In this chapter we arrive at the most important function of television, as many studies show that the entertainment or relaxation function of television is by far the most important.

This function even surpasses all other functions, if we assume that sports broadcasts — and especially soccer matches — can be placed in the “entertainment” category.

The quest for ratings, especially in the contest between the public broadcaster and the commercial broadcaster(s) is therefore fought and decided in this arena.

A broadcaster who aims to achieve high ratings knows that they need to present ample entertainment and few educational, scientific, edifying, testimonial or even informative programs. In the rankings of the programs that reach the most viewers there are practically always only amusement programs to be found. Only on rare occasions is there room for an informative program. Only in times of international crises can the latter compete with the entertainment programs in terms of audience ratings.

When RTL 4 (formerly Veronica) entered the contest for highest ratings, it did so with many shows providing much glitter and glamour. And when the broadcasters of Nederland 2 started to resist this, they did so in particular through a very similar offering of programs.

It is for that reason that the well-known anchors, quiz masters and show characters are much sought after.

The Big Show⤒🔗

What do entertainment programs offer?

Generally they consist of a number of different categories, of which the most well-known are the following: the big shows (either linked to some game-play or not); the soap operas, that is, a series of frequently numerous episodes centered around a particular family where some terrible things occur; feature films; quizzes in which—unlike the big shows — brain-power is required; sports competitions; and a relatively new phenomenon: games where participants have to guess the correct price of an article.

The big shows, in particular, whose names and titles I will not mention because such details often go out of date quickly, attract massive audiences, as do well-known soap operas and games in which prizes have to be guessed. Some well-known programs were Dallas, Dynasty and Falcon Crest, along with, in the very dim past, Peyton Place. These kinds of programs are highly anticipated night after night, and it seems as if the Dutch population could not watch it often enough. Not all that long ago some optimistic “media-watchers” expressed the hope that some level of saturation would be reached, so that the Dutch people would get tired of what they called “nonsensical programs,” but for the time being this does not look to occur anytime soon.

On the contrary: the advent of commercial broadcasting appears to have given new life to these types of programs, and ratings are increasing once again.

Sin as Entertainment←⤒🔗

It is especially this kind of program that has had a disastrous, pernicious impact on Christian faith and subsequently on the morality of people. A worldly spirit is strongly present, although at the same time rather difficult to define.

Hardly a show, series or film is shown without images and scenes appearing on the one hand, or ambiguous remarks being made on the other hand, which are at odds with the biblical testimony, barring some exceptions.

Divorce, adultery, fornication, drunkenness, cursing, murder and manslaughter are the order of the day on the TV screen. I am almost  tempted to quote from the list of sins from the (older) form for the celebration of the Lord’s Supper, simply to illustrate what is also consumed night after night by Christian people.

Many things that God has forbidden, and which are warned against in church on Sundays, are viewed uncritically during the week. Sin is presented as normal, as something that enhances the entertainment value. This also applies to the — seemingly innocent — game shows in the form of a television show, where disguised eroticism is almost a recurring ingredient and where ambiguous comments raise the revelry to greater heights.

Often the whole family watches this type of program, where things are shown and said that would have made people ashamed in the past.

What used to be shut off now remains being shown due to the addictive and eroding effect of television.

Anyone who has a TV in their home will have to agree. An evening of entertainment is, of course, very tempting.

A few years ago, the AVRO presented a commercial about an “evening of AVRO,” in which the whole family was stretched out comfortably on the couch, with chips and nuts within reach, contentedly watching TV. Forgetting for a moment all the daily worries and concerns, the family relaxed in front of the TV.

For those who have had enough in the evening after a busy day or at the end of a busy week, the opportunity to unwind and to take their minds off things represents a great temptation. And that is how TV functions.

Sin in the Human Heart←⤒🔗

It will be clear that I regard the entertainment and relaxation function of the TV as the greatest evil of all. It reaches both elderly and younger people, who allow themselves to be influenced by that worldly spirit.

Because that is what it is all about: that which is presented finds a connection in the hearts of all of us. Those who know themselves a little will have to agree.

