Anyone who follows college basketball looks forward to the annual conference we call March Madness. The best teams from universities across the country compete to see which team will become the nation’s champion.  It’s a dizzying few weeks of high octane basketball.

Part of the fun is seeing underdogs take out highly ranked teams and new coaches competing against the seasoned veterans. Madness is an apt description because no matter how carefully someone researches the teams, it’s impossible to predict which one will be victorious in the matchup. That’s why everyone has a “busted bracket” (filled out prior to the games) by the end of the first week.

Old loyalties get ignited by this yearly ritual. Even though I haven’t been back to my undergraduate college for over fifty years, I find myself rooting for its team. Since college I’ve lived for extended periods of time in other states that have their own university teams, but somehow my loyalty has not shifted from the first place I learned to love college basketball … Wichita State University.

The intriguing thing about loyalty is how enduring it is.

Other teams might be more attractive, talented, or impressive to watch but none of those things matter. For reasons not easily explained to someone else – and even in the face of many bad seasons and disappointing performances — you remain loyal to the home team. As the old adage goes, “Home is where your heart is.”

For Christians, loyalty to the body of Christ is the result of a shared experience and common identity. We feel at home with anyone who shares our love for Jesus. As a part of a team coached by God himself, we find ourselves among people quite different from us in superficial ways. Yet what we have in common is so great, it overrides our differences.

The Holy Spirit is the One who unifies us.

“God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us” (Romans 5:5). He binds us together in a supernatural and lasting way, enabling us to “stand firm in one Spirit, striving together as one for the faith of the gospel” (Philippians 1:27). When we feel an instant kinship with someone – even someone we’ve just met halfway around the world – we know it’s because of His testimony resonating in our spirit. In fact, our shared loyalty and love for each other will be the sign we’re authentic followers of Jesus. (See John 13:34; 17:22-23.)

Sometimes it’s challenging to serve on God’s team.

Sometimes we let each other down and don’t reflect the greatness of our coach. Although we know our team will be victorious in the end according to Scripture, we can still go through some painful and disappointing short term losses. I might turn the ball over to the other team or miss my free throw, spiritually speaking. When that happens I want to crawl into a hole and just disappear, but God’s grace enables others to coax me out and encourage me to try again.

Other times I might be the one who needs to step up to support someone who’s blown it. In my flesh, I’m tempted to judge them and hope that the Lord will “bench” them for a time. After all, their poor performance might affect the whole team! Isn’t that how we feel when a prominent Christian leader falls into sin and embarrasses Christ’s body by his behavior? However, what God decides to do with that leader isn’t my business. He wants me (and you) to continue to play our best game and encourage the one who’s struggling.

We may need that grace next week.

“Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted” (Galatians 6:1). The times when I’ve failed to live up to my potential in Christ were when I needed to know my team members would remain loyal, believing in me and praying for God to restore me.

In 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 we find a good summary of the “team rules” for His kingdom. It’s the Holy Spirit who will enable us to actually practice them in every game of life.

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.

It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.

Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.

It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.”

Sometimes we forget we’re part of a team. We get focused on our own walk of faith and spend most of our energy on making sure we’re performing well. But as we live our lives in the power of God’s Holy Spirit, He will convict us when we fail to consider our fellow team members. He will foster a greater sense of loyalty to Christ’s body and promote love among us.

Paul challenged his fellow Christians to “Live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace” (Ephesians 4:1-3).

How many of our team members have we “rooted for” this week? How intentional are we about encouraging those who have missed their free throw or turned the ball over to the opposite team? We need encouragement most when we know we’ve let the team down.

Sharing in God’s life with others can be exhilarating too. When we see spiritual victory take place because of our combined effort, we can rejoice together, multiplying our joy and confirming our wisdom in sticking with His team through thick and thin. Our heart will find its home in the company of other believers who love Jesus too.

In the world we’ll never find any lasting fulfillment. That’s because it’s not our home. We’re just passing through! One day we’ll gather around God’s throne with everyone who has been bought by precious blood and kept by the power of the Holy Spirit. “And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage one another with these words” (1 Thessalonians 4:17-18).

Where’s your loyalty in this age of madness?