Entertainment

How Our Enemy Works

2 Comments / January 18, 2024

Last night we decided to watch a movie. We settled on a golf story that was rated G. It seemed well produced with a few familiar actors. As it began I noticed a verse from Isaiah flash up on the screen. I was distracted and didn’t take the time to read what that verse was. (I’ll come back to that later.)

As we settled in to watch, we enjoyed the story of a young golfer who had lost his way. Quite unsuspectingly, we ended up at the spiritual crux of the film, which was about 60 minutes in to the 90 minute film.

It started off quite innocently enough. Turning to the young man, his older mentor asked him a very good question:

What do you want people to say about you when you’re gone? What will your epitaph be?

Thought-provoking, isn’t it? After a few moments more of conversation regarding this, the young man thanked his mentor for all his help…which led to the older gentleman going on to encourage the young golfer towards his version of god (no capital because it wasn’t God at all!)–

(queue moving music) And I quote: Don’t thank me. Thank Him (pointing upwards) because God is all around us…inside each of us. If you listen, there’s a still small voice of truth leading us….talking to us…and telling you that you can see God’s face. Feel His presence. Trust His love.

No sin. No wrath. No Savior. Just look within and there you will find God. What blasphemy!

Now, this movie, which gave the impression of being a Christian movie, complete with encouragement to read the Holy Bible and go to church, ended in a very enigmatic way. It pointed you to a website. I decided to go there, and while I found a reference or two to Jesus, I could find NO Gospel. The first thing I did find was a testimony regarding the attacks the “enemy” (Satan) had made on the film during its production.

Oh. My. Goodness. How clever of Satan, right? Attack a film that is ALL HIS to begin with to give the message validity in the eyes of Christians. That is how our enemy works.

That bit of advice that man gave his protege was not biblical. It was satanic. It was pure mysticism and completely against scripture. Jeremiah couldn’t put it any plainer in verse 9 of chapter 17–

The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?

When I want back to look at just what verse they had used at the beginning of that film, I saw that it was verse completely taken out of context to promote this wicked lie that was nestled into this G-rated film.

See how our enemy works? He produces these innocuous movies, using out of context verses, and gradually changes the belief system of those who don’t know their Bibles and what it really says.

Until most of those who would claim Christianity do believe those words that man said. After all, who doesn’t love a religion that tells you to look to yourself (while claiming it is God) for the answers?

This belief–the belief to FOLLOW OUR HEARTS–is the core of mysticism and occultism. This belief is what will lead the world into the coming one-world religion.

Along with this core belief comes a very innocuous “Jesus”. He is a kind and loving man who doesn’t care if you keep sinning or if you follow after that heart of yours. He just wants to support you in whatever you want to do.

A friend of mine put this so succinctly yesterday in a comment. I asked her if I could share her thoughts with you. (Thank you, Susie!)–

[Modern-Day Christianity] is so one sided where Jesus is loved as the caring, loving, gentle, “give me everything I want when I want it” person, to the neglect of obedient walking, sin confessing, holy living, fear and reverence of God….

God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit have both of those sides to them. We cannot have one without the other.

To put it bluntly, God gets to call the shots. He is God. We don’t get to reinvent a fluffy nice Jesus who gives all I want without me walking obediently to God’s Word, and avoiding or neglecting parts of scripture where God seems harsh. “Keep yourself in the love of God” means to keep the love of God in view always as you read scripture.

What we have today is a selfish lop-sided religion world-wide.

Amen! But you need to understand that this is not without purpose. To get a bunch of people claiming to be Christians but living for themselves; listening to themselves; obsessed with themselves is a BIG win for Satan. For these people believe they are saved. They use the right terms, they sing songs of praise to Jesus, and they have their devotions. Oh, how burdened I am for these people who are living for their own dreams, their own promotion, their own desires and yet believe they are saved.

Maybe that is you? Oh, if it is, may I call you from a self-centered life to a God-centered life? May I encourage you to read the actual Bible rather than a devotional that just makes you feel good? Learn what biblical Christianity is from the scripture. It is there alone that we learn to know God and begin to understand our sinful nature and just how lost and hopeless we are without Jesus.

In Sunday School this past Sunday our teacher said something very profound:

If [Christianity] doesn’t impact your life, it’s not real.

He was referring specifically to turning from sin and worldliness. If we aren’t actively trying to do this (albeit imperfectly!)…if we aren’t even conscious of the fact that we should be doing these things, we should be concerned. Have we been duped into believing the lies of the enemy?

I keep a pair of crocs by the front door where I leave the dogs out. Sometimes I need to go out to check on something or to encourage them to come inside. Lately, I’ve been finding one croc all over the place. Sometimes it is in the kitchen, other times the sun room. This morning I found one under a blanket in the family room.

Our lab, Dixie, likes to steal shoes. She doesn’t usually harm them but simply grabs one shoe and moves it for some reason. I find shoes at the most unexpected places.

True biblical Christians are like this. We will find them everywhere across this world. Sometimes in unexpected places. I’ve had the great privilege of getting to know some of you through this blog. I’ve heard the testimonies of some from missionaries or through YouTube. And, in other cases, I’ve read their biographies.

While there is a great tsunami of apostasy that has invaded evangelicalism, God still has His faithful remnant spread across the world. I pray that we all study to show ourselves approved (2 Timothy 2:15) and consistently examine our hearts (2 Corinthians 13:5) to be sure that we are part of that remnant. And that we work diligently to share the TRUE Gospel amidst the flood of false gospels that abound.

(And, one final thing in conclusion– be so careful what you watch. Do not watch even one movie, read one book, or listen to one podcast without intentional discernment. Satan knows full well that some Christians won’t watch, read or even listen to certain things and so he uses things that we assume to be free from worldly influences to share his message. Pay attention to the philosophies that are infused into innocuous packages.)

Always More to Learn

3 Comments / December 12, 2023

This morning when I came downstairs, my dogs started barking as soon as they glanced out the side windows by our front door. I saw a township truck with a man setting out a flag that said “road closed”. I waited until he had gone and then left the dogs out.

Both started barking madly and rushing towards the sign which sat across the road. I shouted for them to stop and both did hold their ground (thankfully) but they kept barking at the big orange sign.

I told them just how silly they were. That it was just a sign. But the big dog just kept giving nervous glances and fierce single barks at the sign throughout her entire time outside. It was comical, really.

But it was such a great picture of what I’ve been thinking about over the past week or so.

Last week, I took my oldest grandson to Chocolate World in Hershey, PA for his “grandma day” (“grandma day” is my golden opportunity to spend one-on-one time with each grandchild who lives locally. So fun!) We wanted to do something Christmas-y but I was limited by a later appointment and I couldn’t find anything local enough that was open on a Wednesday.

While we were there, we decided to watch the new movie “experience” they have. While we stood waiting, Hershey facts flashed up on the screen:

Did you know 25 million Reese’s cups are made every single day?

Did you know 200 tons of Twizzlers are made every day?

As I pondered these unknown facts, I thought about how many things in this life I do not know.

This goes for me spiritually, as well. Through the years, I have had friends who have challenged me on different things and according to scripture. Things I didn’t realize were offensive to God. And, in this, I was not unlike my dogs. We both did not know an important piece of information. While, for my dogs it was the knowledge that the sign did not present any danger at all; for me, it was the knowledge that what I was doing (or reading or watching) did present a real spiritual danger.

Because there are just always things we don’t know.

I am so very, very grateful that God uses His Word and brings people and situations into my life that constantly challenge my status quo Christian life.

This happened to me again recently. Someone asked me a question and it has really gotten me thinking again about something I’ve always done. Forever. But… when I run it through the grid of scripture, I have to admit that it is not something that pleases God. I never thought for even a second of my entire life that there was anything wrong with this particular thing (and yes, I am purposefully being vague). But that question my friend asked just keeps coming back to my mind. And when I consider scripture and what it says, I know that I have been wrong in this area. Even though it was in ignorance, it was still sin.

Isn’t it so kind of our heavenly Father to conform us, bit by little bit, into Christ’s image? His lovingkindness is such a blessing. We could never handle it if it was done all at once. The realization of what it means to live a pure and holy life before God would be completely overwhelming and discouraging if we were to fully understand all at once.