The well-known Dr. W.J. Ouweneel once said, “I have no television because I know myself.”

Every person, whether Christian or not, converted or unconverted, serious or less serious, is susceptible to those ever-so-refined images that are presented, ready to take in all the glitter and glow, the sex and eroticism, the seduction and voyeurism. Those who produce the shows know exactly how to captivate the human minds. They know the human heart perhaps even better than the average preacher.

All those temptations, big and small, overt or covert, are widely displayed in the living room. Where once people were warned about the danger of the cinema—and even then it was often about movies that we would now label as decent and virtuous—these days a plethora of programs is brought into the living room night after night. And these are not primarily erotic or pornographic programs such as Veronica’s former Pin-up Club. That specific program could easily act as a lightning rod in the sense of, “Of course we do not watch it.”

No, it is all about the daily, “innocent” entertainment industry. The result has been predictable. We are dealing with a secularized Christianity in the Netherlands (and not only in our country).

Of course, this is not surprising when the world is brought into the home in such a welcoming manner. It is my firm conviction that the change in culture about which we speak and write so much these days is directly related to — and in fact also caused by — the mass media and especially through television.

Several years ago Prof. H.M. Kuitert already noted that television would drastically change the Reformed segment of the population, but that this had not yet been realized: truly, these proved to be prophetic words!

Man and His Passions←⤒🔗

What is in fact so dangerous about these kinds of programs? How does television intervene in our human life?

It is extremely difficult to put this process into words because it is a process involving emotions and affections. By nature, we are born hostile to God and to his Word. That also includes the wholesome commandments he has given us. Only through regeneration can we enter into the kingdom.

This means that in our natural state we are inclined toward everything that is wrong and sinful in this world. With some people this is more apparent than with others.

Some people live in outright sin, giving free rein to their passions, while others lead what appears to be a decent life, yet are no strangers to those same passions. When you know your human nature even a little, you will have to agree.

The natural man lives according to the pattern of this world and thinks according to the paradigms of this world, and he acts accordingly.

The medium par excellence that is, as it were, an amplification of life according to the pattern of this world, is television. That explains its strong power of attraction. It offers exactly what man is naturally inclined to enjoy. It has an excellent point of reference in all of our hearts.

This is why the influence of television will not diminish, as some people hope. They expect that people will eventually get tired of the many numbing entertainment programs. That will not happen, and practice proves it because there is an almost magical attraction in what is offered via the television screens.

Just as man — after the Fall — has been attracted to sin throughout the ages, so he always will be, until the final day.

I wrote about a “magical attraction” — but it might be better to speak of a “devilish attraction.” The devil preys on man through television, for he knows exactly what signals the receiving station, housed in our hearts, prefers to receive.

In this way he keeps people far from the gospel, which has a message of reconciliation and salvation, but also precepts to live not by the pattern of the world, but by the plan of God.

Do not be Conformed to this World...←⤒🔗

The receiving station is housed not only in the unconverted man but in all men—Christian or pagan, converted or unconverted.

That is why the apostle Paul writes in the letter to the church in Rome (12:2), “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” For the term “world,” Paul is using here the Greek word aiōn, which means “age” or “time.”

So the term “world” implies here the sinful, depraved world, fallen away from God, which has its own scheme. It is a world that thinks and lives and acts contrary to God’s Word.

This “being contrary to God’s Word” relates to all areas of life. No area is exempt.

Paul writes these words to the church in Rome. This is striking (or perhaps it is not) in the sense that his words are directed to a covenant community. The concept of a covenant community in the Bible does not imply that therefore all members of the congregation, head for head, are Christians. A Christian congregation consists of converted and unconverted people.

Paul addresses his words to the entire church — to both categories.

Even born-again Christians apparently run the danger of living according to the pattern of this world and run the danger of worldliness. Perhaps I should put it another way.

It is precisely the Christians who are in danger of world conformity. After all, in their old state they were already conformed to a worldly lifestyle, and in their new state, they can apparently revert back to their former situation again and again.

Paul warns about this, and for that matter he is not alone. The chords he strikes here are familiar ones.

