The game of basketball is one of our most popular sports. Backboards and rims dot driveways and parks all across America. Pick-up games thrive at the YMCA. Michael Jordan, a former professional basketball player, is the world’s best-known athlete.
Imagine for a moment that the game of basketball never existed. We would no longer see kids on driveways shooting baskets. Michael Jordan would not be a household name.
Remove James Naismith from his connection to basketball and everything about basketball evaporates.
Who is James Naismith? None other than the father of basketball. He was a physical education instructor who invented the game just over a hundred years ago. In the first game played, two peach baskets and a soccer ball were used.
Let’s talk for a moment about an even more influential movement . . . Christianity. Christianity has grown throughout the world in scope and popularity for 2000 years. Its influence extends to every continent on the earth. How much do you know about Christianity?
Did you know that Christianity is not just a set of rules and guidelines? Sometimes that is how it is perceived. But nothing could be further from the truth.
Christianity is about a person named Jesus Christ and his work.
Jesus is the reason for millions of hearts and lives being changed for the better. He willingly sacrificed his life on a cross and rose again from the dead for the benefit of the world. Jesus makes it possible for us to have a personal relationship with God. He opens the door to a life of eternal joy and peace.
Jesus says, “I am the way and the truth and the life” (John 14:6).
No Naismith, no basketball. No Jesus, no Christianity.
Pastor R.