I am so thankful that God so gently and so kindly transforms us, as we are willing to yield what we thought we loved and desired to Him. As I think about the things I have been convicted about over the years, I realize that I don’t even miss them. I’ve written about many of these here on the blog through the years. Giving up some of these things was excruciatingly hard. I didn’t want to do it. And, yet, as I look back, I realize that God changed my heart so completely after my obedience (sometimes obedience that was quite reluctant and took years!) that I don’t even miss these things I thought I couldn’t live without.

And, so, I am going to, in faith, step out in obedience once again and turn from something I have really enjoyed but that God has so kindly shown me does not please Him. Trusting that once I choose to obey, it won’t even matter to me anymore.

I am thankful that we can always be learning and growing. That we aren’t stuck in some stagnant place without hope. Of course, as we learn and grow, we also learn that we are further from God’s standard of perfection than we ever realized (and just how much we need Jesus as our Savior!!!) and we grow in our knowledge of the depth our own sinfulness and in our understanding of the awesome goodness and amazing grace of God.

I know one thing, I certainly look forward to the day when sin will no longer reign in this mortal body and that all I will do and want to do forever and ever will be to praise and please God without any flesh getting in the way. What a glorious day that will be!

Diagnosing and Curing Itchy Ear

4 Comments / November 1, 2023

2 Timothy is the final book that Paul wrote before being executed under the evil rule of Nero. It is full of practical wisdom and much exhortation for Timothy and for any believer who would read it throughout the ages. In chapter three Paul describes what the last days would look like. This description was not about what we would see in the world but about what would take place within the professing church.

As he moves to chapter four, he continues to let us know what would be the natural response of those he is describing in chapter three:

For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; 4 and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables. (2 Timothy 4:3)

When true believers come to this passage we often shake our heads in agreement and feel deep sadness at all of “those” people who are doing this very thing. We see them everywhere.

But today I’d like to take a bit of a different turn and think through this verse with a different lens.

Have you ever talked with someone about something and came away thinking, “they are so blind!” This might be a godly person who really wants to live for the Lord. But, for some reason, they can’t see their own sinfulness in a certain area or the truth about a false teacher or some other truth that is clear. Could this be because they have a slight case of itchy ear?

According to 2 Timothy 4, verse 3, there are a few ways we can diagnose itchy ear. Let’s look at them now–

1. We won’t endure sound doctrine. If we aren’t willing to endure sound doctrine in any particular area, then we probably have at least a slight case of itchy ear. What exactly is sound doctrine? In this context, it is the pure teaching of the Word. If we aren’t willing to submit and obey the Word in all areas, it will lead to a definite case of itchy ear.

But this is not always as cut and dried as we’d like to believe. Many of us will gladly obey most of the Bible. But when we get to a part that convicts us of entertainment, the lifestyle of anxiety or worry that has become our normal, or of giving up that long-held grudge and forgiving someone who deeply hurt us…well, that’s just too much to ask. And so we won’t endure that particular “sound doctrine”. This is a sure sign of itchy ear.

2. We only want to hear things that match our own desires. And so if someone brings something to our attention that we don’t care for–perhaps about a false teacher we love or a sin that is firmly entrenched in our lives– we will respond in one of two ways. We will get very defensive and maybe even a bit angry. Or we will just ignore it and go on with life. However we respond, we certainly won’t honestly examine our lives in regard to what is being said. Because we will choose not to hear what goes against our desires.

3. We will only like positive, uplifting teachers. If someone dares to call out sin, worldliness, or a false teacher (by name) we get all up in arms, declaring them to be negative, judgmental, and all sorts of other awful accusations. How dare they?!? And we conclude they must be the most unloving and unkind person we know.

4. We will turn away from truth and turn towards fables. The Shack is a rather old book by now but it is the perfect example of this very thing. This book (and its subsequent movie) presented a fable about God. It was not truth, according to scripture. And, yet, because so many loved the god that William Paul Young presented in his book, they turned away from the true God (as described in scripture) and embraced this false god. They turned away from truth and turned towards a fable. This is just one example. There are countless others and countless more to come. Satan loves to fool Christians. And he does it in such a way that it looks so good and so…right.

Do you have itchy ear? Even a slight case? Perhaps we all do to some extent. We don’t like to hear what is uncomfortable and demands change, do we? Change is hard and ingrained habits are hard to break. Teachers are much loved and the loyalty runs deep. Following hard after truth is not for the fainthearted and weak. And, yet, God can turn a fainthearted and weak person into someone willing to stand courageously in His strength, through the power of the Holy Spirit. But how?

How do we cure our case of itchy ear? How do we become someone who is willing to endure sound doctrine, willing to turn from our own desires in humble submission to God’s desires, willing to hear both the positive and the negative as we listen to teachers, and willing to turn toward truth and away from fables? How can we be sure to be the kind of listener that benefits our spiritual walk and blesses a biblical teacher?

There are a few things we can do. It’s rather simple really. But we can’t miss a step.

First, we must pray and read the Word. Let’s bring a humble spirit before the Lord, asking Him to show us the truth and to help us be willing to change. And then let’s read and study the Word with perseverance and diligence, so that we can know our God and what He desires.

Second, we must be willing to examine ourselves in light of the Word. Many of us live in a superficial way because we are unwilling to do this. And, I must admit, it is much easier to just live day to day as we endeavor to complete our to-do lists and take care of the many things calling our names. But, without taking the time to examine ourselves, we are opening ourselves up to a severe case of itchy ear, for it will sneak up on us when we least expect it.

Third, we must be willing to turn from our feelings. For many of us (myself included) the temptation is strong to let our feelings drive our lives. And so we don’t read our Bibles because we don’t feel like it. Or we turn on the TV and waste hours of time because we don’t feel like doing anything else. We don’t feel like reading hard books that help us grow but we feel like reading easy novels that fill our mind with fluff (at best) or trash (at worst). We make choices about going to church (oh, it was such a late night, let’s skip), we make choices about music (oh, this has such a catchy tune), we make choices about our children’s entertainment (but I don’t want to upset my child and take this way from her because then she might be mad at me) all based solely on how they make us feel. This will almost always lead to itchy ear.

With God’s help, we must move from making decisions based on feelings to making decisions based on what will please God. For a genuine believer that wants to live out their faith, no decision escapes this examination. Am I choosing this because of how it will make me feel or am I choosing it because I want to please the Lord? (I am convicting myself here!)

Fourth, we must be willing to listen to biblical teachers that will preach the whole word of God instead of those who just give us the positive, uplifting messages that make us feel good.

If we do these things, then we will cure our case of itchy ear, whether it be a severe case or just the slightest case. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to be walking around with itchy ear, spiritually sick and weakened, when God has made a way for us to live out a radiant, vibrant faith as we journey through this darkened world!

The World is Quickly Passing Away

3 Comments / September 1, 2023

Today’s air was crisp and fall-like. This kind of weather makes me anticipate autumn, which is just around the corner now. As I walk around my yard, I see that many of the flowers are done blooming. The ones that remain are starting to look straggly; some have mildew on their leaves. Their time to shine is almost gone. In a few short months, they have brightened our world and then passed out of existence. Like a shooting star that gives sparkling light for a moment and then disappears.

Last night I was scrolling through Instagram for a few minutes. A retro reel came up that was from 1980. It was a promotion video for ABC and across the stage pranced people I hadn’t seen on TV or anywhere else for twenty years or more. They were the beloved stars of the popular sitcoms from that day. As I watched the reel, I realized that those people are just like the flowers and the shooting stars. Here one year and gone the next. No one knows what happened to those TV stars and most people do not care what happened to them. They are on to the next big name. The next big series. The next. The next. The next.

The public’s affection and adoration is so short-lived. We see this across all spectrums. Popularity and adoration are here one day and gone the next.

I was reading an article by Horatius Bonar* today and it fits perfectly with all of this. I want to share a bit of it with you today (you can read it in its entirety here)–

The things that are seen are temporal. Ours is a dying world, and here we have no continuing city. But a few years — it may be less — and all things here are changed. But a few years — it may be less — and the Lord shall have come, and the last trumpet shall have sounded, and the great sentence shall have been pronounced upon each of the sons of men.

