Murder. Sexual references. Gratuitous amounts of violence. Scenes of rape. Frightening Imagery. Adult situations. Deceit. Scandals. Scenes of war. Incest. Sounds like a description of content from just about any rated R movie, doesn’t it? But actually, all of this content comes straight from scripture.
I am always surprised when someone says, “Reading the Bible is boring.” Seriously? Have you even read it, I want to ask? Aside from the fact that I believe it is the divinely inspired word of God, it is also some incredibly enjoyable reading. Sure, it has its slow parts (Leviticus anyone), but so much of it is simply good reading.
Skeptics of Christianity will often point out the atrocities and shady places in the Bible and ask, “How can you live by a book that contains all of this stuff?” Yet, many Christians will ignore or minimize areas in scripture that are not G rated. Some believers have only given God’s word a cursory look, focusing on passages like John 3:16, while being completely oblivious to much of what goes on in scripture. Others only hear what they expect to hear or see what falls in line with their preconceived notions.
So, how is the Bible different from majority of today’s motion pictures that serve up a smorgasbord of debauchery and carnality? For starters, majority of what is churned out of Hollywood is for entertainment. Many of today’s films are simply to entertain, but always with a worldview smuggled in, I might add. Much of what we see on the big screen is a means of escapism. The viewer is to leave his brain at the door, enjoy a story, and escape from the world for a couple of hours. During this time period the person is meant to be entertained, often, by sinful situations, images, or scenes that are morally questionable.
But, there are many times, where the viewer witnesses the moral shortcomings of the actors in a film, which are crucial to gaining a better insight into human nature. That is, what is witnessed on the screen is not simply meant to entertain, but it is meant to show man’s struggle with his own fallen nature. Thus a distinction must be made by the viewer. He must ask, “Am I being entertained by sin, or am I witnessing man’s nature being shown for what it really is?” There are many difficult things to witness during a movie like Schindler’s List, but we are taught so much about what the human heart is capable of. In movie’s like this, the end result is not to be entertained by what we see, though the story is enjoyable, but to be repulsed by the moral failures of the actors and perhaps change areas were we waver morally.
When it comes to scripture, nothing presented within the confines of this sacred text is meant to titillate the reader’s sinful appetite. In fact, it is just the opposite. The morally questionable aspects of the Bible are meant to inform the reader of the consequences of sin and its impact in the lives of men. We find in scripture evil painted with a dark brush, showing what man is truly capable of.
We will also do well to remember that what is reported in scripture is not necessarily condoned by God. There is a difference in something being reported and promoted. When we read the Bible and come to a troubling passage we must ask ourselves, “Why is this here?” “What can I learn from this?” “Is this simply being reported or is God condoning this behavior?” We can know ahead of time, however, that if something evil is happening; there is no way God is promoting it. We may need to adjust our understanding of God, what He allows, or gain insight into the historical context, but we can rest assured that God does not delight in evil.
As an aside, I would also mention there is a drastic difference between reading something and viewing it. Again, what we read in the Bible is for the benefit of seeing sin in action. When we read the story of David and Bathsheba, we understand what took place and later see the consequences. We do not need to see Bathsheba actually bathing to understand that David liked what he saw. I can imagine if this scene was filmed for the movies today, we would no doubt see a beautiful, bare-breasted woman bathing. This is meant to please the eye, which is sin, not promote an understanding of sin, which is what scripture so aptly does.
So should the Bible be “Rated R”? Probably. There are definitely parts I don’t want my children asking me to explain to them anytime soon. But, we would do well to remember that scripture presents to us man’s true nature, and how far we fall short of God’s perfection. Yet, even in all of the R rated scenes and morally abject characters, we see God’s redemptive plan for mankind. What a beautiful story, that while we were sinners, God still loved us. He continually seeks us with his love, a love that no film could ever come close to capturing the emotion of.
Walk good. Live wise. Be blessed.
Josh