For Atlanta Falcons running back Nathan Carter, only Christ can satisfy his deepest needs.
On Instagram, he shared a quote by Charles Spurgeon, which reads, “Because I am empty, fill me with the bread of heaven; because I am naked, clothe me with thy robe; because I am dead, give me life.”
He followed that with John 6:35: “‘I am the bread of life,’ Jesus told them. ‘No one who comes to me will ever be hungry, and no one who believes in me will ever be thirsty again.'”
The athlete concluded the post, which featured a photo of him kneeling on the football field, with John 11:25-26, which reads, “Jesus told her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying. Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never ever die. Do you believe this, Martha?'”
The post echos comments Carter made earlier this year while speaking to a group of students.
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“Jesus nourishes us, satisfying and meeting all of our needs,” he preached in a sermon at a Christian school in Michigan. “That Jesus is the one who came to live a life that we could not live and to die the death that we deserve to die, inviting us into a real, flourishing relationship with Him, so that we will experience abundant life, not just in heaven, but here on earth.”
Carter, who made his NFL debut in 2025, continues to use his platform to proclaim the gospel.
In a recent Instagram post, he said that there are only three responses people can have to Jesus: astonished, appalled or allegiance.
Those who are astonished are “people who are just fascinated with the life of Jesus. They admire His miracles, signs, wonders and teachings. They are amazed by His character, yet they struggle to comprehend who He really is,” Carter explained. However, these people never “submit and surrender” to Christ; instead, they view Jesus as a “resource.”
People who are appalled by Christ “reject who Jesus is and who He claimed to be,” the athlete said. “They reject His teachings not because they think what Jesus taught is wrong, but because they know it is right. They suppress the truth by their wickedness.”
Ultimately, these individuals don’t want to give up their sinful lifestyles — “It’s not a lack of evidence; it’s their unwillingness to believe what has already been revealed.”
Carter said allegiance is the “only adequate response.”
“These are people who have heard the message of the gospel, recognize their fallen state before a Holy God and radically turn away from sin and toward Christ,” he concluded. “These are people who completely reorient their allegiance to Jesus Christ and Jesus is their main priority over everything, because nothing in life is better than having Christ. These are not perfect people but saved people. And not saved by works but saved by grace through faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ.”
What an incredible reminder of the power of the gospel to satisfy our souls.
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