There is a world that which does not pass away. It is fair and glorious. It is called “the inheritance in light.” It is bright with the love of God, and with the joy of Heaven. “The Lamb is the light thereof.” Its gates are of pearl — they are always open. And as we tell men of this wondrous city, we invite them to enter in.

How often do you think about that undying world? Jesus warns us about storing up treasures on this earth where they can be destroyed and encourages us to, instead, lay up our treasures in heaven, where nothing can destroy them (Matthew 6:19-21). Paul encourages us to set our minds on things above rather than things of the earth (Colossians 3:1-4). Both Paul and John remind us that this world is passing away (I Corinthians 7:31; I John 2:17). Isaiah tells us that all men are like withering grass and fading flowers. Here for a short season and then gone on to eternity (Isaiah 40:6-7).

Bonar explains the quickly passing world like this–

The world is passing away — like a flower. Beautiful, very beautiful; fragrant, very fragrant, are the summer flowers. But they wither away. So fades the world from before our eyes. While we are looking at it, and admiring it — behold, it is gone! No trace is left of all its loveliness but a little dust! O man, can you feed on flowers? Can you dote on that which is but for an hour? You were made for eternity — and only that which is eternal can be your portion or your resting place. The things that perish with the using only mock your longings. They cannot fill you — and even if they filled, they cannot abide. Mortality is written on all things here — immortality belongs only to the world to come — to that new heavens and new earth wherein dwells righteousness.

Of course! As believers longing to follow hard after God, we know this is true. But, oh, am I the only one who gets so terribly distracted by the things here on this earth?? Why do I find myself still trying to be filled by the temporal things at times?

I guess that’s part of the battle of the flesh we all face. But it’s good every now and again to be reminded that there should be a battle regarding this. We should be intentionally trying to focus on the Lord and on things above, remembering that this life and all things with it are so quickly passing away.

Horatio Bonar reminds us that there is but one thing that should be settled for us all as we journey through this brief life: Where will we spend eternity?

I’d like to share what he wrote here because it’s so important. It’s rather long but I hope you will take the time to read it. And I hope that it is a blessed reminder to you as you consider your own eternal destiny and the eternal destinies of those you come in contact with everyday. Perhaps you will agree wit me that what is written here makes the things of this world pale in comparison. Here’s what he writes–

The world is passing away — what then? This is the question that so deeply concerns man. If the world is to vanish away, and man is to live forever — then of what importance is it to know where and what we are to be forever! A celebrated physician, trying to cheer a desponding patient, said to him, “Treat life as a plaything.” It was wretched counsel. For life is no plaything, and time is no child’s toy, to be flung away. Life here is the beginning of the life which has no end; and time is but the gateway of eternity.

What then? You must, O man, make sure of a home in that world into which you are so soon to pass. You must not pass out of this earthly tent without making sure of the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God. When you have done this, you can lie down upon your deathbed in peace.

One who had lived a worldly life at last lay down to die; and when about to pass away he uttered these terrible words, “I am dying, and I don’t know where I am going!”

Another in similar circumstances cried out, “I am within an hour of eternity, and all is dark!”

O man of earth, it is time to awake!

“How can I make sure?” you ask. God has long since answered that question, and His answer is recorded for all ages: “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you shall be saved.” “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ! I have never done anything else,” you say. If that is really true, then, as the Lord lives, you are a saved man. But is it really so? Has your life been the life of a saved man? No, truly. It has been a life wholly given to vanity. Then as the Lord God of Israel lives, and as your soul lives — you have not truly believed, and you are not yet saved.

“Have I then no work to work in this great matter of my pardon?” None! What work can you work? What work of your can buy forgiveness, or make you fit for the Divine favor? What work has God bidden you work in order to obtain salvation? None! His Word is very plain, and easy to be understood: “To him who does not work, but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness” (Rom 4:5) There is but one work by which a man can be saved. That work is not yours, but the work of the Son of God. That work is finished — neither to be taken from nor added to — perfect through all ages — and presented by Himself to you, that you may avail yourself of it and be saved.

“And is that work available for me just as I am?” It is! God has brought it to your door; and your only way of honoring it is by accepting it for yourself, and taking it as the one basis of your eternal hope. We honor the Father when we consent to be saved entirely by the finished work of His Son. We honor the Son when we consent to take His one finished work in the room of all our works. We honor the Holy Spirit, whose office is to glorify Christ, when we hear what He says to us concerning that work finished “once for all” upon the cross. Forgiveness is through Christ Jesus, who is Son of God as well as Son of man! This is our message.

Forgiveness through the one work of sin-bearing which He accomplished for sinners upon earth. Forgiveness to the worst and wickedest, to the farthest off from God whom this earth contains. Forgiveness of the largest, fullest, completest kind; without stint, or exception, or condition, or the possibility of revocation! Forgiveness free and undeserved — as free as the love of God, as free as the gift of His beloved Son. Forgiveness ungrudged and unrestrained — whole-hearted and joyful — as the forgiveness of the father falling on the neck of the prodigal! Forgiveness simply in believing; for, “by Him, all who believe are justified from all things.”

Could salvation be made more free? Could forgiveness be brought nearer? Could God in any way more fully show His earnest desire that you should not be lost, but saved — that you should not die, but live? In the cross there is salvation — nowhere else. No failure of this world’s hopes can quench the hope which it reveals. It shines brightest in the evil day. In the day of darkening prospects, of thickening sorrows, of heavy burdens, of pressing cares — when friends depart, when riches fly away, when disease oppresses us, when poverty knocks at our door — then the cross shines out, and tells us of a light beyond this world’s darkness, the Light of Him who is the light of the world.

*Horatius Bonar was a Scottish Presbyterian minister who lived during the 1800s. His poems, hymns, and religious tracts were loved by many during that time and since.

Are Disney and God Compatible?

6 Comments / April 8, 2022

A few years ago, I stumbled on to a documentary about Disney. I was so disturbed but the cost of speaking out against Disney was high (as it is dearly loved by so many Christians) and so I am ashamed to say that I just let time slowly fade this content from my mind. I had a vague recollection but decided to not worry about this.

Some of our best family memories took place at Disney World. While we weren’t Disney fanatics by any stretch of the imagination, we did thoroughly enjoy our trips there. My kids watched many of the movies over and over growing up. (Of course, never the ones that were filled with sorcery— as if a “little sorcery” in the ones we did allow was not as worrisome as a lot!) At any rate, I wasn’t prepared to pay the price of turning away from this American staple. Neither publicly or personally. It seemed too hard.

But, recently, not only has Disney been doing some really concerning things in their theme parks, but their content is getting darker and more propaganda-like with each new movie or show.

And so I decided to watch the documentary again. And, friends, Disney has been telling us their direction all along. They have been putting it out there for all to see and we Christians have been completely and utterly deceived.

I decided, this morning, to share this documentary on Facebook. But, unbeknownst to me, the video used a fake photo. I doubt the author of the video knew it was a fake photo, but this was enough for me to remove it. (I am so thankful to the reader who brought this to my attention!) Although the video was otherwise spot on in the information it presented, this one fake photo would discredit the video enough to sour and turn off those who are looking for excuses to ignore this information.

SO this is why I am writing today. I want to take a look at what is wrong with Disney, according to scripture. May we be brave enough to open our eyes to these truths.

Here are the questions I’d like to answer today:

What is Disney’s purpose? And is it compatible with God’s purpose?

I want to acknowledge, right up front, that it took me a very long time for me to get to this point. I am ashamed to admit that I was not willing to face the ridicule of family and friends in order to stand for what is right. I was not willing to marginalize myself that much. How incredibly sad is that?? I am so ashamed.

But no more. I think it’s time we all take our proverbial heads out of the sand and take an honest look at what Disney has been teaching all along.

First, there is sorcery in almost every single movie in one way or another. While we think of these as innocent stories expressing the age-old theme of good against evil, they really are teaching our kids and grandkids about sorcery.

Let’s remind ourselves what God thinks of sorcery:

There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, or one who practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who conjures spells, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. For all who do these things are an abomination to the Lord, and because of these abominations the Lord your God drives them out from before you. (Deuteronomy 18:10-12)

Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. (Galatians 5:19-21)

It is fairly clear in these passages (and others) that God HATES sorcery of any type. So why would we Christians bring entertainment into our homes that contain this thing that God hates? (This goes for Harry Potter and Narnia and Lord of the Rings, as well–entertainment that is FULL of magic and sorcery.)  Why do we make exceptions for entertainment?

