniquity of us all” (Isaiah 53:6).

Football operates by the “if you do the crime, you do the time” philosophy, immediately penalizing offenders for rules violations. In the realm of faith, however, God desires to forgive and to redeem, using His laws primarily as tutors to instruct us in how to achieve successful, fulfilling lives. “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9).

The Lord not only offers us grace – His unmerited, undeserved favor – but also the faith needed to believe and receive His love and unconditional acceptance. So if you view God as a celestial referee eager to “throw the flag” when we mess up, maybe it’s time to take a fresh look at the Scriptures. 

Faith is More Than Being a Fan

Every Saturday during the fall, millions of fans crowd America's
football stadiums. But the commitment level of fickle fans can waver.

If you’re into spectator sports, chances are you’re a fan of a particular team, maybe several. How did you choose which teams to cheer for?

Sometimes being a fan is “inherited,” as in “my family has always rooted for XYZ team, so I do, too.” Maybe it’s because of where you have lived. Growing up near New York City, I became a Yankee fan, and later I also rooted for the Mets. Or perhaps it’s because of your alma mater – the high school or college you attended. My family and friends know I’m an avid Ohio State fan, and I’ve been one from the time I enrolled in 1967 and later received two degrees there.

Not everyone’s a big sports fan, of course. But chances are you’re a fan of some entity  – it could be an actor or artist, some other kind of celebrity, a political party, or even a car manufacturer. And in all likelihood, if you’re a fan you feel very strongly about it.

The point is, being a fan, supporter or advocate of someone or something is largely a matter of choice. Even though I’ve live in SEC country for more than 35 years, I’m not a big fan of the Southeastern Conference. Even though I lived in the Northeast as a boy, I didn’t have to become a fan of any of the New York sports teams. And there are particular entertainers I really like, and others I don’t, but no one is forcing me to give them my unquestioned allegiance.

In some ways it’s similar spiritually. Geography might play a role in what we believe. If raised in the Middle East, one’s definitely going to be exposed more to Islam than any other religion. People in the Far East are more typically oriented toward Buddhism, Shintoism or Hinduism, again depending on the nation and culture in which they live. But since faith is a matter of the heart, as well as the head, no one can coerce a person to believe one way or another.

This, however, is where the similarity between sports fandom and spiritual faith ends. Because if my beloved Buckeyes win, I’ll feel happy, and if they lose, I’ll feel sad. I could even choose to no longer root for them. Nevertheless, their successes and failures don’t define who I am or how I live. My faith, on the other hand, does.

Kyle Idleman wrote a book called Not a Fan, in which he explained the difference between being a nominal, once-a-week “fan” of Jesus Christ and being a committed, 24/7 follower. As we survey the contemporary church scene across America, it appears there are many fans of Jesus, but not nearly as many true disciples. This is one reason He cautioned, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me” (Luke 9:23).

A “warm fuzzy” form of faith, one that’s not too demanding and doesn’t require much of us, has a certain appeal. We can check into the sanctuary periodically, even spend a few minutes in the Bible once in a while, as long as we’re not asked to alter our lives or priorities too much.

But “warm fuzzy” is anathema to the calling God places on each of His children. We see this repeatedly in the Old Testament, when superficial belief – being a “fan” – is dismissed. Deuteronomy 6:4-5, for instance, says, “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.”

As his leadership of the Israelites was coming to an end, Joshua declared to the people, “But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve…. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord” (Joshua 24:15).

The world around us presents a multitude of “god” options – possessions, power, status, careers, ideologies, hobbies, family, even sports teams. Any of them can consume our lives and thoughts.

So we have a choice. We can be a fan of Jesus, turning to Him in times of crisis or when seeking specific blessings, while continuing to conduct our lives independently, or choose to follow and serve Him “in spirit and in truth” (John 4:23-24). Because as God instructed the Israelites upon giving them the Ten Commandments, “You shall have no other gods before me” (Exodus 20:3)

As Joshua and his family did, we also must choose this day whom we are willing to serve.

Keeping the ‘Main Thing’ the Main Thing

Starting this weekend, millions across America
will resume a focus on their "main thing."

Well, it’s that time of year again. Football time! (I understanding that not everyone is cheering – some groan at the prospect. Sorry ‘bout that.) But if you’re a college football fan, someone who prefers the NFL, or a person who enjoys both in equal doses, it’s nearly time to get on that game face. In some cases, literally. Annual fantasy football “drafts” are under way, and the seasonal religion of football is poised to open its hallowed cathedrals to devoted congregants.

