The Young Christian and His Entertainment
by Shadrac Desslier
Entertainment has always been an important part of men’s lives. Thus Blaise Pascal pointed out when he wrote: “The man, however sad he may be, if he can be won over to take part in some illicit entertainment, behold happy is he during that time.”
This is so for everyone, either Christian or pagan because entertainment relieves the body and soul, and relaxes the mind. But Christians should be aware of the fact that though in this world, we are not of the world. So we must be careful not to participate in unhealthy pleasures of the world to avoid defiling our body and soul.
A Christian, it is true, can participate in certain activities and even practice some sports, but he must beware of the spirit of competition. What a young Christian should avoid is to participate in a group or team whose members are not Christians. For one can, without realizing it, sink into the mud of sin. The competitive spirit can sometimes take the place of a certain joy that one experiences from a fun game. It can be seen that the Bible did not exclude sports and entertainment in the life of the believer. It is simply not to take fun or entertainment in the Pascalian sense of the term, where one tries to escape reality, but in the sense of good relaxation of the mind. Some Christians who do not want to submit to Bible teaching and are driven by worldly curiosity, think they can watch any lewd scene without being affected. Under the pretext of gaining experience, they are greatly mistaken and rather expose themselves to carnal lusts.
In 1 Corinthians 15:33 it is written, “Do not be deceived, bad companies corrupt good morals,” and in the first Psalm it is also said, “Blessed is he who does not follow the counsel of people without faith or law, who stands far from the path of the guilty, and who does not sit with those who mock God! We see, then, that Christians must flee the company of adulterers, homosexuals, fornicators, proud men, thieves, etc. Furthermore, certain images must be driven out of our thoughts, and we must avoid watching certain movies and television programs. Indeed, one may be driven to imitate abominable acts and behaviors. Essentially, the best is to avoid these kinds of temptations.
Beloved, above all, let us commit to purifying ourselves of all that can defile our soul and our spirit, and let us strive to be perfectly holy by living in the fear and respect of God (2 Corinthians 7:1).
Shadrac Desslier
5th year Secondary School
Church of God Eben-Ezer
De Maïs Gaté, P-A-P, Haiti
