1

Dont Watch
That Movie
Without Thinking
About It!
By Dr. Mark Menga

Part II Think about the world around us - We must engage culture

Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7

What is Culture?
What is Art?
The questions of Engaging Culture
The need for a foundational Biblical Hermeneutic

Follow the Argument

Think critically. Do you agree or disagree about where I am leading us with my argument?
My argument/thesis so far from part I:
Leisure is beneficial and can be used to worship God (our ultimate goal/purpose).

Chapter 4 What is Culture?

What is Culture?
A. Defining Culture
B. Transmitting Culture
C. Secular vs. Christian Culture
From human actions, in our use of leisure, labor and learning time, comes culture.
Can culture be used as worship to God?
What is the origin of culture?
What is culture?
How do we learn culture? Is any of in innate?
What do we need culture for?
How do we communicate culture? (What is the nature of language?)
Is there a dichotomy of culture between Secular and Christian?
Is culture our minds operating system?
Eyes Wide Open: Looking for God in Popular Culture
(next few thoughts are drawn from this book)
Preview
Cultural mandate (cultivate creation)
All things are stewards to God
Words become symbols
Symbols carry meaning
Culture is a system of shared meanings
Shared meanings form worldviews
Culture communicates through
texts
Culture is not simply about reading the right books, knowing the right wine to order with dinner,
and being familiar with Beethoven or Monet. According to Scripture, culture has much to do
with faith; it is part of being
fearfully and wonderfully made in the image of God (Ps. 139:14).
Culture represents human responses to Gods first and foundational command: B
e fruitful and
increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it (Gen. 1:28).
We are entrusted with the continuing process of creation.
Culture refers to the way we define and live in Gods world.
What we eat, wear, live in, stories we tell, etc. are all part of culture.
The
Cultural Mandate
Gods command at creation that humans DO culture.
Fill and cultivate (yes, culture is a matter of cultivation).
That is the meaning and purpose of all human activities in Gods world.

Christs work is a restoration of our original task.

The relationship of stewardship and culture:
A steward is put in charge of something and is accountable to someone for getting the job done.
Like Joseph (Gen. 41:39-41)
Eliezer (Gen. 24:2)
Shrewd manager (Luke 16:2)
In a more profound sense, stewardship refers to our calling to administer over Gods entire
creation
Ps. 115:16
Psalm 96 - the trees praise God
How?
Their existence is testimony to the existence and power of God the Creator (Rom. 1:20)
They add to the beauty of the creation
They exchange carbon dioxide for oxygen
Humans can fashion wood into furniture, or shelter, baseball bats, paper to write letters or poetry,
guitars or other instruments to make music.
The potential of trees remains dormant until humans discover and cultivate it
Adam first cultivates creation by naming the other creatures (Gen. 2:19-20).
A word is a symbol: a representation of an idea or thing.
Symbols carry meaning for the thing referred to (but the connection is sometimes a bit arbitrary)

Exit
Sortie
Way Out
Line
Queue

When we name or identify something with a symbol, we assign meaning to it with a certain
attitude that reveals what we believe.
Once we create a culture, we are largely bound by it. We have to live up to the ideals, share the
same attitudes, and hold the same beliefs, or take a stand against them and try to fashion
alternatives.
Language is only one sort of symbol we use to create shared meanings. Paintings and
instrumental music are also symbolic.
A culture, then, is a collection of ideals and beliefs, values and assumptions, that makes up a
kind of master plan for living and interpreting life.
Culture involves creating meanings for things, and living according to those meanings.

