I love baseball.  It’s the only sport that doesn’t have a clock.  It has so much strategy involved. There’s nothing in all of sports like a ‘baseball rally.’  As Yogi Bera said, “It ain’t over till it’s over.”

I was thinking of baseball and realized that it has a lot in common with Christianity.  So, just allow me to share a few parallels between Christianity and the game I love.

1. They both have rules and boundaries. 

Every game has these. Even if you play in your backyard, you have rules you have to go by.  We used to play with not enough players and have to call a certain section of the field ‘out of play.’  If you hit there, you were out.  Christianity has its rules and boundaries as well.  You can’t just do what you want and not have consequences.
 
2. They both are a team sport. 

Even if you have a Justin Verlander, he can’t do it all himself.  He needs a catcher.  Even if he pitches a perfect game, it’s not a win unless someone on his team gets a run.  You need each other.  Christianity is the same way. We all need each other’s participation.  We may have individuals who step up and become a mvp of a game or series or even a year, but they could never do it without others.

3. They both are about coming home. 

When you get up to bat, your ultimate goal is to come home.  Go around the bases and touch home plate.  Whoever gets the most players to come home wins.  Christianity is about going home – Heaven.  No matter how many bases we go through in life, we will one day touch home.  And we will be winners. Unlike baseball, everyone of us will go home if we have trusted Christ as our Savior.
 
4. They both are a long, slow game with lots of second chances. 

You may have struck out the first time, but hit a home run the next time you’re up to bat.  Baseball is a game of second chances.  So is our faith.  Peter is a great example of a guy who struck out before the cross, then hit a grand slam on the Day of Pentecost.  He was in a slump, but after the resurrection he got on a ‘hitting streak.’  Even if you’ve blown it before, hang in there.
 
5. They both have failure.

Even the best hitters fail two-thirds of the time. If you failed two times out of three in your job, you’d get fired. In baseball, a .333 batting average will land you in the Hall of Fame. No matter how poorly we play, God forgives our errors and puts us back in tomorrow’s lineup. No wonder we like baseball.

Okay, that’s a few I thought of.  If you can think others, let me know.

See also, The Most Exciting Play in Baseball.