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Psa 101:1-4
I will
sing of mercy and judgment: unto thee, O LORD, will I sing. I will
behave myself wisely in a perfect way. O when wilt thou come unto
me? I will walk within my house with a perfect heart. I will set no
wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that turn
aside; it shall not cleave to me.
A froward heart shall depart from me: I will not know a
wicked person.
The Devil, knowing that a picture is worth a thousand
words and seeing the damage the movies were doing to the average
person who attended, set out to get these movies into the home and
thereby corrupting the family.
After not owning a TV for over thirty years and looking
back over that time I realize the damage that has been done by the
influence of TV. I believe when we get to Heaven we will find this
was the greatest tool of the Devil to corrupt the family and damage
the true church of the living God.
When I was a boy and later when I first got saved, preachers like
John R. Rice preached against the movies and that Christians should
not attend those movies. The Devil realizing the failure of the
movies he then moved the movie into the living room. Now the
Christians could see the movies they had missed without going to the
movie house and no one would know what they were watching. Once
people began to get TV into their homes they would have to have an
antenna on top of their house and old time preachers would say, "you
can tell where the Devil lives by the horns on top of the houses."
Over time the preachers began to get televisions in their
homes and they stopped preaching against it and now because of the
sin portrayed on it they have quit preaching on sin. It is hard to
preach against something you are paying to have in your living room
without being a hypocrite.
Let me go to the scripture to see what God’s Word has to say that
applies to this wicked TV. The first one is Psalm 101:1-4, “A Psalm
of David. I will sing of mercy and judgment: unto thee, O LORD, will
I sing. I will behave myself wisely in a perfect way. O when wilt
thou come unto me? I will walk within my house with a perfect heart.
I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them
that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me. A froward heart shall
depart from me: I will not know a wicked person.” Let me point out
the different statements. David said, “I will behave myself wisely
in a perfect way.” Question: Can you honestly say it is wise to
waste your time watching this idiot box and allowing your children to
watch it? He was talking about his behavior within his house and to
walk with a perfect heart. Question: Can you say that you can watch
TV and keep your heart right in the sight of God? Remember, all sin
starts in the heart and works its way out through the flesh. Mark
7:20 - 23 “And he said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man. For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed
evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, Thefts,
covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye,
blasphemy, pride, foolishness: All these evil things come from
within, and defile the man.” Jesus lists thirteen things that come
from the heart and in I John 2:15-17 “ Love not the world, neither
the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the
love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the
lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life,
is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth
away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God
abideth for ever.” the lust of the flesh, eyes and pride of life are
all affected by the TV. Psalm 101:3 “I will set no wicked thing
before mine eyes.” Question: Can you say that the TV is not a wicked
thing? When you watch TV you have to hear profanity, see nakedness
and sexual content, queers are portrayed as normal and straights as
odd balls. The advertisements are wicked, news perverted and life
styles are contrary to the standards of the Bible. If you don’t
believe I am right just look at the moral condition that exists in
our churches since the appearance of the TV. Now David said, “I hate
the works of them who turn aside”. Question: Do you hate the works
of those who turn aside? You cannot say yes and watch that wicked
TV. But you fit the category found in Romans 1:28-32, “And even as
they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them
over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not
convenient; Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication,
wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder,
debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers, Backbiters, haters of God,
despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient
to parents, Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural
affection, implacable, unmerciful: Who knowing the judgment of God,
that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do
the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.” Be sure to look
at verse 32.
Then David says, “It shall not cleave to me”. He is referring to the
influence of that wicked thing he had mentioned. Question: Can you
say that the influence of the TV has not cleaved unto you? People
change their dress codes to match the whores and whorehoppers in
Hellywood. Women are no longer embarrassed by filth that they hear
and see. Men are disappointed by their wives because they don’t look
as sexy as those women on TV. Children think it is the in thing to
be like the morally depraved young people they see on TV. David now
finishes by saying, “I will not know a wicked person.” Question: How
many TV personalities can you name that you could respect and honor
that are that are not wicked? June
7, 2005 the World Net Daily reported that Oprah Winfrey was in the
running for the title of the greatest American. If it were not for
the TV and the diluted watchers she would not have been mentioned.
