REWIND YOUR MIND:
DOES GOD CARE WHAT I WATCH?
Philippians 4:8, …fix your thoughts on what is true and honorable and right. Think about things that are pure and lovely and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. NLT
Intro: The media is everywhere around us, shaping our culture & guiding teens in the way you think, act, dress, watch. It’s like living in a maze. What is wrong; what is right? Which way do I go? Who or what do I follow? Is all entertainment bad? Is all the media bad? Are all movies & music wrong? Do these sound like questions you’ve ever asked?
If you watch TV, turn on the radio, rent a movie, read a magazine, log on to the Internet, play video games, or read the newspaper you have opened up yourself to the direct influence of today’s media. It is nearly impossible to be untouched by the powerful influence of today’s music & media.
I want to give you 4 negative ways that media affects us & then give you some practical guidelines in dealing w/it.
1. The Media Presents a False View of Reality.
The media often tells lies; and if you are not reading & studying God’s Word; if you’re not running everything you see & hear through the filter of a Biblical worldview than you run the risk of believing the lies rather than learning the truth.
These “reality” shows are anything but. Media tells you that all that matters is personal gratification; that you need to live for the moment.
ILL- Paradise TV’s most watched show pits 3 women against each other as they undergo a series of tests to determine which of the three is a virgin. Viewers vote on the one they think is a virgin & if they pick correctly she is obliged to lose her virginity on screen.
In the film The Matrix, the premise is that the world as we know it is actually a construct created by a super race of computers. In that construct, nothing is real; life is only what the computers say it is. The media try to do the same thing for us. Advertisers try to show us what life would be like if only we used their product. Sitcoms and soap operas create stories that seem to be real, but are they really? These constructs often display values, ideologies, points of view, stereotypes and, sometimes, outright illusions.
2. The Media Provides Heroes & Role Models not Worth Imitating.
A recent survey of junior high students found that 36% chose actors as their heroes; 19% musicians; 11% tied w/athletes & comedians. It seems that the only qualification for being a hero or roll model is not what one stands for, but rather their celebrity status. Today’s stars no longer let their abilities do their talking, but instead they think that their status should be a platform for expressing views on anything form whales to politics. But if you listen to what they say & examine their lifestyles it isn’t long until you realize they lack a biblical sense of right & wrong. Their moral compass is all messed up. Examine your heroes in the light of a biblical standard. Otherwise you run the risk of accepting the whole package & imitate traits & attitudes that are dangerous, immoral, & wrong.
3. The Media Teaches us that Life is Boring.
We are living in the MTV generation. Through our immersion in a culture of high tech; fast paced; action films; computer games & so on, we have forgotten how to actively listen & make our own fun. Compared to everything else, life is dull & boring. I see a marked difference between children & teens that spend an unlimited time immersed in the media & those who don’t. Kid’s who watch a lot of TV get bored when the set is turned off; they don’t know what to do w/their time. Kid’s whose parents set limits are better communicators; better readers; have a longer attention span; & are able to make life fun w/o TV.
4. The Media Causes “Christianity Confusion.
In recent years the Grammy’s, American Music Awards, & the MTV Music Video Awards have shown us performers who receive their awards & take the time to thank God. The fact that these stars mentioned God sometimes encourages so Christian teens. “Did you hear Puff Daffy last night. He thanked Jesus for the award. He must be a Christian.” I’m not here to judge, but many of these artists who invoke the name of God preach themes that are anti-God, anti-Bible. & anti- Christian. Don’t get confused!
ILL- Thomas, Seann and Chris speak about their faith in terms that would make any youth worker or Christian parent proud.
Eighteen-year-old Thomas attends a Bible study and plays in a Christian band. He writes his music "with God," "for God" and "about God." Seann, also 18, says his family "lived for our trust in God; even in junior high people used to call me Church Boy." The third member of the trio, Chris, isn’t afraid to tell people that he, too, is a Christian.
