If you are an athlete at any level, what follows are four tips to help you read the Bible. While I don’t mention this point below, one of the most helpful things for me (former athlete) is asking questions like these while I’m reading the Bible:

1. What does this tell me about God?

2. What does this tell me about mankind?

3. Is there an example to follow or command to obey?

4. How can I apply this within the context of sports?

Much of what follows is fairly generic wisdom for reading God’s Word, but there is enough sport-like contextualization to warrant a title specifically for athletes. How do we read the Bible as athletes? We pay attention to context, we don’t connect war-like language to competition (or our competitors), we understand the original author’s intent, and we read the wisdom books as wisdom—not promises.

Context Matters

“I can do all things through him who strengthens me.” Philippians 4:13 is most athletes’ favorite verse. And rightfully so. The idea that Jesus didn’t just die for our sins, but also gives us strength is an incredible truth. But this verse is not talking about worldly accomplishments. If we read a few verses prior, the Apostle Paul writes about having figured out the secret to contentment (Philippians 4:10-12).

How is he able to do this? He provides the answer in the next verse: “I can do all things through him who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13).

Is Paul talking about making the winning shot, or winning a championship, or setting a new personal best? No. What he is saying  is that regardless of whether you succeed or fail in your sport—or at anything in life—you can find contentment in Christ. We wrongly claim Philippians 4:13 to help us succeed in sports, but what God is saying in this verse is that we already have everything we could ever need in Christ. That’s the real promise of this verse. And it’s infinitely better than worldly success—like athletic accomplishments. 

So, how do we read the Bible like an athlete? We read for context. This doesn’t mean we can pick and choose our favorite verses, it just means we attempt to understand what those verses mean by looking at the chapters and verses around it. One thing I try to do in my own reading is: read chapters, feed from verses. I try to spend 10-15 minutes reading in the morning and usually feel drawn specifically to a verse or two. 

As I am writing this, Damien Lillard just erupted for 71 points in a regular season NBA game. Let’s say I watch 35 seconds of the 4th quarter without any context for what happened. The following sequence is what I see:

I watch Lillard turn the ball over and miss a shot on the next possession. Within that small sample size, I could conclude he had a bad game. But context matters. Context involves the whole game. The same is true when we read God’s Word. 

Let’s be careful not to draw strong conclusions based on a small scriptural sample size. 

Sport is Not War

Hopefully what we witnessed with Damar Hamlin reinforces this point. Sport is not war. We don’t want people to die and we don’t really want to kill or destroy our opponents. And when actual death comes close to happening, we are shocked and shook by it—and we rally together as one to pray against it. 

It’s a game. And yes, games matter and we should take them seriously. But not to the point where we classify opponents and rivals as enemies. 

What does this have to do with reading the Bible? It’s important to keep in mind that when the Bible talks about an enemy and war, you can’t substitute your opponent or an upcoming competition into the text.  

When the Bible speaks of enemies and opposition, it’s usually referring to unseen forces in the spiritual realm that war against our souls. Sometimes it’s referring to those seeking to persecute Christians for their faith. So, when God declares in Isaiah 54:17 that “No weapon formed against you shall prosper,” it is unbiblical to claim that scripture for an upcoming competition.

How do we read the Bible like an athlete when it comes to our competitors? By remembering that our competitors are neighbors, not enemies. 

Tim Keller once said “Not everyone is your brother or sister in the faith, but everyone is your neighbor, and you must love your neighbor.” Let the word “neighbor” become the trigger that causes you to think about your rivals. They are not enemies. 

And you can (and should) still try to beat them in competition. Within the context of sport, loving and honoring our opponent means giving them our best and expecting them to reciprocate. 

Descriptive vs. Prescriptive

Here’s a good question to ask when reading the Bible: “Is this passage describing something that happened (past event) or prescribing something for me to do (future action)?”

Let’s look at the world of sports to help drive this home. 

I love learning about the game of football from Dan Orlovsky. He is an ESPN analyst—and former Detroit Lion. In this first clip, he is describing what happened in the Super Bowl (past event).  

You will notice that he did not tell anybody what to do, he was just recapping, in great detail, what happened.

In this next clip, he is not breaking down a past event, but prescribing (future action) what this team should do in the offseason. He is saying: Don’t trade for Aaron Rodgers. Do trade up and draft CJ Stroud. 

What does this have to do with reading the Bible? When you are reading God’s Word, you often need to ask if it’s just a recap of something that happened or a game plan for you to act on moving forward. 

Much of the Old Testament is description, not prescription. Now, you can still learn a lot about God and how to live in a way that honors him from texts that serve as recap. It just takes a little more discerning and understanding the context. 

For example, in Genesis 6 we learn that God is going to destroy the earth with a flood and he commands Noah to build an ark. That’s describing what happened. It’s not prescribing us to build a boat in our backyards. But from that recap of what happened in Genesis 6, we can still learn that God takes sin seriously, He is a God that saves and rescues, and we would be wise to respond in faith when He is asking us to do something. 

An example of a prescriptive text would be from Romans 12:1,2 where Paul says “Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.”

Paul is not describing a past event. He is giving a game plan for how Christians should live. He is prescribing how we should act. As athletes, one of the ways we could respond is to ask ourselves this question: “If I am supposed to offer my body as a living sacrifice, how do I do that within the context of sports?”

Knowing the intent of the author as they were writing the Bible (inspired by God) helps you, the reader, feed from it on God’s terms, not yours.

Godly Analytics

Analytics in sports has taken off over the last two decades as teams seek to find whatever competitive edge they can get. Analytics make predictions by tracking past performances and measuring them in relation to the current game situation. Should you go for it on 4th down or punt? Depending on the score and how much time is left in the game, analytics give coaches a “best guess” on what they should do based on thousands of previous game situations. 

What do analytics have to do with athletes reading the Bible? There are a few books in the Bible categorized as wisdom books. Job, Ecclesiastes, and Proverbs fall into this category. It's helpful for me to think of the wisdom given in these books similar to athletic analytics. It’s not a guarantee that following the advice will produce the desired results. But more often than not, it best positions you towards that end. 

For example, when it says in Proverbs 10:4 that “Lazy hands make for poverty, but diligent hands bring wealth” it’s not promising that if you work hard you will get rich. But it’s a sort of “Godly analytic” where the author is saying “Look, it’s not a guarantee, but this is the best way to go about doing this.”  

So, how do we read the Bible as athletes when it comes to the wisdom books? We don’t take it as God’s promises to us if we do our part. We read it with an understanding that it’s a wise way of living that will often, but not always, help position us towards a blessed life. 

Further resourcing: The Bible Project has hundreds of great explainer videos that bring the story of the Bible to life. I often supplement my Bible reading with these videos that help bring further context to what I am about to read or what I just read.