Thursday, September 10, 2009

Blasphemy and Christian Entertainment

I love Jesus.
However imperfect my attainments may be, my daily strive is to love Jesus with all of my heart, mind, and soul. This note flows out of my deep love for God, and my curious and saddening understanding that so many of His children watch blasphemous movies.

Ive tagged you in this note because I love you, I highly value your opinion, and I strongly desire to engage you on this issue. What Im praying for is humble, Bible-based discussion. I know there are at least a couple views that will be represented, so please be gracious in your speech, and seek the edification of others in your replies.

My question is this: Should Christians watch movies that blaspheme God's name?

Please allow me to share my take on this; as this is a subject I've had to wrestle through personally. As most of you, I enjoy movies. In fact, watching a good and engaging movie can be one of the funnest things to do for entertainment. Now, because Ive decided I believe it is sin for a Christian to willfully ingest blasphemy, though it be flown under the banner of entertainment, this has severly limited what I am able to watch. Please understand that this was not an easy thing for me. And every now and then the decision presents itself before me, and depending upon the degree of temptation to watch it and the people Im with, it can be very difficult to say no. I do though; and my reasoning is this...

Christians are exposed to sin and blasphemy in the world at times and theres nothing they can do to prevent it. Some then argue we can't expect to never hear the term GD used, so why would be hyper-sensitive about it being in a movie? Is that sound logic and sound reasoning though? And does that put personal and communal edification at the front of the line, or fleshly impulse and carnal satisifaction?

Ive heard people justify watching movies with blasphemy in it by saying we can't leave the world, and we have no choice but to be exposed to it from time to time. So my concern is: arent the two vastly different, HAVING TO hear it and CHOOSING TO hear it? In fact, doesnt that make all the difference necessary to make us accountable for our ingesting it into our soul?

Let me give you two scenarios to illustrate this a little more and from a different angle: Say I decide to meet up at an unsaved co-workers house, and my intention is to evangelize him. I know he'll have another friend over, and the two of them swear a lot, but my reason for going is mission; Im going to evangelize them. Is that comparable to me taking a Christian friend, or brother, or daughter to see a movie I know will blaspheme God's name, when my reason for going is entertainment? I hope the contrast is clear. Jesus left heaven and came to a filth-filled world of sin. But Jesus didnt do so in order to entertain Himself. He didnt expose Himself to grievous sins in order to delight in them, did He? Of course not. Jesus' aim was the glory of God through the redemption of sinners. He lived as a missionary. So it is for us. We are not raptured to heaven upon being converted. God keeps us on the earth, and employs us as vessels to glorify Him through missional living. We are to live as Christ in the world (1 John 2:6).

Another illustration Ive heard and used is this...would you go see a movie that you knew would dishonor your spouse or closest loves one? For instance, would you gentleman go see a movie you knew called your wife a slut? One friend asked, "but how could a movie call your wife a slut?"!! The illustration is more basic than that: if you wouldnt see a flick because it dishonored your spouse, why would you see one that dishonored your Savior?

Did Jesus EVER expose Himself to blasphemy in the context of seeking entertainment and delight? If not, why not? Friends, I think it is clearly sin to CHOOSE to ingest blasphemy, not for the sake of missionality, but for the sake of entertainment.

Here are a few Scriptures Id ask you to consider:
Romans 1:32 informs us that God lumps together those who practice things deserving of wrath with those who give approval to those things. When a Christian willfully ingests sin in the name of entertainment, it is, at the very least, giving approval to the things being done. I could elaborate on this point for days, but I hope youd all agree.

1 Thess. 5:22 says we are to "abstain from every form of evil";
("even the appearance of evil", in the KJV).

Jude 23 tells us we are to "hate even the garment defiled by the flesh".

James 1:27 tells us we are to "keep ourselves unstained by the world".

1 John 2:15 says we are not to love the things of this world.

The Name of God: God hates blasphemy and holds His name in high regard. He will rain down wrath on blasphemers. Jesus taught us to acknowledge the sacredness even of God's name in our prayers...and it's somehow ok for us to watch blasphemous movies? Maybe my greatest heartache stems from the fact that we should love God and His name so much that knowing it will be blasphemed even once should make it a very simple decision for us. And then also, if you know God hates blasphemy, and therefore hates a movie that blasphemes, shouldnt we desire obedience to His will above temporal satisfaction?

Sin is sin. If something is sin, then it doesnt fall under the category of Christian liberty. If blasphemy is sin then, choosing to hear it, or choosing to approve of and even recommend movies that blaspheme, is sin. My hope isnt to condemn Christians in any way. My sincere hope is that you will be convicted of this and grow in your desire to defend God's glory through honoring and defending the honor of His name. Plus, are we really so bored that we have to watch such shady movies anyways? Movies propagated by people who hate Jesus; movies filled with profanity and violence and sensuality; movies that promote unbiblical practices and train youth through dessensitizing them to evil?

Please take the time to pray about this and humbly seek the will of God. And after that, if you are in disagreement with me, please humbly and Scripturally help me to understand your stance on this important and relevant issue. Im begging you to not just move along without giving this though. Thanks for taking the time to read this and God bless you.

Thomas