Posted on 02/13/2015 5:04:26 AM PST by Gamecock
There is nothing gray about whether a follower of Christ should see 50 Shades of Grey. This is a black and white issue. Don’t go. Don’t watch it. Don’t read it. Don’t rent it.
I don’t even want to talk about it. Another blogger and I went back and forth for several weeks about how we could write a satirical review panning the movie and skewering those who think they need to see it in order to be relevant. We couldn’t do it. There was no way to make the humor weighty enough to sufficiently condemn such a vile film.
And no, I haven’t seen the movie. I haven’t watched the trailer either. I haven’t read a single page from the book. Reading about the premise from Wikipedia and the IMDb for two minutes convinced me I didn’t need to know any more. Sex is a wonderful gift from God, but like all God’s gifts it can be opened in the wrong context and repackaged in ugly wrapping. Violence against women is not acceptable just because she’s open to the suggestion, and sex is not open to all permutations, even in an adult relationship. Mutual consent does not a moral philosophy make.
Sex is a private matter to be shared in the privacy and sanctity of the marriage bed (Heb. 13:4). Sex, as God designed it, is not meant for actors who pretend (or not) that they are making “love.” The act of conjugal union is what married couples do behind closed doors, not what disciples of Jesus Christ pay money to watch on a screen the size of your house.
As I’ve said before, we have to take a hard look at what we put in front of our eyes as men and women seated in the heavenly places (Col. 3:1-2). If 50 Shades is a problem, by what standard do we give ourselves a pass on the rest of the sensuality we freely consume? To be sure, awareness of sin is not by itself the problem. The Bible is full of rank immorality. It would be simplistic and morally untenable—even unbiblical—to suggest you cannot watch sin or read about sin without sinning yourself. But the Bible never titillates with its description of sin. It never paints vice with virtue’s colors. It does not entertain with evil (unless to mock it). The Bible does not dull the conscience by making sin look normal and righteousness look strange.
Christians shouldn’t try to “redeem” 50 Shades of Grey. We should not get cutesy and advertize a new sermon series on “50 Shades of Grace.” We should not give both art and holiness a bad name by thinking that somehow something as dark as 50 Shades is worth viewing or worth reviewing. According to Paul’s logic, it is possible to expose sin and keep it hidden at the same time (Eph. 5:11-12). “A good man is ashamed to speak that which many people are not ashamed to act” (Matthew Henry).
Some movies do not deserve sophisticated analysis. They deserve sober repudiation. If the church cannot extend grace to sexual sinners, we’ve lost the heart of the gospel. And if we cannot tell people to stay away from 50 Shades of Grey, we’ve lost our minds.
I am a Christian and I don’t watch pornography. This latest porno from Hollyweird will be attended by every anti-Christian liberal this side of the moon. The “God is dead” crowd will turn it into a big hit. Anyone with a brain knows that degrading pornography has nothing to do with love.
It’s still creepy.
The Bible means what it says about Holiness and purity. I'm not sure this is really as shocking and ground breaking as everyone says. Man hasn't changed and the world is just following its prince. If God hadn't blessed us with a society based on Biblical moral values, we wouldn't know to be shocked.
So a Christian's faith allows him/her to see/hear whatever degredatios are out there to make moral decisions?
Don't think so. I don't need to go to a Beyoncé concert to know that it's garbage. I don't need to read Michael Moore's schlock to know that he's a Grade A commie. Why spend the time?
Besides, not all Christians have faith that's strong enough to withstand temptation. Many, yes. But there are many young Christians who can be caught in Satan's web easily.
You are encouraging people to see this movie?
No follower of Christ in their right mind would do so.
Do you claim to be a Christian? If not, of course you’re free to affirm any perversion you want. But if you are a Christian, you are wrong to encourage people to expose themselves to such perversion.
Is there *any* film that you’d recommend people not expose themselves to? Do you like porn? Do you like snuff films? Is there any threshold for you?
I'm more concerned about the sex and violence on TV, even at 8PM. I'm more concerned about about sex in movies that would otherwise be good films for a family to see together, that could just as easily be left out. I think the violence in just about everything in our culture is way out of hand.
But saying a person isn't a Christian if they see a movie that isn't in my taste? No, those are not my calls to make.
I wondered why this book, 50 Shades of Gray, was being talked about and was a best seller. I got it, read it, and it’s no different than any adult fiction book written for sexual excitement. It’s not going to make anyone a “sinner” if he/she reads it. It’s just a racy book like thousands of others available. This book was able to be put into “regular” reading fiction instead of trashy romance books and so it got a best seller rating from the general public. Plus, it’s no better written than romance books. It just “maybe” has more explicit sex scenes.
I wouldn’t pay money to see the movie. There is no way those sex scenes could be completely played out on a movie screen so it has to be watered down for the screen.
It’s just a book and the movie is just a movie. No big deal.
“I’m more concerned about the sex and violence on TV, even at 8PM”
Yes, there’s a lot of bad stuff on TV. AND ... this movie is bad. It can be BOTH-AND. It doesn’t have to be either-or.
We should be concerned about both the bad stuff on TV and the bad stuff at the theater. A lot of people are going to see this movie because of people like you, who refuse to take a public stand against such evil.
Oh, and I didn’t say you aren’t a Christian. Read my comment again. What I did is imply that you are a *bad* Christian if you are not discouraging people from spending money to see this movie. About as foolish and immature a follower of Christ as they come.
This is evil. If you don’t stand against it, you are in effect standing for it.
You wrote, “Another review from someone who hasn’t seen the movie.”
One doesn’t have to have “seen” something to have an opinion about it. I haven’t *seen* God, for example, but I have formed an opinion about Him, based in large part on the writings of those more informed than me.
While your faith is strong enough, why pollute your mind? You can probably swim in a sewer without getting sick, but why would you want to?
It's doing well in Tupelo.
‘Fifty Shades’ sets Tupelo sales records
Mississippi has sold nearly four times its average for pre-show tickets, with Tupelo being the first city to sell out showtimes in the state. More than three screenings for the film are currently sold out, according to Fandango’s website. Fandango reports “surprisingly high numbers” in states like Mississippi, Alabama and Arkansas. It already has become the fastest selling R-rated film in history.In fact, the film has accounted for 60 percent of all Fandango ticket sales in the past week, especially in the South and Midwest.
Yup - that's the point I was trying to get across earlier. Don't know how some Christians justify indulging in the ways of pagans.
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