Mvp

MVP

A week ago today millions of people were crowded around their tv sets to watch the biggest football game of the year – the superbowl! And here at church we had an awesome outreach event for the game. I hope everyone who came had as much fun as I did. The food, the fellowship, the game, the halftime video with Tony Dungy…what a great night.

One of our own members, Derek Tobek, actually went to the game in Detroit to watch his brother play his heart out. I would do almost anything to be able to actually go to a superbowl.

I heard about this man named Bob who won a free ticket to the superbowl. Unfortunately, when he arrived at the stadium he realized his seat was in the last row in the very corner of the stadium. He seemed to be closer to the Goodyear Blimp than the field!

About halfway through the first quarter, he noticed an empty seat that was just 10 rows off the field right on the 50-yard line. He decided to take a chance and made his way through the stadium and around the security guards to the empty seat.

As he sat down, he asked the gentleman sitting next to him, "Excuse me, is anyone sitting here?" The man said "No, be my guest."

He was so excited to be in such a great seat for the game. Bob said to the man next to him, "This is incredible! Who in their right mind would have a seat like this at the Super Bowl and not use it?!"

The man replied, "Well, the seat actually belongs to me. I was going to come with my wife, but she passed away. This is the first Super Bowl we haven’t seen together since we got married in 1967."

"That’s really sad," said Bob, "but still, couldn’t you find someone to take the seat? Maybe a relative or a close friend?"

"I tried" said the man, "but they’re all at the funeral."

This year’s superbowl started out a little different than the rest. Right before the game started they paraded out all the [1] MVP’s from past superbowls. Those players were deemed the most valuable players for the games they were in. They had the most impact on that one game and were honored for their efforts.

Every year they elect someone as the most valuable player for the superbowl. They are crowned the hero among heroes for that day.

All of us here tonight have heroes in our life. All of us could name people in our lives that are incredibly valuable to us. Our spouses, our children, our friends, maybe a coach or a teacher. These are the people that have made a difference in our lives. They’ve taught us, loved us, cared for us and led us.

But if we had to pick a most valuable person from our lives, who would it be? Now of course, most Christians wouldn’t hesitate to say, “Jesus Christ is my most valuable person.” And hopefully, that would be the case. But do we really understand what that means? Do we really understand what it means to say that Jesus is the most important person in my life? It’s so much more than just a cliché. It’s a life style.

Turn with me to [2] Philippians chapter one where we’ll see a man who knew what it meant to have Jesus as his most valuable person.

Before Paul came to Christ he was known as Saul. And not only was his name different but his entire approach to life. He was all about himself. His schooling, his career, his achievements, his possessions, and his goals in life.

But then he met Jesus and everything changed. It was no longer his schooling that guided his choices but rather the wisdom from God that did. It was no longer his intellect used to impress people but rather the power of God that did. It was no longer his strength that got him through trials but rather Christ that gave him strength. It was no longer his goals that directed his life but rather God’s will be done. Listen to Paul’s heart and dedication to Christ.

[Read Philippians 1:20-21.]

When you hear Paul say that he wants Christ to be exalted in his life, he’s saying I want Jesus to be lifted up; I want Jesus to be magnified: I want Jesus to be high; I want Jesus to be so large in my life that that’s what people see when they see me.

John Piper wrote, “We shouldn’t care much about what others think of us for our own sake. Our concern is ultimately for Christ’s reputation, not ours.”

People can see that Jesus is our MVP when Jesus is the [3] most important influence in our lives. For example.