It’s 9:00 in the evening. Jesus and his twelve closest friends walk through the door of their hostel fatigued and drenched from the rain, yet content. They feel happy to have spread the word of God to so many people today but their minds still stray to the pain, sick, and evil that they have witnessed. They talk quietly among themselves as they make their way down the long corridor that leads to the rec room. They breathe a simultaneous sigh of relief as they round the corner and realize there are only a few other residents in the room; they sit down comfortably along the large sectional sofa that faces the entertainment center.
Jesus picks up the remote and begins flicking through the channels: a news station highlights war and famine in third world countries; a drama makes light of the main characters’ adulterous affairs; a comedy finds it necessary to curse and make vulgar suggestions in every line of dialogue in order to provoke laughs. With a grimace, He sets it back down. Was there no way for He and His friends to enjoy a laid back evening together without being bombarded with all the issues that they had dealt with all day? Just as the group prepares to separate for the night – some may read, others may play cards, and still others may head downstairs to the small gym – Jesus spots a video game console tucked beside the television.
“Wait,” He begins with a grin as the others slowly start to saunter away. “I have an idea”.
If Jesus had lived in our times instead of his own, just how unlikely is the above situation? Is it at all possible? Would Jesus be a gamer? I’d like to think he would.
Jesus is the Son of God, but He is also human. And as a human, he would have needed downtime just like the rest of us – maybe even more. As we see something that breaks our hearts, it must have been even more heartbreaking for Him because His love is so much stronger than ours. As we feel exhausted or overwhelmed with our daily lives, He must have felt even more pressure knowing that the fate of our souls lay in His hands. He would have had ways to unwind, relax, and enjoy Himself like any other human. Do we really expect that His entire life was spent only doing His work, with never a single second to spare? We shouldn’t! The Bible tells us that Jesus grew to manhood like any other boy would have. He would have enjoyed fun and games as much as any other person.
If video games had been available to Him, why wouldn’t He play them? I’m not saying that He would have been obsessed with them – running to His dark basement every chance He could get to escape reality and jump into the virtual world, as Mary sighed and wished He would go outside and get a little more fresh air – but if He had grown up in our time, they would have been a common (and FUN!) way to relax and play with friends. Jesus wasn’t a typical, old school prophet; He was a radical leader. He wasn’t just “with” the times, He was ahead of them. Not only would He have enjoyed the new video game media, He would have used it to His advantage.
Obviously Jesus wouldn’t have played just any game; He would have some serious standards. Games that promote and endorse evil or immorality would certainly have been out of the question, but He would still have other options. From the classics like Super Mario Bros. to contemporary Good vs. Evil battles, He would have had plenty to play. And think of how amazing He would have been! One minute He could be gracefully out-dancing His peers on DDR, and the next they would be staring in awe as He walked across the lake in Wii Golf to complete a shortcut that earned him a double birdie.
When it came to war or MMORPGs, He would be unmatched; His wisdom and patience beyond that of any other human would just be the beginning. Who would dare challenge the clan who has a Leader so incredibly powerful, and so incredibly devoted that He would die for any one of His comrades? I’d say after the tenth time of losing to said clan – who refuse to brag even after they defeat you more easily than you ever thought possible, and who has a Leader that only offers mercy and a chance to join them instead – you’d be thinking Who is this Jesus? And how does He have such serious pwnage?
I could go on about my theories on how Jesus would game, but the bottom line is that He would game. He would game because He’s human, and humans generally enjoy gaming downtime. He would game to be part of such an important and powerful media in order to reach others. But most of all He would game because He’s fun, and He likes to have fun with His children.
But since Jesus doesn’t game, we should remember that we are His ambassadors in that virtual world. We represent Him every time we turn on our consoles and others are there to witness. So let’s pwn with class and make Him proud while we play 
That was really great. Did you write this Drew?
Btw, I’m going to post it on my blog too.
What the hell?
This is Jesus we are talking about… he wouldn’t play games like World of Warcraft.. the biggest mistake of this article is that no where do you mention that Jesus did not promote violence and himself would not partake in violence.
