Who Are the Superstars Now?
Matthew 21:28-32
Illustration
by Edward F. Markquart

There was a tough minded football coach who had high expectations for his football players.  At the conclusion of one practice, he demanded that his players run three miles that night, do two hundred push ups, and study the play book for at least an hour.  And all the superstars and first team shouted out:  "You can count on us, coach. We'll do that."  That night, all the superstars of the first team gathered at the captain's house to begin their exercises, but they happened to turn on the television set and the professional wrestling championships were on.  Within a short time, the superstars were slouched into the couch and the evening was slowly wasting away.

At the conclusion of that same football practice earlier in the day, when the coach insisted on three miles of running, two hundred push ups and studying the plays for an hour, the third stringers whined out loud:  "What do you mean, coach?  We never get to play anyway.  Why should we do all that work?"  Later that night, when gathered over at the home of the waterboy, the third string guys flicked on the television set, watched it for a second, and groaned when someone said:  "Let's run those miles and do the pushups." The third stringers had a change of heart and went and did all the work.

Which of the two groups did the will of the coach. The answer is so obvious.

ChristianGlobe Networks, Inc., Two Sons: Yeses That Don't Mean a Darn Thing! , by Edward F. Markquart