I believe that Disney paved the way for Christians to accept sorcery as an acceptable inclusion in their entertainment. Oh, how naive I was. How naive we all were.

Second, the theme of almost every Disney movie is “Follow your heart.” Any believer who is familiar with scripture at all must recognize the grave error of such a message. In fact, there we read that the complete opposite is true–

“The heart is deceitful above all things,
And desperately wicked; Who can know it?” (Jeremiah 17:9)

It is Satan who deceived Eve into thinking that she was capable on her own of determining truth. It is Satan who deceives us in this way yet today. We can’t follow our hearts because they will always lead us astray.

And yet this is the main message of the company that is the main entertainer of America’s children. Perhaps of your own children. Really reflect on that for a moment.

Third, Disney is busily changing the definition of family. Again, in almost every film, there lacks a normal family. Think about all of the Disney films you have watched. Almost all are missing a parent. Obviously, this sometimes tragically happens but it has never been the norm. I can’t think of one (even their real life series and movies often are not showing the proper–and what used to be normal– nuclear family structure). This change in the nuclear family structure from these movies of yesteryear have opened the door for other family structures. Can you see the progression?

Fourth, many of these movies promote things that are utterly unacceptable and yet somehow make them seem alright– a young man enticing a teen girl to leave her room (Aladdin); a magical being luring three young children on an adventure (Peter Pan); A magical nanny teaching children witchcraft (Mary Poppins and Bedknobs and Broomsticks).

Oh, Christians, what have we been doing?!?

These are just four (of many) reasons we should stay far away from Disney, although more reasons are being piled up upon these four every day. From the ridiculous changes they desire to make in their theme parks to the ever-darkening propaganda they continue to push forth on the naive culture in their movies and series.

Should we be surprised at this trajectory of Disney?

Absolutely not. Not when we do a little digging into Walt’s past. You see, Walt was a 33rd degree freemason. He was always anti-God and  in direct opposition to biblical themes. From the beginning, he wanted to put occultic themes into the heads of children.

We Christians were just so naive.

Oh, I know that some of you saw this all along. And you were willing to speak up about it, too. I am so glad that you have done so!

But far more are unwilling to face the truth about this company that is deadset on teaching their kids and grandkids all that goes against scripture.

It is my hope and prayer that this post leads even one of you to re-evaluate this company and to start removing the wicked entertainment they are spewing forth from your lives and the lives of the precious children in your care.

And, like I said, I am saying this to myself as much as I am saying it to you. I will be throwing away my Disney movies (those I incorrectly labeled as “innocuous”). I have already canceled my Disney Plus and Disney credit card accounts. I am on a mission, now that God has opened my eyes.

There’s an inconspicuous verse in Daniel 10 (what I am reading this week) that says this:

Then he said to me, “Do not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard; and I have come because of your words. (verse 12)

The angel came in response to Daniel because he had “set his heart to understand.” Well, I want to be like Daniel. I want to set my heart to understand so that I am not deceived by things like Disney. I am ashamed it took me this long to “set my heart” but better late than never, right?

Will you join me?

 

(If you want to be horrified and further educated regarding what Disney is teaching our young people, then this documentary which I referred to earlier will inform you. However, please be aware that the author included–I am guessing unbeknownst to him–at least one “photoshopped” photo. Unfortunately, this photo will discredit the author when the bulk of what he says is clearly true. So use your own judgment on this.)

 

Lauren Daigle: A Biblical Evaluation

17 Comments / January 25, 2022

I often wonder if we Christians aren’t like those proverbial frogs boiling in a pot. Cultural Christianity has changed so slowly and so subtly over the past fifty years that some of us still may not realize that it has become a completely different religion than what the Bible teaches. There is no place this is more clear than in the CCM (Contemporary Christian Music) world. Here an “anything goes attitude” regarding biblical doctrine goes utterly unchallenged and often unnoticed.

At what point do Christians actually start listening to the lyrics playing on their “Christian” radio stations? At what point do Christians start looking at the artists that are filling their heads with words about God and life?

A great time to begin is now. Today.

Today we will look at one particular artist but I want to encourage you to look into any favorite “Christian” artist. Look at their testimonies. Look at who they hang around with. Look at what they stand for. You will most likely be very disappointed but this is better than filling our heads with things that are not only false but are also in complete opposition to God and His Word.

As I think back over my own music journey (which I wrote about here), I recognize that God can and will remove the desire for ungodly music that displeases Him so that you no longer even miss it. It takes awhile, but the first step is actually being willing to give it up. That step took me far, far too long I am ashamed to say. I truly hope you won’t make the same mistake I made, clutching on to something that not only is useless for a deeper walk with God but is actually harmful. 

Today’s particular post will help you get started on evaluating the music you allow in your mind. It is regarding a music artist that has a huge fan base of Christians. My daughter, Jess, posted the information below on her Anchor for the Soul Facebook page yesterday. As I was reading what she wrote, I recognized that this may be something you would want to know. Lauren is wildly popular and even if you don’t listen to her, there’s a good chance that someone you know does.

Jess did some research to find out just what Lauren believes, what she stands for, and who she stands with. I hope you find it helpful–not only in evaluating this one artist but also in learning how to evaluate all musicians who claim to follow Christ. Here’s what Jess wrote–

I’ve avoided discussing Lauren Daigle for a long time now. I know she’s incredibly popular and well-loved by a lot of people. And I don’t want it to ever look like I’m attacking individuals for the sheer pleasure of it. I only choose to write about someone when they are so far from Biblical truth that they have become dangerous and are leading others down a destructive path. Therefore, there is a lot of thought, prayer, and research that comes before an article like this one.

Lauren is incredibly talented. Her gift for singing and song-writing is undeniable. And she really seems to be a likable, kind, and fun person. I truly wish I didn’t have to warn you about her. I am not judging her motivation or her heart. I’m simply going to share her words and actions and compare them to God’s Word so that you can make your own decision. I’ve broken it down into my seven main concerns.

1. 𝗛𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗼𝗻𝘆. Lauren’s testimony begins as a teenager when she wad diagnosed with an illness that kept her homebound for nearly two years. She could tell, during this season, that God was setting her up for something. “𝘋𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦, 𝘎𝘰𝘥 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘮𝘦 𝘷𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘰𝘯 𝘐’𝘮 𝘸𝘢𝘭𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘯𝘰𝘸. 𝘏𝘦 𝘢𝘧𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘮𝘦𝘥 𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘏𝘪𝘮.” She said she had visions of stages, tour buses, and awards. “𝘐 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘎𝘰𝘥 𝘶𝘴𝘦𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘪𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘬 𝘵𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘶.” No mention of Jesus Christ, sin, or the cross. Only mystical dreams and visions that ironically predicted a future that would fulfill her own dreams and desires. I looked for the rest of the testimony. The part where she shares the actual Gospel. But I wasn’t able to find anything beyond what she shared above.

2. 𝗛𝗲𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗯𝗼𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙎𝙝𝙖𝙘𝙠. Lauren Daigle contributed to the soundtrack for the movie, 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘚𝘩𝘢𝘤𝘬. It’s an anti-Bible, blasphemous movie (and book). Lauren was interviewed in a promotion for the film and was asked what she liked best about it. She answered: “…𝘴𝘦𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘎𝘰𝘥. 𝘐 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘎𝘰𝘥 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘧𝘦𝘮𝘢𝘭𝘦…𝘐 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘦 (𝘎𝘰𝘥) 𝘴𝘢𝘪𝘥, ‘𝘐 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵’𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦.’” Complete and utter heresy. God is not a “she” nor does He ever appear to us in different forms because of “what our heart needs.”

