Pastor Scott's Message

Last week we started watching the classic “Ten Commandments” in Adult Bible Class. We actually had members who saw it in the theatre, teenagers, and young Gwen who all enjoyed it. Movies have a way of making stories come alive. They can help us to feel the Exodus story in a new way. Of course, movies also add plot, characters and dialogue that are not in the Bible. That is why we are called to not take Biblical movies at face value but examine them. We should spiritually digest films, testing them against scripture.

So far we learned that most of the first hour of the film is not in the Bible. The movie begins with a Egyptian prophecy that is nowhere in scripture. The narrative of the basket in the river is pretty accurate but in the bible it goes straight from there to Moses defending a fellow Hebrew from an overlord. The “Ten Commandments” adds Moses as a rival to his brother Ramses for the affections of a woman and for the honor to be the next Pharaoh. All of that is made up. It allows the creators to show dramatic scenes, exotic costumes, and romance. The movie doesn’t violate the tone of Exodus. The Egyptians are the bad guys, God is the good guy and the Hebrews are the victims. Moses is caught in between.

Movies are a great way to share faith conversations. When your family watches a biblical film it’s easy to bring it up. But most movies have religious overtones. Every movie has a world view. We just have to ask ourselves, “Who is the hero?” What do the creators of this show want us to believe? What is the sense of morality among the characters? Does this movie’s world view attack our faith, complement it or ignore it? Most people do not analyze their media this way but if you aren’t analyzing it then you are simply absorbing the message. It may change your beliefs and you don’t even realize it. It is especially important why we should teach our kids and grandkids to understand the messages of TV, movies and ads. That is why I love that we had every generation watching and spiritually digesting Charlton Heston’s “Ten Commandments.” See you for more on Sunday.