Sermon Synopsis for February 1, 2009

“Football and Faith” Philippians 3:12-21

Does God care about sports?

Did you know that the church can be like football?

Half Time: Time between Sunday school and church.
Huddle: Pastor & Elders meeting before the service.
Home Field Advantage: where regular-attenders think they should sit, when visitors take the place where they usually sit.
Screen Play: using the video projector.
Draw Play: what children do with the bulletin during worship.
Benchwarmer: those who do not sing, pray, work, or do anything but sit.
Backfield-in-motion: making a trip to the back (bathroom or water fountain) during worship.
Draft Choice: choosing to sit next to the open window.
End Zone: the pews (end, get it?)

Interference: talking during the prayer.
Trap: you’re called on to pray or speak and you are asleep.

Coin Toss: what usually ends up in the offering plate.
Staying in the pocket: What happens to some money that should be put in the offering plate.
Quarterback sneak: the child getting his coin back out of the offering plate.

Instant Replay: the pastor loses his place in his notes and repeats part of his sermon before he realizes it.
Punt: point in the sermon where the pastor realizes that he’s lost the attention span of most of the congregation, and he veers off from his sermon in desperation to try to regain the attention of the congregation.
Punt return: congregation’s response to the pastor’s punt.

Two Minute Warning: when you realize that the sermon is just about over and you start gathering up your children and belongings.
Two Minute Warning: the pastor’s wife (or an Elder) looking at her watch in full view of the pastor.
Extra Point: what you get when you tell the pastor that his sermon was too short. Or, what happens 20 minutes after the pastor says “in conclusion.”
Overtime: Sermon continues past 11:45 am.
Sudden Death: what happens to the attention span when the preacher goes into overtime.

Illegal motion: leaving before the closing prayer is finished.
End Run: getting out of church quickly, without speaking to anyone.
Blitz: the rush to area restaurants following the closing prayer.
Blocking: talking with your friends at the door out of the sanctuary, keeping others from leaving.

Halfback option: The decision of 50% of the congregation not to come back to the evening service. (half come back)
Flex Defense: The ability to allow absolutely nothing that was said during the sermon to affect your life.

Touchdown: someone comes to Christ.

INTRODUCTION (PRE GAME)
The Apostle Paul used a number of sports analogies to help us understand the Christian life.

Most of them had to do with races. I imagine if he were here with us today he would be talking sports.

Jews were prohibited from participating in Greek / Roman sports. That’s probably why Jesus didn’t give any sports examples. Paul was a missionary to the Greeks – he had to enter their world.

Kind of like an Eagles fan going to Pittsburgh.

The Apostle Paul used these sports analogies, to draw attention to the way he divided up the world. (Not Steelers fans or Cardinals fans), but those who followed Jesus and those who didn’t.

Can you make a Steelers fan out of an Eagles fan?

You see, Paul changed from being a fanatic for Jewish fundamentalism to being a fanatic for Jesus.

Paul begins chapter 3 of Philippians by defending his credentials against false believers and teachers. He tells us that he used to be like them, but everything is a loss compared to the greatness of knowing Christ (3:7). His conversion brought a new assessment of his goals and gave him an overwhelming desire to know Christ and to follow Christ more fully. Paul tells us he hasn’t fully arrived as a Christian, but Philippians 3:12-21 tells us how he’s working on it.

CHOSE THE RIGHT TEAM
Which team will win?

Does God care who wins the Super Bowl?
(Sports Illustrated, Jan 26, 1998, Article by William Nack)

We have a lot of questions. Who is going to win? Does God know? Who does God want to win?
John 14:14 “I will do whatever you ask in my name”
There are players praying to win (on both sides)
James tells us, “God hears the prayers of a righteous man”
There are good Christians on both teams

Is one team more faithful? Why did that particular team win?
Think about those Sunday afternoon heroes. After an amazing touchdown, they kneel in the end zone and offer a brief prayer or groups of players bow in the middle of the field at the end of a game.

Post game interview:
“Great game, Joe”
“Thanks, Bud. The first thing I have to say is that I owe it all to my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. We sure kicked some butt out there today. Whoo-whoo!”

I have to confess, this makes me feel al little weird. It’s great that public figures acknowledge the importance of faith in their lives. I’m not sure Jesus helps anyone “kick butt,” on or off the field. Maybe it’s just me.

