Would You Still Do It?

September is the beginning of a lot of things: new school year, new church year (for some churches), beginning of fall, the start of the NFL season, and the beginning of Fall Television (new seasons and new shows).

Every year there is a new, highly anticipated television series that a network hopes will bring home the bacon via high ratings. Most of the new shows flounder (such as one of my favorites that only got one season - "Kings"). This September is no different, with a slew of new shows slated to begin in the next couple weeks. One show in particular that has caught my eye is a new one on ABC called Flashforward.

In the show, the world blacks out for 2 minutes and 17 seconds and when they come to many (or all?) got a glimpse of their future and are trying to figure out (1) how their lives got to that point, (2) what caused the blackout. One part in the preview that caught my attention was a woman saying she saw herself with another man, who was not her husband. Watch the preview:



The idea, the suspense, the plot and characters have me intrigued, but the very brief scene with the woman has my mind racing... would we, if could see the consequences of our choices (or evaluate them in light of present joy or standards), would we still follow through with it? Would we, like the woman, be brokenhearted (even before it happens)? Would we work to prevent it from happening?

As my mind stirs about this, Paul's struggle with his sin and his love for God are in the back of my mind. In particular, the part where he says "when I want to do what is right, I inevitably do what is wrong" (read about his struggle in Romans 7:14-25). Or the part in Corinthians where Paul reminds believers that we have a choice in pursuing our sinful desires or running from them and toward God (1 Cor. 10:13).

I have no idea what the series has in store or whether or not it is going to be a good piece to discuss sin and consequences, but thus far it certainly catches my attention.

PARENTS: Shows like this that portray sin and consequences are GREAT opportunities to discuss the power of our choices. It is a prime opportunity to discuss choices and their consequences from Scripture (both good and bad): Adam and Eve, Joseph and Potipher's wife, David and Bathsheba, King Asa, Ecclesiastes (Solomon lamenting "chasing the wind"), Peter denying Christ, temptation gives birth to sin which eventually gives birth to death (costs more than we bargained for - James 1:14-15), etc.

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NBC's New Show Steals Its Story Straight Outta the Bible

On Sunday night NBC premiered its new drama series, “Kings.” It tells the story of a modern day monarchy (some say it begs the question, what would the U.S. look like with a monarchy). According to NBC’s synopsis, the series is “an epic story of greed and power, war and romance, forbidden loves and secret alliances -- and a young hero who rises to power in a modern-day kingdom.”

“Why write about a new series?” you ask. To answer the immediate question, no I am not getting paid by the network Goliath, as it were, to write about their new series (though, should the NBC exec’s see this and feel compelled to, I’d be happy to receive their donation). I write about this because this story is actually a contemporary re-telling of the story of King David, from 1 and 2 Samuel. NBC says it’s a re-telling of David and Goliath, but I disagree greatly as there are many plots and storylines taken from the epic story of David. Here are but a few of the borrowed storylines and character casting seen in the premiere:

Bible: David is a shepherd boy in the country
Kings: “David Shepherd” is a mechanic boy in the country

Bible: David is anointed and appointed by God to be King of Israel through the prophet Samuel
Kings: David is “anointed” (so to speak, though not said like that) by the Rev. Samuel for something unknown… yet.

Bible: King Saul was initially appointed by God to be King of Israel, then fails God through selfish ambition
Kings: King Silas was initially appointed by God (yes, God) to be King, then fails God through selfish ambition

Bible: David is a “man after God’s own heart”
Kings: The Reverend Ephram Samuels (stand in for the prophet Samuel) tells King Silas God no longer favors him and has appointed a new King – “a man after His own heart.”

Bible: David slays Goliath with a stone
Kings: David slays the military tank Goliath (yes, I agree… they really stretched for this one) with a rocket launcher. LOL, sorry, I laughed watching it, too.

Bible: David is a musician
Kings: David is a musician (plays the King’s piano)

WORD OF WARNING: As anxious as I am about this new series, I feel it is important to remind you that this is NOT the Bible. It is a “re-telling” which means they have (and will use as often as they can) the liberty to change, adjust, flip, twist, and re-imagine the Biblical account of King David. Yes, there are many similarities (to include negative qualities, such as betrayal, lust, greed, selfishness, etc.), but mind you they are very loose (some are even stretches)! One example: Jonathan, Saul’s son, in the Bible is “Jack” in “Kings” and is somewhat outed in the premiere episode as gay.

The story of David served a much larger purpose than the establishment of government/power… it ushered in the arrival of Jesus Christ and paved the way for true redemption and restoration for mankind through Him (the One True King), not a hero king. Also (SIDE NOTE), it is curious how David in the show is considered a man after God’s own heart when, so far, he has demonstrated no sign of being Godly… only noble, heroic, brave and kind (good attributes).

For those with teens you might, as a family activity, consider reading the story of Saul and David in 1 and 2 Samuel together and watch the show together. Point out similarities and misinterpretations. Talk about how the coming of the King (Jesus) through a country shepherd boy has changed and influenced modern society in ways that an earthly monarchy never could.
It’ll be interesting to see how this series unfolds. Watch it on NBC’s Sundays at 8pm.

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