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Only if you have Cable, satellite or internet......;p
I think that watching these shows is alright since we are not living in a bubble. You cannot go anywhere without the worldly themes drumming at you, resounding in your ears or pulling you down.
Watch any show with discernment. There are a lot of funny jokes on those but there can be a lot of sacrilegious jokes too. How do you feel when someone cracks a joke that is disrespecting your religious views or your savior? Too much of that and the show becomes irritating and repulsive. Then, I don't watch it anymore.
For the most part, the writers are pretty careful not to offend even though they have modern themes.
I think that watching these shows is alright since we are not living in a bubble. You cannot go anywhere without the worldly themes drumming at you, resounding in your ears or pulling you down.
Watch any show with discernment. There are a lot of funny jokes on those but there can be a lot of sacrilegious jokes too. How do you feel when someone cracks a joke that is disrespecting your religious views or your savior? Too much of that and the show becomes irritating and repulsive. Then, I don't watch it anymore.
For the most part, the writers are pretty careful not to offend even though they have modern themes.
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I think that there's a great word for your situation in the writings of the Apostle Paul - and that that word is the following:
"I have the right to do anything," you say--but not everything is beneficial. "I have the right to do anything"--but not everything is constructive.
1 Corinthians 10:23
I don't mean to be patronizing in what follows, but I'd just like to share some of my thoughts on the subject in general, which you might already know, but which I hope might help you.
As a Christian you can watch anything you like. But if we want to watch things that will help us love Christ more and inspire us to be holy, which is what Christians do want, then we need to be selective, because not everything inspires us to do these things. Jesus calls people who do not follow him or do his works "children of your father the devil", and as harsh as that may sound to our ears, if we are wise, then we take our knowledge that the television and film industry is predominated by non-believers, and we tread carefully when we consume things from this sector that are going to fill our minds and influence our feelings and portray to us as 'real' a view of the world that is not necessarily in line with God's Word. If we want to view the world according to what God says is true and good, we have to be savvy about the fact that television and film portrayals aren't going to be likely to present it from God's perspective, because the godly perspective is alien to most screenwriters and directors today. There is no ban on watching films, but if we are wise and committed to working out our salvation, we do not bury our heads in the sand when deciding on what is and isn't going to help us.
There are really obvious things to avoid, like sex and violence. A film with lots of romanticised, Hollywood-ised sexual scenes, or a film that presents adultery in a flattering light, for instance, is not going to inspire us to be pure. Many Christians also report that films with lots of cussing and violence have a negative effect on their walk with God. I appreciate that films that make aggression and violence look 'cool' might not directly influence people to think that these things are 'cool' in real life - people are usually more discerning than that. But if there are enough films of this kind filling up enough head space in enough people, it might make them think that aggression and violence are not so shocking and reprehensible as their forbears (who weren't influenced by the films) made out that they are. That can produce a serious slide in values and cultural acceptability over time.
On a deeper level than this however, all films promote a certain view of the way the world and humanity is, and of the way they 'should' be. This element of 'should' often isn't stated directly - people tend to just absorb it with the rest of the film if they don't know to look out for it, because their emotions are being prompted and tugged at in ways that make them sympathise with it in a way that seems 'natural' to them. Scientific studies have shown that your critical faculties tend to 'shut off' after a while of watching television, and you're more likely to just absorb certain things without properly questioning how Biblical they are. To the defence of their favourite programmes people often say, "Everyone knows that it isn't real" - but I know that the power of film or programme to move us lies precisely in its ability to suspend our unbelief and appear real to us. I personally think that if you allow film portrayals of real life to occupy enough head space, they will seem more 'real' to you than real life. To be honest, I think that even those non-Christians who think about this hard enough, and with enough integrity, will recognise that the "Everyone knows it's not real" argument is moot. The very same people who say that about certain films that Christians don't like can sometimes also be those who blame film for changing society's perceptions of women and homosexuals in ways that they do not like. Talk to enough non-Christians about the subject, and you might start to see this double standard emerge.
With this in mind, I think a person is more likely to ingest the non-Christian messages or outlooks from television or film than if their critical faculties were wide awake. On a personal level that doesn't mean that I don't watch anything at all, but I make sure that I take a considerably larger dose of Bible and 'real world' to offset my various doses of 'television world'; I know which series aren't helpful to me, and I sometimes double check what's in a film before I watch it.