God can intervene in human affairs:
The late, great Reggie White, defensive end for the Packers and the Eagles and also a Christian minister. Reggie didn’t like people who thought that God didn’t take part in determining the outcome of games. "How do they know?" he asked. "They're not God. They can't find anything in the scriptures that proves it." He noted that the Bible is filled with evidence of God's decisive role in human conflicts. "God intervened in David's fight with Goliath," he said. "When Jesus died, [God] intervened in Jesus's victory over death."
I doubt that God is taking sides in today’s Super Bowl
God wants us to be on the right team

Phil 3:12 “I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.”

Paul was on the wrong team – but an encounter with Jesus turned him around – it put him on the right team. This is something that God does care about! God wants all of us to be on his team.

Two teams: Phil 3:18- 20
“Many live as enemies of the cross of Christ”
“Their destiny is destruction”
“Our citizenship is in heaven”
(He’s not talking about the Steelers vs. Cardinals here)
It’s important to be on the right team.

ARROGANCE CAN CAUSE PROBLEMS
Did you ever come across an annoying “Steelers” fan?
They can be exasperating. (Eagles fans too, we won’t mention Cowboy fans)

Did you ever come across an annoying Christian? (Jesus’ fan)
Paul 3:12 Just because he’s on the right team, “he’s not perfect”

I don’t believe that you can aggravate or annoy anyone into believing in Jesus.

Here’s something from the Ladies Bible Study (Beth Moore, Breaking Free, student book p. 17)
Speaking of the divisions between God’s people (Northern Kingdom of Israel and Southern Kingdom of Judah)
Which do we tend to enjoy the most? God-given victory or our foe’s defeat? Our attitude can be a litmus test. Does victory humble us and bring us to our knees in thanksgiving to God, or does victory make us proud and arrogant toward those less victorious?

DIVISIONS CAN CAUSE PROBLEMS
Jesus put together a “team” of disciples.

One of his great concerns (John 13 Prayer) was “that they be one”
“That they play together as a team”

Paul says, “I’m in Christ”
Phil 3:17 “Join with others in following my example”
Be on the right team. “Jesus Christ took hold of me.”

FORGET WHAT IS BEHIND

Paul continues with some advice.
Truth: The hurts and the pains of the past can keep you from going forward.
Paul has a lot of baggage in his past – persecuting Christians. Imagine the guilt that goes along with something like that.

Phil 3:13 “forgetting what is behind”
Greek word “forget” does not mean obliterate from your memory, but a “conscious refusal to let them absorb his attention and impede his progress.” (Expositors Bible Commentary)

Football teams – watch video of past games. They study the past; they learn where they went wrong. There is humiliation, there is asking forgiveness, there is looking at yourself openly and honestly …
But when they take the field – these things are in the past – they realize that what they need to do is not “get over the bad things we did in the past,” as much as moving forward toward a victory.

Those bad things in our lives (as individuals or as a church) can cause us a lot of pain.
Jesus wants us to put them behind, so they are not a stumbling block to going forward.

PRESS TOWARD THE GOAL

What is the objective of a football game?
At the end of the game, what is the most important thing?
To have the most goals scored

Teamwork, focus, attitude, knowing the plays, etc. are all great things and are part of the game, but the winner is determined by the one who reaches the goal the most (who scores the most points)

3:13 “straining toward what is ahead” (present tense) (gk. Putting everything you have into it)
3:14 “press on toward the goal” (present tense) (gk. Putting your might into something despite obstacles and oppression)
3:14 “called me heavenward” (past action for present response) (gk. A forward motion towards our eternal destination)

Paul is telling the early Christians, “Don’t forget the goal of all of this living the Christian life”

Pay attention to the details, but don’t get so muddled down in the details of every play and the daily grind that you forget where you’re headed.

CONCLUSION:In a little while the game will be over. In the end one team will emerge victorious. It may be the Steelers, or maybe the Cardinals…A trophy will be rewarded,Rings will be presented,Cash will be given,Glory will be bestowed,Advertising contracts will be awarded,And one team will have bragging rights for a year.Yet today a greater game of importance is being played, and you are a key player on the field. You have the opportunity to play for eternal rewards. You can win a prize that will never dim. The outcome is up to you.
Press on toward the goal!
God wants you to be a Super Bowl Christian.