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Obscene Movies & TV
Few things frighten me any more than the passing comments I hear
brothers and sisters in the Lord make about movies and TV programs
they've permitted themselves to see. Just when I believe there may
be a deepening spirituality among the Lord's people in our day,
someone who is thought to be a part of the real strength of his or
her congregation tells me what they rented at the video store last
weekend or what they watched on TV last night -- and I find it
difficult to be optimistic at all about where we are headed as a
people. When it comes to telltale signs of spiritual shakiness,
there are none more disturbing than the problem we have with obscene
movies and TV programs.
How Bad Is It? It is an obvious fact that pop entertainment has gone
from bad to worse in the matter of obscenity (as well as violence
and secular philosophy, which are, of course, no less a problem). In
regular broadcast television, not to mention cable TV or the movies,
the language has grown increasingly profane and vulgar, producers
are daily pushing the limits on nudity and sexual content,
homosexuality has come out of the closet and onto the tube, and the
"moral" values that are promoted are farther and farther away from
anything the serious Christian can identify with. What is being
pumped into our living rooms has changed for the worse so noticeably
that even one secular writer previewed a recent TV season with an
article entitled, "The Family Hour Fades to Black."
But the worsening of movie and TV content itself is not the whole
problem. The acceptance of this fare by supposedly strong, faithful
Christians is what is truly alarming. We may have an admirable
devotion to the Lord in many things, but when it comes to
entertainment we are bowing before the altar of television; we are
going to the theater to see virtually any movie we believe we will
enjoy; we are letting our kids watch nearly anything they want at
the movies or on TV; we are paying to get the cable movie channels,
which rarely carry anything the Christian can afford to be
interested in; and we are renting movies at the video store that not
too many years ago would have been classified pornographic.
Basically, we've sold our souls for a mess of footage, and it is
impossible to contemplate what has happened without being concerned
about the future.
The Worrisome Aspect of the Problem. Obviously, none of us can say
we have been entirely consistent in our entertainment, least of all
this writer. To my discredit, I have been places and seen things no
Christian ought to. But the thing about the present situation that
seems different to me is that I'm encountering mature saints who not
only watch obscene movies and TV programs, but defend their practice
as perfectly acceptable conduct for the Christian! It's one thing to
give in to temptation and, when confronted, offer excuses about not
being as strong as one should be. But if, as is apparent, we have
come around to the view that those who question our viewing habits
are the ones with the problem, then we have entered a new and
worrisome phase in the battle against obscenity.
Increasingly these days I'm hearing responses like the following
whenever I express amazement at a movie or TV program a fellow
Christian says he has seen:
· Well, it didn't have much profanity in it. I hear it so much at
work, it doesn't bother me. I just tune it out.
· If it bothers or offends you, then it's not a movie you should see
-- but it didn't bother me.
· If you can't handle it, you shouldn't see it -- but I've been out
in the real world enough, I can handle it.
· If it embarrasses you, you shouldn't see it -- but I'm mature
enough that things like that don't embarrass me.
· We rented it and watched it at home. There's nothing really wrong
when it's just us.
Surely we can't fail to notice the common thread that runs through
these remarks: that obscenity is acceptable entertainment for us if
we personally have been so "desensitized" that obscenity no longer
bothers, offends, or embarrasses us. That we think that way is cause
enough for concern. But that we are pleased with ourselves for
thinking that way is truly frightening. If we have, in fact, lost
our sensitivity to obscenity and are patting ourselves on the back
because of it, then we are not far from qualifying for Paul's
description of those "whose glory is in their shame" (Phil 3:19).
But on the other hand, whether one is bothered or embarrassed has
very little to do with the question of whether one should or should
not indulge in certain entertainment. The Lord, if He were on earth
today, would be strong enough to "handle" far more than any of us --
but you would not catch Him entertaining Himself with the stuff we
watch. What it comes down to is that we've turned decency upside
down when we start defining how spiritually mature and strong we are
in terms of how little embarrassment we feel in the presence of
obscenity.
Whether we realize it or not, we have adopted the basic posture of
the Gnostic libertines of the first century. These were brethren who
believed themselves to be a select group of Christians who had
achieved such a high plane of strength and enlightenment that they
could indulge in immorality and not be hurt spiritually. They liked
to think the amount of fleshly indulgence they could "handle" was a
sign of their advanced knowledge and sophistication. But John, as
well as other inspired writers, called this enticing doctrine what
it always is: a lie. He wrote, "If we say that we have fellowship
with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the
truth" (1 Jn. 1:6).
The NT Admonition to Purity. Need it be pointed out that the
Scriptures call us to inner sanctity? Have we forgotten that the
Lord said, "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God"
(Mt. 5:8)? Have we forgotten that Paul wrote, "Finally, brethren,
whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things
are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely,
whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if
there is anything praiseworthy -- meditate on these things" (Phil.
