Are You Serving Two Masters?

Hate what is evil, cling to what is good.


All Christians are agreed? Good.


Now here is the hard part- Go to your home movie cupboard or what ever you may have and get rid of it all. Now cancel cable.


Not a chance, you say? Hard isn't it?


Why? Because we love them to much. We find them entertaining. We have invested to much into them. It is just part of life to have them. They tantalze our lust for things of the flesh. We build ourselves a shrine called the entertainment room, big screens, lights, the whole works. We worship in this temple, become educated in this temple, we spare no expense. We revel in our collection of movies.


We as Christians keep complaining about how bad movies are these days... and yet those same movies are in our own homes. Sorry, I should say GOD'S Home that he has entrusted you to care for. How does something like movies become so important to us, that we would rather defend and excuse ourselves then give it up. Think about it. What is it that is so important?


'But I like them', 'they're funny', 'It is just for entertainment','I'm not watching it for the bad parts', 'that's just the way our culture is now', 'it's a cute movie','you're making a big deal out of nothing','it's just a movie'....


Tell that one to God.

How low we stoop when we find entertaining the very practices GOD HATES! The very things we are to battle against, we use for relaxation. The family devotional is replaced by family time around the TV. We are boiling ourselves to death like the frog in a pot. We can't even tell what is good or bad anymore. We've warped our minds so badly. We have become lover's of pleasure instead of lovers of God. We have set before our eyes the wicked things which God commands us not to do. God isn't pleading with us that we don't do it... He has commanded us. We as Christians have failed to use our discretion. It pains me to hear of Christians talking about a latest movie that is filled with the most horrible things, and yet they talk of how great the movie was and how they are going to get it soon. They don't even blink at sin in them anymore, it doesn't even phase them. What's worse, the worst parts are the ones they love the most, laugh at, and copy.


"But I'm not like that...I know when something isn't right so I can watch it without being influenced by it" --Since when does knowing something is evil in God's sight give you permission to put it in front of you!!!


What ever happened to 'What ever you do; do it all for the glory of God"? Did your viewing of last night's TV program glorify God and edify you? No, it glorifed your carnality.

"But it has a really good message"--check again, was that message biblical or humanistic?

"But I love movies where good wins over the bad"-- Were those 'good' guys what God defines as good? Even their acts and very nature are wicked before Him.

This was a very hard area for me to accept, but but in the end it paid off. I put them all in boxes down to the basement( I wasn't brave enough to get rid of them permanently in the beginning), and refused cable.(Actually, I weeded them out little by little,the most obvious ones went, and as time wore on, I realized that others too were not what they should be until one day I realized that not one of them would have God's approval) I replaced my videos with ones that honoured God, educated me in the christian walk, and blessed my home and family.After awhile, I began to realize how influenced I was by the former videos in my home. I realized how influenced my children were and that scared me, since I am by God responsible for their upbringing. The movies I once loved, now are to me like poison. Harsh to say but true. Only when we get rid of these things do our hearts fully understand how powerful in message these things are.( A word of caution... I also found that not all movies in christian stores are biblicly christian either.)

I will no longer go into movie stores as well. When taking my children in there in the past I told them to look down if they see something they shouldn't be looking at( me, being the good mom to guard their eyes) saw them the whole time with their heads down. That woke me up. I finally looked with my heart wide open for once... they were right, even the things I thought harmless were wicked in God's sight. I walked out and have never been in there again.

It is a radical step, so foreign to our minds to live without our idols, it has become like the air we breath. And our reluctance to let these things go is a testimony that they are too important. Why do you still hang on to yours? We cannot serve two masters. If God said to you right now them or me... could you get rid of them? He's saying it right now. Will those movies still be there tomorrow? Wow, they really are your master. Pray about it. Pray hard. It really will make a difference in your spiritual walk.


If anyone would like some suggestions for some titles of what to replace them with, let me know.