He might have been human, but he was also sinless… if Jesus played games he would play the typical sports games, and puzzle titles. I would expect Nintendo-esque titles to be more along the lines of what he would play.
Terrible article in all honesty.
Cool article I never thought of that. I dont think Jesus would be Sniping people in COD4 but i think he would have been playing in some form. It would be a good way to reach the young lost souls all over the country. thanks for posting it gives me something to think about today!
An amusing outlook, and one that makes me think. I have to wonder what games he would play and if that should be representative of the games I allow myself to play. Unfortunately we’ll never actually know, and we’ll just have to keep using our own convictions as our guide lines
Never thought of this. He would be one of those gamers that played Viva Pinata or the Lego Series. Good article. I dug it!
Nice article Aoife. I really have no opinion, can’t tell you if he’d be a gamer or not. If he were, it would definitely be on the Wii though with Mario.
Great article Drew! I’ve thought about this before and have come to the same conclusion. I know he’d definitely play some guitar praise!
Brother great story. I enjoyed it. Jesus wants us to enjoy life not just get stressed all the time.
Kind of odd don’t you think!!!
I have to agree with Cruiz Dwyer, I don’t think Jesus would have been playing games. Gamblers would like think he would be gambling,I would hope he was playing MTG being a trading card gamer, heavy metalists would hope he was head banging throwing his fists in the air. It seems that we would hope that Jesus would somehow say what we are doing is right but I believe we sin when we play these games and look past what is wrong with them. I think that if God of War was a title produced by Sony he could not support Sony, and I could show examples for each platform, but as much as we’d hope I think Jesus had one thing on his mind and that was to seek and save the lost and teach his people.
“I believe we sin when we play these games and look past what is wrong with them.”
Are saying that playing videogames at all is a sin? What do you mean by that statement?
Well I hope He would have been a gamer, I’d give Him a good review on xbox live.
I think the guys that think He wouldn’t play games are missing a vital point…in the days that He lived in the flesh they didn’t have a fraction of the things we have for entertainment. Furthermore there is plenty of evidence that shows that Christ hung out with people who most conservative “christians” would shun today…and He did so specifically to reach them with love and truth. Did he play ball in the yard? Did he play anything? Why not? He was human right? So the point he(drew?) was making is that in THIS day and age, is it really a stretch to think that He would do things that we do? Would He not play games, not only to relax and unwind, but to reach the lost who also play games? I bet He would. I get flack from some conservative “christians” for playing in a rock band….and the fact that I do so, not just for fun, but for the MISSION, evades them. Same here. Christ might play games…and He might do so because He would want to reach the many lost kids who spend all of their time gaming…because if that’s all they do, how else would He reach them? If you see someone drowning, would you not jump in after them? I could give you a thousand reasons why I agree with the author…but ultimately I think the “church” has been conditioned to see Christ as some magical, inhuman being…and the reality is that He was human, just like us, only better.
Jesus probably would have been a gamer. I mean, why not?
I honestly can’t think of one reason why he would shun the video game industry and it’s creations.
Besides, like the article points out, everyone needs downtime.
P.S. Aoife is not a guy.
This article is serious pwnage.
=P
awsome thang to think about and im not sure if he wud of been but i rly dont c any reson y he wudnt and i do c resons y he wud. lol i think jesus shud of made games. we need christian games, not just clean games but games about jesus, about the one and only god, and about christianity. wut if u cud play as jesus or one of his disciples and play through wut they went through, or maybe some christian music games for consoles, or a church tycoon. i want a game that teaches ppl about jesus and the bible and how to liv for god. gaming isnt evil and is just a form of entertainment and christians shud get more involeved in it and demand more games that fit them, for instance, instead of being a gangster y not a preacher, instead of being a monster or deamon or robot y not a angel? WE CHRISTIAN GAMERS SHUD STAND UP! AND TURN GAMING INTO SOMTHING FOR GOD!