While Modern day idols can look very different than the Biblical times, anything that takes too much time, attention, and focus to the point of throwing our priorities out of balance can become a form of idolatry.
Sports
People may be too busy to serve at church, invest in friendships, or spend time with family, but somehow they manage to have plenty of time to watch sports or attend sporting events which makes it an issue of priority not necessarily a lack of time.
“I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but I will not be mastered by anything. 1 Corinthians 6: 12
Obviously, there is nothing wrong with watching or doing sports, but it is the inordinate amount of time, focus, and money that causes it to become idolatry. Players seem to have such a significance in people’s lives that they are idolized. Some individuals know player stats better than they know their Bible. We can spend hundreds of dollars sitting on the sidelines watching the game for hours while the players make millions of dollars.
If you were to compare an athlete to a military serviceman, do our servicemen get at least the same honor as an athlete? The servicemen are willing to lay down their lives for our freedoms as opposed to an athlete who has entertained people for a few hours! Would you support a war veterans organization rather than spending the money on the ticket to your favorite game? At the end of the day, professional sports is an entertainment industry and as such we need to put it in the proper perspective. Families may spend hundreds if not thousands of dollars on sports, but when it comes to giving to a charity, they may not be as generous.
Others spend endless hours take the children to their various sporting events and tournaments. In addition to taking time away on Sundays to go to various games, there is an increasing number of injuries that happen in competitive sports and especially contact sports. Nowadays, parents start the children at a younger age to do competitive sport. It’s generally the parents who decide Johnny needs to be placed on competitive team to ensure he can develop his true potential!
Some of the questions we can ask in determining whether the sports have turned into idolatry are as follows: Does a sport need to be that competitive to be enjoyable to a young child? Is there a limit to how much time or money a sport will require before you decline to have your child participate in it? How many sports is the family involved in at any one time? Is it seasonal or year-round? Does it take time away from developing wholesome friendships individually and as a family? Does it take time away from being at church regularly?
2 thoughts on “Modern Idols (Part III)”
Mary R Voskamp
I agree with your point, but the other caution I would give to parents with children involved in sports is to monitor who their coaches and leaders are carefully. As a retired middle school counselor my school was blessed with Godly men and women that surrounded those children with much more than athletics. They were life coaches along with being wonderful Godly examples for our children. Unfortunately, that is not always the case. Parents need to make sure they know the team leadership and not just focus on the athletic success of the team!
I agree with your point, but the other caution I would give to parents with children involved in sports is to monitor who their coaches and leaders are carefully. As a retired middle school counselor my school was blessed with Godly men and women that surrounded those children with much more than athletics. They were life coaches along with being wonderful Godly examples for our children. Unfortunately, that is not always the case. Parents need to make sure they know the team leadership and not just focus on the athletic success of the team!
Very True! Thank you.