Film Comment: Sinners (2025)

 

Sinners is a movie which is intended to be about racism, cultural oppression, colonialism, black culture, anti-religion, and anti-Christianity. As usual, I can make Christian observations about the film which are probably unintended by the director.

“Son, you keep dancin’ with the Devil, one day, he’s gonna follow you home,” from a pastor father to Sammie, nicknamed Preacherboy, who is aching to become famous for his outstanding blues guitar and singing talent. Sammie hooks up with two morally fluid brothers who are opening a juke joint. This sets up a conflict when two white men and a woman show up that night wanting to join in the fun. The problem is that they are vampires.

One man about to be killed/turned into a vampire begins to loudly quote the Lord’s Prayer. All the vampires join in and help complete the quotation. This seems to be intended to show that Christianity has no power against evil.

A Christian response: the frightened man’s words were just that, words, and they did have no power. There is a difference between knowing and believing. The power is not in the words. They are not a Magick spell. God is not our genie in a bottle. The words have power only as they are used by the Holy Spirit.

Satan can quote scripture. He quoted Psalms 91:11-12 while tempting Jesus to misuse his authority (Matthew 4:1-11, Luke 4:1-13). Satan is the father of lies (John 8:44).

Things Which Repel Visitors to Our Churches

My 87 year old mother recently had to have a total knee replacement because her knee joint had degenerated to the point where the meniscus and cartilage were both totally worn out  resulting in bone on bone movement within the joint. Now her knee is a nice metal contraption.

After joint surgeries several weeks and sometimes months of physical therapy are required yo regain full functionality of the joint. My mother was assigned to a local physical therapy center which is housed in a very impressive multistory brick office building.

The problem: the front of the office building has a set of seven steps leading up to the front door. Inside, the elevator is at the back of the building at the end of a long hall. The physical therapy practice is located on the third floor. WRONG! For a person who has difficulty walking and who needs a walker or a cane to get about, access to their therapy would seem to need to be made easier rather than more difficult.

For many people, going in to a new place or situation can be intimidating. Walking into a church may seem to be totally foreign to them. Our churches need to be welcoming but many churches, intentionally or unintentionally, put up obstacles to non-members. Following is a short list of attitudes and factors which may prevent people from encountering the Gospel in a church. Is your church guilty of any of them?

1. Some churches may be victims of their own "success". Their church is intimidating by being enormous with massive crowds of people. Many people are uncomfortable in large crowds.

2. Some churches unfortunately have a history of hostility to people of other races or nationalities.

3. Some churches have such an emphasis on their senior pastor that they develop a "cult of personality" with a very passive congregation.

4. Some churches fall into the Prosperity Gospel heresy and dilute and trivialize the Gospel by attempting to please everyone.

5. Some churches become very insular and appear to be hostile to outsiders.

6. When someone asks a visitor to move out of "their seat" this sends a very unwelcoming message. Some churches even practice pew rental. The seats in the church belong to the Lord and not to any individual person.

7. Some churches are intentionally located on campuses far from urban population centers to reduce the numbers of undesirable people who may attempt to attend their services.

8. Intense micromanagement of the church by a pastor or the deacons and/or elders can give the church a repressive atmosphere.

9. Visitors may be officially allowed but not really noticed or actively greeted. This gives off the smell of "You can come if you want to."

10. The church wants to grow for questionable reasons such as the pastor's ego or for an ever increasing need for more revenue. These churches are impressed with themselves. Visitors are not stupid and they can feel this.

11. In some churches, visitors can feel the hidden hostilities which the church members have brewing with each other. The church members are unpleasant and phony. Hypocrisy is one of the worst smells.

12. Some churches are stuck in the past.  All the members are elderly, with no young families or children. These churches are dying.

13.  Some churches talk all the time but do nothing. No one wants to be associated with this.

14. People hate social cliques, and especially when they are present in a church.

15. Many people are made uncomfortable by church members who obviously use excessive "holy" terminology with no attempt to use plain language to express the same ideas. This smacks of an "insider" mentality. Even worse is the use of archaic English. God does not care which language you use, He understands them all.

16. One of the quickest turnoffs to a visitor is for them to see someone being a "respecter of persons."
The poorly dressed repentant prostitute drug-user is just as important in the eyes of God as is the rich man or a celebrity.

17. It says something extremely negative to a visitor when the church sanctuary is empty five minutes after the church service ends.

