Tom Brady has officially announced his retirement from the NFL (AGAIN!), and walks away from the game considered to be the greatest quarterback of all time! Brady’s accomplishments are remarkable and his ability to play at an MVP level until his mid-40s is something we’ve never seen before. Throughout his 23-year career, Brady won seven Super Bowls out of the ten he played in...set countless records...and left a lasting impact on the league. We’ll hear plenty about his legacy, but the aspect I want to unpack today is how current and future quarterbacks will desire to be like Tom Brady. While studying who he was and what he did, they will want to emulate the way he played, become as competitive as he was, copy the way he took care of his health, model how he led his teammates, mimic the ways he developed his game, and learn how he was consistently elite. From now on, we’ll watch other quarterbacks and say, “His approach reminds me of Tom Brady.” Or, we’ll identify young quarterbacks who seem to be following a similar path as the one Tom Brady took. There will never be another Tom Brady and we can’t expect other quarterbacks to totally live up to the standard he's set, but they can take on his characteristics, look to him as a guide, and be his apprentice. Other quarterbacks most likely won’t win seven Super Bowls or completely replicate his career, but they can set out to be like Tom Brady, imitate his principles, and glean as much as they can from his example. The important parallel for us today is the fact that you and I have been given the greatest example to follow in Jesus. He came down from heaven to earth, lived a perfect life, performed miracles, and through His death and resurrection continues to save those who place their faith in Him. We know we’ll never be able to completely replicate His perfect life or live up to the standard He’s set, but we are called to be like Him and to follow Him. 1 Peter 2:21 (NLT) tells us, “For God called you to do good, even if it means suffering, just as Christ suffered for you. He is your example, and you must follow in His steps.” Romans 8:29 (TLB) explains, “For from the very beginning God decided that those who came to Him—and all along He knew who would—should become like His Son, so that His Son would be the First, with many brothers.” As followers of Jesus, we desire to become more and more like Him in the way we live our lives, how we love people, and the character we have. That means we must study who Jesus is and what He did, emulate how the Bible describes Him, model how He interacted with His disciples, mimic the ways He served others, and learn from how He consistently surrendered to God’s will. 1 John 2:6 (NLT) says, “Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Jesus did.” Philippians 2:5 (AMP) challenges us to “Have this same attitude in yourselves which was in Christ Jesus …” Hopefully, when people watch us live our lives, we’ll remind them of Jesus as we follow His path, take on His character, look to Him as our guide, and glean as much as we can from His example. Thankfully He lives in us and enables us to do this. Today, let’s choose to be His apprentice, copy His goodness, imitate His compassion, and follow His principles as we allow Him to transform us from the inside out. As followers of Jesus, let’s be consistently encouraged by Colossians 3:10 (NLT): “Put on your new nature, and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like Him.” I’m Bryce Johnson and you can UNPACK that! PRAYER: Heavenly Father, thank you for sending Jesus to earth to be my Lord and Savior. Please help me to follow His way of living, loving, and serving. I pray that I would continuously become more and more like Him. Please transform me with the power of the Holy Spirit and develop my character to be more Christ-like. In Jesus’ name, I pray, Amen.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS FOR PACKS:
1. What characteristics of Jesus do you desire to emulate more? 2. In what ways have you become more like Jesus as you've followed Him?
Comments