Primarily in the Aeneid of Virgil, and referred to in the Odyssey, is the epic tale of the Greek conquest over Troy. After ten unsuccessful years of trying to conquer Troy, Odysseus of Ithaca, a Greek king, came up with the idea of building a very large wooden horse, large enough to hide a select force of men inside. The Greek army sailed away, as if defeated, but left the wooden horse with a special force of men inside its belly. The people of Troy, thinking this was a token of surrender, pulled the wooden horse inside the gates. During the night, the hidden force of men inside the wooden horse exited and opened the gates for the rest of the Greek army that had sailed back to Troy under darkness. Once the gates were opened, the people of Troy were overwhelmed by the Greek army and destroyed. The war was ended. The Greeks had won.

The invention of the television (TV), as we know it today, was actually a process begun in the early 1920’s and became commercially available in the 1930’s. Of Americans, 99% of homes today own at least one and each person watches about four hours per day.

I well recall when my parents got our first television. It was a large square box that sat on a table. A line had to be run from it to the top of the mountain in order to receive a signal, which by the way, was in black and white and wasn’t very clear. Many, many a time, I had to climb the mountain to remove a tree limb. Since I lived in eastern Kentucky, the mountains were no small feat.

Just a few of the shows I remember as a very young child were Roy Rogers, Flicka, Fury, Sky King, Howdy Doody, Bugs Bunny and Popeye.  

Shows at that time were “clean” and usually taught moral lessons. (You could even tell who the good guy and the bad guy were because the good guy always wore the white hat and the bad guy always wore the black hat.) Not so these days. Today, every obscene word and immoral act conceivable is blatantly portrayed for all to view. Nothing is left to the imagination.

Is there anything good to be said of television today? Well, if you know where to look, you might find a worthwhile Christian program out of the many not so worthwhile religious programs. Most are just false prophets looking to make a quick buck. Also, you might find some old shows and/or movies that were not tainted, at the time they were made, with today’s refuse. Sports are always a favorite of most men and even some women. As far as the news goes, I personally don’t watch news on television. They all are just the same old liberal, socialist malarkey you get from most newspapers. Even Fox news isn’t as conservative as most people think. Speaking of Fox, its owner, Rupert Murdock, puts out more trash than you could shake a stick at in his Fox line-up.

During any person’s lifetime, they will witness thousands of murders (and they continuously get more gruesome), thousands of sexually related scenes, hear thousands of obscene words and remarks, and be pummeled thousands of times with Hollywood’s liberal, sick view of life. Without realizing that we are the “frog in the water” that is being boiled alive, we are being conditioned to not see and even to agree with the demented evil message Satan wants us to have.

We have pulled the “Trojan horse” within our gates, into our homes, and have been conquered by its wiles. We have been dumbed down by Satan’s army in two ways; (1) the enormous amount of trash we take into our minds, and (2) the enormous amount of time that is wasted and thrown to the wind. This subject is far too broad to cover every facet, so allow me to attempt a general idea.

The enormous amount of trash we take into our minds:

The Psalmist says, “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” (Psalms 119:105) The Apostle Paul says, “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15)

Speaking primarily to Christians, instead of filling our minds with the Word of God, we have allowed society, via the television media, to corrupt our brains. Maybe that’s why the television is often called the “boob tube” or the “idiot box,” because we sure seem to be blessed today with an overflow of so-called Christians who are boobs and idiots in their knowledge of the Word of God. I often shake my head in disbelief at some of the things I hear from others who are “supposedly” Christians. There is so much of the world in their brains they have no room for the knowledge of God.

For example, to my amazement, people actually believe anything that is said on television news. I have actually heard them say, “But it was on the news, so it must be true.” I have also known a few, bless their dear little hearts, who thought the soap operas were true, and would get very upset, nearly depressed, over the tragedies of their favorite “stars.”

The enormous amount of time that is wasted and thrown to the wind:

If each person watches four hours of television per day, then that would mean he/she would watch roughly (ballpark) 120,000 hours of television in his/her lifetime. That is almost 14 years, non-stop, of each person’s life that would be spent watching television. Now you tell me if television influences our thinking.