18. Weird, lustful, or disapproving glances aimed at them are noticed by visitors.

19. Many people are uncomfortable when public attention is drawn to them. "Stand up if you are a visitor." "Hold up your hand."

20. Many churches expect the unchurched to act and speak like Christians. We have to speak to them as they currently are without giving the impression that we are in any way approving of their totally messed up situations. The place for the sick should be a place of healing.

21. Lack of accessible entry to the church. For a person who has difficulty walking and who needs a walker or a cane to get about, access to the worship area and classrooms needs to be made easier rather than more difficult. Wheelchair ramps and/or elevators can be very welcoming. 

22. Lack of accommodation for physical limitations. One church I once attended had plug-in access to earphones for the hearing impaired. These earphones were linked to the microphones on the podium and amplified the sound of the choir and the pastor. 

23. Lack of translation services. Sign-language services for the deaf and translators of the most commonly spoken languages in the area show a welcoming environment.

Our churches should be welcoming places, This does not mean we should not uphold biblical standards. There must never be any compromises of the Gospel message. It means we should be like God. God is the real point of the Parable of the Prodigal Son. This is really the Parable of the Joyous Father.

 

Film Comment: Mom’s Night Out

The Erwin Brothers of Birmingham, Alabama (USA) have set a new standard for Christian films which too often in the past have been obviously low budget, preachy, and sadly, painfully amateurish in execution. The movement began with the Kendrick brothers of Georgia who recruited their church members to produce and act in surprisingly high quality films such as Fireproof, Courageous, Flywheel, and Facing the Giants. 

I have said before that truly quality films are rarely about what they appear to be about on the surface. The Erwin Brother’s films are examples of this. October Baby can be seen as an anti-abortion film but the deeper meaning is about the redemptive power of forgiveness. Woodlawn is a football film which is not in any way about football. Football is merely the setting of this film which recounts events which seem impossible but which actually happened. The film depicts the personal, social, and racial reconciliation which can occur when the power of the Lord is unleashed.

Mom’s Night Out (2015) is another Erwin Brothers film but it is a departure from the others in that it is a comedy. A real comedy, A fall on the floor and laugh out loud comedy. And a totally Christian film. Just remember to forget subtlety.

The film is about a woman who is living her dream, She has a loving, loyal, and successful husband, a nice home, beautiful children, and attends an actively growing and supportive evangelical church. She is miserable.

She feels stressed from every direction and feels inadequate to handle her life. She often fells as if she is a failure, especially when she explodes like a volcano during her frequent emotional “moments.”

The plot of Mom's Night Out involves a stress-free night she plans with her friends, who are also secretly suffering from serious stress. The fathers will keep the children! The women invite the pastor’s wife whom they all admire because she always seems so able to remain calm in any situation.(An aside: the pastor’s wife is touched that the other women chose to include her in the event since no one has invited her to anything in five years.) Surprise! The simple event rapidly devolves into a worst night of your life scenario.

Without ruining anything for you if you choose to view this film, here are the take-aways:

1. Everyone is stressed. Stress is normal.
2. Pastors and their families are just like everyone else. They are stressed too.
3. You cannot fix everything.
4. God does not take away all of our problems.  He helps us find meaning in the problems and chaos.
5. Take the focus off of yourself and return it to God where it belongs. He is in control.

Psalms 46:10

Existence is Futile

When I saw Pastor Steve Griffin’s post, "Existence is Futile,"on his blog, Just Thinking (and Writing), I immediately thought of the Borg, a fictional alien race featured in the Star Trek series of films and television programs. The Borg are a frightening race of living beings who have been forcibly enhanced with cybernetic implants and assimilated into a group mind culture. All individuality has been erased. 

The Borg are frightening because your only value to them is what your forcible assimilation can add to the collective. Their ominous trademark phrase is "Resistance is futile." The Links below exhibit the menace of the Borg.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WZEJ4OJTgg8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yokaRFrTIic

Many people see the world to be like the Borg. The individual does not matter in any way. The hopes and dreams of the individual are meaningless, there is ultimately no meaning to existence. The individual will be crushed. This is the philosophy of nihilism, that there is utterly no meaning to existence. The grafitti artist in Pastor Grifffin's post seems to be trying to express this philosophy.

Pastor Griffin and all other Christians know the real truth. We are of infinite value, bought with the Blood of Jesus. Jesus, the Second Person of the Trinity. Jesus, who was present at the creation. Jesus, the Lord and Sustainer of the universe.