You’d probably assume Thomas, Seann and Chris, like all Christian teens and adults, wage the daily battle to obey God and conform to His will while being faced with the constant barrage of temptation thrown at them by today’s. Consequently, you might not be surprised at the trio’s attraction the sexually charged teen blockbuster comedy American Pie, a film about four average high school guys who face the dilemma of their virginity by making a pact to lose it during the three weeks remaining before their prom.
What should surprise you about the trio’s attraction to American Pie is not that they would pay to go see the movie, but that Thomas, Seann and Chris were paid to star in the film. Thomas Ian Nicholas; Chris Klein; & Seann William Scott.
Even more alarming is that none of the three saw any inconsistency between following God and taking lead roles in American Pie. Sadly, it’s a film that "treats" its young audience to an extreme dose of in-your-face immorality.
Everywhere you look, "smorgasbord spirituality" is looking back. From MTV, to magazines, to television, to film, to advertising, there’s not a corner of popular culture that isn’t wearing spirituality on its sleeve. The God-shaped vacuum in today’s children and teens has led to a deep and conscious interest in spiritual things. A recent USA Weekend survey on teens and self-image found students cite "religion" as the second strongest influence in their lives, outranked only by parents and ahead of teachers, peers, boyfriends, girlfriends and the media. But like the constantly reinvented and unconventional spirituality of pop star Madonna, their religion is composed of an ever-changing combination of elements unique to each individual. This "smorgasbord spirituality" is much like a restaurant that advertises a "140-foot-long buffet of mouth-watering food." Every day, busloads of people arrive to load their plates and eat their fill. With so much to choose from, everyone creates their distinct combination based on what personally appeals to their taste buds at that moment in time. During the feeding frenzy, no two plates are ever identical. The same diversity marks the spiritual plates of today’s youth culture.
Listen to these quotes:
“I ain’t into church all d____ day, but God is real important to me ‘cause w/o God we wouldn’t be here right now.” Rapper Gotti of Boo & Gotti.
“I don’t want to be restricted how I can go about my religion & life…So I think that religion is still a part of me, it always will be, but I may not be as public about it.” Jeff Gordon
“ I’m an artist who is a Christian. I’m not a Christian artist.” Johnny Cash.
“Were Christian by faith, not genre.” Switchfoot bassist Tim Foreman.
Unfortunately this attitude has crept into the church world…
· Challenge/Action Points:
M – Message – What is the message and how is it coming across?
E – Effect – What effect does this have on me?
D – Damage – Will I suffer damage from this? (ex. unhealthy fantasies)
I – Instead – What could I be doing instead? (ex. productive, constructive)
A – Ask God – Does this glorify God, Would I fell comfortable with Jesus in the room?
· TELEVISION: WHAT IS IT TEACHING US?
Listen to this quote: “I was the prince of darkness for nearly 35 years. Suddenly, I became Mr. Super Dad. TV is the most powerful thing that’s been invented.”—Ozzy Osbourne.
In 1946 there were 10,000 TV sets in t/USA; by 1950 10.5 million; 1960 54 million. By 1995 99% of American households owned a TV & 2/3 of those had 2 or more sets. 66% of Americans eat dinner while watching TV. 29% fall asleep w/t TV on. 42% turn on a TV when they enter a room.
We can choose which sets to watch & also a number of channel choices. Living rooms, family rooms, & dens have become TV’s temples. The furniture is arranged so that every seat in the house has an unobstructed view of the TV. 54% of children have a TV set in their room & the avg. teen watches 22 hours of TV a week. By the time teens graduate from high school they will have watched 23,000 hours of TV compared to the 11,000 hours of school & a small fraction of time (compared) in church.
1. Violence.
Has anybody else noticed the increasing acts of violence on the news? Why do they do it? To build an audience, & violence is an effective way to gain viewers. One Fox News reporter said that highest rated shows are those that featured lots of blood. By the time they finish high school, the average teen will have watched 40,000 televised murders & 200,000 televised acts of violence.
