I had a nice, long reply laid out, but honestly, I don't feel it will do either of us any good. Neither of us are going to change our viewpoints, and I feel like continuing this conversation would be similar to 'casting pearls before swine'.
Matthew 7:6 says, “Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you.”
What are dogs?
We read according to the Scriptures:
“But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast
it to dogs. And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters' table.” (Matthew 15:26-27).
This was a Canaanite woman, and she was considered a dog or Gentile.
Gentiles were generally considered unbelievers and fools who rejected the one true God (See: Psalms 14, and Romans 3:10-18). Salvation first went out to the Lost house of the tribe of Israel and then by the fall of Israel (i.e. the nation of Israel rejecting their Messiah), salvation went to the unbelieving world of the Gentiles.
So when we speak of dogs, we speak of unbelieving world of Gentiles. In fact, swine was considered an unclean animal. Peter received a vision of unclean animals and he was told to eat them. But this was in relation to the inclusion of the Gentiles (with Peter preaching the good news to Cornelius, a Gentile). In other words, casting pearls before swine would be in reference to unbelievers. We are not supposed to cast our precious experiences involving God to unbelievers or share the really deep things of God within His Word to those who reject God. I am not an unbeliever, so your quote of our Lord in how I am like swine and you would be casting pearls before me does not apply.
You said:
(What's more, I don't see how we can, if you're not willing to discuss how it's applied to your own life in a real, relational way.)
All I can say is, when you're in a romantic relationship, you can't just be concerned about your own viewpoint and what you personally want; you have to consider the other person's desires and feelings. It's not a bad thing! Just how life is. And even if you marry someone who, right now, has your exact same viewpoints, there's always the potential for their viewpoints to change.
Well, making it personal is a standard tactic to those who do not really want to discuss God's Word. If a person's belief cannot be supported with Scripture, they make it about the individual instead.
It is written,
5 "Trust ye not in a friend, put ye not confidence in a guide: keep the doors of thy mouth from her that lieth in thy bosom.
6 For the son dishonoureth the father, the daughter riseth up against her mother, the daughter in law against her mother in law; a man's enemies are the men of his own house." (Micah 7:5-6).
Also, the forum rules encourage so as not to cause heated debate that we are not to address the poster or the individual, but we are to stick to the topic with Scripture.
This is not Facebook, and or Twitter. I am not here to share my personal life. I am here to talk about the Word of God. So that is all you will primarily get out of me because I am against things like Facebook, and Twitter that ruines people's lives.
In addition, would you believe me if I told you about my life? It doesn't seem you do. I said that I wanted to cast a spell by my playing D&D and you don't appear to believe. This is why trust needs to be earned. I confide in those who believe the Word of God as I do.
You said:
D&D isn't going to turn your kids into real-life satanists or witches,
Spells vs. Prayers -
A Clash of World Views:
Here are the two world views:
- The Magic World View teaches that there exists in the universe a neutral force, like gravity, which is magic. In this world-view, there is no sovereign God; but rather the universe is run like a gigantic piece. Magic's application is the understanding of how to manipulate the universe to get what you want. The analogy would be of putting a right coin in the slot of a vending machine and pushing the button. You automatically get your candy -assuming you used the right coin and pushed the right button. The Magic World View is like that. If you know the right technology (spell, ritual, incantation, etc.) the universe must respond-just like the light must go on if you flip the switch. It is automatic, and almost scientifically repeatable. This view under-girds the spell, and is obviously different from…
- The Judeo-Christian World View (i.e. the Bible) teaches, on the contrary, that the universe is in control of a sovereign Person, God. To get "results," He must be asked. This asking is what both Jews and Christians call "prayer." It implies beseeching from a position of inferiority. I am the creature, God is the Creator. Thus, it is more like a child going up to a parent and asking for candy, than getting it from a vending machine. The parent may say "yes," "no," or "Wait till later." Similarly, in the Bible, there is no way to automatically manipulate God to get what you want, because He is an omnipotent Person. Additionally, God says that magic is deep and abominable sin (see Exod. 22:18, Lev. 19:31, Lev. 20:6, Deut. 18:10, 1Sam. 15:23, 2Kgs. 21:6, Is. 8:19, Gal. 5:20, Rev. 21:8, Rev. 22:15).
Now obviously, these two worldviews cannot exist in the same moral universe. They cannot both be true. The reason is that in the "universe" of Dungeons and Dragons magic is neutral, and can be used by "good guys" or by "bad guys." It is like "The Force" in
Star Wars. This magical morality pervades D&D, and it is utterly in opposition to the Word of God.
Source:
Chick.com: Straight Talk on Dungeons and Dragons
Here is another snippet from the article:
I was a witch high priest (Alexandrian tradition) during the period 1973-84. During some of that period (1976-80) I was also involved in hardcore Satanism. We studied and practiced and trained more than 175 people in the Craft. Our "covendom" was in Milwaukee, Wisconsin; just a short drive away from the world headquarters of TSR, the company which makes Dungeons and Dragons in Lake Geneva, WI. In the late 1970's, a couple of the game writers actually came to my wife and I as prominent "sorcerers" in the community. They wanted to make certain the rituals were authentic. For the most part, they are.
These two guys sat in our living room and took copious notes from us on how to make sure the rituals were truly right "from the book," (this meaning that they actually came from magic grimoires or workbooks). They seemed satisfied with what they got and left us thankfully.
Back in 1986, a fellow appeared on The 700 Club who was a former employee and game writer for TSR. He testified right on the show that he got into a wrangle with the management there because he saw that the rituals were too authentic and could be dangerous. He protested to his boss and was basically told that this was the intent—to make the games as real as possible. He felt conscience-stricken (even though he was not a Christian at the time), and felt he had to resign from the company.
Source:
Chick.com: Straight Talk on Dungeons and Dragons
You said:
videogames aren't the downfall of religious society,
Is it the best use of our time in playing video games?
One could be helping other believers or giving to the poor or preaching the good news.
Are video games innocent?
Many games are filled with violence, and theft, and sexual overtones (that can lead to wrong sexual thoughts). The eye is the window of the soul. So what are you feeding yourself and putting within you? Colossians 3:2 says we are to focus on things above and not things here upon this earth.
Here is a testimony of an ex gamer who is now Christian.
A Christian's Inspirational Story: How to Completely Free Oneself From Gaming Addiction Is No Longer a Difficult Question | GOSPEL OF THE DESCENT OF THE KINGDOM
For him: Video games controlled his life.
The Dark Side of Gaming
You said:
and it's okay to have a hobby that has nothing to do with your religious faith. (Again, unless you're collecting the dead hair of prostitutes or something.)
Do all things to the glory of Jesus Christ. Even your hobbies should be done to the glory of Jesus Christ. We cannot separate God from our life and say this is my part of my life and then I make time for God. No, no. We are temples of the Holy Ghost. We are to live and breathe and die for our Savior because He died for us. To do any less would be an insult to what He has done for us. We are bought and paid for with a price and we are not our own. We are to offer our bodies as a willing sacrifice unto God which is our reasonable service. You should know all this if you know your Bible.