4:8)? Whatever any of us individually may or may not be "bothered"
by, the passage is still there waiting to be dealt with which says
that there are some things not "fitting" for the Christian to dally
with, among them "uncleanness" and "filthiness" (Eph. 5:3, 4). Those
around us, whose souls we hope to reach with the gospel, deserve to
see in us a better example. We owe it to them, as well as to the
Lord and ourselves, to demonstrate that the path of purity is better
than any other path we may follow. ~
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The "United Church of
Christ"
Is NOT the Church of Christ
By
Jerry Blount
The United Church of Christ has nothing to do with Jesus’ Church!
Christians do not endorse “Gay” marriage... It is an abomination
before God!
In light of the announcement that the so-called “United Church Of
Christ” has endorsed same sex marriages I felt it necessary to note
the fact that Christians repudiate homosexual behavior. Naming a
group of people after Christ does not make them Christians!
This has been tried before. In Acts 15 “Some men came down from
Judea and {began} teaching the brethren, "Unless you are circumcised
according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved." And when
Paul and Barnabas had great dissension and debate with them, {the
brethren} determined that Paul and Barnabas and some others of them
should go up to Jerusalem to the apostles and elders concerning this
issue.” (Vs1-2)
A group of folks were going about teaching something in the name of
Christ... that they had no right to teach. They were endorsing a
behavior they had no right to endorse. It created quite an uproar,
for awhile... At the conclusion of the discussion, the Apostles sent
out a circular letter to straighten out the mess.
Here is part of said letter: “The apostles and the brethren who are
elders, to the brethren in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia who are
from the Gentiles, greetings. Since we have heard that some of our
number to whom we gave no instruction have disturbed you with
{their} words, unsettling your souls...” (Acts 15:23-24)
Does this sound familiar? Someone who has received no instruction,
teaching something that disturbs the brotherhood and unsettles the
souls of the same?
Homosexuality has been renamed “gay” during my lifetime to cover up
the truly vile nature of said behavior. It is essential to note that
God gave instruction on homosexuality in both the Old Testament and
the New. Let’s consider a small portion of God’s instruction:
“Therefore God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to
impurity, so that their bodies would be dishonored among them. For
they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served
the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.
For this reason God gave them over to degrading passions; for their
women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural,
and in the same way also the men abandoned the natural function of
the woman and burned in their desire toward one another, men with
men committing indecent acts and receiving in their own persons the
due penalty of their error. And just as they did not see fit to
acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind,
to do those things which are not proper”... Romans 1:24-28
What part of this instruction is hard to understand? The Bible never
deviates from this teaching. God’s decree is that this behavior is
“dishonored,” “degrading,” “unnatural,” “indecent,” and the result
of a “depraved mind.”
So who is this so-called “United Church of Christ?”
They are a relatively new denominational group. They were formed in
1957 by uniting the “Evangelical and Reformed Church” (an off chute
of the Lutherans) with the “Congregational Christian” churches.
These were already unions of two other groups... In effect you have
the most liberal of the most liberal. It is appropriate to note
Isaiah’s ancient prophecy in regard to this... “The vile person
shall be no more called liberal” Isaiah 32:5. They can call this
“Christianity”... but it’s just not so!
You can call a skunk fragrant, but your nose will continue to
scream... this stinks!
I am reminded of a similar situation during the restoration of
Ancient Israel. Some of the people of the land came up to them as
they were rebuilding the temple and said, “Let us build with you:
for we seek your God, as ye do.” Ezra 4:2
What was the response of God’s people?
“The chief of the fathers of Israel, said unto them, Ye have nothing
to do with us! “ Ezra 4:3
How will Jesus respond as these people “exchange the truth of God
for a lie?” (Romans 1:25)
How will Jesus respond to these people claiming to be Christians and
embracing what He has decreed “depraved?” (Romans 1:28)
How will Jesus respond when these people, by their actions, “do not
see fit to acknowledge God any longer?” (Romans 1:28)
He has told us... “Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will
enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father
who is in heaven {will enter.} Many will say to Me on that day,
'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast
out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?' And then I will
declare to them, 'I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE
LAWLESSNESS.' Matthew 7:21-23
These people are not Christians…And this is not Christ’s Church!!!!
'THIS PEOPLE HONORS ME WITH THEIR LIPS, BUT THEIR HEART IS FAR AWAY
FROM ME. 'BUT IN VAIN DO THEY WORSHIP ME, TEACHING AS DOCTRINES THE
PRECEPTS OF MEN.' " Matthew 15:8-9 ~
Jerry Blount
Wichita, KS
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