Christians Lying in Games? | Doug Wilson
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On this episode of Ask Doug, Pastor Douglas Wilson gives his thoughts on Christians lying in games.
Ask Doug is presented by Canon Press
Ask Doug is presented by Canon Press
@pelicannotcareless
This is why I play DOOM. I'm training myself to rip demons apart with a chainsaw
159 likes
@The-Jax-inator
I have lived long enough to witness a Doug Wilson video with an Among Us crewmate in the thumbnail. Society has peaked
251 likes
@ralphdrees8655
Lying in Scrabble seemed personal brother lol.
165 likes
@justinkroh3934
Well said. If lying is a core element of the game that your friends agree to engage in within the confines of the game, then engaging in dishonesty for the sake of the game doesn't have the same capacity to corrupt our relationships. It's important to remember that sin isn't just an arbitrary list of rules, it is that which spiritually separates us from God and/or harms people, ourselves included. If a game with lighthearted deception enables you connect with people and doesn't form a lingering habit, there's probably no cause for concern.
74 likes
@valmid5069
One of my favorite pop culture quotes is from Pirates of the Caribbean’s Captain Jack Sparrow
“Me? I'm dishonest, and a dishonest man you can always trust to be dishonest. Honestly. It's the honest ones you want to watch out for”
100 likes
@tategarrett3042
I NEED to know who made that thumbnail.
41 likes
@Now_We_Are_Sussex
Thanks for that. Most pastors don’t have the inclination to answer sincere ethical questions.
65 likes
@Kyle_Hessler
I'm so glad I can have a clear conscience, about not saying uno on my last card.
87 likes
@JDSonOfRichard
Similar to how killing is not always the same as murder, lying is not always the same as "You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor". Murder is always wrong. Killing is sometimes justified. Bearing false witness against your neighbor is always wrong. Lying is sometimes okay and, on occasion, even praiseworthy. God deals well with the midwives who lied to Pharaoh, for example, in Exodus 1:15-20.
36 likes
@gainsborocarsmart
Me on judgement day hearing God list my sins and he mentions that I lied about doing my tasks in amogus, and said I saw blue venting.😐😐
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@dchaunpalu4655
One of the games that come to mind is Mafia. Basically, the Mafia often has to lie to not expose themselves. I remember I played a variation of it with some Christian friends, but then stopped playing when I get convicted about the lying. But now I think that the lying is justified as it is baked into the game, and it doesn’t necessarily mean one will make a practice of dishonesty outside of the game.
20 likes
@toughbiblepassages
I'm very happy Doug takes seriously these questions that may appear to others to be pendantical at first glance. It is this willingness to always evaluate even those things we take for granted, that will keep the Siempre Reformatia spirit alive and purge out the unquestioned sins we don't even realize we are housing.
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@jrhawk0032
Games with deception are some of my favorite, but in most board games you generally find out at the end if people were telling the truth or not, Sheriff of Nottingham, Battlestar Galactica, Mafia, etc. So you go into the game knowing that giving false info is part of the game.
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@hgpilott
The brother of someone at my church was in survivor, and is also a Christian apparently. He won
13 likes
@gsp8489
I love 'Survivor'. I think there are ethical and unethical ways to play that game, and actually, deciding to be ethical or not does play a factor in winning or losing because winning ultimately depends on getting the people you duped to vote FOR you when it's down to the last two contestants. Contestants make and break alliances and cross, double cross, and triple cross each other and that may strategically help or hurt you but ultimately the other contestants can still respect the plays you made, like in poker. Where it becomes unethical is when it goes beyond forming an alliance and then breaking it and goes into forming a FRIENDSHIP and then breaking it, and this is often punished at the end when it comes to getting the votes needed to win.
8 likes
@reubenoakley5887
The 9th commandment is NOT "you shall not lie," but specifically "you shall not bear false witness." There is a distinction. Just like how the 6th commandment is not "you shall not kill," but specifically, "you shall not murder." Bearing false witness refers to legal proceedings where lying would impede justice. Outside of those circumstances, you generally don't owe any information to other people, especially people who are your opponents, and ESPECIALLY when you're in a game where people all mutually understand that lying is a part of the game. The Bible calls out other specific scenarios where lying is wrong, such as relating to business dealings, or when claiming to teach God's will, but also praises and rewards certain acts of deception like David lying to the king of Gath, or when Rahab lied to protect the Hebrew spies in Jericho.
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@classicalteacher
In social deduction games, there is always someone deceiving another. That is the point. The game is figuring out the roles through group dynamics.
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@shadowspector3611
In summary: it isn’t a sin if it’s the rules of the game but be careful if it can lead to sin.
When in doubt, just listen to what Paul had to say. “Let everything you do be done in love.” 1 Corinthians 16:14
@bjke4919
I disagree.
I think there are better and worse lies, but the main question is: If God is just, cannot lie (Titus 1:2), always humbles Himself (Philippians 2:6-8), and wants the best for others... If the Bible teaches that whoever wants to be first will be last (Mark 9:35)...
And at the same time, we should take God as our example (Philippians 2:5)...
...WHY would I want to play a game where I need to deceive others to win? Even if it is agreed upon by the rules that lying is okay, why would that make it biblically okay? It's like saying, "Okay everybody, we will now stop living the way God wants us to for 30 minutes, and afterwards we will live according to God's law again. But since we ALL do it, it's okay."
No, I don't think we should get joy from beating other at all. Also with winning, there is always the danger of pride.
Not because it will destroy my life or because I will start lying in other situations as well, but because it is contrary to how God acts. That alone is reason enough for me to stop doing competitive activities.
It's like an open relationship. If you say 'as long as everybody agrees to the rules its no problem'.. That's just wrong. What we humans decide does not change Gods law or character.
11 likes
@diojoestar9646
There is a difference in lying and cheating and ut comes to weather it violates the terms of the game