For some fans it will be a fun diversion, watching a game or two for several hours on a Saturday or Sunday, and then returning to the realities of daily life. For others (and I used to be among them), it becomes what’s most important and will remain such through the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays, and maybe beyond New Year’s. Even during the week, they’ll be agonizing over how their teams will do the next weekend, real and fantasy.

Which raises a question that transcends the gridiron: What is most important? Or to put it another way, in your life, what is the main thing?

Recently I heard a speaker discussing this very topic. Noting how the question of “what’s most important” can elicit a wide range of responses, he wondered, “Can there be multiple ‘most importants’?”

It would seem so, based on how some people act, but by the law of superlatives – I really don’t know if there is such a law, but if there isn’t, there should be – there can only be one entity that qualifies as “most.” All the rest fall in rankings of lesser importance.

Many people have expressed it (or something similar) through the years, but the late Ted DeMoss was the first I ever heard say, “The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing.” The problem, he would explain, is we don’t always keep “the main thing” paramount. Even worse, we fail to identify what the main thing is, resulting in a very disjointed, conflicted life.

For some people, starting later this week, football becomes their main thing. For others, it’s work or career. The main thing can range from family to a favorite pastime to having the perfect house. It can even be training for a marathon or a triathlon, or working out to sculpt that perfect physique. The definition of “the main thing” can differ from person to person, but for those of us who follow Jesus Christ – or recognize the need for a deeper, more fruitful spiritual life – can there really be more than one main thing? Not really.

Writing to the church in Corinth, the apostle Paul stated, “For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified” (1 Corinthians 2:2). He was determined not to get sidetracked by tangential matters. He resolved to keep the main thing – Jesus – the main thing, no matter what.

I like how the Amplified translation of Philippians 3:10 describes the apostle’s devotion: “(For my determined purpose is) that I may know him – that I may progressively become more deeply and intimately acquainted with Him, perceiving and recognizing and understanding (the wonders of His Person) more strongly and more clearly….”

Without question Paul had a singular, unwavering goal: to keep Jesus Christ the main thing in his life, and to challenge others to do the same.

“Yeah,” some might argue, “but that was then. This is now.” Perhaps, but from the beginning God has sought to find single-minded people who understood He is, and always should be, the main thing. “For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him” (2 Chronicles 16:9).

Because being a follower of Jesus – a Christian, if you prefer – isn’t a part-time pursuit, a spiritual activity for which we parcel out an hour or two every week, then proceed through the rest of the week as if there is no God.

As the speaker asked, can there be multiple “most importants”? Can there be more than one real “main thing”? Looking at your life, and how you pursue it from day to day, what’s your main thing?

Renewing the Great American Spectacle

Across the nation, millions await the whistle for the opening kickoff
of the 2014 college football season. 

After a seemingly interminable wait, it starts again this weekend – college football season. With memories of bowl games that concluded the 2013 season fading, hopes for fans across the country are at their apex. Whether you root for Alabama or Aliquippa State, Wisconsin or Winthrop, Syracuse or Slippery Rock, expectations are high. Your team, like all the others, is undefeated, for the moment.

So let’s revel in that moment. Forget soccer – it’s time for real football to commence! With its pageantry, spectacle, craziness. They’ll be on display in stadiums from coast to coast, everyone decked in their favorite school’s colors, bands blaring fight songs, cheerleaders jumping and screaming, coaches raving and ranting, demanding “110 percent” from their team.

I’ll be rooting for Ohio State’s Scarlet and Gray, as I have every season since 1966. But I’ll also be admiring the sport’s teamwork aspect – players performing their respective roles and, if they do them well, powering their team to success.

Quarterbacks, running backs and receivers get most of the acclaim, but the huge, unheralded linemen are the ones that make possible the exciting runs, spectacular passes and…touchdowns. On defense, success requires hefty hulks on the defensive line, agile linebackers and speedy defensive backs, all doing their part to disrupt the opposing team’s offensive schemes.

It only takes a single breakdown – a failed block, a missed tackle, an untimely penalty – to shift momentum and potentially change the outcome of the game. So when the question is asked, “Who’s the most important player on the field?” the truthful answer is every single one of them. This brings to mind familiar adages like, “The whole is greater than the sum of the parts.” “A chain is only as strong as its weakest link.” “Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work.”

The latter observation comes from the Bible, Ecclesiastes 4:9. The Scriptures speak extensively about teamwork, affirming none of us alone is as strong as when we’re working in concert with others, aligned to the same mission or goal. A few verses later in the passage it states, “Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not easily broken” (Ecclesiastes 4:12).

