I’ve recently found my mind dwelling on a topic. It has dominated my conversations in the past week and kept me up (one night) to 3:30 the following morning in my pursuit to the answer to my question. I think, in some obscure ways, the question has been on my mind for years, but recently, it’s been staring me in the face in a way it never has. It has become more personal, and as a result, I’ve been on edge about anything remotely close to the topic surrounding my question.
The question jumped in front of me about a week ago, and I jumped up with an answer before truly thinking about what I was saying. After I’d contemplated what I’d just said, I realized the implications of what I’d just said were far deeper than I’d originally imagined.
But now I suppose I’m getting ahead of myself. “What’s the question?” you scream. Ok, ok; calm down! My question is this; where do you draw the line between what is right and wrong when it comes to media, and do the same standards apply to everyone? How far can we actually go in listening to and watching media that only glorifies Christ? All movies are created by sinful people and therefore tend to include sinful practices. Even in the most family-friendly movies we see the characters sinning, and their sin brushed off as good because of the outcome it brings in the end. How is that avoiding ‘every appearance of evil’ as we are encouraged to do in Scripture?
One afternoon last week, I began discussing with a friend the topic of a certain popular movie that has been recently released. Many of my friends had fallen in love with the film and its characters, while I’d also heard others rail against the film and condemn it as a wrong, sinful movie, unfit for Christians to see. I was curious why my friend had enjoyed the film, so I was glad when she began to elaborate. She told me of the many biblical parallels she found throughout the movie, and how encouraging the movie had been to her commitment to save herself completely for her future husband. I was amused and a bit shocked since I’d heard the exact opposite from other Christians. I was confused as to how one Christian could uphold the movie as good and another denounce it as sinful. Was someone lying to me or unjustly prejudiced about the film?
A few days later, I happened upon the topic of that same recently released movie with another friend. She had not seen the movie, but was certain she would hate it since her boyfriend had told her it was not a pure movie. She then directed all my comments to her boyfriend, and we began discussing the movie. He told me right off the bat that the movie was inappropriate for Christians to see as it represented the embodiment of sin and included other inappropriate behavior by the characters. We didn’t end up talking to much about the film after his initial comments because we were derailed onto a subject that was only a subtopic of the movie.
However, we were then quickly pulled into another discussion about music genres in which he said, “People portray using rock music as being okay if it's about God and spiritual things. But labeling something like rap as "Christian" doesn't make rap any better.” Interesting. I immediately disagreed, arguing that the style of the music doesn’t make it bad, but the words and message behind the songs. I don’t listen to secular music; only Christian music with God-honoring lyrics. But he was arguing that even some supposedly “Christian songs” were bad because of the style of music. The second part of the question I had been pondering crossed my mind. Can something truly be right for one person and wrong for another? Why did grey areas like this create so much confusion?
I sat down the next day and tried to come to a conclusion on the matter. Does all this mean we should only watch Christian moves and listen to Christian hymns? Is that the only way to avoid the pitfalls of watching and inadvertently buying into the unbiblical message the writer is ‘preaching’?
Hmmm…maybe we should start by defining Christian media. I was listening to a sermon by Matt Chandler as I did the dishes and vacuumed the house this morning, and found something he said to be particularly helpful. “I find the idea of Christian music to be humorous. Music can not be Christian; it does not have a soul. It can’t get saved. Music is music…the very serious matter of following Christ looks like this: Find the things that stir your affections for Christ and saturate your life in them. And find the things that rob you of that affection and walk away from them. That’s the Christian life as easy as I can make it for you.” Movies are amoral. Music is amoral. Hmmm, then maybe something CAN be right for one person and wrong for another. That movie brought one friend closer to God and drew another away from Him. Certain styles of music draw me closer to God while drawing others away from Him. How that is possible, I don’t distinctly understand; however, the apostle Paul tries to explain this for us in Romans chapter 14.
1 Accept him whose faith is weak, without passing judgment on disputable matters.
2 One man's faith allows him to eat everything, but another man, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables.