It shapes experience and expectations, and gives us a means of coping with the new and
unexpected.
Cultural Texts
A culture is communicated through what anthropologists call texts. Cultural texts are human
actions, events, and material works that embody meanings that are widely shared.
A text can be
read or interpreted to understand its meaning or the cultural values it represents.
A culture is like an ensemble of texts that includes our conversations, rituals, ceremonies, new
reports, songs, poems, theatrical plays, dances, theories, political rhetoric, myths, legends,
stories, icons, advertising, films, television programs, popular songs, literature, speeches,
architecture, works of visual art, and so forth.
We use culture than to refer to the realm of human activity and its results, both material and
nonmaterial products.
Summary
Cultural mandate (cultivate creation)
All things are stewards to God
Words become symbols
Symbols carry meaning
Culture is a system of shared meanings
Shared meanings form worldviews
Culture communicates through
texts

Transition a
rt is one form of a cultural text

http://www.theresurgence.com/james_harleman_2007-05-31_christianity_and_culture
What is Culture?
"By the word culture, we have to understand the sum total ways of living developed by a group
of human beings and handed on from generation to generation. Central to culture is language.
The language of a people provides the means by which they express their way of perceiving
things and of coping with them. Around that center one would have to group their visual and
musical arts, their technologies, their law, and their social and political organization."
"And one must also include in culture, and as fundamental to any culture, a set of beliefs,
experiences, and practices that seek to grasp and express the ultimate nature of things, that which
gives shape and meaning to life, that which claims final loyalty. I am speaking, obviously, about
religion. Religionincluding the Christian religion--is thus part of culture."
Lesslie Newbigin

Why do we create culture?

God is our Creator and He made us creative to create culture (Genesis 1:28). The cultural
mandate remains in effect even though sin has entered the world (Genesis 9:7). People create
culture simply because they bear the image of God the Creative Creator.
Culture is the tool and trade of worship culture-making is the manifestation of our
worship
We are all worshippers everyone worships
(Harold Best, Unceasing Worship)
Culture reflects who/what we worship
Culture reveals our sinfulness
Culture is the medium through which Jesus reaches us (incarnation)
The Church the true church - is the place where the gospel intersects culture
Why does culture seem corrupted?
As culture is the tool and trade of worship, we experience a cultural exchange when we
exchange suppress the truth of God and exchange it for a lie. This permeates the culture we
create. The values of each culture, the language of each culture, the social mores of each culture
are built by people with distorted filters.
For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of
men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain
to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power
and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things
that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not
honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their
foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory
of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.
Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their
bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped
and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.
Romans 1:18 25
Personally, each one of us engages in this idolatrous cultural exchange due to our own sin, and
exacerbated by the culture we are shaped by. We support and create culture that glorifies
idolatry. These cultures act as incorrect lenses that distort our worldview, feeding off of our own
deceitful hearts.
Thankfully, the Gospel of Jesus Christ restores a Christian's worldview, enabling someone
who lives for Jesus to engage culture and reject, receive, or redeem it for God's glory.

Chapter 5 What is Art?

A. Defining Art
B. Gods view of Art
C. Is there such a thing as Christian art?
Christians and Art
From
Do Fish Know Theyre Wet? Living in the World Without Getting Hooked by Tom
Neven

A person should hear a little music, read a little poetry and see a fine picture every day in order
that the worldly cares may not obliterate the sense of the beautiful which God has implanted in
the human soul Goethe (Johann Wolfgang von Goethe German, know for writing Faust)
What is art?
Can you think of some specific examples of art? Can you think of some examples of what you
think is not (or should not) be considered art?
Anything can be art relative to each individual viewer (art is subjectively defined)
Art is only that which transcends
(Relevant Magazine page 24. Sept/Oct 2008)
Is it just beautiful paintings and sculptures at the local art museum? Can only aesthetically
sensitive people create art? Do you need a special education to appreciate art?
Art has the same Latin root as artisan, artifact, and artificial, and all carry the connotation of
something made by humans. We are creators. Because were made in Gods image, we have an
innate need to create.
Have you ever picked out new curtains? Painted your living room? Built a bookshelf? Then
you are, in the strictest sense of the word, an artist.
Shall we have art? (no, bad question)
Shall we have good art?
Gods View of Art:
Beauty is an essential part of Gods nature.
Ps 27:4
Phil 4:8
Directions to make Ark of the covenant and other pieces (Ex. 28:8)
Artisans are the first people in the Bible described as being filled with the Holy Spirit.

