God's Coaching #245

God's Coaching #245

Chicago Cubs fans know what it’s like to suffer under “The Curse of the Billy Goat.” Seriously. The Cubs, more than any other Major League Baseball team, know heartache. Heading into the 2011 season, their last World Series title had come in 1908, making it baseball’s longest streak of futility. To give a little perspective, the Cubs’ last championship came before World War I, the invention of the television, and before most Americans owned a car. We’re talking ancient history!

According to legend, it’s all because of a goat. During game four of the 1945 World Series between the Cubs and the Detroit Tigers, a man named Billy Sianis and his pet goat were kicked out of Wrigley Field by Cubs owner Philip Wrigley. Angry about being ejected, Billy placed a curse on the Cubs that they would never win another National League pennant. The Cubs lost that World Series and, over the next 65 years, never returned.

What’s the Score?

Still, the Curse of the Billy Goat? It sure sounds ridiculous. Lots of teams fail to win championships. That doesn’t mean they are all cursed. Believing in sports curses is just silly superstition. But there is a curse in the Bible that’s true. In fact, it is one of the most profound, wonderful truths in all of Scripture. Are you ready? It might shock you. . . . Jesus was cursed by God.

You’re probably shaking your head right now thinking, No way! How could God the Father curse his own Son? It’s simple: he had to. Galatians 3 tells us that anyone who breaks God’s law is cursed—or cut off from God. That’s bad news for us because we have all sinned (Romans 3:23). But here’s the good news. Jesus paid for our sins by becoming the curse for us. He died on the cross so we wouldn’t have to be separated from God if we put our faith in Jesus. And God accepted Jesus’ sacrifice. That’s evident because God raised him from the dead. What amazing love Jesus showed us by taking the curse of sin upon himself!

On the Ball

Read Galatians 3 to more fully understand this incredible truth.

Coach’s Comment

Christ has rescued us from the curse pronounced by the law. When he was hung on the cross, he took upon himself the curse for our wrongdoing. For it is written in the Scriptures, “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.” Galatians 3:13