One of the most violent television shows of the 90’s happens to be targeted at and watched by teenagers. MTV’s animated show Beavis and Butt-Head draws three times the normal MTV viewing audience and even though no new episodes are currently being produced, its reruns continue to be extremely popular among kids. A pre-show warning tells viewers that the characters are not real and that they are "dumb, crude, thoughtless, ugly, sexist, and self-destructive. But for some reason, the little wiener-heads make us laugh." These characters’ violent and abusive adventures include cutting the head off a praying mantis with a chain saw, using frogs for batting practice, and setting fire to anything and everything they can get their hands on. Comedy Centrals popular South Park (Team America: World Police creators) is a crudely animated show that follows the adventures of four third-graders in the small town of South Park, Colorado. One of the shows hallmarks is its violent nature. In each episode, a young character named Kenny dies. His deaths are usually violent. Kenny’s been run over by a police car, shot, impaled through the head on a flagpole, ripped apart on the football field, and thrown into a microwave.
Most television violence goes unpunished. In fact, perpetrators go unpunished in 73% of all violent scenes.
o 47% of all violent interactions show no harm to victims.
o 58% of all violent interactions show no pain.
o Only 16% of all violent interactions portray the long-term negative effects of violence (psychological, financial, or emotional harm).
o Only 4% of all violent programs emphasize an anti-violence theme.
o 57% of all programming is violent.
While life can be violent and ugly at times, TV paints an unrealistic picture of what real violence is actually like. As a result, our kids can grow up with a false notion of reality.
First, violence occurs far more frequently on TV than it does in the real world. The actual real-life violent-crime rate in America is only one-eighth of the violent-crime rate on TV. And second, crime has long-term ramifications and consequences for both the victim and aggressor. Crime hurts and kills people; criminals get caught and go to jail. Kids don’t realize that there are consequences. One teenager was shocked to discover after getting shot that it actually bled and hurt!
What price, if any, do our kids pay for being on the receiving end of TV’s hefty diet of violence?
----TV may lead us to become immune to the horrors of violence.
When violence becomes familiar, it tends to lose its ugly edge & somehow becomes acceptable as a normal part of everyday life.
----TV teaches us to accept violence as a way to solve problems.
Dr. Aletha Huston of the University of Kansas says, "We keep pumping children with the messages that violence is the way to solve their problems--and some of it takes hold." Hustons own research shows that children who watch the violent shows, even just funny cartoons, were more likely to hit out at their playmates, argue, disobey class rules, leave tasks unfinished, and were less willing to wait for things than those who watched the nonviolent programs.
----TV violence serves to make kids more aggressive.
In 1960, Dr. Leonard Eron studied 875 third-grade boys and girls and discovered there was a direct relationship between the violent TV programs they watched and their aggressiveness in school.
He again examined the subjects when they were thirty years old. Those who had watched significant amounts of violent television were more likely to have been convicted of more serious crimes, to be more aggressive when drinking, and to inflict harsher punishment on their children. Concludes Eron, "What one learns about life from the television screen seems to be transmitted even to the next generation."
----Kids might begin to imitate some of the more violent behaviors that they have seen on TV.
In his study on television and violence, Dr. Brandon Centerwall found that following the introduction of television in the U.S., the annual white homicide rate increased by 93 percent from 1945 to 1974. While he doesn’t blame TV as the sole factor behind the rise in violence, he concludes that "if, hypothetically, television technology had never been developed, there would today be 10,000 fewer homicides each year in the United States, 70,000 fewer rapes, and 700,000 fewer injurious assaults." Studies of population data for various other countries shows that after the introduction of television into the culture, homicide rates double in 10 to 15 years. The recent rise in teen violence, especially on school campuses and among younger and younger children, is more evidence of the influence of televised violence. Children and teens imitate the world around them. Every week they turn on the TV and witness murders, rapes, assaults, gunplay, and a host of other violent activities. Heroes and villains solve problems and settle disputes with violence. What they don’t see is the horror and pain of the aftermath. What they don’t feel is the physical pain.
What they don’t understand is the immorality of violent behavior. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that America has become the most violent of the industrialized nations with children and teens doing unto others what they have seen done thousands of times over on television. David Walsh of the National Institute on Media and the Family summarizes this ugly reality: It is tragically ironic that at the very time we are wringing our hands about violent behavior among young people, we are at the same time entertaining them with it.
