"Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit. So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace. For the sinful nature is always hostile to God. It never did obey God’s laws, and it never will. That’s why those who are still under the control of their sinful nature can never please God.
But you are not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living in you. (And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all.) And Christ lives within you, so even though your body will die because of sin, the Spirit gives you life because you have been made right with God. The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you.
Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, you have no obligation to do what your sinful nature urges you to do. For if you live by its dictates, you will die. But if through the power of the Spirit you put to death the deeds of your sinful nature, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God." -Romans 8:5-14 NLT
There are many perks that come with becoming a professional ath lete. They include:
• Athletic contract
• Endorsements
• Fame
• Generational Wealth
• Fancy cars
• Beautiful home
Those perks, however, don’t guarantee happiness or fulfillment. Oftentimes, becoming a rich, professional athlete without Jesus Christ comes with a lot of stress, pressure, and even drama. There are some professional athletes who have received pressure from family members, friends, and acquaintances to give them money. Some of them are pres sured by teammates, friends, and even groupies to go drink, abuse drugs, gamble, and party. Some of them deal with marriage issues or if they are single, although they have all the pleasures of life, they feel lonely be cause they want someone to share those pleasures with. Also, there are many athletes who grew up in Christian households that taught Christian morals and values but as they grew older and excelled in the varsity, collegiate and professional ranks, they began to stray away from God. They allowed distractions that comes with sports like fame, fortune, drug/alcohol/gambling addiction, and/or endorsement/movie/television opportunities to get in the way of their spiritual growth. Those same athletes forget where their abilities come from. As a result, they begin to be arrogant, believing that they can do anything that they want. They forget that “every good and perfect gift comes from above,” from God (James 1:17). Always walk in humility or God will humble you.
Another distraction that sometimes come into play as it pertains to sports is the men and women who look to sleep with athletes with an aim to benefit from the athletes’ wealth. A lot of times, they fall into the temptation of having premarital sex with one or multiple partners which leads to sexually transmitted diseases, unwanted pregnancies, and/or baby mama or baby daddy drama. In addition, there is cheating involved. Some athletes are married but decide to cheat on their spouses. They expect to receive temporary satisfaction, which ultimately leads to heartache. Some athletes look to enhance their performance in their respective sports by using performance enhancing drugs. This can also lead to trouble.
Please don’t get me wrong. There are many Christian professional athletes who have had successful lives and didn’t allow the pleasures of life to stunt their spiritual growth. Unfortunately, there seems to be more of the opposite. Like athletes, “All have all sinned and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Sin was introduced into the world when Adam and Eve ate fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil after God had forbidden Adam not to eat from that tree.
One may ask, “What is sin?” Sin is an immoral act that contradicts the word of God. We must understand that sin separates us from God (Isaiah 59:2) and it could ultimately lead to death (Romans 6:23). If the sinner doesn’t repent of the sin committed and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ as his or her Lord and Savior, he or she will live for eternity in hell. We have the power to conquer sin, but it starts with our heart. We must ask that God change the desires in our heart so that our desires will align with God’s desires for us. It is so important that we grow in our relation ship with God so that we can model our lives after Jesus Christ. In addition, we must use discernment (understanding the difference between right and wrong) when faced with tempting situations and be led by the Holy Spirit.
None of this possible without salvation. God allowed His Son, Jesus Christ, to die for our sins so that we wouldn’t have to. Because of Jesus’ death on the cross, God offers His grace (unmerited favor). Because we have all sinned, it is critical that we repent of our sins. If you were to die today, where would you be for eternity, Heaven or hell? If you are unaware of that answer, you must repent of your sins, believe in Jesus Christ, and totally surrender to God today. You do not have to be a prisoner to sin.
Sin separates us from God.
Titus 2:11-12
Ephesians 2:8-9
2 Corinthians 5:21
1 John 1:9
John 3:16-17
Romans 10:9
Romans 8