Sunday, May 12, 2019

Tight Vs. Might II

Our last post looked at the idea of playing poker aggressively - and whether a believer in God and Jesus Christ should do such a thing.

King David wrote psalms praising God for making him a strong fighter. And there were times long ago when God called on ancient Israel to go to battle against other countries. Here's one famous example....

Then the Lord said to Joshua, "See, I have delivered Jericho into your hands, along with its king and its fighting men.... the wall of the city will collapse and the people will go up, every man straight in." - Joshua 6:2, 5


The walls "came a-tumbling down," to borrow from a classic song. But at least one fighter sinned against God in the process, so God did not grant victory in the next battle (Joshua 7:1-5). So one key issue in being aggressive (we're emphasizing poker here) is whether you're living properly under God's rules.

Another issue is self-defense. We go back to King David for this....

Contend, O Lord, with those who contend with me; fight against those who fight against me. - Psalm 35:1


"I will defend the Big Blind," we've said in a poker room more than once - trying to sound noble as we do. This brings up a key point: letting God fight your battles....

With him [the king of Assyria] is only the arm of flesh, but with us is the Lord our God to help us and to fight our battles"... - II Chronicles 32:8


Examine yourself and pray carefully, to be sure God is on your side. Leaders of ancient Israel did this often, before taking cities or countries.

The problem with aggressive three-betting is that other poker players might have watched the same video you did. They'll over-aggressively four-bet, leading to a game of (to borrow from the judge on the People's Court) "Quien es mas macho?" That can be devastating, if you don't have the best hand.

In a similar way, Jesus didn't fight His arrest because He knew He had ultimate backing - which was part of His purpose for being on Earth in the first place:

Do you think I cannot call on my Father, and he will at once put at my disposal more than 12 legions of angels? But how then would the Scriptures be fulfilled that say it must happen in this way? - Matthew 26:53-54


The death of Jesus was planned long in advance, in Heaven. So was His resurrection. So is His return, promised throughout the Bible. You don't have to fight for it now (something attackers on mosques and synagogues sadly don't seem to grasp). Wait for the moment in God's timing, then seize upon it - whether you're in the Big Blind or the big moments of life.

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