I was listening to a message from Tim Keller recently and he tangentially mentioned his study of revivals. He mentioned that there are 3 common themes in all of the revivals he has studied:
1. Church goers become believers. We know these people well, right? Our congregations are filled with people with a church/Christian culture but aren’t really believers. During a period of revival, these people come to Christ.
2. Nominal/New believers grow. In a revival, these folks grow into mature disciples who are passionate about living for God.
3. Because of #1 and #2, local churches begin reaching out to their community. With all of this growth in the gospel, people can’t help but share the love of Christ with those outside of the church community.
As I thought about themes I realized how great a tool sports could be in a revival. Sports ministry has proven to be a great way to engage those in your congregation on the fringe of involvement. This often includes men who are not yet believers or who are nominal/new believers (see #1 and #2). Sports can be a great way for these men and women to grow in the gospel and be discipled. Sports also serve as a great context for these folks to reach out to non-believers (see #3). We all know sports is a great tool to connect with your lost community.
Interesting to think about, isn’t it? Perhaps sports will be a tool used in the next great revival…
