Gaming for the glory of God

[rustom]

Hi everyone!

Firstly for those who don't know me, my name is my username and I have only been a true Christian for a bit under a year. I'm quite new to the forums and I haven't really posted much, the only places I've posted in are in the verses forum and the Nintendo forum over in the ToJ section but I still wanted to get a thread going on basically why we are here and not some other "secular" game forum.

I would like to talk about how games impact our lives and how we connect with God and glorify Him through them. But because of this, I think it would benefit us all if we reassure ourselves why we play games - if you've already made your resolve; or perhaps to just get on the right track if you've got some doubts or are in some gray-area. Now I am by no means a master theologian so please excuse any "holes" that I make.

So we all know that games and playing them are in that sort of gray area of things we should and shouldn't do since there is no definite explanation on whether we should play games or not, and because of this, opinions and thoughts in this area have become quite diverse. You can get a group of our brothers and sisters who just think games are plainly evil or from the devil and you can get others who are supposedly "free in Christ" with the way they game and of course you get those who are somewhere in the middle which I assume some of us are at.

Question: What is your stance?

Now I am not going to get into whether gaming is evil or not since we can all admit we do play games, but rather, how should we respond to those former and latter persons I mentioned above? I think Romans 14 is a chapter that correlates well with this. From a glance, Romans 14 can be about judging your brother or treating him with contempt and not setting up a stumbling block for him because of what you do. I don't think we should ridicule a person for being totally against gaming but should treat them with respect and act accordingly.

He who observes the day, observes it for the Lord, and he who eats, does so for the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who eats not, for the Lord he does not eat, and gives thanks to God. - verse 6

But he who doubts is condemned if he eats, because his eating is not from faith; and whatever is not from faith is sin. - verse 23

Therefore let us not judge one another anymore, but rather determine this-- not to put an obstacle or a stumbling block in a brother's way. - verse 13

Question: What do you think we can do to not make our brothers stumble? For example, Paul did not tell the one who observes all days the same to start observing some a special nor did he tell the one who does observe, to stop.

The reason I bring this up is because I believe we shouldn't separate gaming from God. Our whole being and what we do is to be our worship and should not be limited to singing on a Sunday morning. So verses such as these: (Col 3:23), (1 Cor 10:31), (Col 3:17), (1 Pet. 4:11) are vital.

Question: But how can you play a game for the glory of God?

I guess I could relate this to a choice set for careers. Last year when God brought me to my senses, I was in a rough time and I had to choose a course to take for college. My plan was to ditch computers due to the horrible past I had with them, and move onto music and perhaps join a Christian band because at least then, I'd be "worshiping" God. But I found a lack of passion for it and while I do like playing the guitar, I just lost the consistency to make/play/learn music. So then I wondered, what should I do? The thing that I've been doing for years was on the computer with a bit of programming. Then, after constant praying, it hit me, what if I could take a course for computing that would glorify God?

Upon further research, I was convinced that you don't necessarily need to be a pastor/missionary or even take a more "servicing" type of job like a nurse, but you could in fact be a programmer/actor/fashion designer/artist etc. and still please God just the same.

Nevertheless, each person should live as a believer in whatever situation the Lord has assigned to them, just as God has called them. This is the rule I lay down in all the churches. - 1 Corinthians 7:17 (NIV)

So I think key factors when gaming are:

• With thanksgiving - Just thanking God for the time and enjoyment that he has provided and not forgetting His grace!
• With humility - Acknowledging God in all that you do and keeping yourself holy.
• For being the light - Conducting ourselves in a noble and Christ-honoring manner to a broken world. Not conforming to their patterns but instead by observing what our Lord Jesus has commanded us in all that we do.
• For fellowship - It can be lacking sometimes when playing on your own, so that's what makes games fun! That you can join with others and build each other up since this is one way of communicating!

I hope this has encouraged someone in someway. This has been something that I have to constantly remind my self since I do get a little "carried away" sometimes. And please do provide your own input and experiences in this regard!

To God be the glory!

 

[Tek7]

/me cheers wildly

I <3 this thread!

You said so much that I've wanted to say for a long while and said it in a more eloquent and (perhaps more importantly) concise manner than I could have managed.

Yes, we are called to submit every area of our life to Christ, including our recreation time. Think of the negative experiences you've had while playing games (say, for example, if you've played more than 2 random queue games of League of Legends) and then consider how clearly Christ-like behavior can stand out in the larger gaming community (say, for example, patiently helping them learn LoL instead of berating them for not doing everything right the first time).

 

[The Mighty Gerbil]

I largely agree with your post however I would add this...

1. I would clarify that the idea that "gaming" is evil is flatly wrong. It would be like saying "books" are evil or those that say "guns" are evil. The Bible is a book, it is not evil, if you made a Bible game would it be evil? It's what you do with games, books, and guns that determines sin.

2. There are no grey areas in morality. Understand that the nature of sin is a mistiming not a creation unto itself. God has a plan and purpose for all of us and acting outside of that is sin. Because sin permeates everything you'll never find a perfect game or perfect anything. Actions are called grey only because of our personal uncertainty but a proper course still exists. As you said the question we should be asking is can I glorify God through my actions? Do they have more positive than negative effects? Even if we are permitted to do something, not succumbing to sin in the process, we must also consider others. As such some games, or specific content in them, we can and should denounce. I cannot see Christ playing a porn game. I cannot see Christ playing games that do nothing but glorify sin (sorry GTA V players but I cannot see any worthwhile positives in that game. I would ask why are you enjoying virtual sinning if our character is intended to become Christ like?). A large problem today is people will not denounce sin saying "well I wouldn't do it but it's your life" afraid of rejection or afraid of their own freedoms being called into question. Sin exists and if we fail in calling it out, out of love, it will grow and has. Refraining from saying "no" is not love.

Again I largely agree with you Rustom, nice post .

 

[rustom]

Yes, I understand your post. I wouldn't say games are evil in the same manner you addressed it. I also know for certain that there is an absolute law that transcends human speculations and makes clearly what is right and what is wrong. And as you say, a part of it is a matter a prayer and wisdom and is also why I talked a bit about Romans 14. And yes, I do agree with you on GTA V and such games.

Thanks for the reply Mighty Gerbil!

@Tek Thanks! I guess that could be said on a large amount of MMOG and MOBA (don't know if they're the same).