Last week I wrote a blog about Christians watching Game of Thrones (you can read it here). Some people appreciated what I wrote and agreed. Many did not. In the week following, I learned that people really don’t like being challenged on what television shows they watch.
As I fielded responses to the blog, I began to ask myself a different but related question:
What would I do to get more of Jesus?
Ultimately, that’s what holiness, purity, and sanctification is about… running after Jesus to be more like Jesus so other people see Jesus.
Typically, we think of this question like it’s a simple math problem. In order to run after Jesus, we need to add more ‘Jesus things’ to our lives. Add more pages to the Bible reading plan. Pray for a few more minutes in the morning. Maybe add a good Christian biography or spiritual living book to the summer reading plan, and of course, add some more Hillsong to the workout playlist. The belief is that the more we add, the higher the sum total will be and the more Christ-like we’ll become. All of this is good and right and commendable, but I don’t think it’s complete.
What if the solution wasn’t only a result of addition?
What if it actually required subtraction? What if you run after Jesus well by not only adding to your life, but by taking things out of it?
Subtraction is more challenging because the numbers aren’t as concrete. Certainly, we all agree that belligerent husbands need to subtract their anger and snooty women their arrogance, but what about the things that seem more like relative numbers? Like the TV, movies, books and music we enjoy. Is it ever necessary to subtract the things we like in order to grow our love for Christ?
The simple, Biblical answer is “Yes.”
Paul tells us to cleanse ourselves from impurity (2 Cor. 7:1).
Jesus tells us to tear out an eye and cut off a hand if it’s getting in the way of us being like him (Matt 5:27–30).
James tells us that drawing near to God means cleaning our hands and purifying our hearts (Jas 4:8).
If you want more of Jesus it will require subtraction. Plain and simple.
The honest, tough follow-up question is this:
Do you actually want Jesus more than you want anything else?
If the answer is “Yes,” why do you let your feathers get so ruffled by being challenged on the entertainment you consume? Even more importantly, why would you risk engaging with content that has the potential to keep you from seeing Christ? It’s not even close to being worth it.
If the answer is “Yes, but…” it’s really a “No.”
“Yes, but…” means that you love Jesus, but you also love this other, opposite thing and you’re not quite sure which one you want more in the moment. This perspective is way more like economics than math. Jesus or “fill in the blank”? What has more value? The question is not “What gets me more of Jesus?” but rather “What will satisfy my desires more?” You want to have Jesus in eternity, but you’re okay if He takes the back seat on this side of heaven.
I know that last paragraph is hard to read. Frankly, it’s hard for me to write. It reminds me that I need to evaluate everything I watch, read, and listen to, and convicts me because specific things immediately come to mind as questionable according to this standard. I have a lot of room to grow, and I’m unfortunately acutely aware that perfection is an illusion. Often even “wholesome” things carry the stench of sin, and it makes me question what the best course of action is. If I take this super seriously, will there be anything left to do other than live under a rock? I feel these tensions and I’m not sure I have arrived at any great conclusions/solutions, but that doesn’t make the preceding paragraph wrong. Rather, it makes me more dependent on the Holy Spirit to work in me.
I long for the day when my thoughts are fully captivated by Christ (2 Cor. 10:5) and my affections are stirred only for that which is true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent and worthy of praise (Phil 4:8). It makes me hold fast to Jesus’ promise that the pure in heart will see God (Matt 5:8). And it allows me to rest knowing that day is on the horizon.
My goal is not to draw lines in the sand of what we can and can’t do with regards to media and culture. I want to throw gasoline on your fire for Christ. I want us all to burn hotter. If that means getting rid of the stuff that cools the flames then let's subtract it together so that we might gain Christ.
PEOPLE REACHING PEOPLE
April 19, 2024
