Athletic competitions produce winners and losers. Everyone wants to be a winner. That is what society celebrates.
My local high school football team recently lost 21 to 19. The newspaper coverage mentioned only the outstanding performances of the winning team. The article did not cover how anyone on the losing team played.
Our local high school’s girls’ volleyball team is ranked seventh of 29 teams in their classification. Our boys’ football team is ranked thirteenth of 21 teams, our girls’ soccer team sixth of 30 teams, and our boys’ soccer team sixteenth of 37 teams.
All these teams want to make the district playoffs. Every school wants to be the district champion in its classification.
In major sports in the USA like football and basketball, losing coaches eventually lose their jobs. Schools and fans identify with winners, not losers. If coaches do not lead their teams to success, schools replace them with coaches who will.
People want to know the greatest of all time in every sport. Perhaps Lionel Messi is the best in soccer. In the USA, Tom Brady is the greatest football player. Simone Biles is the greatest gymnast. They call it the G.O.A.T. God resists the proud.
God is more interested in the H.O.A.T—the humblest of all time. He promotes the least and the humblest instead of the G.O.A.T. The humblest display humility to an extraordinary degree.
Humblest
1. Marked by meekness or modesty in behavior, attitude, or spirit; not arrogant or prideful.
2. Showing deferential or submissive respect: a humble apology.
3. Low in rank, quality, or station; unpretentious or lowly: a humble cottage.1
“About that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, ‘Who is greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven?’ Jesus called a little child to him and put the child among them. Then he said, ‘I tell you the truth, unless you turn from your sins and become like little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven. So anyone who becomes as humble as this little child is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven’” (Matthew 18:1–4 NLT).
So, who is the humblest of humble people? Who is supremely worthy of imitation? His name is Jesus.
“You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross. Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:5–11 NLT).
Are we too good for some jobs? Jesus was not too good for crucifixion. God will probably not ask us to stoop that low but stoop we must. If Jesus wasn’t too good to be crucified, no service is beneath us. See additional free spiritual growth resources for Christians.
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