If I had to choose between my wife and my putter... well, I’d miss her.
Sport and Sundays
Return to the book list for titles beginning with 's'.
Dan Walker, Leominster, Day One Publications 2009. ISBN 978-1-84625-172-6
Dan Walker is a Christian BBC sports presenter who does not work on Sundays. This 32 page booklet tells his life story and sets out his reasons for not Sunday. As well as the narrative, the booklet interjects a number of Questions and answers on the Sunday issue.
He describes his desire to play for a football team as a boy and discovering that all the suitable clubs played on Sunday. He recalls asking himself what God would think of him if he played football on Sunday adding “Looking back, I am convinced that God, in his providence, provided me with this dilemma to make me think about the importance of Sunday, even at such a young age”.
Later he sets out systematically his views on Sunday:
“I take the issue of Sunday seriously for a number of reasons.
•Because I believe the principle of setting aside one day in the week to worship and honour the God who made me;
•Because l am persuaded that the principle of the Sabbath was laid in God’s moral laws and is still relevant;
Because the Lord Jesus Christ himself knew it was important;.
•Because it was observed by the New Testament Church;
Because I am persuaded it’s a blessing that will be forever enjoyed in heaven;
Because observing the Lord’s Day is a great privilege and brings’ with it loads of blessings.
Because it makes clear that my saviour, Jesus Christ, deserves the very best of my time and energy.
He also refers to Isaiah 58:13-14. “If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath and from doing as you please on my holy day, if you call the Sabbath a delight and the LORD’s holy day honorable,and if you honour it by not going your own way and not doing as you please or speaking idle words”.
Commenting “it’s clear that Sunday is a day when we should ‘honor Him doing your own ways, nor finding your own pleasure, nor speaking your own words’. We should be delighting ourselves in the Lord and not focusing on those things that take up our time on the other six days —even if England are playing!”
He sees Sunday observance as “a sign of our spiritual temperature. What does it say about us if we would rather be on a football pitch, in the shopping centre or washing the car than meeting with God’s people and hearing his Word?”
While one respects Dan Walker’s views and his desire to express his love for God by how he spends Sunday, I find the arguments unconvincing. There is no underlying theology of Sunday. The citation of Isaiah 58 assumes that the Jewish Sabbath is the same as the Christian Sunday – a big assumption.
But the biggest flaw in the argument is that it seems based on dualistic view of the world ie going to church is good; playing football is bad. For example he writes: “It is about spending time with our families, not concentrating on the things that can drag us down from Monday to Saturday, but resting, and, more importantly, directing our attention towards God”. Why should what we do Monday to Friday “drag us down”. Why can we not worship God as much in our work Monday to Friday as at church on Sunday?
In answer to a question on the Bible he comments, “That itself could be sailing rather close to legalism – the idea that I have done my bit for God now I can go off and do my own thing for the rest of the day. It sounds a little bit like Roman Catholic box-ticking”. Leaving aside the extraordinary gratuitous swipe at Roman Catholics, this is a strange sentiment.
He seems to be dismissing the idea that having done “my bit for God” I can “do my own thing for the rest of the day”. However if I do my bit for God all day Sunday, I can do my own thing for the rest of the week.
If you believe that God is the creator of all things, then dualism is ruled out. Worship of God is not an activity restricted to Sunday. We are to worship God all of everyday. God is not more pleased with us if when we are in church than when we are playing football or doing our job.