2. Sex.
In 1952 fans of I Love Lucy learned that Lucy was w/child, but the word pregnant was not allowed to be used; 1961 Rob & Laura Petrie slept in twin beds separated by a night stand in The Dick Van Dyke Show; in 1965 TV censors banned Barbara Eden’s belly button in the 1965 show I Dream of Jeanie; in 1978, the lead character in James at 15 lost his virginity; by 1987 Sam on Cheers refused to get up from a table because he was sexually aroused; 1992 Civil Wars Muriel Hemingway appeared naked w/her arms strategically placed over her body; NYPD Blue, advertised as network TV’s first R-rated series w/nudity, violence, & sex; 1994 Roseanne featured the shows main character engaged in a lesbian kiss; in 1997 Ellen came out of the closet; not to mention Melrose Place, Dawson’s Creek, Friends; O.C., & even the so called family friendly 7th Heaven who, this year, will show Simon, while still in high school, to be having regular sex w/his girlfriend. Listen to what David Gallagher, the actor who plays Simon, had to say about it: “Simon is becoming a little cooler because he’s catching up with a lot of issues that all my friends are dealing with or have dealt with, much more specifically.
All my friends that I’ve told, ’So on the show this year, I have sex,’ they’re all like, ’That’s awesome, finally!’” TV has changed a lot over the past 40 years. Sex has gone from a dirty word to a regular event.
In TV shows premarital sex outnumbers sex w/in marriage 8 to 1. During prime time 7:00 or 8:00 to 10:00, TV viewers see a sexual act or reference every 4 minutes. Afternoon TV: 85% of Soap Operas contain sexual reference & content & talk shows discuss sex 75% of the time. More than often sex is depicted as casual & not an indication of a long-term commitment. 94% of all sexual encounters on soap operas are between people who aren’t married to each other. May I remind you God’s Word still forbids adultery & God hasn’t changed his mind on the matter!
41% of TV shows endorse adultery; 33% made no moral judgment; & only 7% showed in a disapproving light. Kids who watch this are learning that when it comes to sex, anything goes & there are no consequences.
3. The Family is a Joke.
Al Bundy, from Married…with Children, walks in his house & mutters, “Ah, home sweet hell.” If you watch any amount of TV you have to admit there are many examples of antifamily. Dad is a week-kneed bumbling idiot possessing little wisdom or common sense. Often he is portrayed as a lazy slob w/no motivation to work or help his wife. Sounds like Homer Simpson, doesn’t it? TV moms used to be comforting & loving. But now most of them complain about housework, kids, her husband, or whatever else ticks her off for the moment. Children have become superbrats who lack respect for their parents or any other adult for that matter.
For 70% of children portrayed on TV you cannot even tell what the family structure is. TV depicts marriage filled with fights, arguments, lack of respect & love. Sex is treated not as romantic, but as something to be done just for the sake of doing it. 23 TV families were studied & they found that there were 9 conflicts per hour. These TV families frequently belittle & verbally attack each other. Keep in mind that is sending a clear message to you. The message is often values that run contrary to God’s values.
4. No Respect for Religion or God.
TV presents an unfair & distorted picture of religion & God. Even preachers or priests are often portrayed as idiots & wishy-washy in their theology & lifestyle. In Beverly Hills, 90210 one of the characters is deciding whether or not to protect her virginity. She consults her priest who tells her to do what she feels is right since God will never stop loving her. Yes, God will never stop loving us but this advice ignores at least 2 things: 1. Consequences. 2. God’s Word. There is way that seems right to a man, but that way is the way of death. In fact there are 2 things TV characters never do, go to the bathroom & go to church!
5. Meaning is Found in Materialism.
TV’s fictional characters have nice cars, big homes, expensive clothes, & a host of other status symbols. Look at the TV commercials; they reek with materialism. If you buy this product you’ll be happy, get women, have sex appeal…
6. Be a Beauty, not a Beast.
Let’s face it, ugly & overweight people don’t make it on TV unless they are cast as ugly & overweight.
