Christian Living
We have all done it at some point in our lives. We come home after a long day at work, plop down in our favorite chair and – click – we turn on the television to help us unwind.
“It’s just mindless entertainment,” we say. But is it?
Before you turn me off and assume that I will be telling you that television is a sin, I am not. Television itself is not a sin but the choices we make can lead to sin. This form of media above all others allows the enemy to gain a foothold into our minds. No longer do we have to go out into the world but the television is something that can bring the world right into our homes. We have to ask ourselves: Do we have control of our television viewing habits or does our remote control actually control us?
There was a time when television reflected the morality of our country, now it dictates it. Whenever anyone discusses morality and television there is a description of “pushing the envelope” but it seems that the envelope has been pushed so far that it is mailed first class from Satan to our minds. If he can’t get to us any other way, he can still use television to access our thoughts and actions. If unguarded, this is his way of lowering the standards.
I remember when I was growing up that we only had two and half channels (we could never get the ABC station in clearly) as well as the local Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) station. We didn’t have cable so when there REALLY wasn’t anything to watch, there REALLY wasn’t any other alternatives. We also had one television in our home. Now many households have more than one television and we can flip through the hundreds of channels on cable or satellite television and there is still nothing to watch. It’s really a sign of the state of our morality when you can have Christian programming on one channel and flip one or two channels over to the extreme vulgarity of sin on display. On any given night in my region you can have Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN) on one channel and two channels over, the Howard Stern show. The remote control is nothing more than a buffet to whatever you want to fill your mind with.
There is a serious danger to watching the wrong television shows. If we are tired and sit in our chairs to relax, is our guard being compromised? Even our good character can be affected by what we see on television. (1 Corinthians 15:33)
Each hour of television we watch, we can see approximately 8 incidents of violence, 14 incidents of sex and almost 23 incidents of some form of profanity. (American Family Association) A total of 91 percent of all sex was depicted outside of marriage.
WHAT DID YOU SAY?
It used to be totally shocking to hear any inappropriate words on television but now it doesn’t affect us. Unfortunately, we find ourselves looking past the profane language and sexual references. When Lucille Ball was expecting her child while being the star on the classic “I Love Lucy” show, it was totally prohibited – almost illegal – for the writers to use the word “pregnant” on the show. Can you imagine that today? That word is tame compared to what you can hear now. Ephesians 4:29 cautions us to “Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.”
Now when we hear those four-letter words uttered by a television character, we just ignore it. We have become immune to its affects and accept it as being normal communication. “It’s only emphasis” some would say. Then what does it emphasize? Filthy communication is something that shouldn’t be in the job description of a follower of Christ (Colossians 3:8)
FATHER KNOWS LEAST
In most of the situation comedies on television today, the father is not portrayed as knowing what’s best. The fathers are seen as stupid, whiny and lazy. The mothers don’t fare much better but they are often regarded much better than the father characters. In most of the shows with children, the teenagers are the smartest ones or know more than their parents. The parents might give some kind of moral advice but many times it is not biblically sound advice.
For instance, how would you compare these fathers with Ward Cleaver?
Raymond (Everybody Loves Raymond)
Jim (According to Jim)
Homer (The Simpsons)
Charley (Hope & Faith)
Listen Up (Tony)
Still Standing (Bill)
Sadly, these guys aren’t much of a role model. They are not interested in their children and they are always whipped and outsmarted by their wives. Many shows do not think much of fathers at all. They don’t include them as a part of the script. Is television mirroring society or is it also condoning the immoralities? With so many single family homes, does television reflect our culture or does it affect it? For today’s television viewer a family – oriented show such as Little House on the Prairie is boring compared to The Osbournes.
REALITY VS. TELEVISION
Most of today’s reality shows are all about greed and the lengths to which people will go to achieve fame and fortune. These shows usually reveals dishonesty and deception. Some even encourage contestants to manipulate, humiliate and rip each other to shreds. These shows are promoted as “reality” but they are only creatively edited to show what the producers want to show. Whatever will get the ratings are those things which will get the most camera time. Anything boring or truly reality will end up on the cutting room floor. I won’t say that reality shows such as American Idol or Survivor are rigged but they are certainly “guided” in the direction for the best exposure and highest ratings.
SEX AND THE TV
Some of the most blatant sex-themed shows are “Desperate Housewives”, “Sex and The City” and “Nip/Tuck”. They aren’t alone in promoting adultery, fornication and lust. Sex sells everything from television shows to commercials. Why would a sponsor need a bikini model to promote car tires? Don’t you think with technology today that there really isn’t a need for Vanna White to turn those letters on “Wheel of Fortune”?
Do I really need to mention anything about MTV or Howard Stern?
THE CHRISTIAN TELEVISION MYTH
Believe it or not, we must also be on guard with Christian television. There may not be sex or violence issues with Christian programming but there is an equally dangerous concern with ministries on television. If you think that you can stay at home and get your only church from TBN, Inspiration Network or Daystar then you may be opening your mind to all kinds of erroneous Bible teaching. Jesus warned us in Matthew 24:11 that in the last days “many false prophets shall rise and shall deceive many.” We shouldn’t be foolish to think that Christian television would be without those deceptions. Perhaps the overriding theme from some of these ministries today are those ministries which preach prosperity and wealth. We must not be deceived and believe everything we see on these programs.
Even with Christian television we must also guard our minds and not allow ourselves to become lazy or let our guard down with ANY programming. Every preacher you see on television is not preaching the truth. There are no substitutes or assumptions to be made when it comes to the things of the Spirit.
ABOVE ALL….GUARD YOUR HEART
The average American spends 2.5 hours per day watching television. How many hours per day do we spend in prayer or personal devotions? There is a serious imbalance if we can’t pray longer than a television commercial. More than that, we must guard our hearts. I’m not talking about your physical heart but moreso the mind that forms your decisions and how you live your life. We must not let anything control our minds or slowly erode away the influence of the Holy Spirit within our lives.
We need to be honest with ourselves. If Jesus came to our house to spend a day, would this affect our television viewing habits? Would we change the channel or leave it off altogether? Paul was writing to Christians when he said, “Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things.” (Phil. 4:8)
What “such things” does your television show make you think about?
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Excellent. Well thought out and thought-provoking. Some people call it the hellevision!
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