Christians and Popular Media

By Ben Wulpi

January 23, 2008

Many Christians struggle with where to draw the line on what is acceptable to

consume in popular culture. With so many options out there for entertainment, what

standard should Christians set for themselves with TV, movies, internet, etc.? What does

it really mean to be “in the world but not of it” (cf. John 17:14-16)? Should we shut

ourselves off from all forms of secular entertainment, or should we allow ourselves to be

exposed to all the world has to offer?

Scripture tells us to “Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right,

and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of

praise” (Philippians 4:8 NLT). We are called to dwell on the good things of God. Jesus

tells us that we are the salt of the earth (Matt. 5:13). Salt, in this analogy, has three

different meanings: 1) it is a reminder of God’s covenant with his people (cf. Lev. 2:13),

and a reminder of His faithfulness to us, 2) we are to make a difference in the “flavor” of

the world, just as salt affects the flavor of food, and 3) we should counteract the moral

decay of the world we live in, just as salt preserves food from decay. Can Christians have

much impact on the world when they are surrounded by the same moral decay Jesus tells

us to fight? I feel like the answer to that, as much as I hate to admit it, is no. I think that

Christians, united as the Salt of the Earth to preserve society, has yet to be seen.

But some would interpret being “in the world but not of it” to mean that

Christians should keep up with popular culture, but also be wary of its affects and

influences on us. If we keep Christ and the Word of God as our foundation, it’s okay to
expose ourselves to the world because we are protected from evil. Also, if we are to be

effective witnesses to the world, then we must be aware of what the world is doing. I

think there is validity in that, but I don’t think it’s a license to go consume whatever we

want in popular culture.

I believe that there is some Truth in everything. Christ is absolute Truth, and that’s

why we find so many Christ-figure heroes in today’s popular media. These are merely

shadows of the Truth of Christ. This is an argument given by those in favor of not holding

strict standards on what Christians take in. Because we can find God’s truth in

everything, we shouldn’t restrict ourselves from allowing God to speak his Truth to us

through secular media. For example, in the movie Blood Diamond, the climax of the

movie is a beautiful scene of the father reaching out to his lost son, showing the boy how

much he loves him. He tells his son that he is good, that he is loved, and that he still has

hope for a better life. It is a fantastic and beautifully real parallel to how God the Father

reaches out to us. It is something that could easily open up conversation about the Gospel

of Christ to a nonbeliever. This is an instance where connecting with the world through

popular culture can be a good thing. But Blood Diamond is full of violence and bad

language. How much of that should we subject ourselves to in order to get to a hidden

message behind one scene of the movie? Is that right? I honestly don’t know.

Psalm 119:9 says, “How can a young person stay pure? By obeying your word”

(NLT). I think, in this world, we can’t help being exposed to popular culture, whether we

try to or not. We must have a firm foundation in Christ and his Word in order to stay pure.

We are to be “wise as serpents and innocent as doves” (Matt. 10:16 ESV) when we

discern what is acceptable for us to consume. We must refuse to let the world corrupt us
(James 1:27), and stand strong in the morals of Christ. Only when we are pure can we

truly be used by God (2 Timothy 2:20-21). These are things we must keep in mind when

we decide what to consume in popular culture.

In conclusion, I don’t have a set answer for where Christians should draw the line.

I don’t even know myself. Most of this is just my thought process on paper. In writing

this, I’ve begun to question myself the things that I allow myself to take in. Sure, there

can be Truth in secular media, but is it really edifying to me overall? Is there any Truth in

it that I can’t get from God’s direct revelation? Does the rest of the content harm me more

than the Truth in it edifies me? These are questions I need to start asking myself before I

watch movies and TV, etc.