You know the time and name of the programs and yet probably could
not name the twelve apostles, give the ten commandments or tell the
books of the Bible that Paul wrote and can’t find the books in the
Bible without the index.
Let’s go to the next scripture. Deuteronomy 7:2 “Neither shalt thou
bring an abomination into thine house, lest thou be a cursed thing
like it: but thou shalt utterly detest it, and thou shalt utterly
abhor it; for it is a cursed thing.” Moses states that we are not to
bring an abomination (something discussing morally - Strong’s) into
our house lest we become a cursed thing like it. Has not this
scripture been fulfilled since the TV got into the saved peoples’
homes? The TV determines the dress codes for the people, the morals,
encourages race mixing and what you need and now the average saved
church member has conformed to the TV standards instead of God’s and
are cursed. In compromising to fit the standards of the heathen,
people have rejected Jeremiah 10:2 “Thus saith the LORD, Learn not
the way of the heathen, and be not dismayed at the signs of heaven;
for the heathen are dismayed at them.”, where we are instructed
not to learn the way of the heathen. When the children of Israel
went into the land of Canaan the Lord told them to destroy the
Canaanites' pictures
before they destroyed their molten images and high places to their
false gods. Number 33:52 “Then ye shall drive out all the
inhabitants of the land from before you, and destroy all their
pictures, and destroy all their molten images, and quite pluck down
all their high places:”.
When preachers started getting televisions it caused them to start
thinking like the world and as TV got worse then they had to
compromise or be a first class hypocrite. How do you preach against
sin when you are piping it into your living room? It is amazing, if
a preacher has a TV he cannot preach over ten to fifteen minutes
without mentioning it, Proverbs 23:7 “For as he thinketh in his
heart, so is he:” What he has been taking in all week comes out in
his preaching. I heard a preacher say that his children went bad but
it was not the TV’s fault, even though he had one in every room and
boasted about it. I was in a preacher’s study (church office) that
had a TV, not a VCR, for study purposes but to watch TV. I know some preachers say they can
control it and maybe they can but what about those members who are
following his example who cannot control it?
Some of the excuses people give for owning a TV are as follows:
1. I
just watch the weather. Seeing the weather person is no more helpful
than hearing the weather person.
2. I just watch the news.
Ninety-nine percent of the news on TV is slanted left and is
misleading the public into being liberal.
3. We only watch the
sports. During super bowl 2004 had a woman bare her breast and there
was an ad that had
bestiality portrayed. The scene was for a beer commercial, it showed
a woman coming into a man’s house, he offers her a beer and when he
goes to get it she sits on the couch beside a chimp which invites
her to go to the bedroom with him as his hips gyrate. During super bowl
2005 - a woman’s bra comes loose almost exposing her breast. An
advertisement for the program “Desperate Housewives” shows a woman
with just a towel on in the men’s locker room. She offers herself to
the ball player and drops the towel. I guess all these scenes are
good, and godly for your children. I am sure it helps you have the
mind of Christ.
4. What can we do for entertainment? Talking with
your family, family outings, studying your Bible, having family
devotions, going visiting for the church, being faithful to church, (If you
lay out of church for some sporting event, you should be churched.)
5. Well, there are some good Christian programs. There might be one
or two maybe but most are leading the churches into apostasy. You
might find a steak in the dumpster behind the Steakhouse but you
would not look through the garbage to find it, why put up with the
garbage on TV for one or two good programs? The reason so many
churches are off on worship is because people have been brainwashed
by the junk on TV and then bring it into the church. Churches where
the pastor does not own a TV have never thought it took a worship
leader to lead people to worship.