3. 𝗛𝗲𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝗵𝗼𝗺𝗼𝘀𝗲𝘅𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆. After she appeared on the Ellen Show (and failed to talk about her faith in any way), she was asked if she thinks homosexuality is a sin. Her answer? “𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘐 𝘤𝘢𝘯’𝘵 𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘭𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘸𝘦𝘳 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵…𝘐 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘰𝘰 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘐 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵, 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘩𝘰𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘦𝘹𝘶𝘢𝘭, 𝘐 𝘥𝘰𝘯’𝘵 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸. 𝘐 𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘢 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘯𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘪𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 ‘𝘐 𝘤𝘢𝘯’𝘵 𝘴𝘢𝘺 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳, 𝘐’𝘮 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘎𝘰𝘥’…” No, Lauren, you aren’t God. But God does tell us what He says in His Word and His Word says homosexuality is a sin. (1 Corinthians 6:9, Romans 1:26, 1 Timothy 1:10, Jude 1:7)

4. 𝗛𝗲𝗿 𝗳𝗮𝗶𝗹𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗚𝗼𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗹. Lauren doesn’t share the Gospel or anything faith-related on her website. She doesn’t share the Gospel during her interviews or guest appearances or at her concerts. In all my research, I couldn’t find even one semi-clear presentation. Can you imagine this being said of any true Christian?

5. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝘂𝗿𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗺𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗰 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝘁𝘀 𝗺𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘂𝗻𝗯𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀. Lauren gets asked a lot about her music during her interviews. She constantly mentions “𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘤” and how people have told her that her songs have “𝘴𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘶𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘥𝘦.” Notice that? It’s the song that saved them. She never gives the glory to God. She said her “𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘵𝘰𝘶𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘮𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘤 𝘪𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮, 𝘪𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘮𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘢.”

A radio host asked her how she felt about her music hitting the top of the secular charts and reaching far beyond the christian world. Her answer? “𝘐𝘧 𝘪𝘵’𝘴 𝘮𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘤 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘷𝘦 𝘪𝘯, 𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘪𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘵’𝘴 𝘴𝘶𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘨𝘰.” She said that “𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯- 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵’𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘦 𝘱𝘶𝘳𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘦. 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘢 𝘴𝘦𝘦 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘰𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘧 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘴, 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘴𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘴.” That’s the purpose? Not sharing the Gospel. Not showing people their only real hope in hard times. Not pointing people toward the Bible. Not even worshipping the Lord. No, just togetherness.

Billboard asked her, “why should people listen to your music?” She answered: “𝘉𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘺. 𝘗𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘰. 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘮𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘤 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘪𝘵. 𝘗𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘧𝘪𝘦𝘥, 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸𝘯, 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘪𝘵.” She told a reporter at the Grammy Awards that she “𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦. 𝘎𝘰𝘥’𝘴 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘏𝘪𝘴 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴.” By telling the secular world that God is only love and kindness, she is robbing them of the good news of the Gospel. There is no good news without the bad news of sin, judgement, and the wrath to come. (Romans 1:18, John 3:36, Hebrews 10:31)

6. 𝗛𝗲𝗿 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀. James chapter 4 is very clear that you cannot be both a friend of the world and a friend of God. When the world applauds you, there is usually something very wrong. Lauren has soared to the top of the secular music charts. She was invited onto the Ellen Degeneres show, the Jimmy Fallon show, and the Kelly Clarkson show. She has been interviewed and lauded by secular magazines, radio shows, and youtube channels. She’s attended award shows like the Grammy’s and AMA awards. She even enthusiastically gave an award to an artist at the AMA Awards- an artist who’s lyrics would make any Christian sick to their stomach. When asked about her musical inspirations, her answer is always a list of secular music artists like Billie Eilish and Adele and Amy Winehouse. She was thrilled when Grey’s Anatomy featured one of her songs. Her actions perpetuate the lie that you can be loved and adored by the evil world and also be a child of God. (1 John 2:15, John 17:14, James 4:4)

7. 𝗛𝗲𝗿 𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄 𝗼𝗳 𝘀𝗶𝗻. Lauren says her popular song “Losing My Religion” is about removing the idea of striving and seeking perfection in Christianity. She says that “𝘖𝘯𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘐’𝘮 𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘥𝘰𝘮 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘧𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘤𝘬𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘰𝘹𝘦𝘴, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘶𝘭𝘦𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘶𝘥𝘥𝘺 𝘶𝘱 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘧𝘢𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘪𝘴…” When asked about a Pastor who was caught in adultery with his secretary and asked to step down, she said: “𝘐 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘴𝘦𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘷𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘤𝘪𝘭𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘩𝘶𝘳𝘤𝘩, 𝘵𝘰 𝘱𝘶𝘴𝘩 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘶𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘺. 𝘐𝘵’𝘴 𝘴𝘰 𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘱𝘶𝘴𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘵𝘦 𝘱𝘪𝘤𝘬𝘦𝘵 𝘧𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘰𝘭𝘰𝘨𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘊𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘊𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘤𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘊𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘳𝘦𝘫𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘊𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵.” She talks a lot about humanity (aka sin) and how God’s grace just covers it all. We don’t need worry about it. Yes, rules for the sake of rules aren’t good. And following rules will never get us into heaven. But following God’s rules in the Bible as an outpouring of love toward Him is a necessary result of true Salvation. We are to always be striving for holiness and obedience. (John 14:15, Philippians 3:12, Hebrews 12:4, 1 Timothy 4:10)

This is really just scratching the surface but there’s simply no room to elaborate much more. She a big believer in dominionism and the idea that we’re “bringing heaven to earth.” She told her concert audience that “𝘮𝘺 𝘩𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘤𝘩𝘶𝘳𝘤𝘩 𝘪𝘴 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 – 𝘪𝘵’𝘴 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘯𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵.” No preaching, no Bible, no fellowship but sure, that’s church. She’s partnered with Steven Furtick, Hillsong, Bethel, and Joyce Meyer. Her recent Instagram post about fasting included words like “stillness” and “clearance of mind” and “the transcendence of a mind, spirit, and body reset” and “awaiting secrets to be revealed.” Guys. These are occult buzz words. Oh, and she no longer wants to be considered a “Christian” artist but prefers simply “artist” since those labels really get put on you by other people, anyway.

Lauren Daigle is leading “worship” to the masses. And yet she seems to love the world, partners with false teachers, and fails to proclaim the truth of the Bible at every opportunity. She wants everyone to come together and be unified and experience the love of God. Did you know that that’s exactly what Satan wants? He wants people to have a good experience and feel unified and happy and think that they’re loved by God. All without having to turn from their sin and repent. He wants people to believe they can have both the world and Jesus. And Lauren is being used as a tool to further his goal.

Hopefully this opens your eyes to why we need to steer clear of her influence and her music in our lives and in the lives of our teenagers.

Jude 1:4 says “Beloved, although I made every effort to write to you about the salvation we share, I felt it necessary to write and urge you to contend earnestly for the faith entrusted once for all to the saints. For certain men have crept in among you unnoticed— ungodly ones who were designated long ago for condemnation. They turn the grace of our God into a license for immorality, and they deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.”

Let us contend earnestly for the faith. Biblical faith. And let us not praise and follow people who are blatantly turning the grace of our God into a license for immorality and therefore denying our Lord and Master, Jesus Christ.

 

The Chosen: Is It Biblical?

26 Comments / February 1, 2024

FEBRUARY 1, 2024 UPDATE: If you’d like to read more, you will find an updated post about The Chosen series at this link.

A few years ago a series about the Bible came on the scene called “The Chosen” and quickly became extremely popular. They even had a Christmas special this past year that many Christians enjoyed. My oldest daughter, Jess, watched it but became more than a little concerned when she noticed the ecumenism (a coming together of faiths) during the special.

She decided to do some research on the show. I believe you will be thankful that she did. What she found is important information for anyone who is truly dedicated to God and His Word. How important that we value truth and biblical accuracy over being entertained.

So today we will have a guest post by Jess, explaining what she found and why she has decided this show is definitely not biblical and should be eliminated from our list of entertainment options. I might add that I whole-heartedly agree with her conclusion. (You can find out more about Jess at the end of this post.) So here is why both she and I will not be watching The Chosen—

The Chosen TV series has recently taken the Christian world by storm. Do a quick google search and you’ll be hard pressed to find any criticism of the show. Instead, raving reviews come from those both inside and outside of the church. So I am aware that my own critique of this show will not be a very popular one. I believe, however, that it is a necessary one and I’m going to propose to you three reasons why I think it’s best that we avoid watching and endorsing The Chosen. 

