Ok. I was distressed by the time I got to work this morning. (Never a good start.) On the radio I’d heard a Christian movie review and the announcer’s response for a ‘family friendly’ movie coming out in the theaters this weekend. This review indicated some concerns regarding certain aspects of the movie which may be sensitive to some Christian principles; namely spiritualism and people coming back from the dead. The commentator said something to the effect of “Well…[parents] will just have to take the kids to see it and then decide for themselves.”
In other words, Christian principles can be ignored if it’s family friendly. Call me old-fashioned or a spoil-sport or goody-two-shoes (nothing new there), yes I’m picky about what I AND my children watch. But to be truthful I find the Bible is pretty clear that if we think something could be evil, we are to NOT touch it, drink it, eat it, think it….
“Abstain from every form of evil.”
1 Thessalonians 5:22
There are many different verses that have a similar take, some of them extremely sobering including the last line in Galatians 5:20-21 “Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God.” (Look it up! Read it. Read it again. Underline it.)
I am not going to give a Bible study regarding Spiritualism in the Bible (Some verses to look up, however if you’re interested are Deuteronomy 18:10-12, Leviticus 19:31, 1 Chronicles 10:13). But what I was distressed about was the thought that something could be a struggle, could test your relationship with God, could teach your children that what you do not believe in is acceptable because others accept it…and the response is ‘well, let’s test it out and THEN we’ll decide.’ I understand the teenage-like struggle…mom and dad say it’s bad, teachers and pastors say it’s bad, but I think I should try it out just to make sure. I do, I was one once too. But as adults we are supposed to be THE ADULTS now and not say ‘well, let’s try it out even though the Bible explicitly preaches against it’.
Do you remember the original temptation? The serpent spoke to Eve and said ‘it’s ok to test God’s precepts…you won’t know what you’re missing until you do.’ People, you DO NOT have to taste of the forbidden fruit to know if it is good or bad for you. God has already told us, in the Bible.
I have copies of children’s Christian songs I grew up with. Simple words, simple tune….a reminder that we are responsible. Yes, we are responsible for our actions. We’re responsible for what others see. It’s Biblical. There’s no easy, gentle way around it.
“Oh be careful little eyes what you see…..Oh be careful little ears what you hear….Oh be careful little heart what you believe….”
