The one thing that everyone likes about basketball is how fast paced it is. People love to see the break away plays, the ale-oop, the monster dunk or the well placed fade away jumper. As a matter of fact, that's the way many of us face life... run and gun and hope for the best!
The thing that fascinates me about basketball is that when the game is on the line, they will run set plays. When they need to score, they have a game plan.
Christianity has a game plan too. When Jesus left His last words, what we call The Great Commission, was to go to all nations, teaching them and baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. However, when it comes to living out that mission, we adopt the run and gun offense.
Today, I would like to talk about "Out-of-Bounds Play #1" - remember why.
Colossians 1:9-14 says:
And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
We need to remember that we were once "out of bounds" - we were sinners and now we have redemption and forgiveness of our sins. For this reason, we need to continually be filled with the knowledge of His will and bear fruit.
I pray that you remember that we were once slaves to sin, but God has set us free and that we listen to His voice and take advantage of the opportunity to share this with others!