My first concern is the subtle (or not-so-subtle) Scriptural inconsistencies. The most blatant one is the way the show pushes a feminist agenda. We first glimpse this when Jesus asks Mary Magdalene to lead in prayer and Scripture reading before a sabbath dinner. This is a historically impossible scenario and totally inconsistent with first century Jewish culture. Mary Magdalene is also seen throughout the show as “the 13th disciple” and travels around with Jesus and His disciples. It would have been both culturally and morally inappropriate for a single woman to travel around with a bunch of men. And if she had, her virtue and the intentions of Jesus and the disciples would have been called into question. And finally, in episode 6, we see Tamar and Mary Magdalene carry the paralytic man through the crowd. This is in direct contradiction to the story in Luke 5 where it clearly states “some men” carried the paralytic man (see verse 18). The writers are clearly trying to appease the feminist American culture even at the expense of changing the words of Scripture.

Another error is found when Jesus is conversing with Nicodemus and asks him, “what does your heart say?” I can tell you– beyond a shadow of a doubt–Jesus never would have said that (Jeremiah 17:9). They also portray Matthew as having Asperger’s Syndrome. You can’t find any proof for this scripturally and, again, it feels as though they’re simply pandering to the current American culture.

My second concern is that this show will affect the way people approach Scripture. The writers obviously take a lot of liberties with the story of Jesus, the disciples, and other biblical characters to create a multi-season series. You might think it’s not a big deal; that it’s just entertainment. But this show adds details, attributes, and circumstances that aren’t in the Bible to Bible characters and Bible stories. Don’t you think that those things might paint an inaccurate picture that will affect the way you read God’s Word?

Quotes like “I came to know Jesus better through this show” and “I feel like I’ve been reading my Bible in black and white all these years and now it’s in color” have been circulating on social media by both the creators and fans of the show. The creator says he’s “trying to tell God’s stories in a fresh way” and “enhancing Scripture”. Those are all incredibly dangerous statements. Do you need something other than God’s Word to know Jesus? No. In fact, God’s Word is the only way we can know Jesus. Do we need anything to enhance God’s stories or tell them in a fresh way? Absolutely not. Only the Bible is the inspired Word of God and it needs no enhancing or modern re-telling by fallible men.

My final concern is with the creator of the show himself, Dallas Jenkins. Before I share my own thoughts, I think it might be best to allow his own statement, in an interview on a LDS (Church of the Latter Day Saints or Mormon) radio show, to speak for itself:

“So I can honestly say, it’s been one of the top three most fascinating and beautiful things about this project – it’s been my growing brother and sisterhood with people of the LDS community that I never would’ve known otherwise and I learned so much about your faith tradition and realizing, gosh, for all the stuff that maybe we don’t see eye to eye on…that all happened, that’s all based on stuff that happened after Jesus was here. The stories of Jesus we do agree on, and we love the same Jesus. That’s not something you often hear…sometimes it’s like, oh they believe in a different Jesus than we do. No, it’s the same, I mean I’ll sink or swim on that statement. I know that’s controversial and I don’t mind getting criticized at all for the show, and I don’t mind being called a blasphemer, I don’t like it when my friends are. I made it very clear that if I go down, I’m going down protecting my friends and my brothers and sisters and so I don’t deny we have a lot of theological differences but we love the same Jesus.” 

This is one of many examples of him stating that Mormonism, Catholicism, and Christianity simply have minor theological differences. He calls them “different perspectives” that are “exciting to explore, not dangerous”. He consults a Catholic priest, a Jewish rabbi, and an evangelical christian after writing each episode to make sure they are “biblically accurate”. You can find him saying many times that we all believe in or that we all love the same Jesus.

But do we? Both the church of LDS and Catholics believe in a combination of works and faith. Mormons believe that God attained His supreme status by righteous works and that Jesus is a created being and not equal to God. I could go into more details behind the errors of the Mormon and Catholic faiths and what makes them false religions, but I’ll save that for another day. However, the differences between the true Christian faith and the Mormon and Catholic faiths are essential, gospel issues and not simply theological differences we can brush over. And the bottom line is this: If Dallas Jenkins believes what he’s saying then he doesn’t understand the true Gospel. The Gospel that says there’s only one way. The Gospel that says we are forgiven on the merit of Christ alone and not of anything we can do. The one and only Gospel that is founded on the belief that Jesus is God incarnate.

And do we really want to watch a show about Jesus and the Gospel that is created by a man who doesn’t even understand the Gospel? I’ll let you make that decision, but I, for one, cannot.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Jess is a wife to one of my favorite son-in-laws and mom to three boys. She loves the Lord and values truth. When she’s not busy being a mom, she enjoys researching things as she compares them to God’s Word. She has recently decided to start a Facebook page and Instagram account dedicated to running popular philosophies, movements, entertainment, authors, and teachers through the grid of the Bible. You can find her Facebook page here. Her Instagram is @anchor.for.the.soul.

A REMINDER: If you’d like to continue hearing from me, should I be censored, I am asking you to give me your name and email address if you haven’t already done so. You can do this by simply replying to this email. I am trying to find a censorship-free platform to use for my subscribers and will only add those that actually value the content posted here and want to be added.

Thinking Beyond the Obvious (Part 1)

9 Comments / September 7, 2023

The past several months have brought several trials across my doorway. A few major ones but mostly minor. A few extremely heart-wrenching but most simply annoying or inconvenient. Through it all, I’ve had a choice in how I was going to react and respond. And, to be flat-out honest, I’ve been less than impressed with myself. The tough moments of life quickly show us our weaknesses, don’t they? You think you are getting somewhere in your spiritual journey and then BAM! A trial hits and you realize you haven’t gotten near as far as you thought. It definitely keeps me humble. To say the least.

One of the things that I’ve been thinking about recently in regards to this is worldliness. I found myself responding way too often just as the world would respond. Wouldn’t responding and reacting just like the world make me “spotted” by the world? (James 1:27) Throughout most of my life, I’ve viewed worldliness mostly through the avenue of entertainment. I’ve written several posts on trying to eliminate this form of worldliness from our lives. And rightly so. The lack of discernment in this area is epidemic in the lives of Christians. There is a gigantic disconnect between Christians and their entertainment.

But, while this is important, I’ve been realizing that worldliness is far more encompassing than entertainment. I’d like to take a few posts and look into this subject of worldliness. What does the Bible teach about it? What are some surprising areas where we need to be on guard against it? And what steps do we take to minimize or even eradicate it from our lives? If there is time, we may even take a look at how the doctrine of separation and the term “worldliness” was completely eradicated from our current church culture. Whew! That’s a lot to cover.

It’s been awhile since I wrote a series, but as I’ve been reflecting on this topic recently, I believe it is critical to have a good understanding of it. I hope that this series is a blessing to us all as we strive to live holy and godly lives.

First, let’s talk about what the Bible teaches specifically about worldliness. A few passages quickly come to mind. You could find more if you do your own study. God makes it clear that we are to be separate from the world. Not in connecting with and loving others or in sharing the Gospel with the lost but in how we live our lives. There should be a vast contrast between our life and that of our unsaved neighbor.

Let’s look at three of the scripture passages that speak about this–

I John 2:15-17—Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. 17 And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.

Do not love the world or the things of this world. Wow. How more clear can you get than that? We are not to love the world or the things of the world. This encompasses all areas of life. Not just entertainment. Not just the obvious things we think of immediately. The world’s wisdom and philosophies permeate every aspect of life. Have you ever thought about this? I really hadn’t until just recently.

Romans 12:1-2—I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

Do not be conformed to this world. The definition of conform is: to be similar or identical. From these verses, we can know that we are not to look anything like the world in any way. We can also see that as we grow and start to look more and more like Jesus we will look less and less like the world.

James 4:4— Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.

Friendship with the world=Enmity with God. God couldn’t have made it much clearer than that, could He have? If we insist on being a friend of the world, then we have, by default, become the enemy of God. If we think about this seriously for just a moment, we have to recognize something that is very sobering: True believers are not friends with this world. This doesn’t mean that we don’t sometimes desire friendship or even cave to that battle. It also doesn’t mean that we are without struggle or growth in this area. This is not perfectly realized as a baby Christian or even as a mature Christian. What it does mean is that eventually the Holy Spirit convicts us and we recognize that we cannot be friends with God and friends with this world at the same time. God doesn’t leave a whole lot of wiggle room in this area of befriending the world.

