http://www.movieguide.org/?s=articles&id=118
Salt & Light: Warning About THE DA VINCI CODE Is an Act of Loving Kindness
and Truth
May 25th, 2006
By Dr. Ted Baehr with Dr. Tom Snyder
If you knew that someone was about to drive off a cliff, wouldn't you warn
that person about the danger? Wouldn't that be the loving thing to do?
When Jesus calls His disciples to be salt and light, he was calling for
Christians to do two things:
1. Warn people about their sins.
2. Show people that the answer to their sin problem is to establish a
personal relationship with Jesus Christ through faith and discipleship.
The warning about sin is not to condemn people for their sins; that is
something only God can do. The warning about sin is to warn people about
eternal separation from God, who is the Source of all Knowledge, Wisdom,
Love, Joy, and Beauty. The call to establish a personal relationship with
Jesus Christ is an attempt to share with people the Knowledge, Wisdom, Love,
Joy, and Beauty that a personal relationship with Jesus Christ will bring.
To be salt and light, therefore, is an Act of Love to protect people from
the destruction that comes from sin and to make people aware of the Light
and Truth that comes from Jesus Christ.
Thus, when we at MOVIEGUIDEŽ warn people about the dangers of THE DA VINCI
CODE, violent horror movies, or sex comedies like AMERICAN PIE, it is an Act
of Love designed to point people away from darkness and toward the Light of
the True, the Good and the Beautiful.
Although these works are fiction, recent polls from the Barna Research Group
in the United States and the IPSOS Institute in Europe show that millions of
people will change their beliefs after reading or seeing these fictional
works. Barna reports that 11 million of the 60 million people or so who have
read THE DA VINCI CODE have changed their spiritual beliefs about Jesus
Christ after reading the book. IPSOS reports that up to half of the people
who have read the book, 30 million people, have changed their beliefs about
Jesus Christ. These numbers include people of weak Christian faith and
non-Christians.
According to worldwide box office figures, at least 35 million people have
seen the DA VINCI CODE movie so far. This means that the movie may affect
the beliefs of an additional 17 million or more people.
The book version of THE DA VINCI CODE is a slanderous, vicious attack on
Jesus Christ, His church and the Bible. Unlike the book, the hero in the
movie, played by Tom Hanks, makes some positive statements regarding the
traditional view of Jesus Christ and His divinity. He then says, however,
that it doesn't matter what the real truth is, it only matters what people
believe. Such irrational, anti-historical statements may be even more
insidious than Dan Brown's book, because they lull people into a deadly
sense of apathy about the historical, moral and spiritual identity and
mission of Jesus Christ.
What makes this even worse is the fact that children, teenagers and young
adults, who don't have the knowledge and wisdom that comes with age and
experience, are the most vulnerable to the wicked effects of popular works
like THE DA VINCI CODE.
No mater how you cut it, therefore, THE DA VINCI CODE, though a work of
fiction, will greatly weaken Jesus Christ's loving mission to bring salt and
light to the human race. Anyone who reads or sees THE DA VINCI CODE,
especially those who advocate reading it or seeing it and those who say it
doesn't matter if people read or see THE DA VINCI CODE, are taking a stand
against Jesus Christ and His Gospel. It is they who are being unloving, not
those who warn people about the dangers of such works like THE DA VINCI
CODE. It is also they who will be encouraging the entertainment industry to
make and market more books, movies and videos viciously attacking Jesus
Christ, His mission and the Bible.
This is a Culture War that Christians dare not lose. We must win this
Culture War and defeat the forces of darkness if we are to follow Jesus
Christ's loving command to bring salt and light to the human race. Only by
winning this Culture War will we be able to continue baptizing people in the
Name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit and teaching them everything that
Jesus Christ commands us to do.
The fate of the world hangs in the balance, but God is the ultimate power on
whom everything depends. If we remain faithful to God through Jesus Christ,
then God will remain faithful to us. For, it is ultimately He who will bring
the fruit to our efforts to preach the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
It is His blessings on our work that will help make this world a better
place for future generations, our children and grandchildren.
Let us prayerfully ask God, therefore, to deliver people from the
historical, moral and spiritual confusion that comes from such things as THE
DA VINCI CODE. Use us, Oh Lord, to bring salt, light and love to our fellow
men and women. Fill us with the power of the Holy Spirit to seek first Your
kingdom and Your righteousness. In the Name of Jesus Christ, our Savior.
Amen.
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