History of Art in the church

After the split of the Roman Empire between Rome and Byzantium (Constantinople), the two
parts of the church fought over the use of icons in worship. East used them, West thought they
were idolatry.
(see Iconoclasts)
What is art?
Most people think of the
fine arts.
To understand art, focus on two key concepts:
Form and content.
Form = what medium or form used
Content = what the piece is saying, what idea it is trying to communicate
Is it true that beauty is in the eye of the beholder?
Using only our subjective experience would lead to total confusion needs to be some artistic
norms
Aristotle was perhaps the first to formulate the transcendent norms of beauty (God is the God of
truth, all truth is Gods truth).
Aristotle said the factors common to the beautiful are:
Proportionality
Harmony
Simplicity
Complexity
What is the difference between art and idolatry?
If you make a sculpture of your cat and bow down to worship it, then its clearly an idol. If you
make the same sculpture because you enjoy working in clay and making pretty knicknacks for
your living room, then its simply art, not idolatry.
God judges the heart, not the external action.
Art in the church?
Do Protestant/evangelical churches use much art in their sanctuaries? Why or why not?
Can we
play around with reality in our art? Change colors, etc.?
What about popular art?
Romanowski 59
We all know that a map is not the reality it depicts.
So popular art provides stories, symbols, images, metaphors, and melodies that depict cultural
values and assumptions, behavioral norms, social and gender roles. The popular arts mediate
between culture and life.
Every culture has its own distinctive arts. They show us how people in past civilizations lived,
loved, worshiped, waged war, and died.
Humans have always used some form of art to express themselves

Our spiritual forefathers were surrounded by Greek and pagan cultures that challenged them to
give serious though to how they should express their new believes (page 99).
Art surrounded them, but could the truth of Christ be expressed legitimately through art?

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Chapter 6 The questions of Engaging Culture

Should I/we ?
A. The Big Question
B. Assumed Truth
Big Question: Should I watch, listen to, or look at this?
What are some things you have heard Christians ask?

Should Christians read the Harry Potter books and watch the movies?

Should Christians listen to hip-hop and rap music?

What about music with swearing in it?

Should believers watch crude comedy films? How about violent horror movies like the Hostel
or Saw series or bloody action films like 300?

Should Christians play first-person shooter video games?

Should Christians watch shows like My Name is Early, Ugly Betty, American Idol, Greys
Anatomy, 24, Lost, Bones, House, Americas Got Talent, The Office, etc.?
This main (recurring with new things for future generations) question is should a Christian
do _______ , where blank is some activity, or new part of culture (like a new book series, etc.),
where the Bible is not explicit on whether doing such a thing is a SIN or not. This means
Christians needs wisdom and discernment to determine if such a thing is implicitly forbidden in
Scripture.
Its much easier to choose to avoid certain movies or songs because theyre
not okay for
Christians than it is to choose to avoid them just because theyre not helpful or constructive in
your own personal quest to live like Jesus.
1. Christians should not partake in ANY OF the culture of the unsaved
2. Christians should partake in SOME OF the culture of the unsaved (being cautious to use
wisdom and discernment)
3. Christians should (or may) partake in ALL OF the culture of the unsaved
Assumed Truth
What about movies?
It is always appropriate for Christians to watch ANY movie.
It is never appropriate for Christians to watch ANY movie.
It is sometimes appropriate for Christians to watch certain movies, if some/multiple conditions
exist (content of movie is appropriate, conscience of Christian allows for, etc.)

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The Dangers of Absolute Statements

There are exceptions to most things (even some Old Testament laws cities of refuge, etc.)
Categories are too broad (are movies made by Christians wrong to watch)
Many of the arguments I will discuss for why Christians should NOT watch MOST movies will
cite the Bible.

Proof text can be dangerous

God told Noah to building an ark, then if flip to another part of the Bible,
go and do thou
likewise
4. Scripture says: ?

