TV is our household god!

I would contend that the problem is far worse than watching TV.

Most churches are a bad influence on the majority of new believers. The majority of people who warm the pews each week never lead one person to Christ and never disiple anyone in an entire lifetime. By that statistic alone those churches should close their doors by their ineffectiveness and disobedience.

 

I know idolatry, I see it all the time here in Japan, and watching TV is not idolatry. Clapping your hands to get the attention of your idol (ancestor, Buddha, the fox god and 6,000,000 more Japanese gods), putting your hands together, bowing your head to worship, and then praying to an inanimate object or a spirit, THAT is idolatry. Please don't trivialize the awfulness of this sin by comparing it to watching TV.

Now if you start offering incense and bowing down to your TV, that's another matter!

 

Watching too much TV is an easy habit to fall into. It is something that I had a problem with when I lived at home with my parents. When I got married, my wife and I went several years without a TV in the house. We have one now, but it only has four local channels, so we can watch the news, or an occasional movie. If we had satelite or cable, I think I would fall into the habit of watching too much again, therefore, we are determined never to have more than the local channels. I'm sure many families would benefit if they'd junk their TV, or at least quit watching some of the garbage that flashes over the screen.

 

How about if I turn my telly on using The Clapper .

 

Well, okay, as long as you don't do the incense and the kneeling bow.

 

I would suspect that the TV is not the biggest household god. The telephone is the biggest household god. When was the last time any of us simply refused to answer a call, choosing instead to let the machine get it? No, most of us jump up and answer it like there was no tomorrow.

But the TV makes a much more obvious scapegoat, and takes the focuse off the god of the phone that most of us are guilty of worshipping.

As for me, TV is by no means my god. I do have it on a few hours every day, but mostly for watching dvd's of my own choosing.

 

We have reduced the amount of tv we watch, so much of it is just garbage. The Holy Spirit has convicted me re. some programs.
There is a channel formerly PAX, now called I, they have some decent programs. They have some programs featuring live church services. There is a woman who has a program and I think she is a spiritualist, she talks about believing good things happening, but does not mention God. Others are really not for family viewing.

As for the phone, I prefer not to answer it, thats what the answering mach. is for, if it's someone I want to talk to, I will answer it.
My wife always picks it up.

 

I was just thinking that about TV, and this was at the top of the board . . .

 

bruren777, we treat the phone like a slave lord, don't we?

I agree that most of us watch too much TV. For that reason, my wife and I have purposely not gotten any cable TV.

Just please don't anyone compare watching TV to the idolatry I see so much of in Japan. It breaks my heart when I see the Japanese worshipping physical things and spirits. Most American Christians have so little idea of what real idolatry is.

 

I watch the Discovery and History channel a few times a week. The Discovery channel has a number of excellent programs directly related to what I teach.

 

I don't bow to the tv nor the phone. I ignore them both as much as possible. Unless I hear Overhaulin' on. Been month though.

 

Procyon, Exek. 14:3 is talking very clearly (from the context) about real idols, Psalm 101:3 is an excellent verse to help us control our TV watching, and you have a very good point with Phil. 3:18, but I think this passage is talking metaphorically.

I have no problem with people saying, "TV can be like an idol to you." It hurts my heart, though, when people don't understand the great wickedness of real idol worship such as I see in Japan all the time. I long so much for Christians to care about reaching the world for Christ. We have a woman in our church right now who won't trust Christ yet because her mother has made her promise she must continue her ancestor worship. It hurts to see her listen to the Word of God week after week and not turn to Christ.

God bless.

John of Japan

 

Whether it's inthe heart or in some other body part, idolatry is idolatry.

It's kinda like when someone says they didn't cheat on their spouse, but had an "affair of the heart" (rationalizing that it wasn't really adultery because it didn't invilve sex or physical contact). That "of the heart" stuff is for the birds. Adultery is adultery, and idolatry is of idolatry, regardless of what body parts are involved or not involved.

 

Of course you are right here, Procyon. I don't want you to think that this isn't a good thing for you. God has helped you. If you were a TV addict, it was sure right for you to quit it, and I'm glad for you.

 

Hmmm. wouldn't any thing that takes our time and attention away from the Lord have the potential of becoming an idol?

 

Do you have Scripture for this, Songbird? I would call what you are talking about a stumbling block, not an idol.