Goal Line Save
Proverbs 1:28-29 – Then they will call on Me, but I will not answer; they will seek Me diligently but
they will not find Me, because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the Lord.
Psalm 32:6 – Therefore, let everyone who is godly pray to You in a time when You may be found.
Hebrews 9:27-28 – And inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes
judgment, so Christ also, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time
for salvation without reference to sin, to those who eagerly await Him.
Luke 23:42-43 – And he (the thief on the cross) was saying, “Jesus, remember me when You come into
Your Kingdom!” And He said to him, “Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise.”
In hockey, a goal line save is made by a goalie when the puck is touching but has not completely
crossed the goal line. Most goal line saves are acts of desperation with the goalie out of position from a
great passing play or quick wrap around, but because they didn’t give up on a ‘hopeless play’, they
somehow get back just in time. And they are amazing to watch. They’re spectacular because it’s not
the play you expect – the net is usually open, the pucks going in, but something changes at the last
second. The goalie gets his glove down, or somehow gets the paddle of his stick on the puck, and before
the puck crosses the goal line, the save is made. Many people probably thought the thief on the cross
was a ‘hopeless play’, a condemned criminal on death row - yet on his deathbed he was saved.
There is a time when it’s too late. If the puck crosses the line, it’s a goal against and too late to
make the save. For men it is appointed to die once and then face judgment (Hebrews 9:27) – for
someone who does not choose the fear of the Lord he cannot change his mind when he stands before
his Creator – the puck crossed the line. But as long as there is breath in someone, the puck hasn’t
crossed the line yet.
A good goalie has probably seen enough highlight reels of goal line saves to understand even
the most broken play isn’t doomed until the puck crosses the line. Even the most broken individual isn’t
beyond God’s reach. 1 Timothy 1:15-16 – This is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance –
Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the worst. Yet for this reason I found
mercy, so that in me as the foremost, Jesus Christ might demonstrate His perfect patience as an example
for those who would believe in Him for eternal life. Paul had a hardened heart and persecuted Christians
– but God changed his heart (Ezekiel 11:19-20). It wasn’t what was expected – Paul was expected to go
on killing and imprisoning Christians. The thief on the cross was expected to curse Jesus to the end just
as the other criminal did. But God does miracles, and often does the unexpected.
Maybe it’s you, maybe it’s someone you know who needs to seek God while He may be found.
Don’t be dismayed because of a broken play or how hardened a heart is to the Lord. There is Good
News. Acts 2:21 – And it shall be that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. Faith in
Jesus Christ saves, even if the puck is on the line, it hasn’t crossed yet. The unexpected may yet happen.
This devotion is meant to encourage everyone to pursue salvation through Jesus Christ, and
pray for those who need it, no matter how dismal things look or how ‘late in the game’ it is. It is not
meant to encourage people to wait until the last minute to seek Him. For more on this go to
http://fcahockey.com/delay-of-game.
Who is someone in your life you can pray for to receive salvation? In what other ways can you point
them to Jesus?
For more reading see Romans 10:9-10, Habakkuk 1:5, James 5:16