In late 2007, a young college football player was selected to receive the most prestigious award of the sport, the Heisman Trophy. Usually, being the recipient of such a high honor brings a lot of attention and opportunity. But by that year, Tim Tebow had already received a great deal of national attention and had even been subject to controversy. What was so polemical about this talented athlete? Was it because he was named Florida’s Player of the Year before he ever became a major college football quarterback prospect? Was it because he had finished the 2007 regular season with the second highest passing efficiency in the nation with 177.8 and averaged 4.3 yards per carry? No. The controversy stemmed from the little words he inscribed on his eye black paint. It was a Bible reference – “Phil 4:13.”
In most of his college football career, Tebow wore various Bible verses on the paint strip below his eyes (used to reduce glare). Wikipedia says that, “In the 2009 BCS Championship Game, he wore John 3:16 on his eye black; the verse was the highest-ranked Google search term over the next 24 hours, generating over 90 million searches”! Of which, Tebow went on to comment, “It just goes to show you the influence and the platform that you have as a student-athlete and as a quarterback at Florida.” Indeed, the college athlete used his “platform” to bring attention to his faith. But in 2010, the NCAA introduced a new rule that banned all messages on eye paint. The ravenous media went on to dub the rule as “The Tebow Rule.”
While Tim Tebow can certainly be admired as a good role model for athletes, appreciated for standing up for his faith, and even recognized for enduring relentless criticism which followed him from college and on into his professional career, there is still one small (but very important) detail about that verse he chose to present on the national stage. It was taken completely out of context!
In that verse, the Apostle Paul wrote, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Does that mean that Jesus is going to provide victory for the quarterback and his team? Is skill, stamina, and ultimate success promised within that passage? While one can appreciate the sentiment conveyed by citing such a verse, it really has nothing do to with athleticism nor the promise of personal success. It’s not a “superman verse” (as some have called it) for accomplishing some feat, but instead, it is about humility and contentment.
Immediately before those words, Paul said, “I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need.” (Philippians 4:12) Within the entire passage, the apostle is not referring to some promise of extraordinary strength or individual achievement. He is encouraging Christians to always focus on Jesus no matter what difficulties they may face. In fact, he wrote these words while in prison! Talk about being “abased.”
He is teaching us where we can find strength to endure the challenges of this life. It is found in our faith to God. Remember, Jesus Himself said, “I am the vine, you are the branches … without Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5) It all has to do with our spiritual reward beyond this life. So, with Jesus in our lives, through an enduring faith, we can prevail over this world and make it to the “promised land” – heaven (Rom 8:37-39). That is how we can properly apply Philippians 4:13 to our lives – even if you want to wear it on eye black!
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