Can sports be redeemed for God’s glory—or are they just another idol? We invite your voice in Crosswalk Forums. #SportsAndFaith#IdolatryOrInfluence#christianforums#crosswalkforums#forums#crosswalk#faithcommunity#faithforums
Why do people want to watch such a worldly thing as sports? I was a sportsaholic with an idol of watching sports prominent in my life until as a preacher, I preached on 1 Corinthians 10:31–
“So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”
God created an internal dialogue in me as follows:
“Are you doing sports and TV to God’s honor?”
I had to answer, “No.”
My two choices were either to throw it all out of my house or to find some way genuinely to honor God with sports and TV.
God led me into the latter choice, so that I began to see that as I watched baseball and basketball, I could praise God as the great Creator of the human body and the Source of its athletic skills. He set free of that idolatry by taking its focus off of my selfish pleasure and turning it into a God-honoring hobby.
The result was that I had something to talk with unbelievers about as a point of contact that led to my witnessing to them.
What do you think?
By the way, my baseball team, the Chicago Cubs, celebrated the Fourth today by hitting the most home runs any Cub team has ever hit in a game, eight home runs, to win 11-3. You can see from my testimony that I was praising God a lot this afternoon!!
If one chooses a monastic life, then yes—abstaining from worldly pleasures and dedicating oneself entirely to prayer, studying theology, and preaching is appropriate and even commendable. That is a path of spiritual discipline and complete devotion.
However, for those called to a family life, I believe there is no harm in enjoying time with loved ones—watching sports, movies, or engaging in simple, joyful activities—as long as it’s done in moderation. These shared moments can actually reflect God’s love in our relationships and bring families closer together. The key is balance: keeping God at the center of our lives while not becoming consumed by entertainment or distractions.
God taught me the following purpose for pleasure: 1Co 10:31 “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” My previous purpose was selfish pleasure. (See the book Pray and Play: Dealing With a Fun-Loving Culture [Amazon].)
There is nothing wrong with watching a ballgame.
There is nothing wrong with participating in sports.
The only wrong that can come from sports is the idolization of players.
As long as this is not being done, enjoy.
I watched sports of many years for selfish pleasure with no thought of God, my idolatry, @Joe. But God taught me the biblical principle that I was to do it for his honor, not my self-centered fun:
1Co 10:31 So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.
(See the book Pray and Play: Dealing With a Fun-Loving Culture.)
Any time i hear the phrase begin with “There’s nothing wrong with…” or “God doesn’t care about…”, or “What’s the harm in…”, the subject is already blanketed in suspicion.
Paul instructs disciples of Jesus this way: It is good neither to eat meat nor drink wine nor do anything by which your brother stumbles or is offended or is made weak. Do you have faith? Have it to yourself before God. Happy is he who does not condemn himself in what he approves. But he who doubts is condemned if he eats, because he does not eat from faith; for whatever is not from faith is sin.Romans 14:21-23
Appreciate your honesty and testimony here. Sports can definitely become an idol when they start taking the place of God in our hearts, schedules, or priorities. The real question isn’t whether watching sports is wrong, but how we approach it and where our focus is.
Like you said, when we can enjoy sports in a way that honors God and even uses it to connect with others or witness, it becomes something different. It’s about the heart behind it.
As for me, I’d rather root for the Phillies—but I’ll still praise God when they hit eight home runs too.
This article lays out some helpful signs to watch for if sports might be becoming a problem in the home:
I chuckled this morning, when my forum notification announced: “Fritzpw_Admin is watching sports wrong.”. Before I realized that it was only displaying the name of the thread, I thought the platform had become sentient, and had taken on the responsibility of publicly exposing our individual shortcomings.
I am glad to realize I was wrong, and you, in fact, are not watching sports wrong.
Phew!
KP
P.S. I’m not a big sports guy, but I was wondering, Do the Saints ever face-off against the Lions, and if so, who do you root for?
