The Golden Compass

The beginning of a new year is a good time to rediscover a few things we may have forgotten. We sometimes need to step back and get a proper perspective of ourselves and the world around us. Without looking back from time to time, we tend to forget boundaries God has clearly established and grey the black and white of morals.

We should never forget that while we are on this earth the Christian does not sin because they have to but because they want to. James 1:13-15 says, “Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.” God does not draw us away, our own lust does.

Sin is resistible. 1 Corinthians 10:13 says, “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer (allow) you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.” Every temptation can be resisted. We sin because we choose to commit the sin instead of choosing to resist.”

Temptation will come from many sources both internal and external. Man is a three part being and two of the three parts is able to be tempted. As a Christian, our soul is possessed by the Holy Spirit as it says in 1 Corinthians 3:16, “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?” Although our soul is complete we are still attached to a sinful, and sin prone, body and mind.

The body can become addicted to all kinds of sin and tempts us to continue in sin. We must be careful of giving the body too much of anything it enjoys. Romans 7:18 says, “For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not.” Our minds can be fooled and justify sin. Proverbs 16:25 says, “There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.”

The world is not our friend, it is our enemy. The world has no interest in helping us to live godly, holy, righteous lives. James 4:4 says, “Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.” The world offers many ways to stray from God’s laws and commandments. 1 Peter 1:14-16 makes it clear that God commands us to be holy. The world calls us to be unholy.

There will be many tools the world uses to draw us away from a renewed mind. A renewed mind is a mind that is being made new by the power of Christ by the Word of God. Colossians 3:1-17 is a great passage explaining the process of renewing our minds. Ephesians 5:25-27 says God uses his Word to wash the mind of man and make His church renewed. The world wants us to stay away from the Word of God and be disobedient to the will of God.

There are many movies and books the world will produce for the purpose of drawing us further and further from living a holy life. The Harry Potter series by JK Rowling is a blatant example of books and movies designed to make evil look good. In Hot Type, Evan Solomon interviewed JK Rowling who said, “Well, you see, Harry is good.” In the same interview she said, “I loved writing Dumbledore and Dumbledore is the epitome of goodness.” In late 2007, JK Rowling announced that Dumbledore was a homosexual and his nemesis was actually his ex-lover. This is proof JK Rowling calls evil good.

Scripture tells us in Isaiah 5:20, “Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!” We need to watch out for those who, according to 2 Timothy 3:5, “Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.” They say they are a Christian or say they love Jesus but they produce teachings which lead people away from godliness and holiness. We are to actively turn away from worldly entertainment.

Fables and parables can be used for good. Jesus often used parables, fables that have a moral message, to teach about the Kingdom of God. C. S. Lewis, a Christian and an author, wrote The Chronicles of Narnia which teach the truths and morals found in Scripture. But fables and parables are not always used to teach good messages. 2 Timothy 4:3-4 says, “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.”

The world uses fables to teach their evil doctrine too. Along with Harry Potter, another worldly fable will be coming out in movie form soon. “The Golden Compass” is a fable based on Phillip Pullman’s book Northern Lights from his trilogy His Dark Materials. In this story, a girl travels through worlds of witches, armor-plated bears, and evil church-sponsored assassins to finally defeat the oppression of a senile God. At the end of the trilogy the main characters kill God.

The world loves their own. John 15:19a says, “If ye were of the world, the world would love his own…” That is why this trilogy has received the Carnegie Medal for Children’s Literature in 1995, although the author, Philip Pullman, said, “I don't profess any religion; I don't think it's possible that there is a God; I have the greatest difficulty in understanding what is meant by the words 'spiritual' or 'spirituality.”

Philip Pullman is open about how his writings are anti-religion and anti-God. In a 2003 interview, Pullman said, “My books are about killing God" and in a 2001 interview he said he was "trying to undermine the basis of Christian belief." Can it be any clearer? If you open your mind to these stories, their message gets in and makes you spiritually weak.

There is no reason for a Christian to watch worldly movies, free or otherwise. Colossians 3:2 says, “Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.” Romans 12:2 says, “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.” And finally, Philippians 4:8 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.”