Viewpoints

Maybe I'm becoming a prude in my old age. I went to a movie this past weekend and was bothered by it. Now usually when I am bothered by a movie it is because it has nudity or sexual activity or perhaps if the violence is over the top. That wasn't the case with this movie, I don't think there was even one woman in the movie and although there was violence it wasn't over the top. What bothered me about this movie was the message that it sends to those that watch it (of the other 10 or so people in the theater many of them were young which makes it even more disappointing). The message was essentially that you don't have to be completely good or righteous you just need to be more good than bad. Now this is certainly not the only movie that gives this sort of message, there are and have been over the years, many such movies.

I think that it may have bothered me so much because I see hints of it in my own life. Comparison and justification are tools that I use to make myself feel better or look better to others. I am sure that you have heard people justify their behavior before or excuse their behavior by comparing it with others who are worse. The problem with those comparisons and justification is that we are using our own standards when we do that, we are trying to categorize our sins. God doesn't have a sin scale where as long as you don't do any of the sins in the top 5 you are OK. All sin separates us from God and nothing that we DO can earn us favor with Him. Our only comparison should be Jesus Christ. He lived the PERFECT life that we can't live and because we can't live that perfect life, HE died for us so we would no longer be separated from God if we choose to accept what Jesus did and give Him control of our lives.

The main character in this movie was willing to help steal 42 million dollars as long as nobody got hurt, after all, he needed it, he maybe even deserved it (according to his thinking). Then when things went bad and people started getting hurt, he fought against his buddies, his cohorts and became the good guy. While many of his actions were admirable and courageous, HE WAS STILL WILLING TO STEAL $42,000,000. What are you justifying, what are you excusing by comparing it with other people who are worse on the "sin scale"? On our own we fall short, no matter how "good" we are. My desire is to stop justifying my sin and stop minimizing my sin and to truly follow Jesus, will you join me in this challenge?