“The personal attacks and angry facial expressions that follow Tebow seem to have less to do with Denver’s 1-4 record than they do with Romans 1:16, which reads “For I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ.” … I do sympathize with Tebow for the slings and arrows he endures, including the endless examination of his beliefs…”

Tim Tebow has been the talk of the nation since he was announced as the new starting quarterback for the Denver, Broncos. As usual, Tebow has gotten a lot of love from his fans and a lot of grief from his detractors.

Jelisa Castrodale has a story at NBC Sports today that reminds me of why it might be a good idea to pray for the guy.

There are a lot of people out there pulling against Tebow, and I am not talking about football or the big game on Sunday. What I am talking about are the cynics out there who want Tebow not only to fail at football but also to fail at being a Christian. They are literally licking their chops to see him fall morally. It is an ugly, cruel ambition to root for a man’s ruin, but there are people who are doing just that.

Castrodale writes:

The personal attacks and angry facial expressions that follow Tebow seem to have less to do with Denver’s 1-4 record than they do with Romans 1:16, which reads “For I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ.” … I do sympathize with Tebow for the slings and arrows he endures, including the endless examination of his beliefs…

There are those who sit with their hands hovering expectantly over their keyboards, just waiting for what they’ll see as his inevitable misstep… They want him to be exposed as a phony, a fraud or — to borrow a word from the New Testament — a hypocrite.

That Tebow or any other Christian would face this kind of opposition should not be a surprise. Jesus warned that this would happen. If Jesus went through it, so must his disciples (John 15:18-25). Following Jesus down that road is just a part of what it means to be a Christian (Matthew 16:24).

Tebow’s fight of faith is played out on a stage that is much more public than the rest of us, and I’m sure it comes with a king-sized share of temptations. But Tebow is not the only Christian who has enemies pulling for his downfall. I am sure that there are many reading this blog who have experienced this kind of hatred as well. How do you pray when surrounded by enemies cheering for your demise? How do you pray for a brother or a sister walking that difficult road?

The prayer that comes to my mind is Psalm 57. I will pray this one for Tebow this weekend, I will pray it for others, and I will pray it for myself. Maybe you will too.

[For an outstanding musical rendition of this prayer, I recommend this one: “Do Not Destroy”.]

1 Be gracious to me, O God, be gracious to me,
For my soul takes refuge in Thee;
And in the shadow of Thy wings I will take refuge,
Until destruction passes by.
2 I will cry to God Most High,
To God who accomplishes all things for me.
3 He will send from heaven and save me;
He reproaches him who tramples upon me. Selah.
God will send forth His lovingkindness and His truth.
4 My soul is among lions;
I must lie among those who breathe forth fire,
Even the sons of men, whose teeth are spears and arrows,
And their tongue a sharp sword.
5 Be exalted above the heavens, O God;
Let Thy glory be above all the earth.
6 They have prepared a net for my steps;
My soul is bowed down;
They dug a pit before me;
They themselves have fallen into the midst of it. Selah.
7 My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast;
I will sing, yes, I will sing praises!
8 Awake, my glory;
Awake, harp and lyre,
I will awaken the dawn!
9 I will give thanks to Thee, O Lord, among the peoples;
I will sing praises to Thee among the nations.
10 For Thy lovingkindness is great to the heavens,
And Thy truth to the clouds.
11 Be exalted above the heavens, O God;
Let Thy glory be above all the earth.

Denny Burk is Associate Professor of New Testament and Dean of Boyce College, the undergraduate arm of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminar. He blogs on matters concerning politics, theology and culture at http://www.dennyburk.com/. This article is used with his permission