I would like to deal with the fruits of the TV.
No deputies walked the hallways when I was in elementary school nor
in high school. The lady
teachers all wore dresses or skirts and the girls was only allowed
to wear dresses or skirts. Boys could not wear their hair long or
dress immodest.
The whole time I was in school there was not a drug problem and no
one ever over dosed. Girls prided themselves in being a virgin. I
know that there were exceptions to the rule but that proves the
point. No problems with guns or knives even though boys did carry
knives.
Shacking up was a shame and disgrace to the community and there was
no open homosexuality. Both were considered a sin, shame and
disgrace by both church goers and non church goers.
During this time the TV had no cursing, nudity, sexual depiction or
sexual Language.
I remember as a boy watching TV and Groucho Marxs was interviewing an
older white headed man with a young wife. They had some small
children of whom he was the father. Groucho made the following commit
“just because there is snow on the top don’t mean the fire is gone
out below”. The screen went black due to the net work cutting the
program. I have heard a preacher say the same thing from the pulpit
and no one thought any thing about it.
In order to show how depraved the TV has become I will insert part
of an article by Marsha West about what adults and children are
watching these days.
Friendship with the world is enmity to God." --James 4:4
According to Dr. Jane Brown, journalism professor at the University
of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, "If you believe Sesame Street taught
your four-year-old something, then you better believe MTV is
teaching your 14-year-old something, because the influence doesn't
stop when we come to a certain age."
The worldview depicted in the majority of TV and films is anti-God.
Yet Christian's viewing habits are not much different than the
world's. Believers regularly tune into programs where the men are
portrayed as nothing move than oversexed, incompetent, disrespected
boobs! Where offspring are smarter and wiser than their dim-witted
dads. Granted, we are no longer under the law, we are free in
Christ!
But, that doesn't mean we're free to behave like Beavis and
Butthead. Believers are called to be holy, which means we should all
be striving to be more like Christ. That's a no-brainer. So why are
Christians not bothered by sitcoms that portray kids as cynical,
full of sarcasm and, worse yet, show no respect for adults? The
answer is, they're worldly! Instead of turning off the TV to protest
the indecency foisted on the public, worldly Christians will plop
down in their favorite chairs and chuckle through programs that are
chock-full of profanity and sexual innuendo. Question. What would
Jesus have you do?
Whatever happened to programs like "Father Know Best?" Yesterday's
decency has been replaced by out and out depravity. Just tune into
Fox's the Family Guy and you'll see what I mean. This program is
aimed at teenagers. The Parent's TV Council (PTC) had this to say
about the show that is #1 with teens: "Anyone familiar with the
content on this show knows that it is not appropriate for teens."
Episodes this season have included scenes in which a teacher tries
to show his high school class a homemade sex video showing him in
women's lingerie; references to oral sex; children discussing
threesomes and prostitution, and other sexually graphic and indecent
content. Could it get any worse?
Yes, it could, and it does. South Park is as depraved as Family Guy
and it's aimed at younger kids! According to Focus on the Family, "A
near-constant flow of profanity includes hateful exchanges and
frequent abuses of the Lord's name.Crude banter and story lines
involve everything from urination and dildo jokes, to anal probes,
homosexual sex and child abuse."
Youngster's malleable minds are also being corrupted by MTV. Parents
TV Council warns that MTV aims at children as young as 12. A recent
PTC study, "MTV Smut Peddlers: Targeting Kids with Sex, Drugs and
Alcohol," surveyed 171 hours of MTV programming. According to the
study, "PTC analysts found 1,548 sexual scenes containing 3,056
depictions of sex or various forms of nudity and 2,881 verbal sexual
references. That means that children watching MTV are viewing an
average of 9 sexual scenes per hour with approximately 18 sexual
depictions and 17 instances of sexual dialogue or innuendo. To put
this in perspective, consider that in its last study of sex on
primetime network television, the PTC found an average of only 5.8
instances of sexual content during the 10 o'clock hour -- when only
adults are watching."
