by Neal Banks

Created on: June 09, 2008

Let us look at what the word Christian really means.

The main definition I will take a look at is this: "Following the teachings or manifesting the qualities or spirit of Jesus Christ." Most define the word Christian as "Christ-follower" but in a very real sense, for someone who has accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, it is far more than that. As Christians we are not merely following Him, we are having a daily relationship with Him: we believe He is the risen Christ and that His Spirit dwells within us. So we are, in actually, walking with Him.

That being said, as we ask ourselves the question, "Can this thing co-exist with Christianity?" or "Can Christians do this or that?" we are really asking this: "Would Christ do this thing?" or "Can this thing co-exist with Christ?" My dear wife once put it to me like this: if you were engaging in this activity and your Savior walked in and sat down next to you, would you continue with what you were doing? Would you do it with Christ sitting in the room? Frankly, if you are a born-again believer that is exactly what you are doing already.

As some of you digest that sobering thought along with me let us take a look at gaming in its broadest sense. While this topic finds itself under the video/console game category we can certainly apply the argument to any form of gaming: tabletop role-playing games (RPG), collectible card games (CCG), computer games, what have you. As Christians, our Lord and Savior holds us to a very high standard of living. Our Christian walk is outlined in the New Testament, in large part by the apostle Paul. He tells us that, "All things are lawful for me; but not all things are expedient. All things are lawful for me; but I will not be brought under the power of any." (1Co 6:12) One of the things we can take away from this verse is that even though Grace has saved us and our sins are forgiven, we must still turn and repent from our sinful ways. We cannot continue to engage in things that are unfit for us as Christians. We cannot simply take salvation as fire insurance and go back to our worldly pursuits: we must endeavor to walk with Christ every day and purify ourselves through relationship with Him.

What does that have to do with gaming? Let me put it like this: are the games I play fit for Christ to play? That might seem like a brazen question, but I think it is a very simple one. I have no doubt that when my family and I sit down to a friendly game of Balderdash that He would love to

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