So we can see from these passages above that God expects us to remain disenchanted with the world and its philosophies. That we are to separate ourselves from it and to be different. In fact, it is this difference that will make us stand out to those who are seeking Jesus Christ. It will be this difference that makes us as light and salt to a lost and dying world (Matthew 5:13-14) Of course, this is a far cry from what is being taught in the mainstream church these days. Most popular Christian teachers, preachers, authors, and musicians are either completely ignoring this doctrine or promoting the exact opposite.

So let’s take a look now at some of the ways worldly thinking and attitudes creep into our lives when we least expect it. I confess I had to really stop and think about some of these things and I will readily admit to you that I have to recognize that I am far more worldly that I thought I was. It happens so subtly. How easy it is to fall prey to this–especially in a Christian culture that is promoting it so heavily.

So here we go. I will start the list today and continue on in the next post. Please keep in mind that in several of these categories the mainstream church isn’t too far off from the World. It’s a sad, sad thing and we must be on guard. Just because your favorite Pastor says it or a Christian author promotes it or a Christian artist sings it, does not mean it is biblical truth. We truly must compare everything to God’s Word. This has always been true, but perhaps never so critical as in the minefield that is called “Christianity” today.

So just how do we let the world slip into our daily lives so easily?

Let’s look at the obvious and not-so-obvious ways–

1. ENTERTAINMENT. Let’s start with the obvious. After all–it is one of the primary ways that worldliness inches its way into our lives.

The World: Watch, listen to, and read what you want. It doesn’t matter. Numb your brain as much as you can with any and all kinds of entertainment–no matter how wicked. God and even morals are irrelevant when it comes to entertainment. The only thing that matters is that you experience pleasure.

What the Bible Says: I will set nothing wicked before my eyes (Psalm 101:3). We can also look at Galatians 5:19-21, which provides one of several lists of the “works of the flesh”. These are things that we are not to practice as believers–and we can safely assume that they are things we are not to entertain ourselves with, as well.

This area of entertainment is one of the key ways Satan infiltrates a Christian’s life. Cleaning up and even cutting back on our entertainment has the power to tremendously change our walks with the Lord for the better. There is something that stands between us and the Lord when we are constantly filling our minds with the things He abhors. Until we are willing to give these things up, there is a wall there that cannot be removed. As we grow in Christ and yield our entertainment to Him, we will lose our appetite for these things. But we have to be willing to give them up first and let Christ “clean house”.

Think about not only what you watch but how often you watch. Pay attention to music lyrics on the radio. Think about not only what you read but how often you read frivolous fare compared to the solid food of the Word or even the works of solid Christian authors (most of whom are long gone now–Ryle, Spurgeon, the Puritan writers, etc.)

Sometimes it isn’t what we are watching but how often we are watching. I really had to think about this a few months ago. I had allowed myself to get lazy and we just turned the TV on every evening as a matter of course. It stayed on a good part of the evening while we mindlessly consumed what we considered as fairly innocuous programming. But somewhere in there God really convicted me and we made an effort to really change that. I realized just how much precious time I was wasting. If Satan can’t get us with the evil entertainment issue he will try to get us with the wasting time issue. We must be on guard for both. I was also challenged about my definition of “innocuous” programming. When we really evaluate what we are watching through the lens of scripture, we are really left with little to watch.

2. NETWORKING/BUILDING A PLATFORM. This is a more recent thing. Several years ago, I took an online class that taught me how to “build a platform”. I took it because at that point in time, I was hoping to grow this blog. It wasn’t until a bit later that I took on John MacArthur’s philosophy of marketing (as in: I don’t market myself. If God wants to grow the blog, He can take care of that. I will just be faithful to God and His Word, in whatever ministry He places me and let Him take care of the rest!)

The World: Get as many connections as you can. Work hard to connect with the ones that will help you build your platform. Numbers matter. Get as many followers and connections as you possibly can to enlarge your circle.

What the Bible Says: Don’t worry about building a platform. Our job is to serve faithfully in whatever ministry we have been called to (Matthew 20:16; Hebrews 12:28; 2 Timothy 1:3). John 3:30 takes it a step further: He must increase, but I must decrease. We aren’t even to be worrying about ourselves or our “platform”. Our focus should be on giving God the glory, sharing the Gospel, and growing the saints. He will take care of building any platform that we need.

Would it surprise you to know that there is not one word in the scripture about building a network? Does this mean it is wrong to be on social media? Of course not. We like to follow those with similar interests or those that encourage us in our faith. And it is fine for them to follow us. This is not about the what but about the why. Are we following someone so that they will follow us back? Are we commenting on something so that we will bring notice to ourselves and get our name out there? Are we developing a friendship with that guy or conversing with that girl because they have “connections”? In short, are we using people to further our own agenda?

One of the things I was told that I would need to do in order to build my platform was to read other blogs and be actively participating by commenting. I did try this for awhile, but at the time I was extremely busy and didn’t have time to read a lot of blogs that I didn’t really care about. Since that time, I only read blogs that I really enjoy. (This change in attitude has also given me total freedom from offense if friends or family don’t read my blog. There are just so many hours in a day and I totally get it if my blog isn’t their “cup of tea”. We all have to choose what we have time to do. I mean I absolutely love when someone I know personally tells me they like my blog or that they were blessed by a post. But I also know that just because they don’t take time to read this particular blog isn’t necessarily a reflection on their feelings for me. Okay–enough of that bunny trail!)

In summary, we must not use people to further our ministries, careers, or personal followings. In fact, we should spend minimal–if any–time marketing ourselves. The world would say use people and puff yourself up. But the Bible says love people and diminish yourself. See how these are complete opposites?

3. LANGUAGE/COMMUNICATION. How the world talks and communicates should be very different from how we Christians communicate on so many different levels–how we talk, what we talk about, and even the tone with which we say what we say.

The World: Foul language; Agreement equals love; Gossip; Speak your mind no matter who you hurt.

What the Bible Says:  Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers. (Ephesians 4:29)

What exactly is edification? According to google, it is defined as: The instruction or improvement of a person morally or intellectually. Now if we run everything we say through this grid, it clears up a lot of things real quick.

Are we edifying someone by using foul language? No.

Are we edifying someone if we stand around and talk about about the boss or a fellow employee? No.

Are we edifying someone if we give our agreement to something that we know is wrong? No.

And one more–

Are we edifying someone if we speak our mind in a brusque, matter-of-fact manner without a smidge of love or kindness? No.

See how helpful this verse is? Probably would be a good one for us all to memorize and reflect on before we say anything.

Are you starting to see how much the world has crept into our mindset? How many things we have let slide and never even think about? As I started thinking about this, it can be a little overwhelming. But we can’t let “overwhelming” stop us from living in submission and obedience to God’s Word.

My next post will continue with more areas we have allowed worldliness to seep into our lives without even thinking about it.

(You can find the entire series at this link.)

When God Opens Our Eyes

4 Comments / January 28, 2019

A few weeks ago I had the privilege of going to Florida with a couple of my dear friends. It was planned before I knew I was headed back to work and, at first, I stewed a bit. Could I really afford to give up five days to vacation in Florida? And then I realized that God was well aware of what my situation would be and perhaps He thought I needed a bit of down-time before jumping from one busy season to the next. I decided to just enjoy it.

Before I left I realized my favorite shampoo was running low. Thankfully, I thought of it while I was at the grocery store and I hurriedly grabbed a bottle from the shelf while shopping a day or two before. I took it home and squeezed a bunch of it into an emptied travel shampoo bottle to tuck into my carry-on. The bottle still had a little water in it from trying to rinse out the previous shampoo so I wasn’t sure if that would mess up the shampoo or not. I wasn’t too worried.

The first morning, as I began to wash my hair in the shower a bunch of water came out of the bottle. Oops. As I took the rather gloppy shampoo and rubbed it a bit in my hands it didn’t feel quite right. As I rubbed it through my hair it was even more weird. Would a little water make that much difference?? I didn’t think so. But, of course, I was using unfamiliar water, as well. Maybe it was harder…or softer…or just different than what I was used to. My hair was notoriously flat and lifeless that day and every day of that vacation because of this weird shampoo experience.

It wasn’t until the final day that it FINALLY hit me!

Like a lightening bolt, it hit me.