Many Adults are ingesting garbage from wildly popular programs like
Sex in the City, where single women are desperate for sex, and
Desperate Housewives, where a married woman had an affair with her
seventeen-year-old gardener. The whole focus of these programs is
sex. And Hollywood bestows coveted awards to those responsible for
producing this kind of filth!
What are the results produced by TV and its negative influence upon
the world and, sad to say, the Christian?
1. Over 50% of teenagers 13-15 are having sex.
2. Girls dress like whores and prostitutes and dress manly which is
an abomination to God.
3. Boys dress like girls with women’s jewelry such as earrings and
necklaces. They wear pants that look like over sized culottes, and
their caps on
backwards as if they don’t know which way they are going. As dumb
as the TV has made them they probably don’t kmow.
4. Now with boys and girls the going thing is body piercing and
tattoos which both are forbidden in the scriptures.
5. Drugs are a major problem from young children to the very
elderly. (How many addicts have you won to the Lord?) It seems that
drugs have deceive them to the place it is about impossible to get
them lost so they can get saved.
6. There is so much violence in the school it is almost like a war
zone.
7. Bible and prayer are out of the school, the Koran is in along with
witch craft.
8. Homosexual behavior has become the norm and heterosexual behavior
has become the odd one.
9. Marriage is out, shaking up is in.
10. Churches are trying to conform to the wicked TV church programs
with their rock music, worship leaders and attractive women with
swaying bodies
leading the singing.
11. Churches which preach against sin and worldliness are avoided
and made fun of.
12. The program “Desperate House Wives” has influenced a host of
school teachers to have sex with their students, some as young as 12.
13. Modesty is out and flesh is in, and the more the better. There
is no embarrassment.
14. Christians have lost their modesty until some will mix bath at
the beach & pools. Question: Wife is your husband trading the beauty
of your body for men to look at that he might have the chance to
look at other women’s bodies?
Some say,
"Well you have the
internet and it is just as bad as the TV". Granted it is and it can
be worse but there are some major differences such as:
1.
If you use a pop up blocker with the internet then you do not have
to put up with lewd commercials. With the TV there is no way to block the filthy
commercials . 2. When using the internet you do
not have to listen to cussing. With the TV cussing is a normal
thing. 3. If a person wants to view x-rated
material they must search for it by typing a word or an address in
order to find it. If a person wants to see it that badly they will if
they have to order through the mail or go to an adult book store.
Now with the TV all a person, young or old has to do is channel surf
and, want to or not, you will see it.
4. There
are some good Christian web sites on the internet that have good
preaching and articles to read. Ninety -nine percent of the so- called
Christian programs on the TV are out of hell and are destroying
churches. They are the blind leading the blind.
5.
The TV is designed to destroy a person's ability to think and to
conform people into the new world order. The internet has a lot of
sites that expose the new world order and help people to learn to
spot the brain washing. 6. Through
TV
programming homosexuality is being portrayed as normal and people
are accepting it. With the internet you must go to a site to be
brain washed, it is not pushed on you.
7. The TV
opens your mind so you can be demon possessed and thereby deceived and
not realize it. With the TV it does not have to be a special program
for this to happen. There is no doubt a person can be possessed through
the internet but again it will be a willful choice by going to a site
they have no business being at.
In closing I would like to
enclose four articles on the TV. One is called “The Stranger” by
Keith Currie, the second “The Bible and The TV Guide” author
unknown, third is the “Devils Vision” author unknown and the fourth
the “TV Alphabet” by Hal Stultz. May God use this study “The
Christian and The TV” to open your eyes to the truth and give you
the victory over your addiction to it.
The Stranger
“A few months before I was born, my dad met a stranger who was new
to our small Tennessee town. From the beginning, Dad was fascinated
with this enchanting newcomer, and soon invited him to live with our
family. The stranger was quickly accepted and was around to welcome
me into the world a few months later.
