As Jesus stood before Pilate shortly before His death, He was intent on speaking the truth and enlightening this man about His nature and His mission. In John 18, we read that...
36Jesus answered, "My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not from here."37Pilate therefore said to Him, "Are You a king then?" Jesus answered, "You say rightly that I am a king. For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice."
This not only gives us something to think about regarding the nature of Jesus, but also regarding our purpose. We are citizens of a heavenly Kingdom, called to be Christ's ambassadors, to represent Him no matter where we go our what we do. He is our king, and He calls each of us to demonstrate that daily and, as Jesus said, to "bear witness" to the truth - to be people who are committed to seeking God's truth in every situation and to live it out - submitting to the leadership of the Holy Spirit and being totally convinced that a life that is based on absolute truth, God's truth, is the best life of all - a countercultural approach, for sure, but an opportunity to live a life that counts for the Kingdom of God.
In John chapter 17, Jesus prayed for His disciples and drew the distinction between them and the culture in which they live and in which we live:
14I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.15I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one.16They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.17Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth.
If you have consumed very much entertainment media over the past week or so, you may have had an overload of appearances of the former squeaky clean Disney star turned unusual and offensive young adult Miley Cyrus. From a large piece in USA Today, which was carried by the Montgomery Advertiser, to a high-profile feud with another rather bizarre artist named Sinead O'Connor, who feels the entertainment industry is taking advantage of the young Miss Cyrus, to a host stint on Saturday Night Live, and to cap it off, a documentary on MTV. USA Today asked a rather provocative question: Is this yet another example of a wholesome American icon hitting the career skids with an ill-advised descent into depravity — or a strategic play to twentysomethings, whose sense of sonic and sexual adventure Miley is merely mirroring?
By all accounts, Cyrus is crazy — like a fox. Conversations with the singer's team, fans and industry veterans depict a young woman who, having grown up around masters of marketing such as her father, Achy Breaky Heart wonder Billy Ray Cyrus, and her honorary glam godmother, Dolly Parton, is simply doing what's necessary to forge a new image. Billy Ray, who lamented how her hit show, Hannah Montana, had wrecked their family's lives, went on a talk show last week and complemented the way she has reinvented herself - the Cyrus' marriage, which has been on the rocks for years, seems to have been reconciled, and the parents are supportive of her career moves, and seem to be OK with the outrageous MTV Video Music Awards romp a few weeks ago - for which she has received an estimated $79 million in free TV exposure, according to marketing research site Critical Mention. Online streaming platform Vevo reported that her recently video garnered a whopping 19.3 million views worldwide on its first day and the song became her first No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. But, so far, she's three years removed from being on Forbes' Celebrity 100 list.
You could say that Cyrus is reflecting culture, but she is also shaping it, and you can only hope that tween and teen girls who grew up watching Hannah Montana will reject this reinvention. And, there are some entertainment experts in the USA Today piece that believe that the risky career path may not yield the desired rewards.
But, not all young Disney stars have wandered off the reservation. Hannah Montana fans may have also gravitated toward The Suite Life of Zack and Cody or The Suite Life on Deck, which were also quite popular. And, if you think Miley is countercultural and risky, consider the career path of a young lady named Debby Ryan, who appeared in the On Deck series and now stars in Top 20 cable show, Jessie. At 9 years old, according to a piece in SUSIE magazine reprinted on the ChristianCinema.com website, Debby told her parents that while she enjoyed going to church, she just wasn’t sure she believed in God. "I was like, 'You guys, this is great for you. It seems to work for you, but I don't know if this is me. I know the stories. And either way, I have boundaries. I want to be a classy person, but I just don’t know about this God stuff.'"
One night in her room, Debby began a conversation with God. She prayed, "God, no disrespect . . . but how am I supposed to have a relationship with You? I mean, people talk to You and sing to You. I can’t see You, so if I'm meant to be with You, let me feel You beyond a shadow of a doubt."
She says that eventually, she says she began to feel His presence. "I felt His presence like He was sitting next to me. God was like, 'Don't you understand? I want to love you. I created you. I sacrificed for you. And I want to spend time with you.'"
After Debby's family moved to Los Angeles, it wasn’t long before Debby and a friend started a Bible study for other kids in show business with the purpose of "refining each other and refining ourselves."
A bunch of young actor-friends meet in Debby's dressing room on the lot where she shoots the show. "It's literally a bunch of kids in the industry—kids with hearts after God and kids who want to make a positive difference," Debby says. "We all have the same common drive that runs through us, and we want to share it."
Her work in Suite Life resulted in a movie role in film of which I'm quite fond called, What If, directed by Dallas Jenkins, the son of Jerry, and starring Kevin Sorbo and the legendary John Ratzenberger. So, while Cyrus is turning heads taking risks and reflecting the culture, Debby Ryan and other Christians in Hollywood are attempting to be countercultural - and that's our call, too.
Debby is in a industry that is not known for its portrayal of Christian values, but she took a bold step and started a Bible study to help keep young actors grounded. And, Dallas Jenkins is someone who is attempting to take the talents that God has given to him and use them to communicate a Christ-honoring message. Same with director Brad Silverman, who cast another former Disney star, A.J. Michalka, in the lead role of his new film, Grace Unplugged, which did about a million dollars at the box office over the weekend and had an impressive per-screen average.
Our challenge is to determine if we want to go with the flow and reflect the culture or if we want to swim against the tide and be truly countercultural. We have an opportunity in some way to be influential to the people around us, and that may involve making difficult decisions when it comes to really making a statement for Christ. And, the Bible gives us a grid through which we can evaluate the decisions we make - ultimately, it's about following His direction, honoring God in the way we spend our time, making sure we keep Him first, and seeking to call attention to His work in our lives. That includes student, who, by the way, will have the opportunity to demonstrate their love for God this Wednesday night in Montgomery and in 2 weeks in Dothan, at the FCA Fields of Faith event. Being countercultural includes the way we as parents live out our values in our homes, the way we leverage opportunities to make a positive impact in our friendships, and the way that we pursue our careers and approach our work. God gives us the power of the Holy Spirit in order to make these sometimes tough calls - to follow Christ and go against the grain, or to be swept up in the cultural waves under which we can be submerged.
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