Watching The Bible miniseries is like eating brownies with cockroaches baked into them

Sorry to be graphic in the headline, but I find it helps sometimes to be blunt. We live in such a tolerant age where we are supposed to tiptoe around, not calling the Pope an antichrist, not calling false teachings gangrene (2 Timothy 2:17), nor calling false teachers by name (1 Timothy 1:20) nor judge their works as evil. (2 Peter 2:1).

Oh, wait, I do that every day. So much for political correctness here at The End Time. I live for Jesus correctness.

I'm sorry to write about The Bible miniseries from The History Channel again. I said at the outset that I was worked up, that I felt that this was an especially pitched spiritual battle. The January conference in Atlanta, "Passion2013" was a spiritual battle at a level I hadn't experienced. Yet this miniseries coming along in March has raised the bar in terms of engagement.

Some people, including myself, have asked or wondered how to respond to people who understand that the Bible miniseries show is not optimal, but say anyway that God can still use it. A very insightful blogger called Sunny Shell, who was asked by the media producers of the television show The Bible to promote it, and declined, stated her reasons why. More on that in a minute. Here is her response as to why God won't use 'The Bible' tv show to save people:

Q. Even though there's a lot of error in this movie, still, don't you think it's a great way to show people who God really is, I mean, can't God use anything to save someone?

A. No, I don't think this movie is a great way to reveal the truth about God since it's filled with lies about God. And yes, I realize God can use anything to save someone, but He only chose to use the message of the true Gospel to save all men (John 14:6, Acts 4:12). Nowhere in Scripture does God command or allow His children to use the work of Satan to proclaim His truth. And God is clear, anyone who denies Him and defiles His holy character or word, works for the devil, not for God.

Sunny Shell

Here is Sunny Shell's wonderful review of the flaws and errors and attacks on the Gospel in "The Bible". For those of you (and me) having a hard time clarifying just what it is that is off about the series, her essay should being it into focus for you. For those of us wondering (as am I) if there is a list of errors, and a discussion as to why and where they vary from the biblical text- and why it matters, click on over to her review.

With the episodes coming up featuring Jesus, I want you to be aware of two glaring and blasphemous omissions in the series.

1. Although at the Supper Jesus recites the verse we are familiar with, “I am the Way and the Truth and the Life,” 'Jesus' STOPS speaking and never says “no one comes to the father but through Me”!!! (John 14:6).

2. Worst, when 'Jesus' breaks the bread and lifts the wine, he never says it is for forgiveness of sin!! (Matthew 26:26-28). This is very bad!

You can see the clip for yourself at the link to the review above. There is a 5-minute excerpt from the series showing the Last Supper there.

Here is one nugget from Mrs Shell's review, to encourage you to go there and read more:

Last Supper and Fifth attack on the Gospel: While the actor who portrays Jesus says the bread is the body of Christ and the wine is Jesus' blood, he never says the most important thing: it is for the forgiveness of sins (Matt 26:28). Though all of Scripture points to the Gospel, in this mini-series, there is no Gospel message; only a message of man's power to have enough "faith" to see himself through and lead others to a "better place".

None of us are autonomous. If we are diligent, we have attached ourselves to a local church assembly which means we enact Hebrews 13:17. Or perhaps we are married which means we submit to our husband. Or perhaps we are under the leadership of a teacher or deacon in a home group. The difficulty comes in being both bold and submissive. We want to boldly proclaim Jesus and point to any infringement on His Person or Glory by false teachings or teachers. But at the same time we commit to submit to the pastor, leadership, or spouse's guidance. The sticking point comes if one of those says, "Watch with bible in hand, and I'll lead you through the errant parts and show you what to avoid..." Maybe your husband or teacher or pastor to whom you have submitted has said "Trust my decision to show/use/promote/reach from this."

Becoming a member of a church, or married to a spouse, by definition means I submit in trust to their leadership. In the case of encroaching false doctrine, it is not about trust. Anyone can make a mistake. No one is infallible. Mistakes are not trust. And here I use the brownies example.

If a leader or husband or someone to whom you have submitted presents a pan of brownies and says "I baked this pan of brownies and I baked cockroaches into it. But trust me, I know where they all are so when I cut a piece, you probably won't eat one."

Now, I said it is not about trust. The question becomes, why is the leader or husband or pastor presenting infested food for your consumption in the first place?

Not when there is unadulterated food available just to your right, over there, in THE BIBLE- you know, the one that God wrote.

Navigating the infested minefield of The Bible show is the same. You may indeed be able to detect where all the cockroaches are, but why go to all that trouble, when you can have spiritually safe food right from God's bible? Why?

For those reasons, I think it is incumbent upon us to warn people who are watching the show and gently warn leaders who are using the show as a springboard to preaching. (2 Timothy 2:25).

If they refuse to listen and heed your warning, pleas, or exhortation, then you have a decision to make. But whatever decision you make, whether to continue with the show or to sit out, or to continue warning, or to remain quiet, do so as Ephesians 4:2 tells us.

For those of us the Holy Spirit has gifted with discerning of spirits, (1 Corinthians 12:10), you know that it is not just an intellectual ability. Sure, we know stuff, like where the false doctrine is or who is spouting it, and we know it earlier and more deeply than others do. But knowing is only half the battle. He has also "gifted" us with an emotional and spiritual capacity for agony in the knowledge. Literally, sometimes it feels like jaguars ripped my flesh (HT Tim Cahill). I put 'gift' in quotes, only partly tongue in cheek. All gifts are good which come from above, but sometimes it will take until eternity for me to experience the goodness. Seeing what The Bible is doing to evangelicals, churches, friends, is like the agony of Jeremiah. I know it is bad, and it affects me deeply. I know it does for some of you, as well.

Jeremiah Lamenting the Destruction of Jerusalem
REMBRANDT (1630)

My anguish, my anguish! I writhe in pain!
Oh the walls of my heart!
My heart is beating wildly;
I cannot keep silent,
for I hear the sound of the trumpet,
the alarm of war. (Jeremiah 4:19).

Isaiah wasn't immune to the agony of such knowledge either.

Therefore my loins are filled with anguish; pangs have seized me, like the pangs of a woman in labor; I am bowed down so that I cannot hear; I am dismayed so that I cannot see. (Isaiah 21:3)

For the ones among us who feel these things deeply, the bible of course captures the feeling. I hate what I am seeing. I agonize over each person who is caught up in the web of deceit the History Channel series is producing. I writhe in seeing the blanket of confusion thrown over once-discerning heads.

O LORD, how long shall the wicked, how long shall the wicked exult? (Psalm 94:3).

Perhaps...not long. And then we will see TRUTH in human form appear in glory to call us home, and never agonize over such things again.