Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. (2 Peter 3:3)
The worst team in baseball, the Atlanta Braves had won just 40 percent of their games in 1990. Atlantans were used to losing, so another bottom place finish wasn’t a surprise. The surprise was the number of fans they retained in spite of the long wait for a win. Nicknamed “America’s Team,” because owner Ted Turner’s TBS broadcast their games, they were one of the most-watched MLB teams. That everyone could watch them lose also made them a target of derision.
In his letter to believers who had waited a long time for a “win,” Peter cheered them on and reminded them of their hope. He warned them that scoffers were guaranteed to scoff. God’s Word had created everything, including the people who chose to forget him. Though they were witnesses to God’s goodness, they chose to follow their own evil desires, and they looked with derision upon those who followed God. “Every year since the beginning of time, it’s the same thing—you just keep losing.”
The Braves went from worst to first in 1991 and then went on to win fourteen consecutive division titles. Wins are never guaranteed in sports, but Peter assured his followers that, while there will always be critics, if we are on God’s team we should hold on to hope, because we know who wins in the end.
In tough times, hold on, and let people see you follow God.
Priscilla Hammond is an ordained pastor and associate professor in the Benson School of Business at Southern Wesleyan University. She served as the compiling editor of This Holy Calling (WPH, 2022).
© 2023 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.