The Blood of Jesus, the most valuable thing in the universe, was given as a totally free gift and is offered to each one of us as if we were the only one.

Another Update on the Karen Shahan Murder Case

The Karen Shahan Murder investigation just continues to become more and more bizarre.  The case has not yet gone to trial so more information will probably follow.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2541359/Pastor-53-arrested-airport-stabbing-wife-death-heading-Europe-marry-boyfriend.html

http://blog.al.com/spotnews/2014/01/richard_shahan_allegations_abo.html

Update on the Karen Shahan Murder

There has been a frustrating lack of updates about the investigation into the  23 July, 2013 murder of Karen Shahan, the wife of Richard Shahan, who is now the former Associate Pastor at the First Baptist Church of Birmingham, Alabama (USA).  At first, the cause of death was not released to the public, but it appears to have been the result of multiple stab wounds.  Also, Pastor Shahan’s status with the church was not publicized; he was on “leave.”  It has now become known that he is the former Associate Pastor of the church.

Some facts which have been released to the public: 1. There were no indications of forced entry, 2. Pastor Shahan insisted that he was out of town at the time of the murder, 3. The cause of death was multiple stab wounds, 4. Mrs. Shahan was not known to have any enemies, 5. There was apparently no theft of property from the murder site, 6.  Richard Shahan voluntarily went to the police station to answer questions and was held there for two days for what the police called “investigative purposes.”  He was released with no charges being filed and without him being officially named as a suspect in the killing. 

On 1 January 2014, Pastor Richard Shahan was arrested in Nashville, Tennessee (USA) while attempting to board a flight bound for Germany.  From Germany, the trip was to have continued to Kazakhtan.  Shahan insisted that he was leaving on a mission trip.  Legal extradiction proceedings have begun for his return to Alabama.  He has been officially charged with murder.

When more information is available it will be posted on this blog.

Sewing Machine

Before their annual “meeting” this year with the Auburn University football team, the University of Alabama football team was an overwhelming favorite to win the 2013 American college football championship.  Auburn did the unthinkable, going in one year from a hapless, and even embarrassing, season to being a legitimate national championship caliber team.  At least partly because of their defeat of Alabama, the Auburn University team will be competing in the national championship game against the team from the Florida State University.  This post is not about that.

On the national television broadcast of the Alabama – Auburn football game there was what to many was a very humorous moment.  An Auburn player, Ladarius Owens, had a tear in his uniform.   Rather than having Owens put on another jersey (shirt), the team brought out a portable sewing machine to repair the one he was wearing.

Many people laughed at this.  I would say that, rather than being silly, this showed an extreme attention to detail.  The team was prepared for any eventuality, even a torn shirt.  Are those of us in the Church, prepared for anything which might happen?  Are we prepared for a power outage?  Are we prepared for the abrupt resignation of our pastor?  Are we prepared for the sudden illness of a church member during a church service?  Are we prepared to respond to a natural disaster?  Are we prepared for an armed intruder in our church?

Pastor's Wife Found Murdered

Karen Shahan, the wife of pastor Richard Shahan, was found murdered in her home in Homewood, Alabama (USA) on 23 July, 2013.  Richard Shahan is the Children and Families Pastor at The First Baptist Church of Birmingham, Alabama.  The police are not releasing any information about the case at this time.  When more information is available it will be posted on this blog.

First Baptist Church was an important player in the civil rights struggle in Birmingham in the Civil Rights Era of the 1960’s and early 1970’s.  The Baptist Church of the Covenant split from First Baptist  in 1970, primarily over whether or not to admit Winifred and Twyla Bryant, who are black, as members of the church. Read the history of the controversy in the links below.

http://fbcbirmingham.org/

http://www.bcoc.net/templates/System/details.asp?id=43147&PID=579177

http://www.bhamwiki.com/w/First_Baptist_Church_of_Birmingham

http://www.bhamwiki.com/w/Baptist_Church_of_the_Covenant

http://www.bhamwiki.com/w/Temple_Emanu-El

The Resignation of Benedict XVI

On 11 February 2013, Pope Benedict XVI made an unexpected announcement.  He is resigning his office, becoming the first Pope in 600 years to do so,.  Basically he cited his failing health and his incapacity to adequately fulfill the ministry entrusted to me.”   Many people were scandalized, assuming that the Pope should die in office.

