The VMAs and Cornelius

I didn't watch the VMAs this year. Typically I am ALL about red carpet awards shows. Everything from the fashion choices to the acceptance speeches, I love them. Seeing the actors and actresses who transformed themselves on screen to play such influential and powerful roles the year before, and watching truly talented artists be recognized and applauded for their craft... Something about it I just love. Last year however Joel and I turned on the VMAs to watch, what we thought would be, another exciting and entertaining award show. But instead what we found was deeply disturbing and sad. Half way through we found ourselves so depressed and even angry over the things being said and done on that stage that we had to turn it off. Watching seemingly mindless teenagers and young people look up to and admire the performances as if THESE were their role models, this was what they looked to for answers and purpose, you could see it in their faces. I'll never forget that feeling that was probably one I had for the first time as a somewhat new young adult, the feeling of hopelessness as I watched a generation so enthralled and captivated in a world that will ultimately lead to destruction.

The truth is that this year I didn't knowingly make the choice to NOT watch the VMAs. And truth be told had I known they were on I probably would have flipped the channel and tuned in out of curiosity. But the sequence of events yesterday that has led up to me writing this was much more planned and calculated, something only a God who desperately wants me living in Truth would do.

You see yesterday morning in our bible study class at church we studied a man named Cornelius. Cornelius was someone we would have avoided, or been annoyed at or just cast off as "someone we need to pray for". As Max Lucado puts it "He ate the wrong food, hung with the wrong crowd, and swore allegiance to Caesar. He didn’t quote the Torah or descend from Abraham. Uncircumcised, unkosher, unclean." Get the picture? Long story short God spoke to Peter to go near this man, THIS man?! My reaction would be somewhat like "uhh God, don't you want me to STAY AWAY from this man??" But in an act of obedience Peter finds Cornelius and confesses in verse 28 of Acts 10: "You know that we Jews are not allowed to have anything to do with other people. But God has shown me that he doesn’t think anyone is unclean or unfit." As a result of this obedience Cornelius as well as the other men present received the Holy Spirit, and glorified God.

Peter could have easily chosen to see Cornelius as a burden, an outcast, and undeserving of God's grace and love. But instead he chose to go NEAR him. He chose to claim what God says about each and every one of us, what Peter knew God said about his own sinful self, which is that no one is unclean or unfit to receive the gift of God's grace.

So what does this have to do with the VMA show last night? I woke up this morning reading reviews and countless comments on Facebook about how truly appalling some of the performances were, and naturally like last year my response was disgust and anger and sadness. I immediately began directing those thoughts toward the artists and the people themselves. Right in the middle of my sinful reaction to the VMAs I was immediately reminded of the scripture from yesterday's lesson on Cornelius, "But God has shown me that he doesn’t think anyone is unclean or unfit." WE are not called to stand and be the judge over the sinful and misleading actions of this world. WE are actually called to go near them, go near them knowing that the love and truth of the Gospel has a far better and far more satisfying answer for the problems of this world than anything on that stage or any lyric in that song. The story of Cornelius teaches us to see people not as problems but as opportunities. I believe in the same way we as believers can choose to see the things of this world, like the VMAs, not as problems but as opportunities. Opportunities to extend the same grace that we are given every day, opportunities to share truth with people who may be choosing to believe the deception of pop culture, opportunities to pray for a group of people with more influence and say in the lives of young people than any other. Yes, to pray for the people on that stage, and to pray for the generation of people who were deceived by their actions last night.

Each and every thing that we as believers can choose to get riled up about, to see as a problem, to find a way to GET RID OF... We can just as easily pray for, see as an opportunity, show LOVE toward. Am I saying to condone sin or ignore what the bible says about it? No. "For the wages of sin is death"... But lets not forget the second half "but the free gift of God is eternal life"!!!! (Romans 6:23) Lets remember that it's FREE and it's available to anyone who calls on the name of Jesus, because NO ONE is unclean or unfit to receive it!