Desensitized

One of the great topics of discussion over the last year has been the price of gasoline. One frequently heard accusation has been that "the oil companies only raised the prices so high because they wanted us to feel like we were getting a good deal when they lowered the prices again." It's a matter of being desensitized to compromise, isn't it? Slowly our mind was trained to compare our current price to the high price it had been most recently. Even though we had howled at the unfairness of the price increase at the beginning, we soon began to appreciate the great reduction in price. We compromised our standard because it's "not as bad as it could be." We became desensitized to the high price we're paying now because it is far less than the once astronomically high price we paid recently.

As I was thinking about this, I wondered if this idea could be compared to the price of morality and ethics in our world. Fifty years ago, we would have howled at the immorality and unethical conduct which seems so common place and even expected today. We actually had controls in place to see that certain conduct and dress were not seen on television or in theaters. It seems today that the standards have been lowered to where they are almost nonexistent.

Some time back, someone recommended a movie that was playing at the theater. My wife and I went to see it, but abtout five minutes into the movie, we got up and walked out. Last week, someone shared a DVD movie with us to watch. We watched less than five minutes, then turned it off because of the language and sexual content. We didn't want to condone such things and we didn't want to become desensitized to the sin of those things.

Lifestyles and behavior that God clearly condemns now are advertised openly on our televisions and brought into our homes on a daily basis. We have, however, the power to prevent this if we will. We can turn programs off. We can refuse to purchase products that promote those programs which offend — or should offend — the sensibilities of Christians. We can walk out of theaters and let the management know we disapprove. We can write the FCC and the local television stations about our concerns. We can take a stand and make our voices heard.

Unfortunately, we need the warning of the apostle Paul. He warned, "But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent's cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ" (2 Corinthians 11:3 NIV)

What offends your sense of morality and ethics? Rosie O'Donnell didn't hesitate to make clear how she felt about Christianity and Christians recently on "The View". She said, "Radical Christianity is just as threatening as radical Islam in a country like America where we have a separation of church and state." Later in this conversation, she would go on to say, "A government should lead by faith, never by fear. And faith is not Christianity. Faith in humanity. Faith in equality." (Rosie O'Donnell, on "The View," Sept. 12, 2006). She likely said this because Bible-believing Christians have deep concerns about the immoral lifestyles often condoned on TV and in the movies. Apparently to O'Donnell, Christians who object to these immoral lifestyles are comparable to suicide bombers and terrorist insurgents.

So what's dangerous to you? Do you watch her program? What did you do about that statement? What should Christians do when directly attacked like this? Should Christians just ignore such a hateful comparison? Should believers boycott this show or other shows that slam the Christian faith? What about those shows that continually bombard us with obviously immoral living as the standard lifestyle choice for life today, but make it palatable by very clever humor? What about those that shows that reach what we might believe to be "an acceptable conclusion," yet got to it by amoral means?

It may seem like a small thing, but isn't it time to count the cost and refuse to have our values desensitized? Shouldn't we take a stand on our values and start using that remote control to change the channel or turn the immoral input source off? Why continue to subject ourselves to the constant bombardment of immoral conditioning that might bring about moral compromise or collapse in our lives and the lives of your children?

The wise one of Proverbs wrote, "Buy the truth and do not sell it; get wisdom, discipline and understanding" (Proverbs 23:23 NIV). What are you buying when you pay your cable or dish bill? What are you getting when you purchase your theater ticket? God said it should be Truth, Wisdom, Discipline and Understanding. Don't let yourself be desensitized and conditioned to compromise!