From this Trojan horse, the television, Satan is sending a steady stream of his influence to our brains.

Think about this. Let us take a look at the twenty four hour day that God has given us.

ACTIVITY	HOURS	BALANCE
24 Hour Day	24
Sleep Time (hopefully)	8	16
Work Time (if you work)	8	8
Driving Time to/from work (more or less)	1	7
Television (average)	4	3
Preparation for work/bed (if you are male)	1	2
Miscellaneous	2	0

         

I don’t see a whole lot of quality time left there to spend with God. Based on the average, we are spending 25% (or ¼) of our waking hours glued to you know what. We are not only stuffing our brains with useless and often perverted issues, but also taking from God, time that should be spent with Him, and dedicating it to Satan’s follies.  

Also, television has conditioned us to have most everything solved within thirty minutes to an hour or so (except the soap operas … they just slosh along … never ending). We walk around like zombies in the Reader’s Digest mode. We want the quick version. Instead of reading Moby Dick, let’s watch the movie or read the comic book. (College kids are renowned for this, and are cheating themselves.)

For those of us who are Christians, the Lord says, “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.” (Romans 12:2)

In my opinion, the television could be the most destructive instrument ever invented and brought into the homes of the American people, any people for that matter. We have allowed it to turn our attention away from God and His Word, the Bible. Also, since we have taken Bible time and switched it for television time, we are now loading up on trash instead of the much needed meat of the Word. Also again, television has had a tremendous impact on many problems within the home; i.e. divorce, drugs, murders, selfishness, debt, immorality, laziness, obesity, etc.

Is it wrong for a Christian to have a television set (or two, or three, or more) in their home? No, it is not wrong. The real question however is this, “Do we control the television or does it control us?” Can we turn it off, or does our hand go into spasms when attempting to do so? Does our brain freeze up, and we keep watching material that is corrupting our minds? Are we selective, with God’s Book as our guide, in what we watch? Does television time replace time we should be spending in God’s Word and prayer? Does television time replace quality time we should be interacting with our family? Are we so engrossed in this Trojan horse, do we even know if we have a family?

I often think about the junk that is on television, and am convinced that if every true Christian told their provider to either remove the garbage or disconnect their service, the television kingpins would begin a cleaning process. It’s all about money folks. Money talks. It will never happen though, because as long as people say nothing, nothing will be done.

Page after page could be written on this subject. We could delve off in many directions. Volumes could be printed, but let’s just narrow this down to one microscopic point of concern, a question I have already asked, but will now repeat, “Do we control the television or does it control us?” You may think that I am blowing this all out of proportion, but am I? If there were ever a modern day Trojan horse, it would be the television set. Over half of the American homes have more than three. Are we obsessed with entertainment or not? You bet your whiskers we are.

Obviously we have to sleep. For those who work, we have to work. We have to eat, clean and do other necessary chores. With the little free time that remains, how much do we spend with God? In our conversations with the Lord, we listen to Him by reading His Word. We speak to Him through prayer. How much conversation is there between us and the Lord? If we spent the same amount of time communicating with our spouse, we would be divorced. With our children, they would be in some kind of trouble. With our employer, we would be fired. Isn’t Jesus Christ, our Savior God, by far more important than anyone else in our lives? Why do we shun Him the most? Satan’s Trojan horse has been a major step.