Cultural Engagement:
Understanding our Culture and Redefining Entertainment
Acts 17 Paul's sermon
Paul walks the streets, examines idols, reads poetry he knows the culture of his
audience.
Paul unashamedly exploits the culture and its tools for the sake of the gospel.
Likewise, Christianity must change contextually to address its audience
Our commission must involve:
plundering a culture for its contextual tools
entering a culture and using its own weapons against it
overcoming enemies by turning their own devices toward Christ
we should always be looking to pillage
Living in an Entertainment Culture
entertainment
Pronunciation: "en-t&r-'tAn-m&nt
Function: noun
1. the act of entertaining
2. archaic : MAINTENANCE, PROVISION
3. something diverting or engaging
en-ter-tain
Pronunciation: "en-t&r-'tAn
Function: verb
1. archaic : MAINTAIN b obsolete : RECEIVE
2. to show hospitality to
3. to keep, hold, or maintain in the mind : to receive and take into consideration
Where is "mindless" a part of entertainment here?
Entertainment is not evil. Webster's definition defines two postures toward entertainment: one is

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"diversion" and the other is "engagement". Arguing that "It's just entertaining" is not an
acceptable answer to "Why do you like this?" "It's just entertaining" is a euphemism for "me not
think".
Why does it push your entertainment buttons?
What is it engaging within you, or diverting you FROM?
What is "entertainment" to a Christian?
More to the point, what should entertainment be to a Christian? Diversion or Engagement?
Should entertainment disconnected from Mission? Is Sabbath to be mindless?
If entertainment is for self-indulgence and absorption, then we should probably just stick with
our Bible. Sadly, that would belie the purpose of our Bible. If we're truly living biblical lives,
"mission" and "entertainment" should be synonymous.
Entertainment should not be about feeling happy either.
Things that entertain (things that we entertain in our minds) should distress, impress, disturb,
encourage, convict, excite, and more. Scripture certainly does this, and hopefully chief above all
other things; our interactions with others certainly does; the daily newspaper most definitely
does; I would think that television and film and video games would be very much the same.
Depiction does not always mean glorification, and our Bible is the perfect example of this.
Paul was not a cultural couch potato; he was entertained by finding in-roads to the gospel
through what he filtered. We must always walk by the Spirit with discernment and choose our
battles strategically.

Review: What is Culture?

Human actions, events, and material works that embody meanings that are widely shared.
A culture is like an ensemble of texts that includes our conversations, rituals, ceremonies, new
reports, songs, poems, theatrical plays, dances, theories, political rhetoric, myths, legends,
stories, icons, advertising, films, television programs, popular songs, literature, speeches,
architecture, works of visual art, and so forth.
We use culture than to refer to the realm of human activity and its results, both material and
nonmaterial products.
Christians make our own culture.
Unsaved make their own culture (usually referred to by Christians as se
cular culture).

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Chapter 7 How can I know what is sin ? The need for a foundational Biblical Hermeneutic
The Sufficiency of Scripture
Definition: T
he sufficiency of Scripture means that Scripture contained all the words of God
He intended His people to have at each stage of redemptive history, and that it now contains all
the words of God we need for salvation, for trusting Him perfectly, and for obeying Him
perfectly. (Wayne Grudem; WCF 1:6)
2 Timothy 3:14-17 ESV But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly
believed, knowing from whom you learned it (15) and how from childhood you have been
acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith
in Christ Jesus. (16) All Scripture is God breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for
reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, (17) that the man of God may be
competent, equipped for every good work.
Practical applications for the sufficiency of Scripture
1. It should encourage us as we try to discover what God would have us to think (about a
particular doctrinal issue) or to do (in a particular situation).
2. It reminds us that we are to add nothing to Scripture, and that we are to consider no other
writings or
revelations of equal value to Scripture.
3.
It tells us that God does not require us to believe anything about Himself or His
redemptive work that is not found in Scripture.
4. It tells us that nothing is sin that is not forbidden by Scripture either explicitly or by
implication.
Now
by implication is the tough phrase that we all wrestle with.
It is good to have discussions over
implied things, but dont break Christian fellowship.
Keeping a set of rules is NOT living the Christian life. We either have false guilt if we stumble
or pride if we keep the rules fully. Eph. 4:17-5:?
I wouldnt suggest imposing any one individuals own convictions onto everyone else
certainly keep your own convictions, give advice, share what you do with others, but dont say it
is REQUIRED of GOD.
Be hard on yourself, but charitable to others!
It is not about keeping rules it is about the heart Have to constantly check your heart.
We dont want to be
white washed sepulchers - clean on outside, but dirty on the inside
Implication from Scripture that rests too heavily on personal bias (interpretation to fit already
pre-conceived opinions), is not what Scripture itself tells us to do when it comes to creating

rules for Christian living.

