Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples.”
John 8:31
Stick to the Playbook
Daily Devotion – September 13, 2018
Devotion based on John 8:31
See series: Devotions
Training camps are complete. Pre-season action is over. In the United States, a sport returns that captivates millions each weekend. College student athletes and professionals alike will step out onto the gridiron—the football field.
Are you a fan of American football? Even if you aren’t, you can understand that in football, as in any team sport, the coach has a playbook. The playbook guides players to take the right number of steps, make the right cuts, throw the right passes, attack the right angles, all to defeat their opponent and win the game. Training camps and practice after practice drill those plays into the athletes, so they become second nature during the game. Imagine the disappointment of the coach when his players don’t follow the playbook!
Imagine the disappointment of God when his people don’t follow his Word! Indeed, the Bible is so much more than a playbook. God hasn’t given his Word just to drill into you exactly the right steps to take and tell you the decisions you need to make, but the Bible does present a message of victory for you.
Jesus teaches you of the victory you have in him. Even though you have taken the wrong steps, attacked the wrong angles in your life, and disappointed God, Jesus teaches you that you are forgiven. Jesus teaches you that he is your Savior. He stepped onto the gridiron of this world and faced the fiercest opponent. Jesus faced death itself for you, and he won. He gave up his life on the cross for your forgiveness, but then rose again in victory over the grave.
That’s why his teaching is so important. It’s why he tells you, and all who follow him, to hold on to it with such a grip that no opponent can ever force a fumble out of your hands. As you look around you, there are so many “teams” of Christians. Each seems to wear a different uniform. Which will you choose?
Find a church that’s running the right routes, saying the right things, taking the right angles—that is, they hold dearly to Jesus’ teaching. Then you know they will always point you to him as your Savior.
Prayer:
Lord Jesus, teach and strengthen me to hold firmly to your Word of Truth. Help me to boldly live my life as your disciple. Amen.
Devotions are brought to you by WELS and www.WhatAboutJesus.com.
Powered by WPeMatico