Sullivan church of Christ – Sullivan, MO
Date: December 5, 2004
“They Rose Up To Play”
Ben Justice
It was not long after the children of Israel had been led by the mighty hand of God out of Egyptian bondage
that they corrupted themselves. While Moses was on the Mount receiving the Law from God, the children of
Israel engaged in a despicable act of idolatry. In Ex. 32:1, the inspired record states, “And when the people
saw that Moses delayed to come down out of the mount, the people gathered themselves together unto Aaron, and
said unto him, Up, make us gods, which shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of
the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him.” “Make gods” was exactly what they proceeded to do —
“And Aaron said unto them, Break off the golden earrings, which are in the ears of your wives, of your sons, and of
your daughters, and bring them unto me. And all the people brake off the golden earrings which were in their ears,
and brought them unto Aaron. And he received them at their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool, after he had
made it a molten calf: and they said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.
And when Aaron saw it, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made proclamation, and said, To morrow is a feast to the
Lord. And 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” (v. 2-6).
These verses reveal a number of things:
1.) Aaron, their leader while Moses was away on the Mount, had failed as their leader. Aaron went right
along with their devilish plans.
2.) The children of Israel were guilty of idolatry. The first commandment of the Decalogue was, “Thou
shalt have no other gods before me. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that
is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. Thou shalt not bow down
thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the
children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me” (Ex. 20:3-5).
3.) They attributed their deliverance from out of Egypt, not to the one, true, and living God, but to the
dead idols they had made. They had completely forgotten about their true deliverance from out of Egyptian
bondage.
As verse 6 tells us, the children of Israel “rose up to play.” I want to capture the essence of this statement
and apply it to a practice that has been taking place in the religious world for many years now and of which
has recently made its way into the church. The practice I am referring to is “entertainment.” This time of
year, many religious groups will put on plays and the like geared toward the birth of Christ and things
associated with it. For example, the Sullivan Christian Church put on production called “Journey To
Bethlehem.” Today (Dec. 5) is the last day that the production can be seen. The brochure received in the
mail stated the following about the production: The production is “a live reenactment of the people,
places and circumstances that surrounded the birth of Jesus Christ. Join with others in a 1st
century setting. Then follow your guide family on an outdoor journey as you travel to the town of
Bethlehem. Encounter Roman guards, Old Testament prophets, Wisemen from the East, and
shepherds tending their sheep. Register for the census and witness the sights and sounds of the
town of Bethlehem including the Inn, the Stable, and the Babe lying in the Manager.”
One may ask, “What is wrong with such a production?” As NT Christians, we must always seek to have
Biblical authority for all that we do. So, the question is, “Is there Biblical authority to act out the gospel?”
The answer is a clear “NO.” Consider the following:
1.) Col. 3:17 clearly teaches that whatever we do in word or deed we are to do all in the name of Jesus.
“In the name of” means, “by the authority of.”
2.) Jesus said in Mark 16:15, “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.” Jesus said,
“preach the gospel,” not “act the gospel.”
3.) Paul wrote in I Cor. 1:18, “For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us
which are saved it is the power of God.” The preaching of the cross (not the acting of the cross) is the power of
God. The gospel is God’s power to save (Rom. 1:16) and the preaching of it.
4.) According to Titus 1:3, God has “manifested his word through preaching” not “acting.”
5.) Someone may object and say, “Acting (such as plays and skits) is an expedient to preaching.” My
friends, this is not so. If it were, then we would have no problem with such. But, the fact of the matter is
this: “Acting” is an addition, not an “aid” or an “expedient.” An overhead projector or chalkboard are aids.
With or without these things utilized, one is still just preaching. However, “acting” is an addition, and
additions are sinful (Rev. 22:18; I Cor. 4:6; I Pet. 4:11). And, because acting is an addition, in that it goes
beyond biblical authority, we cannot and must not utilize it.
6.) It is a matter of historical record that drama productions were very much a way of life for people of the
first century. Old ruins of theaters can still be found in many ancient cities of that era. The apostles and
the first century Christians very much had access to drama production, but yet, one never reads of such in
the NT. The silence is telling.
7.) When one begins to employ acting, no matter how sincere they may be, it is really saying that God’s
way is no longer good enough and that it must be improved upon. Sadly, many are no longer satisfied with
God’s way and method of reaching the lost and strengthening the saved. Many now consider the pure and
unadulterated preaching of the gospel as old and outdated. Folks, such is blasphemy!
I don’t question the sincerity and zeal of those who do such. However, “zeal without knowledge” is a very
dangerous thing (Rom. 10:2). May we always seek to have Biblical authority for all that we do in our worship
and service to God. Let us not be like Israel of old who “rose up to play.”
Planned Parenthood – Intoxicated On Murder
“Planned Parenthood” has always been an ungodly organization that is anti-God, anti-Bible, and anti-
morality. They are indeed a powerful organization that carries a lot of weight. They are always looking for a
fight — a fight against Biblical morality and any semblance of religion.
Planned Parenthood seems to be intoxicated on murdering innocent unborn babies and doing everything
possible to push their “pro-choice” agenda. Here is just one despicable example. In an article entitled,
“Planned Parenthood Pro-Abortion Christmas Cards Ready to Offend Again,” the author states, “They’re back.
Planned Parenthood’s ‘Choice on Earth’ Christmas cards that are planned as offensive each year are
returning once again” (Lifenews.com). There you have it folks. Of course, the expression, “Choice on Earth”
is taken from the phrase, “Peace on Earth.” When the angels herald the birth of Jesus, they exclaimed,
“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men” (Luke 2:14). How utterly despicable
to take an expression from the Bible (of which they utterly despise) and use it to promote their own agenda —
the murder of the most innocent among us. May we always be willing and ready to oppose this ungodliness
— no matter who promotes it! —Ben Justice