The Power of Perception

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Why do people misunderstand Scripture?

My point is, perception is personal and varied
The Clarity of Scripture
The Bible is written in such a way that its teachings are able to be understood by all who will
read it seeking Gods help and being willing to follow it.
1. The Bible frequently affirms its own clarity.
Ps. 19:7; 119:130; Deut. 6:6-7, Mt. 22:29
2. Why do people misunderstand Scripture?
Because of whats wrong in our hearts and minds
In areas of doctrinal or ethical disagreement (is it morally ok to watch movies), there are two
possible causes:
(1) We are seeking to make affirmations where Scripture is silent
(2) We have made mistakes in our interpretation of Scripture.
Follow the Argument
Think critically. Do you agree or disagree about where I am leading us with my argument?
a) Leisure is beneficial and can be used to worship God (our ultimate goal/purpose).
b) In our leisure humans create culture/art.
c) Christians always want to know what the right actions are in terms of relating to
culture/art
d) Our personal perception affects how we interpret Scripture (especially things we feel are
implicit/implied).
e) Assumed truth is dangerous.

Question: "How can I know if something is a sin?"

Answer: There are two issues involved in this question, the things that the Bible specifically
mentions and declares to be sin and those the Bible does not directly address. Scriptural lists of
various sins include Proverbs 6:16-19, Galatians 5:19-21, and 1 Corinthians 6:9-10. There can be
no doubt that these passages present the activities as sinful, things God does not approve of.
Murder, adultery, lying, stealing, etc.there is no doubt the Bible presents such things as sin.
The more difficult issue is in determining what is sinful in areas that the Bible does not directly
address. When the Bible does not cover a certain subject, we have some general principles in His
Word to guide us.
First, when there is no specific scriptural reference, it is good to ask not whether a certain thing is
wrong, but, rather, if it is definitely good. The Bible says, for example, that we are to ma
ke the
most of every opportunity (Colossians 4:5). Our few days here on earth are so short and
precious in relation to eternity that we ought never to waste time on selfish things, but to use it
only on
what is helpful for building others up according to their needs (Ephesians 4:29).

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A good test is to determine whether we can honestly, in good conscience, ask God to bless and
use the particular activity for His own good purposes. So whe
ther you eat or drink or whatever
you do, do it all for the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31). If there is room for doubt as to
whether it pleases God, then it is best to give it up. E
verything that does not come from faith is
sin (Romans 14:23). We need to remember that our bodies, as well as our souls, have been
redeemed and belong to God.
Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit,
who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a
price. Therefore honor God with your body (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). This great truth should
have a real bearing on what we do and where we go.
In addition, we must evaluate our actions not only in relation to God, but also in relation to their
effect on our family, our friends, and other people in general. Even if a particular thing may not
hurt us personally, if it harmfully influences or affects someone else, it is a sin.
It is better not to
eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother to fall....We who are
strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves (Romans 14:21;
15:1).
Finally, remember that Jesus Christ is our Lord and Savior, and nothing else can be allowed to
take priority over our conformity to His will. No habit or recreation or ambition can be allowed
to have undue control over our lives; only Christ has that authority.
Everything is permissible
for mebut not everything is beneficial. Everything is permissible for mebut I will not be
mastered by anything (1 Corinthians 6:12).
And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do
it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him (Colossians
3:17).
Recommended Resource: Overcoming Sin and Temptation by John Owen.
http://www.gotquestions.org/know-sin.html