Grant Phillips

A Stone’s Throw

By Grant Phillips
I would like to use another song I wrote, this one three years ago, called, “A Stone’s Throw”. The words are as follows:

At the feet of Jesus lay the woman in red
Her accusers condemned her and wanted her dead
They caught her in sin said put her to death
Throw stones at her till she breathes her last breath

 

Some people are vile and wretched within
Just failures and losers all lost in their sin
Oh show them no mercy for breaking God’s Law
Just a hard throw with a stone to the jaw

 

If Jesus forgave as we forgive others
We’d not be in His family as sisters and brothers
Instead there would be stones coming our way
A hard reckoning when we go astray

 

CHORUS:

We all live in glass houses and should never throw stones
But some of us look down from our thrones
Only Jesus can judge then grace steps in
For those who seek forgiveness from sin

 

I believe the Lord laid this song on my heart in thinking about those who are so quick to condemn others, but also to remind us that while people may not forgive, Jesus is always willing to do so. The heart of the song is taken from John 8:1-11. I’m going to include the full passage below, since some may not be in a position to look it up while reading this article:

“Jesus went unto the mount of Olives. And early in the morning he came again into the temple, and all the people came unto him; and he sat down, and taught them. And the scribes and Pharisees brought unto him a woman taken in adultery; and when they had set her in the midst, They say unto him, Master, this woman was taken in adultery, in the very act. Now Moses in the law commanded us, that such should be stoned: but what sayest thou? This they said, tempting him, that they might have to accuse him. But Jesus stooped down, and with his finger wrote on the ground, as though he heard them not. So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her. And again he stooped down, and wrote on the ground. And they which heard it, being convicted by their own conscience, went out one by one, beginning at the eldest, even unto the last: and Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst. When Jesus had lifted up himself, and saw none but the woman, he said unto her, Woman, where are those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee? She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.” (John 8:1-11)

Do you need forgiveness? I certainly do … daily.

We now live in a society where pretty much anything goes. But even in this vile world we live in today, there are some actions that are still unforgivable by some we know. Sin is not pretty, any way you look at it. All sin is an abomination against a Holy God, and we have all come short of His glory.

Many of us have learned to come to our Lord for forgiveness when we trespass against Him, partly because it is miserable being out of fellowship with our Heavenly Father, and fantastic to have that load of guilt removed. As Christians, we do not want to sin against God. We struggle not to, but being in the flesh, we will. It is so refreshing to know that He forgives an earnest, sincere and broken heart.

However, I believe there are many among us who do not feel “worthy” to be forgiven. Listen closely; none of us are worthy to be forgiven. If we were, we would not need forgiveness. We would be God.

Sometimes Christians may not be at peace within themselves, simply because there is sin in their life, and they need to seek forgiveness. Their fellowship (not salvation) needs to be restored. What does this mean? As an example, if you are “on the outs” with your parents due to an argument, you are out of fellowship. They will always be your parents and you will always be their child, but your fellowship is broken. That fellowship needs to be restored.

What is sin? Who better to ask than God Himself? He informs us quite eloquently in Exodus 20:3-17. We call this passage The Ten Commandments. Sin is actually anything that is contrary to the will of God. I am convinced that many people do not know what sin is, basically because of the acceptance of society’s influence in our lives. “Everybody’s doing it, so it must be okay”.

I wonder how many people, who do not know Jesus as their Savior but would like to, feel they cannot be forgiven. Have you ever heard someone say something like, “God could never forgive me”? Often He will not, for one reason. They do not ask. In the latter part of James 4:2, the Lord says through James, “…You have not because you ask not”. This can be applied to the Christian or non-Christian. If you are without Christ, but want to be saved by Him and forgiven, it won’t happen until you ask.

Notice also what Jesus said to the woman caught in adultery in the beginning passage. “ … And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.” When He forgives us, He expects us to run in the opposite direction of the sin in our life. If you have no intention of forsaking your sin, then you are not being honest in your request to Him, and forgiveness will not be forthcoming. If you have truly placed your trust in Him, and are now His child, will you sin again? I repeat, you will not want to, you will struggle not to, but you will because you still live in the flesh. As His child, when you do sin (notice I did not say “if”) call out for forgiveness and forsake it. Keep doing that and keep trusting Him. We are told in 1 Corinthians 10:13, “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.”

Remember this. You have never committed a sin that God cannot forgive. Oh, you may think you’re the lowest form of humanity on the face of the earth because of what you have said, thought or done in your life. But He died for you. He will forgive you and live in you, if you let Him, but you must ask.

 

Grant Phillips