In recent months, much ink has been spilled over the upcoming film release of ’50 Shades of Grey.’ The film is based on the book which is part of a trilogy that has now sold over 100 million copies and has been translated into 50+ languages (according to Wikipedia).
As for me, I’ve not read any of the books, nor do I have any intention of seeing the film. I could give you a laundry list of reasons as to why that would be and encourage you to refrain from reading the books or seeing the film as well, but one more person telling you not to read something or see something I fear will have the reverse effect. I’m grateful for all the pastors, theologians, Christian authors and bloggers who have written some very helpful, honest, thoughtful and thought-provoking pieces on this film/book, specifically encouraging men and women alike to stay away. It takes courage and boldness to speak truth; to say the ‘unpopular’ things in the face of so many that applaud literature and films like this.
As stated above, when telling people not do something, it’s a good chance that one of two things will potentially happen. One, they might actually listen to me and do it, or in this case, not do it. At face value, this might not seem like a bad thing, but there comes a point in time when people need to make decisions not based upon what a pastor, author, or blogger said to do, but because they know the path of wisdom and they are choosing to walk that way. Second, telling people not to do something has some sort of childlike effect. Meaning, it stirs in them a desire to do the very thing you’re encouraging them not to do.
So, I’d present a third option… dare I say a better option.
What does God want you to do?
I realize there will be some who’d say God could care very little for the movies and books we chose to read, but that would be simply a lie from the pit of hell. God cares about you, thus He cares about how you live, which means He cares about the choices we make. Our choices not only reflect what we believe about God, but our choices (including the films we see) will either bring us closer to God, or take us further away from experiencing Him.
Joseph was a handsome and well-built young man… that’s not me saying this, that’s how the Bible describes him (Genesis 39:6). Joseph was in a land not his own, far away from all he cared about. And the home in which he was now living, there was a major problem. The wife of the owner had taken a serious liking to him. The wife was not just flirtatious with Joseph, rather, she made very clear that she wanted to be with Joseph sexually. Here’s how the Bible records her actions towards Joseph:
Genesis 39 – “Potiphar’s wife took notice of Joseph and said, “Come to bed with me!”… She spoke to Joseph day after day… One day he went into the house to attend to his duties, and none of the household servants was inside. She caught him by his cloak and said, “Come to bed with me!”
Just so we're clear, this is not a plot line from a recent Hollywood film. This is a story straight out of the Bible itself… and if it’s in the Bible, God has something He has to say, something He wants us to learn about Him, something He wants us to learn about ourselves.
Joseph, a young man has a beautiful and powerful woman throwing herself at him, requesting, dare I say demanding that he have sex with her. What’s this young man to do? Well, we all know what one option is, but Joseph's choice does not reflect what his flesh may be screaming to do, rather, his choice reflects what He knows God would have Him do.
Genesis 39:9 – “How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?”
Yes sleeping with another man’s wife would be a sin. But Joseph sees that a decision to sleep with this woman would first and foremost be a sin against God. In other words, He knew what God would want Him to do, and He chose to do that, for to do anything different would be nothing short of sinning against God.
As I stated above, I will not see 50 Shades of Grey. I could sight a long list of reasons as to why I’m not. Reasons such as it would be dishonoring to my wife to sit in a theater watching another man have sex, dare I say violent and domineering sex with another woman. It would be dishonoring to my sons to sit through a film such as this, as it would send a clear message that it’s ok to watch sexually explicit material on the big screen and just call it entertainment. It would be dishonoring to my daughter to watch a film such as this, as it would communicate to her that I’m ok with men using woman sexually in order to act out whatever fantasies they may have, even if they are violent and manipulative towards woman. It would be dishonoring to myself to allow images into my heart and head that will only trash both.
Again, the stated reasons above are reason enough not to see this films (and films like it), but just so you know, that’s not the reason I will not be seeing this film. I have one reason that trumps them all. God has told me not to. That’s it. What does God want me to do, well, He made clear this is not a film He has for me to see. So to see it, would be, in the words of Joseph, ‘sinning against God.’
God cares about the choices I make. He cares about the choices you make. Our choices will lead us either closer to Him, or further away from Him. I want to remain close to Him. And to see a film such as this would take me further away from where I want to be, further away from where I need to be.
For me, this is less about 50 Shades of Grey, and more about listening and doing ALL that God wants me to do. So before you head to the movies this weekend, just ask yourself the simple yet transformational question: What does God want me to do?
I can promise you that as you grow in doing ALL that God wants you to do, whether that be from the films you see, or the books you read, you’ll be greatly encouraged to see that God has so much more for you than you could ever imagine, certainly so much more than any film could ever do for you.
p.s. For those of you who might think God will not speak to you on such ‘pedantry things’ such as the films we see or the books we read, I can promise you that He is more anxious for you to hear what He has to say than we are actually willing to ask. Trust me and try me in this… just ask Him what He’d want you to do – He will speak!