Unfortunately, the media has defined our definition of what is ugly & overweight. The media is overloaded w/t woman who are slim & trim; the men are slim & muscular. The media often speaks unspoken lessons on life that powerfully shape impressionable young hearts & minds. One of the most powerful lessons is that of body image & appearance & it’s girls who pay the highest price.
The message of the media is this: Woman are what they look like, not what they accomplish, value, or believe. Their body determines their value.
7. Profanity.
It wasn’t long ago that 8 to 9 PM was the family hour. But during 117 hours of programming, 72 curse words were used. 70% of all shows on UPN, NBC & Fox contain profanity. The word “bitch” is often used on Friends, Dawson’s Creek, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, & That 70’s Show—all programs that target teen & young adult audiences.
Movies, of course, are a lot worse, but, at least w/some church kids, this is what you watch. In 1990 GoodFellas ran 146 minutes & contained 246 uses of the F-word not to mention the cuss words that were used. In fact, every 32.2 seconds there was a cuss word. Unfortunately, movies like this give bad language a good name. A breakdown of 1991 movies:
Ø R Rated Movies: Average- 22 F-words, 14 S-words, 5 A-words, & a major obscenity every 21/2 minutes. (This is just an average, some aren’t that bad; but some are a lot worse).
Ø PG-13 Movies: 39% used the F-word; 66% used the A-word; 73% used the S-word!
Ø PG Movies: 58% used the A-word; 46% used the A-word.
BIBLICAL PRINCIPLES TO GUIDE OUR ENTERTAINMENT CHOICES:
God isn’t trying to be a killjoy. God wants us to have fun. He wants us to have a good time. God has filled our world w/wholesome pleasures. Fellowship w/friends, music, games, books, pictures… Truly God has given us all things richly to enjoy. Knowing this, the devil has scattered seeds of unrighteousness far & wide in the entertainment field. If we’re not careful, the bad has a way of getting in w/t good. That’s why it’s vitally important that we know the principles in God’s Word that help us separate the weeds from the flowers. Up until now you might have been saying, “Pastor Johnson that’s your opinion & opinions are like armpits everybody has one.” OK, you may argue w/me; so let’s look together at God’s Word & His principles.
1. Beware of Anything that Makes you Callused to Sin or Lessons your Hatred of Evil.
Romans 12:9, Don’t just pretend that you love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Stand on the side of the good. NLT
KJV- Abhor what is evil, cleave to what is good.
1 Thess. 5:22, Keep away from every kind of evil. NLT
This world surrounds us w/all sorts of perversion & evil. As humans, our tendency is to “get used to” whatever we encounter in our environment. The devil knows this & he is going to do his best to make us as callused to sin as he can. He wants to make us comfortable w/our surroundings. Why? It’s difficult to hate what you are used to. Romans 12:1-2 commands us not to be conformed to this world’s morals and values, but to be transformed by the renewing of our minds. How do we know if we are conforming to the values of this world? One way is to examine our entertainment. Are we entertained by immorality, violence, and profanity? Are we just excusing it away, rationalizing that it’s normal because everyone else watches it too? If so, we are learning to conform to the world’s values. Here’s a simple illustration, using songs; which, by the way, thanks to MTV, are visual; of how we gradually learn to accept the false philosophies of this world—it comes to us in small bites. Each of these songs went a long way to break down the barriers of what society considered acceptable romantic behavior. 1967 – Rolling Stones sang, "Let’s Spend the Night Together" The song was so suggestive for its time, Ed Sullivan made them sing: "Let’s spend some time together" in order to perform it on his TV show. From this point on, songs became more suggestive and openly sexual. 1976 – Rod Stewart sang, "Tonight’s The Night" Stewart didn’t want any "used" girl for sex. He wanted a virgin to go upstairs with him and let her "inhibitions run wild." 1981 – Olivia Newton-John sang, "Let’s Get Physical" Olivia left no doubt just how physical she wanted to get when she invited her partner to show "love" by getting horizontal. 1987 – George Michael sang, "I Want Your Sex!" George Michael dropped all pretence at being subtle with this song. No romance, just sex! At that time, many Christian young people tried to justify this song as being acceptable because he advocated monogamy. They had become so desensitized to sin, that they didn’t understand the difference between monogamy (having one sex partner at a time) and morality (waiting for marriage for sexual relations!)