Do not Love the World...←⤒🔗

The apostle John, elaborates, as it were, on this text in 1 John 2:15-17: “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world — the desire of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life — is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.”

Here John uses the other Greek word for “world”: kosmos.

John uses this word often. He uses it to designate the world that is hostile against God and has fallen away from God. This world — this cosmos — will one day face the judgment of God because it is a sinful world. The world is Satan’s realm and domain.

The Christian cannot escape this world (John 17:15). He even has a duty to be a shining light and a salting salt, but he must neither love this world nor conform to it.

We may never become like that world (Romans 12:2 and John 17:16), but, by becoming partakers of Christ, become like him. The claim that the term “world” has a very negative connotation in the Bible is also proven by the fact that the future world is never referred to as such, but always as “the new heavens and new earth” and “the kingdom of God.”

Apparently, the “world” is such a sinful concept that it cannot be called “new” either. God and the world are therefore distinguished in a strict way.

The Desire of the Eyes...←⤒🔗

One of the things mentioned in the text quoted above is “the desire [or ‘lust’] of the eyes.”

It would be a bit too easy to apply this text especially to the television. The Bible does show, not only from this text, that enticement often happens through the eyes. That certainly implies an additional warning.

This does not need to be all that surprising because man does not have so many senses through which he can be tempted. However, the eyes do play a special role. Did the Lord Jesus himself not say that it is better to pluck out an eye? (See, for example, Mark 9:47.)

There is a danger that we relate the quoted text exclusively to sexual sins. Over the centuries the church has not escaped the danger of regarding sexual sins on a somewhat higher, or if you will, a lower level than other sins. Hence, sexual sins are soon read into the Bible.

The combination of “desire of the flesh” and “desire of the eyes” also makes this thought more obvious.

Rev. M.R. van den Berg writes in a commentary on this text: “When we think of ‘desire of the flesh’ we immediately and exclusively think of sexual desire. But that is much too limited. It also gives the wrong impression as if sexual desire in itself is bad. ‘Flesh’ here does not mean ‘body’, but as so often in the Bible, the totality of our human existence ‘without God.’”

The desire of the flesh thus focuses on everything the heart may desire outside of God and thus includes much more than sexual desire, although that may be included as well. The same is true for the desire of the eyes. It concerns everything that your eyes covet without regard to God.

John Calvin commented with these words: “What, then, is the lust or desire of the flesh, but when worldly men, seeking to live softly and delicately, are intent only on their own advantages?”

The sum of the whole, says Calvin, “is that as soon as the world presents itself, our lusts or desires, when our heart is corrupt, are captivated by it, like unbridled wild beasts; so that various lusts, all which are adverse to God, bear rule in us.”

The Pride of Life...←⤒🔗

This much is clear that Christians are in great danger of living (yet again) according to the pattern of this world. For that which is brought into the living room every evening or night is precisely what is expressed in the Bible by “the world.” It is therefore indeed about the desire of the flesh, of the eyes, and the pride of life.

Not only do semi-erotic programs get displayed on the picture tube, but also many shows where exorbitant prizes are to be earned, while splendour, wealth and boasting are among the fixed ingredients of many series.

Not everyone will be attracted and tempted by the same things. Everyone’s antenna is pointed differently. There will be people who look with disdain at the display of wealth and prosperity because it does not appeal to them at all. Others will look at all those unattainable luxuries with such intense desire (I know of some examples) that their lives, in an attempt to experience some of that wealth, will end in destruction. Such a story could be told for every sin.

The devil knows that storyline as well; he knows our weaknesses the best, and seeks to exploit them no matter what. Day and night he is busy with his seductions. How unsuspecting we are if we assume that he has no hold over us.

A Pilgrim’s Attitude and Secularization←⤒🔗

Ultimately, television has brought about the cultural change that I mentioned earlier. Until the mid-1960s, Protestantism in the Netherlands was characterized by a certain sobriety and moderation.

People did participate fully in public life (and in politics), but at the same time they knew that the basic attitude of a Christian is the lifestyle of a pilgrim. One did not participate much in the various “entertainments of the world” because one recognized that he was called to live a separate life.

