If Life is a Game, Then Here are the Rules...
Matthew 6:25-34
1. In the media and the marketplace, our philosophy of life has been reduced to a bunch of slogans. Slogans, cliches, trite phrases that we use to describe our lives. Our television commercials are the biggest culprits of these infamous quotes. I’m sure you recognize a few of these pop philosophies we hear everyday.
a. Gatorade came out with an interesting one. “Life is a sport, drink it up.” The commercials feature Michael Jordan and other athletes competing in their respective sports. I believe the commercial is saying you should try your best, and drink more Gatorade.
b. “Life is what you make it,” is another popular one. It’s self-explanatory.
c. A cologne company came out with this one several years ago when talking about their product called Brut. “Because life is a contact sport.” I don’t even want to try explaining that one!
d. “Life is a beach.” I’m not sure what that means, but it sounds a lot nicer than the other saying.
e. “He who dies with the most toys wins.” I first saw that saying on a button. It took me the longest time to figure out what it meant. It almost means what it says, that those who have the most material possessions when they die wins. It fits our culture to a T.
f. But the most popular one that’s been quoted in so many words by commercials, popular songs, and other sources is, “Life is a game.”
2. I have some reservations about this line of thought. Could the way we make a living, carry on with our relationships, and grow up and grow old part of one big game? I don’t know about you, but I would have to really think about that. There’s a problem with that argument. If life is a game. . .
a. Where’s the instructions? Do you remember when you played a board game with your friends when you were kids, when there was a dispute over a certain move? What did you do? Well, besides call the other kid a cheater, you would look at instructions on the back of the box. So where’s the back of the box? Where’s the referee to let you know if you’re making the right move or not?
b. What is the object of this game? All games have an object, a goal to shoot for. In Monopoly®, the object is to eventually own all the properties. In chess, the object is to place your opponent’s king in checkmate. In other games, the object is to win more points than everybody else. However, if you ask five different people what the object of life is, and you’ll get five different responses. One will say the object is to have fun. One will say that the object is to make as much money as you can. One will say that the object is having a meaningful relationship. One will say that the object is to advance as much as you can. And another one will say that the object is to just to have a good life and get along with everybody.
c. How do we determine a winner? Is it one who has “the most toys” when they die? Is it the one who has the most power? Who is the winner? Who’s to determine who the winner is? And if there’s a winner, what’s the prize?
d. Can we start over? When I play a game or participate in a sport, I play it knowing that if I lose, I have the chance to play it over again. Unless you’re a believer in reincarnation, I don’t see any chance of starting your life all over again if you lose.
i. Clearly, from all the examples that have been mentioned, the conclusion is life is not a game. And it would be foolish to treat it as such. “Meaningless, meaningless, all is meaningless, chasing after the wind,” the preacher in Ecclesiastes said.
ii. However, despite all the evidence, some are still not convinced. “You only go around once in life, so you need to go for the gusto.” There are people who may not say that life is a game, but they live their life like it is.
3. All right, just for the sake of argument, let’s pretend this is one big game. But if we adopt this mind set, we need to set some boundaries. If life is a game, then here are “the rules.”
a. The first rule, according to Matthew 6:25-26, is don’t worry about your daily bread. All of your essential needs God will provide for you. In fact, God has provided you already with more provisions than you asked for. Stop sweating about it.
i. The birds outside have their daily needs met every day, and if you think about it, believers, so do you. If you get three meals a day, you are greatly blessed. You didn’t have to hunt down your food, and you don’t have children who are starving to death before your eyes.
b. Rule number two: Don’t worry about your clothes. We are truly a materialistic country. We have our own version of the arms race among our neighborhoods. If we have that new car, we’ll be the talk of our neighborhood. If I get that promotion, I’ll be one up on so and so. If I get that special outfit, those other ladies will have a fit. The game of “I’m so much better than you” aren’t just played by kids. Adults just play the more advanced version.
i. The flowers of the field in their glory outshone Solomon, but you don’t see them in competition for who has the prettiest petals. There’s more to life than how many cars you have in the driveway, how big your house is, or how good you look.
c. Rule number three: Don’t worry about your life. There’s a big desire in each one of us to be “somebody,” “hot stuff,” someone who would be considered better than anybody else. That’s the reason for these power games that you see at work, school, and sometimes even in the church.
i. Like the grass that is thrown into the ovens and burned, that’s what’s going to happen to our attempts at success and power and stressing out over attaining things that will soon pass away.
d. What is the object of this “game?” If this life is a game, there must be some purpose, an objective to pursue. What could that be?
i. Seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness. That’s the true “object” of this game, to seek and develop a close personal relationship with God through his son Jesus Christ, and to live a life through him. Paul said in Phillippians that he wants to know Christ and the power of his resurrection, leaving all this other stuff that we strive for behind.
e. What’s the prize? All games end with the winner getting something. What do we win?
i. All these things shall be added to you as well. If you seek after the desires of God, he will see to all your needs, and even greatly exceed them with his blessings.
4. He who dies with the most toys, still dies. And nobody wins. Why not pursue instead the Kingdom of God and live?
