Hebrews 12 begins with these words,
Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.
This verse has a great truth for us to consider. When assessing our lives as Christians, we usually look for ways we break laws or rules in the Bible. But often sin is just as much disobedience to positive commands and instructions. I am commanded to make disciples, love my neighbor, and love my brother or sister in the Lord. Consider the many “one-another” commands in the NT alone and you have a long list describing God’s will for your life. Yes, the Bible is full of restrictions, but it is just as full of instructions. And those are just as important to the Lord. We need to follow both.
Sometimes the Christian life feels stunted. We want to grow, but we don’t make much progress. We feel like we are just spinning our wheels but getting nowhere in our sanctification. Often this is because of open or clearly visible sin in our life. We transgress a restriction in Scripture (“thou shalt not . . .”) or we don’t obey an instruction in Scripture (“thou shalt . . .”). We know exactly what we are dealing with in these situations. The issue is obedience.
But other times the issue may seem rather gray. Is this *thing* in my life a sin or is it ok? Situations can seem difficult to distinguish for various reasons. And if we love the *thing* in question, that only intensifies the grayness of the issue. We find that we lack resolve precisely because we seem to lack a “thou shalt” to push us in that direction.
What About Weights?
This is where the book of Hebrews can help us. I am thankful that this verse adds the category of “weights” to my decision-making list. A weight is something that holds you back, but might not be sinful (and often isn’t). In the author of Hebrews’ mind, it might have been the context of running. As a runner (which I am not, though I have been told as much) you want to take any weights away so you can run more easily. Sometimes runners will run with a vest that has weights as part of their training. This adds difficulty and thus strengthens them. Then on the day of the race, they shed the weight vest and are able to run further and faster.
So, what is this weight that so easily entangles young men? Is this another post about porn? While that is a weight that does in fact entangle men, I am not talking about that. Porn has many thou-shalt-nots in the Bible. No, I am talking about something more sinister. It eats time and doesn’t often alarm the conscience. It offers relaxation but delivers tension. And after the fact it usually adds a scoop of shame to the shoulders of the one entangled in its trap. What is it that I am talking about?
Video Games Weigh More Than You Think
As a former gamer who played nearly 8 hours a day in my late teens, and even played a few hours a day in my early married life, I see the weight of video games in a very clear light. They are one of the most difficult practices to deal with because they don’t seem to trip the alarms of our conscience like other sins or weights. Let me offer a few thoughts about how they weigh down our walk with the Lord.
Video Games Consume Time
Usually, a gamer doesn’t intend to play very long. A quick session before some chores is meant to last only a quarter hour but ends much later. A gaming session with the guys before catching up on homework goes late into the evening, pushing homework late into the night. Even phone games take more time than most realize. Since quitting phone games, my eBook consumption has gone through the roof. Those few minutes here and there really start to add up.
Video Games Appear Neutral or Benign
When you get a diagnosis for a tumor, you want it to be a benign tumor. That means the tumor isn’t a threat and can be easily removed or ignored. Video games don’t all possess nudity or extreme violence, but many do. While violence in real life would never be tolerated, in video games is can be par for the course. Sometimes the central aspect of the game is pretending to commit sin (consider an older game like Grand Theft Auto where the main character is a criminal). Because we often limit our standard to sins in the real world, these “pretend” sins or games that are massive time-consumers tend to pass under the radar of our conscience.
Video Games Offer a Dream World Where it Costs Nothing to Be a Hero
Here we begin to see the more masculine element of this weight. Not that ladies don’t want to be successful, but for guys it can be different. Sometimes you don’t end up being as amazing in real life as you want to. You aren’t successful in some way that everyone else is. Thus, playing video games lets you be the amazing hero that you haven’t been. The appealing part is that you don’t have to exhibit any of the self-discipline of a true Navy Seal or Professional Athlete. You can reap the pretend benefits in your own mind without even getting off the couch.