1991 – Color Me Badd sang, "I Wanna Sex You Up!"
1994 – Nine Inch Nails sang, "I Wanna - - - - You Like an Animal!" 1998 – Janet Jackson sang, "Tonight’s The Night!" How can this cover of this 22 year-old Rod Stewart’s hit be so bad? This was the first popular song about lesbian sex. "Come on little girl, let your inhibitions run wild!" 2000 – Eminem rap/sings throughout The Marshall Mathers LP about killing his mother, gang raping his sister and choking his wife to death. You’d think there wouldn’t be much of an audience for such violent perversion, but this album sold more than 2 million in the first week. It remains one of the biggest selling albums of all time. 2003 – Missy Elliott’s video of the year, “Working It” was the most graphic portrayal of sex heard up to that time. Instead of offending the public, it won honors as MTV video of 2003.
This “opened the door” for more of the same. From this point on – I don’t know what’s next! Nearly every popular song today suggests graphic sexual scenes and situations that leave nothing to the imagination. In 2004, 36 of the top 40 songs had some form of graphic sexual scenes and/or violent perversion. It seems that now any song and video about any form of perversion is considered acceptable. How did this happen? One song at a time. We’ve come a long way, haven’t we? Just when I think it can’t get any worse, it does. Can you imagine what the next few years will bring? Neither can I, but I’m certain it will make Janet’s “wardrobe malfunction” at the Super Bowl seem like a walk in the park. It’s the same w/movies & TV. Listen to Al Menconi: “I remember years ago reviewing the movie Superman II (1980) and being offended by all the violence and mayhem. I was especially disturbed that Superman had sex with Lois Lane. I was sitting next to a little boy who was laughing and cheering at all the destruction and lusting at the sex scene. At the time, I was wondering what was wrong with his mother to let him watch this. But when I saw the same movie again recently on television, it didn’t bother me. It seemed normal. Like that little boy’s mother, I’d gotten used to it, which is another way of saying that I am learning to conform to the world’s values.”
Wow! I think if we were honest we all would say that what used to trouble our conscience & trouble us in our spirit doesn’t trouble us anymore. That’s a sure sign we’re getting used to the dark.
But, you may say, it doesn’t bother my conscience. Well, that leads us to our next point.
2. Beware of Letting your Conscience be your Guide.
What happens to a callused hand? Doesn’t the same thing happen to a callused heart & mind? If your conscience used to bother you over a certain thing in a movie, & that same thing, or worse things, doesn’t bother you anymore it’s a sure sign that your conscience is callused.
What does the Bible have to say about this? 1 Tim. 4:22, …whose consciences are destroyed as if by a hot iron. The KJV talks about it being seared w/a hot iron. That word in the original is “kauteriazo” (kow-tay-ree-ad’-zo). It’s where we get our English word cauterized. In the past, cauterization of open wounds, even those following amputation of a limb, was performed with hot irons; this served to close off the bleeding vessels as well as to discourage infection.
Don’t lose what Paul is trying to say. There are some people who have cauterized their heart & mind so much that even if God was speaking to them about a movie, music, a relationship, etc…
They can’t hear Him. Why? Their conscience has been seared! This is a scary place to be.
3. Beware of Anything that does Trouble you in your Spirit.
I Tim. 1:19, Cling tightly to your faith in Christ, and always keep your conscience clear. For some people have deliberately violated their consciences; as a result, their faith has been shipwrecked. NLT
Rom. 14: 23b, …if you do anything you believe is not right, you are sinning.
