Forward to the Kingdom!

-or- Marriage: Sanctity vs. Cinema

Jeremy Lallier shares another in the series on the Ten Commandments:

Around the same time that the movie industry made the changeover from silent films to the “talkies,” the newly established Production Code Administration began to enforce strict guidelines on what was and wasn’t acceptable in films.

Retired detective Nick Charles and his wealthy socialite wife, Nora, for example (the star characters of a 1934 detective film called The Thin Man; described in Wikipedia as “a flirtatious married couple”), were shown sleeping in separate beds in the movie. The alternative—showing them both in the same bed—was unacceptable.

What's being acted out on the silver screen these days?

But, as has always been human nature, movie producers have continued to push the boundaries of the acceptable until the present day. Now it is commonplace to see all sorts of couples—sometimes unmarried, sometimes married (often to other people)—engaged in throes of passion on the silver screen.

Most no longer see this as shocking, but instead as something to be expected and even enjoyed. But what does God’s Word have to say about it?

The Seventh Commandment, thundered by God from Mount Sinai, states, “You shall not commit adultery” (Exodus 20:14). Straightforward enough. But when Jesus came to earth, He made it clear that the commandment was not dealing exclusively with physical actions, but also underlying attitudes. He said: “Whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Matthew 5:28).

That takes things to a whole new level. It’s not enough to just keep from sex outside of marriage, but to keep our minds clean of the lust to do so. Adultery destroys relationships. For the married man or woman, it can seriously damage the marriage relationship along with the essential trust in it. For the unmarried man or woman, it will heavily detract from the closeness of a potential future marriage relationship.

There are no upsides to adultery except for a very short-lived physical gratification. Even the lustful attitude leading to sex outside of marriage is condemned because its ultimate result is an ugly mess of lies, deceit, hurt, sorrow and anger.

Such things have no place in God’s family. He instead wants to see us find incredible joy and pleasure in a fulfilling, monogamous marriage—the same type of loving, enduring relationship that Christ has with His Church (Ephesians 5:25-27).

Won’t it be great when the whole world finally keeps the Seventh Commandment?

For a fuller treatment on this subject, we encourage you to see our booklet on The Ten Commandments, and especially the chapter “The Seventh Commandment: Protect the Marital Relationship.”