As I grew up I never questioned his place in our family. In my young
mind, each member had a special niche. My brother, Bill, five years
my senior, was my example. Fran, my younger sister, gave me an
opportunity to play ‘big brother’ and develop the art of teasing. My
parents were complementary instructors–Mom taught me to love the
word of God, and Dad taught me to obey it.
But the stranger was our storyteller. He could weave the most
fascinating tales. Adventures, mysteries and comedies were daily
conversations. He could hold our whole family spell-bound for hours
each evening.
If I wanted to know about politics, history, or science, he knew it
all. He knew about the past, understood the present, and seemingly
could predict the future. The pictures he could draw were so life
like that I would often laugh or cry as I watched.
He was like a friend to the whole family. He took Dad, Bill and me
to our first major league baseball game. He was always encouraging
us to see the movies and he even made arrangements to introduce us
to several movie stars. My brother and I were deeply impressed by
John Wayne in particular.
The stranger was an incessant talker. Dad didn’t seem to mind-but
sometimes Mom would quietly get up–while the rest of us were
enthralled with one of his stories of faraway places– go to her
room, read her Bible and pray. I wonder now if she ever prayed that
the stranger would leave.
You see, my dad ruled our household with certain moral convictions.
But this stranger never felt obligation to honor them. Profanity,
for example, was not allowed in our house–not from us, from our
friends, or adults. Our longtime visitor, however, used occasional
four letter words that burned my ears and made Dad squirm. To my
knowledge the stranger was never confronted. My dad was a teetotaler
who didn’t permit alcohol in his home– not even for cooking. But the
stranger felt like we needed exposure and enlightened us to other
ways of life. He offered us beer and other alcoholic beverages
often.
He made cigarettes look tasty, cigars manly, and pipes
distinguished. He talked freely (probably too much too freely) about
sex. His comments were sometimes blatant, sometimes suggestive, and
generally embarrassing. I know now that my early concepts of the
man-woman relationship were influenced by the stranger.
As I look back, I believe it was the grace of God that the stranger
did not influence us more. Time after time he opposed the values of
my parents. Yet he was seldom rebuked and never asked to leave.
More than thirty years have passed since the stranger moved in with
the young family on Morningside Drive. He is not nearly so
intriguing to my Dad as he was in those early years. But if I were
to walk into my parents’ den today, you would still see him sitting
over in a corner, waiting for someone to listen to him talk and
watch him draw his pictures.
His name? We always called him TV.”
Told by Keith Currie
The Bible and The TV Guide
On the table side by side: The Holy Bible and the TV Guide. One is
well worn but cherished with pride; No! It’s not the Bible, but the
TV Guide. One is used daily to help folk decide, No! It isn’t the
Bible; it’s the TV Guide.
As pages are turned, what shall they see? Oh, what does it matter,
just turn on the TV. Then confusion reigns, they can’t all agree, On
what they shall watch on the dear old TV. So they open the book in
which they confide; No! Not the Bible, but the TV Guide.
The Word of God is seldom, if ever, read; Well, maybe a verse e’re
they fall into bed. Exhausted and sleepy and tired as can be, Not
from reading the Bible; from watching TV. So, then back to the
table, side by side, Is the Holy Bible and the TV Guide.
One leads to Heaven, the other to Hell, If they would only read the
Bible; who can tell? One speaks to the heart, the other to the mind,
It’s either the Bible or the blind leading the blind. One’s never
opened, the other often used to decide, The dusty old Bible verses
the TV Guide.
No time for prayer, no time for the word, The plan of salvation is
seldom, if ever heard. You see, forgiveness of sin so full and free,
is found in the Holy Bible, certainly not on TV. What will it be for
you, who these verses do read? Jesus Christ, with out stretched
hands, yet pleads.
The Devil’s Vision
The Devil once said to his demons below,
“Our work is progressing entirely too slow.