This principle clearly applies to those “gray areas” of life that are not specifically listed in the Bible. That is why it’s so paramount that we don’t allow anything to callous our conscience & we keep sensitive to the voice of the Holy Spirit. Then we He speaks to us, we need to respond in obedience. Keep your conscience clear.
If you have to keep looking over your shoulder for your parents while your watching something then you probably shouldn’t be watching it.
4. Beware of Anything that Would Make Another Believer Stumble.
Romans 14:13, Decide instead to live in such a way that you will not put an obstacle in another Christian’s path. NLT
NCV: We must make up our minds not to do anything that will make another Christian sin.
We need to be sensitive to the concerns & weaknesses of others around us.
There are times when the most Christian thing we can do is limiting our own desires in respect to someone else. Don’t become irritated or frustrated w/them—be kind & remember that one day, someone may have to be sensitive to you. But whatever you do, do not show a casual or uncaring attitude to a weaker brother or sister.
5. Beware of Anything that Appeals to or Affects your Areas of Weakness.
James 1:14, But people are tempted when their own evil desire leads them away and traps them. NCV
We all have areas of weakness & most of us know where they are. Let me assure you, the devil knows too. He tempts us in ways that appeal to where we are weak. Entertainment, more than anything else, has the ability to appeal to those weaknesses in our life. Because of this we must filter our activities, our thoughts, our entertainment through the grid of what is spiritually healthy for us.
Are the Austin Power movies funny? Yes. Dumb & Dumber. I’ll be honest, parts of it are downright hilarious. A lot is crude, but some of it is funny. Is it spiritually healthy? NO! Not for me anyway. And most likely, not for you either. I know my area of weakness. Do you? Know them; protect them, & don’t let the enemy trap you!
6. Beware of Anything that Portrays Sin as Amusing or Glorifies Evil.
Romans 12:2, Be not conformed, but be transformed. Don’t let the world around you squeeze you into its mold. One of the most affective ways to do that is to sugarcoat sin. Adultery is seen as funny—Friends; homosexuality is seen, not as a sin, but as a alternate lifestyle where there is no consequences—Will & Grace; Witchcraft is glorified—Harry Potter. It is vital that we avoid this kind of entertainment because the devil will use it to influence & shape our perspective of sin. God doesn’t think sin is funny—to Him it’s deadly serious. Next time you are watching something that is morally & biblically wrong & you laugh—I hope you remember this thought: “Jesus suffered & died for what I’m laughing at.”
7. Beware of Anything that Stimulates Wrong Thoughts or Attitudes.
All right Pastor Johnson. You’ve lost your mind. I mean how can I do that? After all we’re surrounded daily by the world’s pollution. I go to the mall…store…even out calling… I mean get real. True. It’s everywhere. You can’t escape it. But just because someone is selling poison on the streets doesn’t mean I have to invite him in my home! I can’t help it if birds fly over my head, but I can keep them from building a nest in my hair!
James 1:27, Pure and lasting religion in the sight of God our Father means that we…refuse to let the world corrupt us.
God isn’t trying to keep us from enjoying life; He’s trying to protect us from anything that stimulates, wrong thoughts, wrong attitudes, which eventually lead to wrong behaviors. Sin begins in the mind—avoid anything that gives it a chance to get started.
8. Beware of Loving Pleasure More than Loving God.
2 Tim. 3:4, (Those in the last days) …will betray their friends, be reckless, be puffed up with pride, and love pleasure rather than God. NLT
Even some good, wholesome movies can be used by the devil to take God’s rightful place in our lives.
Sports, entertainment, a relationship is wrong when it becomes the center of our lives & places Christ as 2nd place. Some of our activities can become idols if we allow them to become more important to us that God. This is called spiritual adultery. Make sure we don’t worship the creation more than the Creator. Remember this always: Sin will keep you from the Word, or the Word will keep you from sin!
Conclusion:
Does God care what I watch? Yes He does. He cares about every area of our lives. He wants to perfect us. He wants us to be spiritual redwoods, not spiritual saplings. Feed you heart; your mind w/those things that are pure & lovely. Avoid what is sinful & wrong for you & I know God will help you mature in Him.
