Mandy and I watched a movie tonight… Scratch that, I watched a movie and Mandy, as typical, saw bits and pieces.
I don’t mean this blog as a recommendation of this film but more of a review/rebuttal.
The movie was a comedy piece titled “The Invention of Lying”.
This film is filled with cameo appearances, top list of actors and actress’, as well as some hilarious add lib style comedy. Yet the story, for all of its hilarious cover up, rings a very hollow tune.
Our lead in this film is Mark. Mark is a pathetic “Loser” as everyone in this land, a land everyone can only speak the truth. Mark one day, after being fired, nearly evicted learns to lie. And since this land doesn’t speak lies, everyone believes him.
He then begins to speak lies to people to fix issues in their life. The couple who he continually see’s fighting… etc...
The catalyst is when he sees his mother in her final moments of life scared of the nothingness that she believes will be the afterlife. He creates a “Man in the Sky”. This not only makes her happy but those listening and soon he has the entire world wanting to know about this “Man in the sky”. So in a scene that brings viewers to think of Moses, he steps on to his porch with 2 pizza boxes with the 10 things or rules about this “Man in the Sky”.
As Paul did, finding a similarity in a statue of an un-known god, I tend to think about the writers view point and world view.
This movie portrays religion as a lie. He first claims (lies) to have found a tablet which brings up thoughts of Joseph Smith another founder of religion. Then his 10 rules on pizza box (refuse) tablets. Finally as everyone around him finds peace and serenity in the “man in the sky”, he becomes more depressed in it.
So what caused this writer to have this view? Well, I saw a couple sharp jabs in this movie.
1) There was a homeless man that everyone was walking by. And it wasn’t until he learned to LIE that he finally helped him. IE… the world, this Judeo-Christian nation, the thousands of churches, the Millions of supposed “Christians” walked past him day in and day out with out offering any help or hope.
2) The good church folks pushed for marriage of a genetically beneficial kind, as well as a “in your League” mentality as well. Mark was short and chubby with a stub nose, thus he and his “best-Friend” couldn’t marry as she was rich and of good looks.
3) The preacher at the wedding gave the vows “Do you promise to stay with her as long as you wish to?” Divorce has risen in this country to epic levels. And the church is not exempt. We preach one thing, yet at the first sign of trouble we to bail out.
4) Lastly the “Man in the Sky”, this man who causes the bad and the good. Who has mansions for us as long as we don’t do more than 3 bad things… This god was all a lie. This lie was created to make people happy, to make them think there was a purpose. Mark claims to talk with the man in the sky, making claims to have a direct connection with him. Yet when asked about what is right or wrong, he has to wing it… no solid answers other then the age old ‘to others, do no harm’.
Are you beginning to see the issue the write takes to Christianity? This writer has obviously been on the receiving side of the typical church go-er.
SO WHAT ARE WE TO DO?
What are WE, those who claim the name of Christ
Not as a medal around our neck
NOT as a get out of jail free card
NOT as a SOCIAL faith or SOCIAL god who we call on when we need something
NOT as a “Man in the Sky” who we claim to talk to.
NO!
Those who BELIEVE in a God who is REAL
Who does speak to us through his WORD
Who doesn’t just give us rules but seeks to build a relationship with us.
A GOD WHO LOVES
Who cares
Who hears our prayers
Who understands our needs
Who listens to our tears
Who STANDS for us.
A GOD who seeks to make us better.
A GOD WHO WILL NOT LEAVE US UNCHANGED!
A God who cries when we overlook the hurting
Who wants us to help those who are homeless.
A GOD who will bind our marriages together when we base them on HIM!
A GOD who looks beyond our upbringing, our heritage, our race, our background.
Who sees our past but doesn’t HOLD IT AGAINST US
A God who doesn’t have a confusing system of rules but lays them out for us in HIS WORD.
A God who didn’t put his rules on trash but on STONE!
In the words of an old Hymn:
I know not why God’s wondrous grace
To me He hath made known,
Nor why, unworthy, Christ in love
Redeemed me for His own.
But I know Whom I have believèd,
And am persuaded that He is able
To keep that which I’ve committed
Unto Him against that day.
I know not how this saving faith
To me He did impart,
Nor how believing in His Word
Wrought peace within my heart.
I know not how the Spirit moves,
Convincing us of sin,
Revealing Jesus through the Word,
Creating faith in Him
I know not what of good or ill
May be reserved for me,
Of weary ways or golden days,
Before His face I see
I know not when my Lord may come,
At night or noonday fair,
Nor if I walk the vale with Him,
Or meet Him in the air.
But I know Whom I have believèd,
And am persuaded that He is able
To keep that which I’ve committed
Unto Him against that day.
Lord I believe in you. Help my unbelief. Help my life to be the window of your LOVE. That people will see me, see my life and know that YOU are the most important thing to me. May my family, my friends, my church, my neighbors, all see the real me. Not a fake representation of who I think I should be. Not a ‘Fake Perfect’ that can turn them from you. But a true human being, imperfect due to my sins, yet patched together and made whole only by you. Kept from failure only by you. God I am faulty, I am imperfect. Yet may I never hinder anyone from coming to know you more. Let it never be about my own self but all about YOU!
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