Suit Up and Play

I had the great privilege of getting to know the late coach of the
Dallas Cowboys, Tom Landry, while he served on the Dallas Theological
Seminary board. Something that deeply impressed me about him was that
in a profession led by predominately overweight coaches, many just one
cheese fry away from a heart attack, Coach Landry looked like he could
still suit up and play. Well into his sixties, he never asked his team
to do anything he wasn’t willing to do.

In that way Coach Landry imitated Christ.

Jesus
did in the Incarnation what He calls us to imitate on a much smaller
scale. He left heaven’s glory and set his face toward the cross; now He
expects us to put others’ interests before our own. He was mocked and
spit on; therefore He expects His followers to pray for their enemies.

And
there’s something else He did. Luke tells us He said, “For the Son of
Man came to seek and to save what was lost” (Luke 19:10).

How are we to imitate Him in this task?

Lewis Sperry Chafer, in True Evangelism,
wrote, “The work of seeking the lost, like the work of saving them, is,
in reality, a divine undertaking. It is distinctly stated that the Son
of Man came to seek. The burden of heart that can find no peace because
of the lost condition of some individual,” Chafer wrote, “is the
highest form of human suffering.”

Yet how do we effectively
communicate to others what is so divine that the angels marvel at it?
We begin by loving them. Love is the goal, the touchdown, and the end
zone. Everyone “will know that you are my disciples if you love one
another” (John 13:35). Love gives our message credibility.

But we don’t stop with loving acts. We also invite and tell. How shall they hear without a preacher (Rom. 10:14)?

No
matter how we seek to share the message of Christ this season—whether
by singing carols in a nursing home, inviting neighbors in for a
tree-trimming party, or sending gifts to orphans overseas—we must do so
by the power of the Holy Spirit and the grueling work of practice
before we ever step onto the playing field. Like Tom Landry, we must
always be ready to suit up and play. And that includes daily
demonstrations of love—like Christ.

About the Contributors

Charles R. Swindoll

Charles R. Swindoll has devoted his life to the accurate, practical teaching and application of God’s Word and His grace. A pastor at heart, Chuck has served as the founder and senior pastor-teacher of Stonebriar Community Church in Frisco, Texas. His leadership as president and now Chancellor Emeritus of Dallas Theological Seminary has helped prepare and equip a new generation for ministry. Chuck and his wife Cynthia, have four grown children, ten grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.