The tradition was very strong.  So strong, in fact, that it is reported that when a bishop suggested that Pope Paul VI should consider retiring, he shouted angrily, “I cannot retire.  I am Peter!”

Benedict’s predecessor and personal friend, John Paul II, remained in office even when it became apparent to everyone that he was dying and that even to move was painful.  John Paul II believed that he was demonstrating that we have dignity and worth no matter what our age or physical condition.  He was also demonstrating that suffering for Christ is holy.  He spoke of bearing infirmities with honor and taking part in the suffering of Christ.            

Understanding all this I still have no problem with Benedict resigning.  He is making different points than his friend: a pastor is held accountable by God for how he leads his flock (Hebrews 13:17); it is not wrong for a servant of the Lord to take a needed rest (Genesis 2:2); ultimately, each person, even the Pope, is judged only by God.

Obviously, as a Protestant, I do not believe that the Pope is the Vicar of Christ on Earth.  I do believe that most of the popes have been pious, even holy, men.  Something which Benedict did not say, but which I think may have informed his decision, is this: by resigning he removed the focus from himself and his health and returned it to Jesus. 

Playing on the Porch

“A pastor was walking down the street one day when he noticed a small boy across the street struggling to ring a doorbell.

After watching the boy’s efforts for some time, the pastor walked across the street and placed his hand kindly on the child’s shoulder before leaning over to give the doorbell a solid ring.

Crouching down to the child’s level, the pastor smiled benevolently and asked, “And now what, my little man?”  To which the boy replied, “Now we run!”

“From The Big Book of Church Jokes, published by Barbour Publishing, Inc. Used by permission.”

Iranian Pastor Freed

Youcef Nagarkhani (b. 1977, Iran), a pastor of the Protestant evangelical Church of Iran, was released three days ago after spending the last three years in an Iranian prison under the threat of a death sentence.  What was his crime?  Pastor Nadarkhani was originally charged with the capital crime of apostasy; leaving Islam to follow another religion.  The punishment in Iran for apostasy is death.  Though apostasy is not officially a crime in Iran, judges may still level the charge against a person based on religious fatwas.  Nadarkani insisted that he was never a Muslim; even though he was raised in a Muslim family, he never accepted Islam and, instead, became a Christian as a teenager.  He steadfastly refused to convert to Islam.

Youcef Ndarkhani's wife, Fatemah Pasandideh, was also arrested and charged with apostasy.  She received a sentence of life imprisonment but was released after four months.

International criticism of the charges against Pastor Nadarkani was raised loudly from around the world.
United States president barack Obama said, "The United States condemns the conviction of Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani.  Pastor Nadarkhani has done nothing more than maintain his devout faith, which is a universal right for all people."  The British Foreign Secretary, William Hague, also condemned the sentence.

During the three years of his imprisonment, the charges continued to change and eventually included charges of rape, extortion, and baptizing converts.  The charges, in the end, became that Nadarkhani had attempted to evangelize Muslims.  The penalty for this crime was set at three years and the pastor was released for the time he had already served in prison.

Christians around the world are rejoicing that their prayers for Youcef Nadarkhani's safe release have been answered.  Pastor Nadarkhani is to be admired for his absolute refusal to betray his faith.

John Piper's Definition of Sin

"This is what sin is - dishonoring God by preferring other things over him, and acting on those preferences.  ,,, failure to love him is not trivial - it is treason." John Piper

John Piper (b. 1946, Tennessee, USA) is a Calvinist Baptist preacher, theologian, and writer who currently serves as a pastor at Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota (USA).

I Don't Want to Go Today

"It's time to go to church,' a mother told her son, "You know today is Sunday."


"I don't want to go," he replied.  "I don't have any friends there. The music is awful. And the sermons are boring!"


"But you have to go," the mother insisted.  "You're the pastor!"


“From The Big Book of Church Jokes, published by Barbour Publishing, Inc. Used by permission.”

Film Comment: Amazing Grace

Amazing Grace: Hymns That Changed the World (2007) is documentary film produced by Questar Entertainment.  There is a "Praise and Worship Extra" on the DVD which, to me, was overly syrupy and saccharin with lush strings, beautiful nature scenes, and a rich baritone narration.  There was nothing wrong with it, but I felt that I had to wipe off a little sugar from my face.  Watch the DVD extra material if you like that sort of thing.