So as regards this series you want to know if you can watch, I'd say that you're free to watch it. But if you want to be wise about making yourself fruitful for God, think about whether it will help your walk with Christ or help build God's Kingdom up, or help you to love someone else, and if you don't think it will, watch something that you're more confident will do those things.
"I have the right to do anything," you say--but not everything is beneficial. "I have the right to do anything"--but not everything is constructive.
1 Corinthians 10:23
I don't mean to be patronizing in what follows, but I'd just like to share some of my thoughts on the subject in general, which you might already know, but which I hope might help you.
As a Christian you can watch anything you like. But if we want to watch things that will help us love Christ more and inspire us to be holy, which is what Christians do want, then we need to be selective, because not everything inspires us to do these things. Jesus calls people who do not follow him or do his works "children of your father the devil", and as harsh as that may sound to our ears, if we are wise, then we take our knowledge that the television and film industry is predominated by non-believers, and we tread carefully when we consume things from this sector that are going to fill our minds and influence our feelings and portray to us as 'real' a view of the world that is not necessarily in line with God's Word. If we want to view the world according to what God says is true and good, we have to be savvy about the fact that television and film portrayals aren't going to be likely to present it from God's perspective, because the godly perspective is alien to most screenwriters and directors today. There is no ban on watching films, but if we are wise and committed to working out our salvation, we do not bury our heads in the sand when deciding on what is and isn't going to help us.
There are really obvious things to avoid, like sex and violence. A film with lots of romanticised, Hollywood-ised sexual scenes, or a film that presents adultery in a flattering light, for instance, is not going to inspire us to be pure. Many Christians also report that films with lots of cussing and violence have a negative effect on their walk with God. I appreciate that films that make aggression and violence look 'cool' might not directly influence people to think that these things are 'cool' in real life - people are usually more discerning than that. But if there are enough films of this kind filling up enough head space in enough people, it might make them think that aggression and violence are not so shocking and reprehensible as their forbears (who weren't influenced by the films) made out that they are. That can produce a serious slide in values and cultural acceptability over time.
On a deeper level than this however, all films promote a certain view of the way the world and humanity is, and of the way they 'should' be. This element of 'should' often isn't stated directly - people tend to just absorb it with the rest of the film if they don't know to look out for it, because their emotions are being prompted and tugged at in ways that make them sympathise with it in a way that seems 'natural' to them. Scientific studies have shown that your critical faculties tend to 'shut off' after a while of watching television, and you're more likely to just absorb certain things without properly questioning how Biblical they are. To the defence of their favourite programmes people often say, "Everyone knows that it isn't real" - but I know that the power of film or programme to move us lies precisely in its ability to suspend our unbelief and appear real to us. I personally think that if you allow film portrayals of real life to occupy enough head space, they will seem more 'real' to you than real life. To be honest, I think that even those non-Christians who think about this hard enough, and with enough integrity, will recognise that the "Everyone knows it's not real" argument is moot. The very same people who say that about certain films that Christians don't like can sometimes also be those who blame film for changing society's perceptions of women and homosexuals in ways that they do not like. Talk to enough non-Christians about the subject, and you might start to see this double standard emerge.
With this in mind, I think a person is more likely to ingest the non-Christian messages or outlooks from television or film than if their critical faculties were wide awake. On a personal level that doesn't mean that I don't watch anything at all, but I make sure that I take a considerably larger dose of Bible and 'real world' to offset my various doses of 'television world'; I know which series aren't helpful to me, and I sometimes double check what's in a film before I watch it.
So as regards this series you want to know if you can watch, I'd say that you're free to watch it. But if you want to be wise about making yourself fruitful for God, think about whether it will help your walk with Christ or help build God's Kingdom up, or help you to love someone else, and if you don't think it will, watch something that you're more confident will do those things.
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tp552
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As I started walking closer to God (reading Bible everyday and praying several times a day instead of a few times a week), I lost my desire for most everything on television. Now I do not watch those shows, I just don't have a desire to watch them and I do not miss them. It was kind of weird and it did not happen overnight.
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Inkachu
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You need to ask yourself if you would still watch them with Jesus sitting beside you. And you need to closely and honestly examine how the subject matter of the shows affects your spirit and mind. There is no one, cover-all answer for everybody. Some people have the spiritual maturity to see and hear things without it affecting them the way it might someone who is a new believer. And even among seasoned Christians, everyone has varying degrees of sensitivity to different things. For instance, my husband can watch bloody, gory movies without flinching or feeling bothered by it; I, on the other hand, can't, it's too upsetting to me.
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