Something terrible happened to the Kentucky Wildcats baseball team in the spring of 2002. They held a seven-run lead over Pepperdine going into the bottom of the ninth inning. Did they win? Nope! The Waves rallied to score eight runs against four Kentucky pitchers and captured an 18-17 victory! It was a disaster for the Wildcats and coach Keith Madison.

Genesis 3-4 – It is Called Sin

Chapter 3 of Genesis is a “pivot point” in Scripture. Our understanding of life on earth depends upon this chapter. Something terrible happened here. Genesis 3 documents the horrible consequences of Adam’s sin and explains what God, in His grace, has done to rescue us. Everything is perfect in chapters 1-2, but beginning in chapter 4, we see jealousy, anger, murder, lying, corruption, rebellion, and judgment. What has happened? It’s called “sin.” Satan planted doubt about God’s Word in Eve’s mind, questioned God’s love, denied God’s honesty, and disputed God’s goodness to His creation.

Sports are good and beneficial when kept in the proper perspective. However, sports can quickly crowd out time with God or become more important than seeking God’s kingdom because of sin’s consequences. Whatever an athlete or coach does on the field of competition should be done to do it all for the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31).

The Kingdom Coach & Athlete know from Genesis 3 to Revelation 22 that the Bible records the conflict between God and Satan, sin and righteousness, and pleads with sinners to repent to trust God.

Bible Memory Verse – “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” Genesis 1:1 (LSB)