There is a second issue related to this one. When I was in college I worked through the gospel of John for part of my devotions. I was struck by the opening chapter where John talks about Jesus so vividly as a witness of Him. He describes seeing Him with his own eyes and touching Him with his own hand. It occurred to me that the thing that John was most wrapped up in was something real. It was reality that consumed John’s thoughts and aims and ministry. I could not say that of video games for me. In fact, video games pushed me to love my dream world more than the real world.
Video Games Distract from Serving the Lord
This leads naturally to the issue of distraction. God has given us many tasks that are both a duty and a blessing. God blesses us to be able to fulfill His will/desire for our lives. This involves bearing the image of God to the world around us. Video games take me away from those types of thoughts and fill my mind with a different image, an image of my own making.
Video Games Often Justify with Pious Rationales
I was once at an unhealthy church. Much of it was outside of the New Testament’s prescription for church order. But it was also Biblically anemic and run more like a corporation than a church. When my wife and I were considering leaving, it never failed that the pastor would preach a solid Biblical sermon right when we were really considering leaving. I remember thinking “well, I was blessed and helped today, so I guess the church isn’t all that bad.” I told a valued mentor this and he pointed out that just because a church does one thing right on one occasion, doesn’t mean the church is submitting to the Lord and following His pattern from the Bible.
In a similar way I hear stories of guys using video games to share the gospel. While I think this is amazing and have been encouraged by it, this is not an excuse to continue being enslaved to it. Even if you aren’t enslaved, how often does this happen? Whatever your answer, are you confident that you would have less opportunities working with people right here in your own community?
One more thought on this point. I would be willing to guess that most of the time the evangelistic opportunity wasn’t on purpose. The gaming session was probably planned first and the evangelism was accidental. That’s not bad. But be careful not to let yourself think that is why you gamed that night. It’s a Great Commission blessing, but it wasn’t the motivation.
Stewarding Your Interests
The real issue here is the same as any other hobby or entertainment. Is this practice getting in the way of your stewarding your life for the Lord? Are you being kept from doing your best for God by playing video games? Be honest here. If video games ceased to be so easily available and endlessly entertaining, would you have more time and interest in serving the Lord?
Interest is perhaps the real issue. Often guys do not seem interested in the things of the Lord. They wait around to find out what God wants them to do with their life but they don’t have much interest in making disciples. Here I think we see the most pernicious nature of gaming (and possible any other large-scale hobbies). When we love one thing, it necessarily can displace our love for another thing or person. I think there could well be many men out there who would give much to the service of God in the church (not necessarily pastoring, but of course that’s in view as well), but they have become enamored with their imaginary life and hence don’t care about the real-life God has entrusted to them.
Below are a few verses with the word “video games” inserted. I have done this where the verses would apply in principle to any hobby or idol in our life. While you may not struggle with video games, these verses do apply to your own personal idols.
Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world video games, the love of the Father is not in him.
No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money video games.
Remember that love and service in these passages is more than mere preference or enjoyment. We are speaking of loyalty and commitment. When we are so committed to our sport, or hobby, or girlfriend, or job, or anything else that is not the Lord, we stray quickly into idolatry.
Stewarding Your Love
It seems rather basic to realize that scripture sees our love as being difficult to divide. When we love the Lord, however, we receive all the things we need (seek ye first…). But when we love the world, our love for the Lord necessarily grows cold. The real question isn’t if video games are sinful, but rather if they help me love the Lord and serve Him.
I think for many young men it’s time to lay aside video games. I think the more severe, the better too. If you have an Xbox, sell it. Better yet, rip the emblem off and mount it on your wall like a deer or moose you killed on a hunt. Throw the expensive piece of equipment in the dumpster and commit to the Lord to serve Him with your life. Write down how much you spent on that machine (and all the games over the years) on a label under the emblem on the wall and then remember that your sacrifice – though pleasing and honoring to God – still pales in comparison to what your Savior sacrificed for you.
Sometimes we can’t put our hand to the plow because we are holding an Xbox controller.
Thoughts Worth Thinking 