At that time, Prof. R. Schippers, professor at the Free University wrote in his book De Gereformeerde Zede [Reformed morality]: “Therefore we may boldly repeat here what we have already written before; whoever avoids the cinema and made his children to do likewise has many words of Scripture on his side; and also a piece of experiential wisdom from psychologists, pedagogues and sociologists. It is not difficult to argue that cinematic productions bring us very much into the spirit of the world.”

Since then the situation has changed drastically and dramatically. Television opened the windows wide to take in the world. Many Christians who consciously or unconsciously felt they could not breathe began to catch up. Through the medium of the TV it was possible to become acquainted with a world that had previously been largely hidden. This acquaintance, generally speaking, provided a sense of assimilation, of adaptation.

Secularization and the Eclipse of God←⤒🔗

It is difficult to describe this process in general terms, as many will immediately cite the exceptions. However, it is a given characteristic that the distinction between Christians and non-Christians started to blur: first during the week, and later also on the first day of the week.

The heart was filled by the many things this world has to offer: the innocent things as well as the sinful things. Based on this development a process took place in which standards and values began to shift.

Still later, the confession of the existence of God also came into question, resulting in the churches becoming emptier while the hearts of many are filled with the world.

Incidentally, this process did not only take place with those countless people who have left the church since the second half of the 1960’s, but also with those who still faithfully attend church and who profess the name of the Lord.

Assimilation has had its effect on them as well, even if it is not evident from a number of apparently concrete steps. No one has been able to escape the cultural change.

Many have allowed themselves to be captured, in part or entirely, by the earthly, the transient things, and they fill their lives by it, either openly or covertly, either consciously or unconsciously. In this way, in a process of many years, the image of a Christian nation has changed completely.

Christians from the Third World who visit our country often conclude that the Netherlands has become a country that is ripe for mission. Is television the only culprit in this process? No, but it is the main culprit.

More causes could be identified. For example, Rev. A.M. Lindeboom wrote a few years ago his book: De theologen gingen voorop [The theologians led the way], in which he demonstrates with a variety of arguments that secularization and de-Christianization began when theologians of name and fame began to openly doubt the truth of the Word.

Coincidentally, this process also began in the second half of the 1960’s. It was the same time when the shutters opened to the world, and the interest and attention of many Christians began to shift. These two developments interacted and reinforced each other.

The theologians — or at least some of them — removed the substance of the Bible’s message, reducing the content of many people’s lives, and television presented so much that life could receive a new charge.

However, even without these unfaithful theologians, the modern sense of life would have taken hold of many. Secularization pushed its way, and with success, such that now we can speak of an age of “the eclipse of God.” It should therefore not be all that surprising that the question is being asked more and more loudly whether the real work of the Holy Spirit is still being found. It is not only in the “modern” churches that things seem to have become cold and chilly; it is just as true of Reformed orthodoxy, while it appears to me that even the evangelical sector has not escaped the chill.

How can the Holy Spirit do his work, when human hearts are already filled, when people’s antennas are tuned in to the things of this world?

Mercifully, a characteristic of the Holy Spirit’s activity is precisely that he is able to break hard hearts. Perhaps then the first result of the Spirit’s working is that there will be a different use of the media.

Discussion Questions:←⤒🔗

1.  What entertainment programs do you tend to watch? Why?
    
2. Are concrete sins committed in those programs? What do you think about that?
    
3. When do you use the on/off button? Do you find yourself crossing boundaries at times?
    
4. Do you think it makes a big difference to be watching sins rather than committing them yourself?
    
5. In this chapter it was said, “the medium par excellence that is, as it were, an amplification of life according to the pattern of this world, is television.” Do you agree with this proposition?
    
6. What does Paul mean by worldliness? What does John mean by loving this world?
    
7. Do you think the phrase “the desire of the eyes” has a direct connection to television in our time?
    
8. Do you agree that there is a direct relationship between the misuse of TV and secularization and the eclipse (or obscuration) of God? If not, what do you think has caused the secularization of the last 25 years?