As I rubbed that lifeless, watery formula through my hair for the last day, my eyes were suddenly opened. This wasn’t shampoo at all. It was conditioner.

How could I have been so stupid not to realize it before? I still couldn’t confirm it but the more I thought about it the more certain I was that this must be the problem.

When I got home, I pulled the “shampoo” bottle from the shower. Sure enough. The company that manufactures it uses the exact same bottle for shampoo and for conditioner and I had carelessly pulled one from the shelf, never checking to make sure it was actually shampoo.

Now besides feeling really stupid, I felt…well…enlightened.

I finally had solved the puzzle.

And that was a good thing.

And–you know by now–I can’t let such a good analogy pass me by without talking about it here. Even if it does let the whole world know my rather embarrassing story.

Because I think this happens to us. We are listening to our favorite preachers. Reading the books of our favorite authors. Following our favorite celebrity speakers on social media. Perhaps we are in the habit of doing a favorite activity that we’ve never thought about being wrong before. But then something doesn’t seem right. Red flags are raised but we can’t quite put our finger on it. And then God opens our eyes. Through His Word, through a concerned fellow believer, or any other number of ways and, suddenly, we realize and we connect the dots.

What we do at that point is critical. If I had continued to use that conditioner even though my eyes were opened to the truth of the situation, you would have wondered about my intellectual capacity (you may already be wondering that, anyway, given my admission above!) Of course–like anyone else would–I stopped using conditioner and started using shampoo.

And, yet, do we respond this same way when it comes to spiritual things? Do we stop listening, reading, following the wrong things and very intentionally fill our minds with the right things? Do we stop doing something that we know is wrong even though we love to do it? Do we then replace these things with things that are true, righteous, and good, as we evaluate them according to God’s Word? It’s easy to make excuses. There are plenty of ways to rationalize why we can continue to follow someone or continue on in an activity that we know is unpleasing to the Lord.

Now, of course, I would never rationalize using conditioner for the rest of my life.

But we all know why. Conditioner made my hair lifeless and dull. I never use it. Ever. And so the consequences of using conditioner were not pleasant for me.

So no big deal to switch. My life is much more pleasant using shampoo than using conditioner.

And there is probably the real difference. What some of these false and/or compromising teachers teach makes our lives seemingly more happy. What they bring us is attractive to us, if we are living only in the temporal and not considering the eternal. They offer us popularity; pleasing philosophies; encouraging, uplifting (and extremely self-centered) messages. They allow us to have our cake and eat it, too. No turning from the world, no self-denial, no concern for turning from sin. These things matter not as long as we are happy.

And our entertainment and activities make our lives more fun. We look less weird and we are more popular if we just watch, wear, and do what everyone else does.

It is incredibly hard to turn away from teachers and activities that would seem to make our lives more pleasant and enjoyable. It truly is.

But, of course, the question to ourselves should never be: “Is this too hard for me?”

But should always be: “Is this the right thing for me to do?”

We sometimes get a little mixed up about which question to ask. Especially in this self-obsessed world.

And so I encourage you to follow through. If the Lord has been opening your eyes, submit yourself to the pain, acknowledge the hurt, and then turn away and move on. It will be a very real hurt if you choose to turn away from someone you have trusted to teach you the truth. It will be a real hardship to give up an activity that has bonded you to people you love to be with. Yes, it will be a very painful process. But, in the long run, you will be so thankful you did. Just like pouring alcohol on a wound stings dreadfully when it provides a necessary cleansing, so, too, does ridding ourselves of false teachers and ungodly activities.

But when God opens our eyes, He has given us an amazing opportunity. We need to grab hold of it and take it!

 

 

 

What Are You Willing to Give Up for Jesus?

6 Comments / October 11, 2018

I was having a conversation with an elementary-aged girl about unicorns a few weeks back. As you are probably already aware, they are currently all the rage. You find unicorns everywhere. They are the theme of birthday parties, plastered on lunch boxes, school supplies, girls’ clothing, and almost everywhere else. I have even seen them on baby clothing at Carter’s.

This little girl was telling me how much she loved unicorns. And then she stopped and looked at me: “Wait. Are unicorns bad?”

I do not know why she even asked me that question. I had not said even a word as she went on and on about how much she loved them. And the conversation took place while I was giving her a ride home in the evening so she couldn’t see my face. But she asked it. She asked me if they are bad.

And I had to answer honestly. I had no interest in bursting her bubble, but, yes, unicorns are bad. These mystical creatures are a symbol of feminism, magic/occult, and the LGBT movement, among other things. (Just do a search and see what shows up. It’s a bit disturbing). But I realize that most people don’t know this so I am not making any judgment on you if there are unicorns in the life of the little girls you love. This post isn’t about unicorns but about this little girl’s response…

I tried to kindly explain that unicorns might not be the best thing to love. But she cut me off and announced matter-of-factly that she didn’t care if they were bad because she loved them far too much. Nothing would make her give them up.

And I had to laugh inside. Not that it was all that funny. But how often are we just like that little girl? How often do we respond exactly like her? We are not willing to give up what we love even if God clearly directs us from His Word that we should do so.

Whether it’s unicorns or it’s–

• A TV show, book series, or music genre that we just love but recognize, deep-down inside, that it shouldn’t be a part of our lives.

• An unbiblical church that isn’t preaching truth…but all of our friends are there.

• Bad habits of eating too much, spending too much, drinking too much, knowing full-well we are not pleasing our heavenly Father.

• An unsaved boyfriend or girlfriend that, in our flesh, we want to date.

• Some secret sin that no one knows about or a secret place we go or a secret vice we cling to.

• A grudge or unforgiving heart towards someone that we love to nurse.

• Our penchant for gossip, or “white” lies (a lie is a lie, btw), or cheating our bosses or perhaps even the government (on our taxes).

• Allowing worry and anxiety to consume us and control our lives.

 

And we respond like the little girl:

I don’t care if it’s wrong, I am going to do this anyway.

Can you see how a seed of rebellion shows it first green leaves at this declaration? Oh, we may not say it out loud or even in our thoughts, but we know. We know when we are holding on to something sinful with an unwillingness to budge.

And this is when a wall starts to grow between us and the Lord.

Jesus says that if we love Him, we will keep His commandments (John 14:15). James tells us we must submit to God so that the devil will flee from us (James 4:7). Peter tells us to turn away from our former lusts and to be holy (I Peter 1:14-16). Paul tells us this same thing in Ephesians (Ephesians 4:22-24).

When we refuse to put away worldly, ungodly things that we know full well are sinful we are quite effectively blocking our own growth as a believer. Rebellion is what caused Satan to be removed from heaven (Isaiah 14:12-15) and it’s what led Eve to eat that apple (Genesis 3). She wasn’t going to let God tell her what was good and evil. She could decide for herself.

How often do we have this same attitude? God, I’ll obey you in this, this, and this but I am not going to give you that. I can make up my own mind about that and I don’t need to submit to you.

But these little decisions and behaviors do not go unnoticed by the God who loves us. I wonder if He grieves at our selfish, spoiled child mentality of wanting what we want and refusing to give it up?

We know that sinful choices always lead us away from Him. And as they lead us away from Him, they are moving us towards heartache, chains, and despair. Affairs, addictions, and broken relationships all begin with a seemingly insignificant decision of rebellion. But, even if it’s not going to lead us into something like that, we know that every sinful choice takes us just a step further away from pure fellowship with God. Rebellion always does this.

I am not here to give you a list of what you can and cannot do, where you can and cannot go, what you can and cannot watch or listen to. But, instead, I simply want to encourage you, as a believer, to follow your conscience. Listen to that niggling doubt that is in the back of your head. Ask the Lord to open your eyes to your sin and to any choices that are leading you away from Him. Be willing to surrender your own will and desires to the God who loves you.

I write this to myself, as well. Maybe mostly to myself. I found this to be oh, so challenging. A supposedly insignificant conversation with a little girl about unicorns filled me with conviction over how I can be so rebellious in the “little” sinful things I refuse to give up.

Maybe that little conversation will convict you, too, which is why I decided to share it.

Just what are we willing to give up for Jesus? What are we willing to give up so that we can have the best possible relationship with Him? Is any sin or selfish choice worth a break in our fellowship with our precious Lord and Savior?

 

 

 

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