Embracing Evil in our Entertainment: Harmless or Harmful?

"The major strategy of Satan is to distort the character of God and the truth of who we are." (Neil T. Anderson)

Over the last six years I have sat across from countless girls who were bound up in the chains of spiritual bondage, miserable victims of the evil this world had to offer them. I have seen the ugliness of evil rear its determined head during counseling sessions and demonic forces furiously rise up against my efforts to help girls find freedom.

This post isn't meant to glorify Satan in any way.  My intentions are to show you how we play on the enemy's playground and expect it to be harmless. We saturate our minds with his agenda and assume our minds will be immune to the reality of his influence. The Lord's prayer contains a very crucial element to our survival here on earth, "deliver us from evil". A question I have been pondering this week is this: Can God fully answer this prayer if we are willingly opening the doors to evil in our movies, books, magazines and music? Why or why not?


The World of Wizards and Witchcraft
When I started thinking about evil in our entertainment, the first thing that came to my mind was Harry Potter. But what's wrong with Harry Potter, Twilight or any other popular movie or book? I've wrestled with writing this post because I don't want to draw lines in the sand where there isn't a clearly defined, "Thus sayeth the Lord". My desire is to ask questions and challenge you to start thinking outside the pop culture box.

In a post I wrote last summer I addressed the issue of what influences are thinking, "Christians are still governed by a set of morals, standards and beliefs whether or not they are influenced by the culture or the Word of God. If the Bible is being neglected, then the average Christian teen is being governed by philosophies based only on the culture around them. You can slap Bible verses on your viewpoints and even use Christian lingo but unless you are being saturated by God’s Word, the culture trends have heavily influenced your belief system."

Our minds can either be filled with the holiness of God or the ugliness of evil. There is no middle ground. As I observe the culture trends of our day, it is becoming more evident that entertainment has an agenda to strip away the morals that should govern out mind and sear our conscience from discerning good from evil. According to one of the villains in Harry Potter: A Sorcerer's Stone, "There is no good or evil, there is only power and those to weak to see it".  Doesn't this sound similar to the snake in the garden of Eden? Can we fantasize in a world full of wizards and witchcraft and call it harmless? Does God deem it so?

Here is something I want you to ponder: To allow in entertainment the teachings, philosophies and morals of the world without pondering it's destructive influence is like playing with fire and assuming you won't get burnt.

Made for a Different World
“If I find in myself desires which nothing in this world can satisfy, the only logical explanation is that I was made for another world.” (C.S. Lewis)

After doing a little research, I discovered that the top 45 movies for teenagers are filled with sex, drugs, violence and witchcraft. Why do we marvel then when we encounter real life stories that mirror what is being shown in movies? The heart of man is always searching for something that will satisfy only to discover that nothing will quench the longing we have for something more, something better. As C.S. Lewis puts it, "I was made for another world".

There is a battle in our souls between good and evil; our flesh and our spirit. This battle is raging because your life is worth something to God...and the enemy. Don't take this lightly! In Galatians 5 Paul talks about this battle: 

"The old sinful nature loves to do evil, which is just opposite from what the Holy Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are opposite from what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, and your choices are never free from this conflict...When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, your lives will produce these evil results: sexual immorality, impure thoughts, eagerness for lustful pleasure, idolatry, participation in demonic activities, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, divisions, the feeling that everyone is wrong except those in your own little group, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other kinds of sin. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God."

One of the desires of our flesh is to follow the path of evil and specifically Paul talks about participating in demonic activities. If our sinful nature craves these things, is it wise to saturate our minds with it in our entertainment? Is it really harmless or harmful?

A Biblical Grid for Entertainment
As I stated at the beginning of this post, I am not trying to draw a line in the sand but would encourage you to search God's Word in all areas pertaining to your life. God did not free us from sin in order that we might be free to sin. He freed us to live a life in holy union with Him and to proclaim His glory to the world.

Because entertainment is a big part of our world today, the seriousness in which we discover God's ways should govern our choices in what we read, watch, and listen to. Here are four categories to get you started:

1. The Glory of God: Does it glorify God in any way? Or is it void of His glory? Does it steal from God's glory? Does it glorify Satan? "I am the Lord, that is My name; And My glory I will not give to another." (Isaiah 42:8a)
2. The Character of God: Does it reflect the character of who He is? Does it mock His character? Example: God is a holy God. Would you take your entertainment into the "Holy of holies" or would you be ashamed to do so? "Obey God because you are his children. Don't slip back into your old ways of doing evil; you didn't know any better then. But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God -- who chose you to be his children -- is holy. For he himself has said, "You must be holy because I am holy." (1 Peter 1:14-16)
3. The Flesh vs. Spirit: Does it draw your flesh into evil? Does it tempt you to do wrong? Does it edify your spirit? (read Galatians 5)
4. The Will of God: What is God's will concerning your mind and what you think? What does He want you to dwell on? "And now, dear brothers and sisters, let me say one more thing as I close this letter. Fix your thoughts on what is true and honorable and right. Think about things that are pure and lovely and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise." (Philippians 4:8)

I leave you with these closing thoughts: life isn't about me nor is it about you. Life is meant to be lived for the glory of God and His kingdom. Anything that tarnishes His testimony in us and diminishes His glory should be set aside at all cost. We have an enemy but he cannot influence us for evil unless we allow it. Let us join together and pray with conviction and certainty, "deliver us from evil" and set aside those things that are holding us back from true freedom in Christ.

Questions? You can either email me or leave me a voicemail or text with my google number: 646-504-626