The holiness people stand in our way
Since they do not believe in the show or the play.
They teach that the carnival, circus and dance,
The tavern and honky-tonk with game of chance,
Drinking and smoking, these things are all wrong:
The Christians don’t mess with the ungodly throng.
They are quick to condemn everything that we do
To cause unbelievers to be not a few.
They claim that these things are all of the devil;
That Christian folks live on a much higher level.
Now fellows, their theology, while perfectly true
Is blocking the work we are trying to do.
We will have to get busy and figure a plan
That will change their standards as fast as we can.
Now I have a vision of just what we can do.
Harken, I’ll tell this deception to you.
Then find ye a wise, but degenerate man
Whom I can use to help work out this plan.
There’s nothing so real as the things that you see;
The eyes and the mind and the heart will agree.
So what can be better than an object to view?
I say, it will work and convince quite a few.
The home is the place for this sinful device;
The people deceived will think if quite nice.
The world will possess it, most Christians can’t tell
That it is all of the Devil and plotted in Hell!
We’ll sell them with pictures of the latest news;
While they’re still looking, we’ll advertise booze.
At first it will shock them; they’ll seem in a daze;
But soon they’ll be hardened and continue to gaze.
We’ll give them some gospel that isn’t too strong,
And a few sacred songs to string them along.
They’ll take in the ads, with the latest of fashions,
Soon watching the shows that will stir evil passions.
Murder and love-making scenes they’ll behold
Until their souls will be utterly cold.
The old family altar which once held such charm
Will soon lose its place without much alarm.
Praying in secret will also be lost
As they look at the screen, not counting the cost.
Compromise preachers, who don’t take stand
Will embrace this new vision and think it is grand.
They’ll help fool the people and cause them to sin
By seeking this evil and taking it in.
Influence is great and you can see;
Just look at my fall and you’ll have to agree.
It won’t take too long, my demons, to tell
That the vision of Satan will populate Hell!
Divorce will increase, sex crimes will abound;
Much innocent blood will be spilled on the ground.
The home will be damned in short order I say
When this vision of mine comes in to stay.
Get busy, my cohorts, and put this thing out;
We’ll see if the church can continue to shout.
The holiness people who stand in our way
Will soon hush their crying against show and play.
We’ll cover the earth with this devil vision.
Then we’ll camouflage it with the name television.
The people will think they are getting a treat
Till the Antichrist comes and takes over his seat.
He’ll rule the world while the viewers behold
The face of the beast, to whom they were sold.
We’ll win through deception, this cannot fail;
Though some holiness preachers against it will rail.”
Author Unknown
The TV Alphabet
Deuteronomy 7:26, Psalm 101:2-4, Jeremiah 10:2, Romans 1:32
A - abomination, alcohol seller
B - brainwasher, blessing stealer
C - corrupt baby sitter, compromise causer, church killer
D - divorce encourager, debt maker
E - evil influence
F - filthy, family destroyer
G - godless, garbage, a god
H - hellish, health ruiner
I - idiot maker, idol (which makes it idiolatry)
J - joy stealer, judgment embarrasser
K - knowledge stealer
L- lust arouser
M-moral corrupter, marriage breaker, money robber
N - nakedness exposer, new world order conformer, new man starver
O - opinion former
P - peace stealer, politically correct
Q - queer promoter
R - race mixer, rebel maker
S - spirit quencher, sin glorifier, style setter, shacking-up
encourager
T - time robber, tithe stealer
U - unholy
V - violent, vocabulary builder (cussing)If you whip your children
forcussing and let them watch TV you are a hypocrite
W - worldly
X - x-rated
Y - youth destroyer
Z - zombie maker
After you have read the above article if you still
defend owning a TV then your are a fool or are determined to gratify
your ungodly, fleshly desires even if it kills you spiritually, damns
your children and you become a total disaster at the Judgment Seat
of Christ.
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