Proverbs 27:17 declares, “As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another,” and any good football coach will tell you competition within the team serves to make everyone better.

I love the moment in a football game when, after a big play, teammates converge to back-slap, high-five and chest-bump, engaging in mutual congratulatory support. While it’s not talking about American football, Hebrews 10:24-25 refers to this when it says, “And let us consider how we may spur one another on to love and good deeds…. Let us not give up meeting together…but let us encourage one another.”

And speaking of teamwork, the Bible uses the human body as a metaphor for teamwork and unity built around a common purpose, especially the Church of Jesus Christ. It even alludes to our tendency to give special notice to the more spectacular parts:

“The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts…and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor…. But God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have special concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it” (1 Corinthians 12:12-26).

So when you turn on your TV to watch your favorite team, remember when it’s operating smoothly, with the various players effectively carrying out the responsibilities of their positions, it’s how the body of Christ should function. And when there’s a lost fumble, interception, missed block or tackle, that’s kind of how the body of Christ looks when we fail to fulfill the role God has called us to fill. So try not to miss your assignment – no matter what you’ve been given to do, it’s important.

Christmas in February

Yesterday the NCAA presented ardent college football fans with “Christmas in February” – National Signing Day. It’s the annual rite of passage, when high school seniors sign paperwork to pledge allegiance to their favorite university.

For fans who religiously follow the Crimson Tide, Fighting Irish, Volunteers, Buckeyes, or Fearsome Chickens, it’s like Christmas morning: What’s under the tree? Will they get everything on their “Christmas list”?

College football recruiting has turned into a veritable industry; highly paid “experts” and services do nothing year-round but evaluate, speculate and pontificate.

Everyone knows players from the South, especially Georgia or Florida, are bigger, faster, meaner, quicker and just better than those from the North. Why? No one knows. Except the South lost the Civil War and it’s been trying to get even ever since.

The funny thing about college football recruiting is it’s not an exact science. In fact, it’s not a science at all. And despite chest-thumping (or teeth gnashing) that follows each gridiron stud’s decision, it’s far from exact.

Many top-rated, “4-star” and “5-star” athletes perform like falling stars. They might have peaked with their last game in high school. They might lose their zeal after years of peewee, junior and senior high competition.

Key injuries in college might impede or end their careers. Sadly, some find their names etched on police blotters and earn headlines for non-football reasons.

At the other end of the spectrum, some lowly rated 2-star and 3-star players use the lack of respect as motivation, working to get better and better. A fellow who started out as “who’s he?” on State U’s commitment list winds up earning his way into college football’s Who’s Who.

National Signing Day is only about potential. Measuring sticks and stopwatches can’t gauge what’s inside a young man – his heart. Maybe that’s why the day is so fascinating. You think you know, but in the end, you just don’t know what you don’t know.

That’s also true of life. We look at people, even ourselves, and think we know what’s going on. In reality, we don’t. That’s why the Bible says, “The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” (1 Samuel 16:7).

And God has much better things to do than coach college football.

It’s Football Time in the U.S.A.

Tonight marks the official start of a new football season! Like it or not football, not baseball, has become our national pastime.

Ironically, unlike the international game of soccer (“futbol” in Latin American nations), our football has relatively little to do with feet – except when players run. In fact, there are consequences for using the foot too much. A punt means you have failed to advance the ball. Kicking a field goal counts for three points, less than half what a touchdown is worth (with a kicked extra point). And rules prohibit players from kicking the ball while it’s in play. Lastly, the field is not measured by the foot, but by the yard. Yardball, anyone?

Nevertheless, football has captured our national fascination. “Why?” is open to debate. I personally believe it’s partly of the extremely physical nature of the game. Seeing a rival player pummeled by a vicious tackle has wondrous cathartic benefits for spectators. And seeing your team’s star runner or receiver zoom past defenders for a long touchdown sets all worries and fears to rest, at least momentarily.

But I think it’s also because games are played only once a week, rather than daily like baseball, or several times a week like basketball. We have an entire week to rehash and dissect the last game, revel in the high points and second-guess the coach. A full week also to anticipate the next game, speculating on how our team will fare, what it must do to win, and what tricks the opponent might present.

Sadly, the Bible says nothing specific about football. The apostle Paul did write, “I press on toward the goal to win the prize…” (Philippians 3:14), but I doubt he had the goal line in mind.

Nevertheless, settle in, grab your remote – and have fun!