Your Biggest Fan

The Sydney Swans were the joke of the Australian Rules football league. They had the worst record, the worst players, the worst coach, and the worst fans. Most of their home games were played in front of empty seats.

But a strange thing happened. The team got a new coach and a few new players – and started winning! Before long, the team that had been the laughing stock of the league was a powerhouse.

And since everybody likes a winning team, you can image what happened next. The stands began to fill. Thousands of people who had no interest in the team before began to attend games religiously. The Sydney Swans became the talk of the town. Everyone wanted to be identified with them.

Downtown Sydney was awash in the team’s colors and people could be seen wearing Swans merchandise everywhere. Soon it became almost impossible to get a ticket to a Swans game.

One Sunday afternoon the Swans were playing a rival team in front of a capacity crowd. As the TV cameras zoomed in on the revelry and joy in the stands, one camera focused on a single man who was cheering and waving a sign that he had obviously made himself. Grinning proudly, he held up his sign for all the world to see: “I WAS HERE WHEN NOBODY ELSE WAS!”

Jesus is that proud fan who was and is always there for you, even when you aren’t winning. When you feel like the biggest loser of all time, when nobody is there cheering you on, Jesus is proudly waving a banner, proclaiming his love of you. He told us Himself that He is with us always, even until the end … (Matthew 28:20). He’s there when nobody else is. Prov 18:24 tells us there’s a friend that sticks closer than a brother. That’s Jesus. He’s there beside you through thick and thin, good times and bad. Jesus is your biggest fan.