The Wrong Crowd?

If you've read this blog for a while, you might find it puzzling. Why is someone making Christian and Biblical points about poker - and even playing poker in casinos?

We heard a sermon this weekend which helps explain our perspective. It came from the President of a church association, who's also a minister and a long-time member of a Rotary club. The club includes Jews and Muslims, as well as Christians.

The message was tied to a Biblical proverb:

As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend. - Proverbs 27:17 (NLT)

For the sharpening process to work, he said, one item must be stronger and sharper than the other. He went on to explain good leaders should go beyond relations with friends who make them feel comfortable. Instead, you should pick people who are likely to resist your point of view.

If you think about it, that's how Jesus Christ related to other people. Take this example....

Soon a Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, "Please give me a drink.".... The woman was surprised, for Jews refuse to have anything to do with Samaritans.... - John 4:7, 9 (NLT)

This verse reveals Jesus was Jewish, but that's not our point here. The Lord was willing to talk with a Samaritan, even though Judea and Samaria had a history of national tensions (II Kings 17:24, for example). He spread His message to anyone who might listen to it - even Pharisees who wanted nothing of it:

What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and the Pharisees. Hypocrites!... - Matthew 23:14-15, 23, 25, 27, 29 (NLT)

When we enter a poker room, we have no idea what sort of people we'll meet at the table. Some may believe in Jesus; others have ignored Him for decades. So we try to share matters of faith when the moment calls for it. At the very least, we're a witness for God. And there have been several times when players sent us back to the Bible to reprove something.

Jesus didn't live His life on Earth in a bubble. Neither should we. As the Lord prayed for His disciples....

I'm not asking you to take them out of the world, but to keep them safe from the evil one. - John 17:15 (NLT)

Be sure you go into a poker room strongly - including spiritual strength. You might play a role in making a "wrong crowd" right.