Who does God want to win the Final Four

I am accused of being prophetic.  So, in that bent I will now tell you God's will regarding the Final Four.  You will want to write this down.

 

I watched with Illinois interest the basketball game between Memphis and the Mighty Bradley (Illinois) Braves.  During the first part of the game it looked like from time to time that Bradley was going to pull it off.  Then not. Back and forth.  I was struck with this thought; If they are like every other basketball team they prayed before the game.  I would have.  They prayed a sportsmen's prayer.

"Lord, let us play well, fairly, let no one be hurt, and Lord bless us and the other team".  That would have been the spoken prayer.  Under their breath was the fervent prayer of a righteous man, "Lord let us win".  This is no place for a namby pamby if it be thy will prayer.  This is "Kill em Lord, we wanna win".  When the testosterone is that high that's the level of prayer that takes place.  I won't tell you how I know.  It's none of your business.

 

So, who does God want to win?  What was his will in this game?  Did God have a favorite? And if he knows all things (like the final score of the final four) how can he watch and enjoy this game on his heavenly plasma screen? 

 

His will is and his enjoyment of the game of basketball (I believe I can prove from scripture that he enjoys the game as much as you or I do) is the game itself.

God's will for the teams on all sides is that they play.  That they play well.  That they play to the best of the God Given ability they have.  That they play to win. That they play within the bounds of the court.  That they play by the rules.  That they play and play and not give up till the final buzzer sounds.  He wants to see men who never give up.  Men who fight hard.  Men who put in the second effort.  Men who hear the coach and who respond to words of encouragement with action.  That's his will for the final four.  His will for the team that will win is the one who does all these things and everything else it takes to get the job done.  During the Duke / LSU game one big player from Duke saved a potential out of bounds ball by tumbling across the media table.  This was a demonstration of what God is looking for.  It doesn't mean we always win. It does mean we must keep playing and sometimes risk life and limb to get the victory.

 

So, now you can place your bets.  Or not. 

 

Of course, you know this is about life.  If you pull punches, if you play it safe, if you try to go without rest, if you decide not to listen to your coaches, if you decide to skip practice you will lose.  That's like that in the Kingdom of God.  You can figure out the parallels.  It is a real conundrum to think that many Churches are out trying to reach the world and still pull punches, play it safe, overdo too many activities (programs), work with players who won't attend practice, and not listen to the coach God has placed in their lives.  When I look at the world of Christendom and see that 3/4 billion people on the planet right now are part of powerful Holy Ghost Filled churches and winning more souls at light speed and that traditional denominational churches are dying with liberal philosophies, powerless preaching and pulled punches theologies. It's no wonder they never see the light of day in the sweet 16 of faith or the elite 8 and never in the final four. 

 

The Christian playoffs against the devil require players willing to leap across the media bench to make a save.  That may not be in your denominational theology  but it's in God's.  He put it there.  Man has said, "the Gifts of the Sprit (all 12) are not for today, that they ceased".  Man has said, "the 5 fold ministry gifts are no longer in existence".  Man has said, "do these things and you are in the game".  God says, "I don't want your money, I don't want your time, I don't want your weak efforts; I want your heart and the rest will follow".

 

We have a lot of Baptized unevangilized people walking the earth with a false assurance of salvation. This my main argument against infant baptism.  It can be used as a tool of the devil to make people think they are OK with God when they are no more saved than is a crescent wrench dropped into a swimming pool.

 

We must get our team ready to play.  That means our message of salvation must be preached particularly to the many among us who have been baptized and confirmed but who now live quite outside the Christian life.

 

We have our work cut out for us.  Duke learned that, Gonzanga learned that, Bradley learned that.  Play hard and you might win.  Your chances are at least better.  It's God's will.

 

God wants us to win, he's given us everything we need.  He just needs us to stay on the bicycle and keep peddling as long as we can.  We only fall off when we stop peddling.

 

Enjoy the rest of the playoffs.