Ok let’s (as Matt Chandler so commonly says) unpack this. The foods discussed here are the unclean animals discussed in the Old Testament, correct? Some Christians were still living under the requirement of the law that said they should abstain from certain unclean animals, and Paul said that was ok. Other Christians were living apart from the law and eating those animals, and Paul said that this too was ok. Both were ok as long as they were done in faith. Why was it ok for one to eat a certain food and another to abstain from it? Because eating or abstaining from eating that food stirred their passion for Christ:
5 One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind.
6 He who regards one day as special, does so to the Lord. He who eats meat, eats to the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who abstains, does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God.
I think Paul’s key point here is that we should do all things with thanksgiving to God. If attending church on one day over another creates in us more vibrant worship of Jesus, we should chase after that. If eating certain foods cause us to take our focus off Jesus, we should avoid that. The same thing goes for the kind of music and movies we allow ourselves to come under the influence. If something stirs our affections for Jesus, we should follow that and enjoy it. If it distracts us from Him, it has to be removed from our lives. We need to be fully convinced in our own minds that what we are doing is bringing us into closer communion with Christ.
14 As one who is in the Lord Jesus, I am fully convinced that no food is unclean in itself. But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for him it is unclean.
22 So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the man who does not condemn himself by what he approves.
23 But the man who has doubts is condemned if he eats, because his eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin.
God created all food. Food is not unclean; however, if you’re struggling because you’re unsure whether the food will create worship and thanksgiving for Christ in you, by all means, abstain from the food. Once again, we see the same application for media. For one, a movie does not stir in them affections for Jesus but directs them to focus on themselves or the world, but to another, that same movie is vibrant with biblical parallels that encourage and strengthen their relationship with Christ. Each one must watch or abstain from that movie in faith, knowing the reaction of their own heart.
3 The man who eats everything must not look down on him who does not, and the man who does not eat everything must not condemn the man who does, for God has accepted him.
4 Who are you to judge someone else's servant? To his own master he stands or falls. And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.
10 You, then, why do you judge your brother? Or why do you look down on your brother? For we will all stand before God's judgment seat.
13a Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another.
Paul knew the sinful tendency we all have to compare our lives to others. “My walk with Christ is stronger than theirs because I don’t listen to a certain type of music,” we may be tempted to say. Or maybe, “They’re walking in legalism! Never in the Bible does it say that we should avoid certain types of music!” But Paul warns us to examine our own lives and not to judge what others are doing. God will judge each in the end; He doesn’t need our help. I like how Paul finishes verses 13 and transitions into his next main topic.
13b Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in your brother's way.
15 If your brother is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love. Do not by your eating destroy your brother for whom Christ died.
20 Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a man to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble.
21 It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother to fall.
No food (or type of music) is inherently sinful by itself; however, if because we are eating it, listening to it, etc, we are causing a fellow Christian to desire it even though they know it will rob them of their affections for Jesus, then we should abstain from doing that or speaking of that while we are around them.
17 For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit,
19 Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.
This is the final guideline Paul places on Christians concerning this matter; if it causes division or fighting, just stay away from it. Our focus should not be on the activity itself, but on the joy and intimacy with Christ it produces within us.
Paul said, “I count everything loss compared to knowing Christ.” Matt Chandler paraphrases this: “The question’s not ‘Is it right or is it wrong?’” But rather, ‘Does it get me more of Christ, or does it rob my awareness of Him?’ That’s how Paul lived his life. He’d say, ‘I count that as loss. I’m not interested in that. It doesn’t matter to me if it’s ok to do it. When I do it, it robs me, so I’ll have nothing to do with it.’”
What if we viewed all of life with that kind of attitude? What if instead of searching Scripture to find what is right and wrong (and end up stumped on all the ‘grey issues’ not clearly outlined in the Bible) we simply asked ourselves whether something would bring us closer to God or draw us away from Him? What if we stopped judging other Christians by what they did or didn’t do on controversial issues, but instead followed what we know Christ wants for us and sought peace in our relationships with others? Just a little something to chew on and ponder...