The "meat" of the disc is the documentary itself.  This makes the DVD totally worthwhile.  The totally unexpected stories behind five beloved hymns are recounted by pastors, musicians, and hymnologists.  The often tragic lives of the writers of the hymns are discussed.  Out of their pain and because of their faith, these men produced five of the most powerful hymns ever written: "It Is Well With My Soul," "Silent Night," "How Great Thou Art," "What a Friend We Have In Jesus," and the most remarkable story, "Amazing Grace."

I strongly recommend that you watch this excellent DVD.  I obtained my rental copy from Netflix.

Book Comment: The Christian Atheist

Craig Groeschel (pronounced "Grow-shell") is one of those very likable pastors, like Francis Chan, who tell you a story and then stick a knife into you for a little surgery.  The knife they use is the Bible.

In The Christian Atheist: Believing in God but Living As If He Doesn't Exist, Pastor Groescchel explores the sometimes startling disparity between what we say we believe and how we choose to live; acting as if God doesn't really exist, or as if He exists but doesn't really care about us, or as if He exists but doesn't really matter in our day-to-day lives.   This is not a book about knowing "hypocrites," but about people who believe themselves to be Christians and who are crippled in their Christian lives by lies they have believed.  Some of them are pastors.

Pastor Groeschel doesn't spare himself or his family from criticism.  He clearly understands that his life and actions sometimes contradict what he says he knows to be true.  We all fall short, but, wonderfully, we are covered by the Blood of the Lamb.

The book devotes entire chapters to twelve common reasons Christians drift into the uselessness (to God and to themselves) of being Christian Atheists.
1.  They don't know who God really is.
2.  They are ashamed of something they have done in the past and are afraid that it will be exposed.
3.  They know that God loves others but aren't convinced that He could possibly love them.
4.  They don't believe in the power of prayer.  They don't believe He is listening, others feel awkward or silly talking to Him.
5.  Seeing obvious injustices and tragedies in this world, they don't believe that God is fair.
6.  They are unwilling to forgive, preferring to hold onto their hatred.
7.  They don't believe that they are able to change.
8.  They worry about everything.
9.  They think that their personal happiness should be a priority for God.
10. They believe in God but place their real trust in their personal power, position, or money.
11. They are timid or unwilling to witness to others.
12. They don't believe in "organized religion."

What Pastor Groeschel is trying to do in this book is to call us to continually examine ourselves and our lives; to think honestly about our lives and faith; to learn to rid ourselves of hindrances to complete trust and dependence on God.  He doesn't come right out and say it but he is ultimately talking about the process of sanctification.   We don't want to go the other way and to become the "believers" of whom Titus was speaking: "They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate." (Titus 1:16)

How terrible it would be to be that person and not even realize it.

Preacher in a Can

"Canned, but never stale." Joel D. Smith of Thomasville, North Carolina, is a Christian Academy school teacher and is the Preacher in a Can. The presentation looks silly but Smith is a legitimate supply preacher primarily in the State of North Carolina. He leads retreats, seminars, revivals, and serves as a guest speaker, interim pastor, vacation replacement, etc. and has available hundreds of previously prepared sermons from which churches can choose. He also can prepare sermons for specific needs.

On his website (http://preacherinacan.com ) Smith lists his employment and educational history and his Top 10 Beliefs; conservative, trinitarian, and evangelical.

New blog added to list

I have added another blog to my blog list. Atypical Pastor's Wife.
http://atypicalpastorswife.blogspot.com/

Check out the excellent post, "Not Worth Nothin.'"

Friends

On his freelance cartooning website, Australian Baptist pastor Matt Glover features a cartoon in which a man wants to "friend" God but he can't because he hasn't been able to find Him on Facebook. His simple cartoon speaks to the shallow nature of modern pop culture. A "friend" can be someone you've never met and will never meet; you just share trivialities on an internet social network. Some people on the networks have thousands of "friends."
A true friend is much more than an acquaintance and much more than a "friendly" person. The truth is that a true friend is not just a friend; actually they love you. They are willing to inconvenience themselves for you and they are still your friend if you sometimes treat them badly.
It is not a coincidence that a famous gospel song is entitled "What a Friend We Have in Jesus." He endured the ultimate inconvenience for us even while we were still not His friends.

"But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8

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Matt Glover's cartooning website is at http://www.mattglover.com/ and his personal blog, which features his religious insights is at http://www.mattglover.com/wordpress/wordpress/