"Football is not a matter of life and death, it is more important than that."
Does God like Sport?
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth...and God saw all that he had made and it was very good Genesis 1:1, 31
If you want to know the biblical view of adultery, it is not difficult to find it. God has said it is wrong. In the Ten Commandments you read, You shall not commit adultery (Exodus 20:14). The same message is reiterated repeatedly throughout the Bible. In any concordance or Bible dictionary, you can find another fifty verses, which condemn adultery. It is a clear cut issue.
In order to work out God's view of sport we have to take clear Biblical principles and apply them to sport, in the same way as we would need to do with a host of human activities.
Genesis contains in the first two chapters a magnificent account of the creation of the world. God is the creator of every single thing in his world, which the story pronounces over and over again "was good"! This writing is meant to evoke praise and awe! If we understand this our attitude to God will be transformed. We will realise that we must worship in all things and at all times.
So did God create sport? The answer is yes and no! Of course God did not create sport - people did. God did not create the games we play. Yet it was God who created people and made them able to run, jump, kick and catch. Sport is simply organized play in which we can use these talents God has given us.
What then is the answer to the question with which we started: Is God pleased with us when we use our body to score a great goal, run very fast, serve an ace? Our answer is a qualified yes. God created us and gave us the ability to run and play.
But God does not love us any more on a day we win than on a day when we lose. If, as we use our talents our attitude is above all to please the God who made us, then God can rejoice in this particular aspect of his creation.
PS "How you handle fame, success and failure and your perspective on life, is what glorifies God, not the trophies and prizes and acclamation". Peter Pollock.