Worthy of the Jersey

READY: 

 “Just one thing: As citizens of heaven, live your life 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, in one accord, contending together for the faith of the gospel. . .” – Philippiens 1:27-28 

 SET:  

Imagine your coach sent your whole team off to a tournament. Something prevented the coach from attending, but they trusted your team enough to send the players to play. Each team has their jersey on, representing their team, their community, their family, their coach. This sets the stage for how Paul might’ve been feeling as he wrote this letter to the church at Philippi. He was imprisoned, unable to visit those he’s sending this letter to. You can hear his heart in his words as he challenges the church to live their lives worthy of the Gospel. Basically, Paul was coaching the church to operate as a team while he was absent. Their mission was to share the Gospel with those around them, and they needed to do it together.  

How would you play at the tournament if you knew your coach couldn’t be there? Would you play hard for them in their honor? Or would you slack off and play like it didn’t matter? True athletes would be revealed at a tournament like that. Character is often defined as who you are when no one is looking. Who are you when your coach isn’t watching? Do you play worthy of the jersey you’re wearing? Are you representing your team well? Are you being a team player, in one spirit, one accord, struggling together with passion to play your hardest to reach your goal?  

What about in your spiritual life? Are you truly living your life worthy of the Gospel of Christ? If those around you know you to be a Christian, are you representing the jersey well? What do others hear of you? Are you standing firm or are you slacking off?

These are tough questions, but we benefit from doing a self-evaluation every so often. The best way to evaluate yourself as a Christian is to line yourself up with Scripture every day. His Word is alive and active (Hebrews 4:12), the Holy Spirit uses it to discern the thoughts and intentions of our hearts. It is also a lamp to our feet and a light to our path (Psalm 119:105). So Scripture helps to show us what is in our heart and then directs us back to His path from where we’ve gone astray.  

GO: 

1. What is distracting you from living a life worthy of the Gospel?  

2. Will you allow the Holy Spirit to use Scripture to reveal your intentions and direct your path?  

WORKOUT:

  OVERTIME: