America is the entertainment capital of the world. Satan has trained millions to derive pleasure from entertainment. He has accomplished it with temptations of sin. It all started with Adam and Eve. Once they were entertained with the idea of becoming like God and relied on their emotions rather than their sense of judgment, Satan caught them completely. Ever since sin entered the world, it has entertained man. Just turn on the television, and millions are entertained with the worst kind of immorality known to humanity every passing minute of the day. What is our reaction? We are entertained. We shrug it off. We close our eyes or turn the channel briefly or fast forward. People want to be entertained today in religion with false worship. With every bombardment of sin we encounter, our attitudes toward sin soften to the point that it no longer affects us; we simply become entertained.
A wise man once said, “It is as sport to a fool to do mischief: but a man of understanding hath wisdom” (Prov. 10:23). Paul warns Timothy of those who are “lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God” (2 Tim. 3:4). Paul also said in Second Thessalonians 2:10-12,
And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
Notice the contrast between lovers of truth and those who are entertained by sin.
Observe the following small article Wendell Winkler records in his book, “Studying Sin Seriously,” concerning this very subject:
Babylon saw it that way, and the handwriting came on the wall. At Rome they saw it that way and faded from power. France followed suit and the moral decay became a cancer. Now America laughs at sin—laughs hilariously. There is an absence of heartfelt sorrow for sin in our country. We need real recognition of sin, genuine sorrow for it and an honest turning away from it—if we are to survive! What is so funny? Are atomic bombs, broken bodies and full sanitariums funny? Are drinking leaders, shady business deals, open gambling, filthy stories and immorality cause for hilarity? Why laugh when the moral fiber of a nation is wretched apart by godlessness? [p. 55]
We need to realize sin may entertain man, but it does not entertain God. We can see His attitude toward sin in the story of the Global Flood. He destroyed the world because they were entertained with sin with the exception of Noah and his family. When Aaron and the Israelites made the golden calf, they “rose up early on the morrow, and offered burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings; and the people sat down to eat and to drink, and rose up to play” (Exod. 32:6). While entertained by sin, God shows his attitude toward it, wanting to destroy them. Sin does not entertain God.
We are to “abstain from all appearance of evil” (1 Thess. 5:22). We are to “abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good” (Rom. 12:9). Instead of allowing sin to entertain us, let us treat it like castor oil; only then will our lights shine brightly in this dark and dismal world!