Devo 6 – Enduring Modern Crucifixes

You may be here at the sixth devotional still thinking, ‘This doesn’t make sense. What does a cross have to do with me today?’

When you get a glimpse of the King, you want to get to know him. You want to be like him. The King, surrounded by his court, makes all the wise decisions – and wouldn’t it just be nice to know exactly how to deal with the world’s problems? Your problems are enough, right? 

Well, the answer God gave wasn’t shouting down from heaven, but coming to be like us. The greatest player-coach-manager-owner came down and did the drills. He swung the bat. He got his pants dirty and opened up that scab again and again for his team. His hands got blistered and calloused on the inside of that thumb. He would do anything from picking up bats to getting foul balls. He could drive the ball out of the park or lay down the bunt. 

One day, Jesus stepped into the box and he would never enter it again. No one quite understood why at first. But the entire time he was playing, he left behind a legacy. Everyone watched how he loved the team. He did everything he could to win. He was respectable. Loyal. Honest. He did what his coach asked – always. 

After he hit his last sacrifice, and walked off the field with his injury, he appeared again, but wouldn’t put on the game jersey for awhile. He left though with some great words of encouragement and duty – to build the best franchise no one had ever seen before. He left the spirit of his passion for this team.

The other players that were watching this perfect player took it upon themselves to do what he did. The legacy of this one player rolled on to build a baseball empire – but not the way it had ever been done before. That love, that sacrifice, that hope for better, and that dream lives on today through the years of the franchise. 

Today, you see seniors fetching foul balls.

Today, you see players carrying equipment.

Today, you see the older guys letting the younger get water from the cooler first.

Today, they give their all for their team.

“The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise” - Psalm 51:17

And if you don’t have this spirit now where you are, you are invited to join the team. You are invited to get signed into this ball club that spans the globe. 

We saw the King come and we saw what he did. Now it’s our turn to lay it all out there like he did. That’s our King, and even though we’ll never be what he was, he is always with us. In your imperfections, another’s talent steps in. He is inviting you to be a part of the story – wherever you are in life – to build the kingdom with that love he left behind. The best franchise ever made is in the making. Sign on the dotted line.