Staff Corner
Greg Spires – Teaching Pastor
Stand Firm
You might think that the primary attribute of a successful NFL Wide Receiver is good hands. To be a good receiver, you need to be able to catch the ball, right? Certainly, that is the case. However, a receiver can’t catch the ball if he can’t get away from the one defending him. So, many believe that the best receivers are those, not with good hands, but those with good feet.
One of the best wide receivers to play the game, Jerry Rice, was asked which current receiver in the NFL has the best footwork. His reply: Julian Edelman of the New England Patriots. Edelman is not the fastest player. He is not the biggest player. He is not the tallest player. However, because he knows how to use his feet, he can get away from his defender. As a result, he is often open for passes.
In the same counterintuitive way, one of the most important things of following Jesus is our feet, that is, how we stand. We might be tempted to think other things are more important. We might think the most important thing about following Jesus is what we know. Or, we might think the most important thing about following Jesus is what we do. Others think the important thing is what we don’t do.
These things do matter. However, what matters most is different.
What matters is how we stand.
Philippians 1:3 says, “Therefore, my brothers, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm thus in the Lord, my beloved.”
The Bible calls us, in our relationship with Jesus, to stand firm. We aren’t called to stand firm in some vague way. Rather, we are called to “stand firm thus in the Lord…” How do we stand firm? We stand firm by imitating Jesus, who humbled Himself to serve others on the cross. We stand firm by putting our hope in Jesus, who was raised from the dead in power and will one day raise us up in the same way.
We stand firm because we believe Jesus. We believe that our hope in Him is sure, and one day the difficulties of this life will fade into a distant memory. We believe that serving Jesus by humbly putting the people in our lives ahead of ourselves is the most rewarding, fulfilling, and God-glorifying way to live. We believe that our relationship with God will bring us all the joy and fulfillment we will ever need so we can walk away from the shallow and temporary pleasures our world offers us.
We don’t have to be the smartest. We don’t have to be the best behaved. We don’t have to have the best attitude. We don’t have to have all the answers. We stand firm because we believe Jesus: He is good, powerful, and one day will restore all things.
I look forward to being with you this Sunday as we celebrate the work of God in Jesus Christ together! This Sunday, we will be seeking God through His Word in Philippians 4:1-3.
See you Sunday,
Greg
