Expert: Dr Eddy Cheong - 1/19/2006

Question
The Bible says that we are to glorify God in everything that we do. If this is the case, is it a sin to have a hobby in this world?

I enjoy playing sports, for example. I see no way that this glorifies God. So if we're not reading a Bible or praying, are we in sin?

Answer
I think your question is very relevant. You must be referring to the verse below...

1 Cor 10:31
31 So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.
NIV

In order to understand this verse more comprehensively, perhaps we should review the preceding few verses in this chapter..

1 Cor 10:23-30
23 "Everything is permissible"-but not everything is beneficial. "Everything is permissible"-but not everything is constructive. 24 Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others.
25 Eat anything sold in the meat market without raising questions of conscience, 26 for, "The earth is the Lord's, and everything in it."  

27 If some unbeliever invites you to a meal and you want to go, eat whatever is put before you without raising questions of conscience. 28 But if anyone says to you, "This has been offered in sacrifice," then do not eat it, both for the sake of the man who told you and for conscience' sake- 29 the other man's conscience, I mean, not yours. For why should my freedom be judged by another's conscience? 30 If I take part in the meal with thankfulness, why am I denounced because of something I thank God for?
NIV


The context of his argument is that we should not stumble others (in particular the unbeliever); he was speaking with particular reference to food offered to idols. In verse 30 Paul asks a hypothetical question ‘Should'nt my conscience be clear since I have thanked God for the food (even though it has been offered to idols). Of course we know the answer to this hypothetical question. Food offered to idols is pagan related worship and participating in it would indirectly cause us to endorse another god thereby stumbling the unbeliever. And in verse 30 he goes on to say that whether we eat or drink or whatever we do we should glorify God. In other words, if our eating stumbles others we should refrain from doing so as this does not glorify God (as illustrated in the case of food offered to idols mentioned just prior to this).
Let us go back to your original question of participating in sports. Let us look at the life of our Lord Jesus while He was on earth. Even though He was sinless, He ate, drank, went to toilet and I am sure made social visits to friends and relatives like all of us do.  I see nothing spiritual in going to the toilet but then it is part and parcel of normal human metabolism. What I am trying to say is that Our Lord led a Spirit Guided life and walked in God's Will all the time that He was on earth. As long as we are walking in God's will the sum of all our activities does glorify God even though each activity may not individually glorify Him. In order to go to an evangelistic meeting we need to drive a car. Driving a car is not spiritual if taken as an isolated issue. In order to drive a car we need to learn how to drive and learning how to drive is not spiritual either.  
Just a reminder though; sports itself should'nt become an idol (otherwise it is no more sports but an object of worship)