Some of you may be wondering why we are using soccer metaphors in our preaching during this World Cup Soccer season. Is it spiritual to use sports as we teach biblical principles? Actually we believe we are following in the footsteps of the greatest teacher even though we may not do it as well as he did. Jesus used the realities, experiences and everyday conversation pieces of life to help people connect with spiritual truth. He used parables and illustrations about farming, fishing, business, construction, politics, family, meteorology and even children’s games. What about sports? Well, the devout Jews of the Holy Land in the times of Jesus were not really into sports so much even though Herod and the Romans had built large sports arenas around Israel. The religious leaders would have considered them an intrusion into Jewish culture. Possibly for that reason we do not hear Jesus himself using sports metaphors.

To observe the use of sports metaphors in scripture we have to go to the letters of the apostle Paul and the writer of the Hebrews.(1 Corinthians 9:24-27; Galatians 2:2; 5:7; 2 Timothy 4:7; Hebrews 12:1). Paul, as a Jew who grew up outside of the Holy Land, uses them to encourage believers to train, to go for the win and to be self-disciplined. So we are looking to World Cup Soccer “water cooler talk” over the next few weeks to provide some talking points about spiritual truth. As is the case with any analogy or metaphor, the illustrations cannot be used to define spiritual truth in every detail but they can be used to generate interest and shed light on things that God wants to speak to us in these days. Even if you are not into sports or soccer the spiritual principles that are brought to light in this way can still be helpful and life-giving. RM