Friend or Foe?

I went to a friend’s sixteenth birthday party in high school; we had a great time playing games and eating pizza, his parents were great hosts and everyone from the school and church was invited. It was a great fun-filled evening.

Following the food and games one senior pulled out a couple of movies and held them up. “Here are the options,” she said. She held up the one (I honestly can’t recall what it was); there was a mediocre response. Tossing that case away, she held up the other option but covered the picture up with her hand and called out, “Or, The Grudge.” The response from the group of teens was almost unanimous.

Almost unanimous.

My little red flag flew up instantly when I saw her covering up the picture. My thought was, “If you have to cover up the photo, it can’t be appropriate for me to watch.” I checked the rating and read the summary—yup, it was a horror film, rated PG-13, and clearly not something my parents would approve of. But you know my history with horror films—I promptly called my mom and asked her to pick me up.

While I waited for my mom to come get me, I watched the first few minutes of the film with everyone (in the dark with the surround sound blaring, mind you. Way to freak me out!). All I remember was watching some man fall off an apartment complex porch and coloring the ground with his blood. I was further disgusted, so I resolved to head upstairs and watch Ever After with my friend’s mom (a much better option in my opinion. Cute movie!).

I will admit that my response and attitude toward my peers as to their film choice was not God-centered. I have learned from that experience not to shove my opinions down the throats of others. To have my own opinions is good, for them to have theirs is good; but if I want to tell someone that our standards don’t match up, telling them to their face that I think they are sinning is not the way to do it. There is a godly way to approach touchy topics.

And that is how I want to approach the topic of horror films for adults. I don’t want to point my finger at you and say, “Repent of your sinful ways!” when we have different convictions. But I do want to take a closer look at horror films (*gulp*) and explain why I think they are inappropriate with a biblical view.

Since the episode at my friend’s house, I have thought a lot about horror films and why I do not like them, and for more reasons than the fact that they simply terrify me. I think there is a sense that because something doesn’t exist or we can’t see it, it is okay to watch and it won’t harm us. Many popular fantasy stories are included in this, such as Lord of the Rings, The Chronicles of Narnia, Star Wars, and Harry Potter to name a few.

These films have a common trait of fantasy: talking animals, elves, dwarves, wizards, witches, moving trees and other fantastical creatures. At the end of the day, these don’t exist, so they can’t affect how we live.

But demons are very much real.

The book Basic Theology by Charles C. Ryrie has a whole section on demons. Through his study of the Bible Ryrie tells us that demons are fallen angels, and each has his own personality. Spirits and demons are genuine persons and they are spirit beings.

Not only that, but also they are intelligent, which makes sense considering they are fallen angels.  They know who God is, they know Him as the only One, True God; they know who Jesus is. They know His mission. They know the final end that will come upon them at the End Times.

And they know how to influence us. They have been watching mankind since the beginning, and they know how we operate. Demons and evil spirits have a leader, called the prince of the demons: Satan (Matt. 12:24). Satan’s goal is to trump God, become the Highest Being, and “counterfeit what is right” (Ryrie 185).

Satan’s minions promote everything evil—they want to corrupt mankind into believing that what is evil is good and what is good is evil. They use everything as a tool to sway us—media is no exception.

So why, if I may ask in an honest, uncondescending way, do some of God’s people find it acceptable to watch The Conjuring at its midnight showing in theatres? The Conjuring is about paranormal investigators helping a family dispose of a demon living in their farmhouse.

Philippians 4:9 says, “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”

Demons are not to be trifled with. Demons are the pawns of the devil, and we, as God’s people, as Satan’s enemies should not stoop to the notion that demonic activity cannot affect us. It is true that if we are truly saved, God is in us and God will always be with us. But God also teaches us in 1 Corinthians 10:20-21, “But I say, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God: and I would not that ye should have fellowship with devils. Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils: ye cannot be partakers of the Lord’s table, and of the table of devils.”

One of my favorite verses is James 4:8, “Draw nigh unto God, and He will draw nigh unto you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double-minded.” God wants us to run to Him in all of life, not just in the hard times, but in the good times, in the bad times, in the sad, lonely days, in the fun, happy days. God wants our attention; He wants us to talk to Him and He wants a relationship with us! How amazing is that?

So why would we want to meddle in things that He despises? You may not be Googling how to raise up the spirits in your dorm room, but by watching a film glorifying demonic spirits, you are promoting it. You are being bought into the idea that spirits and demons are not real and they are just entertainment.

Demons are real. Demons are not entertainment.

God wants us to glorify Him through our actions and our thoughts. He wants our full attention because He saved us from so much. Why would we want to fill our heads with the things He saved us from?

I choose not to watch horror films promoting demonic activity not because I prefer DreamWorks Animation, not because they scare me to death so it isn’t a preference. I choose not to watch demonic movies because I know I could be watching something more God-glorifying.

I choose not to be bought into the idea that my spiritually sworn enemies are good.

How about you?