Well not long after this, some of his subjects were walking down a hallway. When they came upon an open closet door, they noticed a curious box with strange pellets inside. One of the mice noticed the skull and crossbones on part of the packaging. “Gasp! That’s the poison that the king told us about,” said one. Another, bold, mouse looked on the back of the box at the ingredients. “Hey look here! 99% good food, and 1% poison! That’s not so bad!” So the mouse started eating. The others reminded him of the king’s warning. He didn’t care. “Well, it doesn’t feel bad to me, so it must be alright.” He reasoned that if he just ignored the poison, it would be OK. But it was still there.
Christians do this same thing on a daily basis. Our King tells us “…whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” (Philippians 4:8) But sometimes in our Christian walk, we come across a shiny box. We look at the ingredients. “Rated R for mild language and brief nudity.” “Hey, that’s not too bad,” we think. Maybe it’s PG-13. Maybe it’s an M rated video game, maybe it’s Satanic music, maybe it’s dirty magazines or books. No matter what packaging it comes in, it’s poisoned.
Think about that mouse for a second. He can ignore that poison all he wants, but it’s still there, working its way into his system and doing its damage. He can even try to eat around it, and pick the poison out. But will he really get it all? If he has to do that, why not just eat the good food? Besides, his king told him not to eat it. Psalm 101:3 says, “I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that perish; it shall not cling to me. “ Ask yourself, do you set wicked things before your eyes? Do you hate the works (of art, of music, movies) of those who perish (sinners)? Do these things cling to you?
Habakkuk 1:13 says of God “Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity…” God is too holy to look upon iniquity. The Bible tells us to not let Satan get a foothold. When we set wicked things before our eyes, and think on things that are not lovely, not pure, not virtuous, there is a good chance God is turning His holy eyes from us at these times, and we are most definitely giving the devil a foothold. I don’t know about you, but I do not want the wicked works of perishing sinners to cling to me, causing God to look the other way while I give the devil a foothold.
Someone once told me, “Yeah well the Bible has some violent and explicit things in it.” Would you really bring the Bible to the level of an R rated movie? Of course not. The Bible is the Word of God, and is historical fact. It is not made solely for our entertainment. Movies and video games and such are. I do not sit down and read about people having tent stakes driven into their temples for entertainment. I do not entertain myself with the telling of the defiling of Dina. That is history (from the Word of God). Have you ever thought about that? When someone sits down to watch an R or PG-13 rated movie they are entertaining themselves with violence, or sexual immorality, or foul language, or whatever else.
I have had people tell me that "God wants us to have fun in life too, you know!" With what? People being blown up, or using foul language, or being generally immoral? I don’t think so! God wants us to think about things that “are true…honest… just…pure… lovely…of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise.” If that sounds drab to you, and you would rather watch someone get blown up or cussed out, then maybe it’s time to examine your thinking.
“I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that perish; it shall not cling to me.” Psalm 101:3
“Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” Philippians 4:8
God bless!
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