As a group, we conservative Christians have a tendency to overreact to the small things and sometimes (sadly) underreact to the big things.  A recent example of overreaction that became obvious very quickly was the release of the DaVinci Code movie.  If only we'd just been quiet and not gotten so upset (like I did), maybe it would have made even less money and been less inspiring to people who want to attack biblical Christianity.  It was more or less panned by the critics as being hard to follow and having paper-thin character development.  It hardly ended up deserving the uprising we gave it.  Every pastor with a TV, radio or podcast ministry put out a sermon or series about it, but in the end it was quickly forgotten, and deservedly so.

In a way, this reminds me of hazing when I pledged a college fraternity so many years ago.  At certain points in the process one might be blindfolded and subjected to all sorts of noise that seems dangerous and is distracting, but if you're able to focus on what you're supposed to be doing, the noise has no real effect.  And when it's over, the stress of the din is forgotten.  Likewise for us, it would appear that much of the enemy's plan probably consists of distracting us with noise to keep us from focusing on the task at hand, which is spreading the gospel.

The latest entry in the noise category is a pseudo-documentary by one-time comic/self-appointed social commentator Bill Maher called "Religulous".  The concept is basically to show how stupid religious people are.  Unfortunately, he's more right than he is wrong.  I won't even bother to address other religions, I don't have to.  Combine some of the things people who profess Christianity do and say with the fact that almost anything about Christianity looks alien to the Hollywood crowd at this point, and guys like Maher have all the material they could dream about to make a "documentary" of this sort showing what idiots we are.  And to no small degree, we have it coming.  Just within so-called evangelical Christianity the deviations from sound doctrine are puzzling, nonsensical and generally self-serving.  And I would imagine, people being what we are, that evangelical Christianity is not alone in that problem.

Which kind of leads me back to my point of remaining focused spreading the gospel.  Not the social gospel, not the PEACE plan, not the prosperity gospel, not blab-it-and-grab-it...  not anything but the gospel of Jesus Christ and Him crucified.  The enemy surrounds us with noise and we are too easily turned aside.  Maher's movie will amount to nothing just as the DaVinci Code did and how ever many books and movies before it.  The attacks never end, but God is not mocked...

The Anvil Of God’s Word

Last eve I passed beside a blacksmith’s door
And heard the anvil ring the vesper chime;
When looking in, I saw upon the floor,
Old hammers worn with beating years of time.

“How many anvils have you had,” said I,
“To wear and batter these hammers so?”
“Just one,” said he; then with a twinkling eye,
“The anvil wears the hammers out, you know.”

And so, I thought, the anvil of God’s Word,
For ages, skeptics blows have beat upon;
Yet, though the noise of falling blows was heard,
The anvil is unharmed - the hammers gone.

John Clifford