“Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” Luke 19:9

Unexpected Salvation

Underdogs. They have no chance, no shot, no hope. Critics will claim they are unworthy, and completely write you off. This happened in the 2006 BCS Championship Game with Texas and USC. USC was undefeated and the defending national champions. They had two Heisman trophy winners in Matt Leinart and Reggie Bush. Many of their games that season had wins with final scores in the 50’s and 60’s.

Most people thought that Texas had no chance, because all they really had was one player, Vince Young. The Longhorns were huge underdogs. But Vince Young did score enough points, and they won, against all odds, 41-38.

There are many underdog stories throughout the Bible, but one that stands out was about a man named Zacchaeus, who had a lot going against him in his day. He was a hated tax collector (most were dirty back then) and he was really, really short. So short, that when Jesus came to Jericho, Zacchaeus had to climb up a tree to see over all the people. But despite his shortcomings in height and in his profession, Jesus still reached out to him. He told him to come down from the tree. Jesus ate dinner with him at his house, and ultimately, offered him salvation. The underdog won.

— AARON MAY, SPORTS SPECTRUM

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