Guarding the Gates

In the face of objectionable content available through various platforms and made available to our children, we have to make sure that we are guarding the gates of our minds and hearts and the entry points of our homes in order to protect not only our hearts, but the hearts of our families.  In Psalm 101 (ESV), we can read these words of exhortation:
2 I will ponder the way that is blameless. Oh when will you come to me? I will walk with integrity of heart within my house;
3 I will not set before my eyes anything that is worthless. I hate the work of those who fall away; it shall not cling to me.
4 A perverse heart shall be far from me; I will know nothing of evil.

And, Proverbs 4 (ESV) contains these words:
23 Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.

From time to time, you will hear of or read comments from high-profile individuals who have taken the major streaming service Netflix to task.  While Netflix offers an expansive degree of choice of content, there is content marketed or made available to children that can be harmful to their minds.   And, lately, there's been a new wave of criticism for the streaming platform.

There was a piece at Townhall.com recently that said:

“Netflix is grooming our children,” Elon Musk posted on X.

The man worth about $500 billion called for subscribers to cancel Netflix, one of the most popular streaming services.

The conservative commentator Benny Johnson posted on X, according to the article:

"What’s happening with Netflix is not “culture war” politics. It’s far worse. This is a direct assault on the morality of our society and the innocence of our children. Nations that sexualize children don’t last. They collapse, history shows it every time. And Jesus Christ Himself gave the ultimate warning: If you harm one of these little ones, it would be better to tie a stone around your neck and sink into the sea. That’s how serious this is. Netflix isn’t just slipping propaganda into kids’ shows. They’re pushing radical gender ideology at the most innocent ages. Cows with pronouns, robots teaching “they/them,” and toddlers being targeted with sexual confusion. It’s not red vs. blue anymore. It’s good vs. evil. It’s the fight for our children and our culture. Cancel Netflix. Protect your kids. Defend what is right."

Now, Johnson is a professing Christian, but has taken heat for having provocateur Andrew Tate on his program, who promotes ideas about masculinity that are unbiblical, misguided, and damaging and demeaning toward women.   But, he's absolutely correct on this analysis of Netflix.  

Libs of Tik Tok posted on X: "Meet Wade Davis, the Vice President of 'Inclusion Strategy' at @Netflix.Wade formerly served as an 'LGBT inclusion consultant' for the NFL and worked as an "LGBT surrogate" during Obama's 2012 presidential campaign.Is the child grooming epidemic on Netflix starting to make sense now?"
 
The article also notes that Congressman Tim Burchett of Tennessee "said that Netflix executives will answer to Congress about its kids shows, according to reporter Eric Daugherty."  A FoxNews.com piece said that Burchett "called Netflix 'demonic' for targeting children with pro-transgender content, and he wants the streaming giant’s executives to explain their intentions on Capitol Hill."  The article added that Burchett wrote House Oversight Committee chair James Comer "expressing interest in calling Netflix executives to Capitol Hill after a viral clip of a children’s show called 'Dead End: Paranormal Park' showed a character coming out as trans. The show aired in 2022 with only 20 episodes."

The Fox article also noted:

"Dead End Paranormal Park" is not the first Netflix program to offend conservative parents. Another Netflix kids show, "Strawberry Shortcake: Berry in the Big City," promoted transgender drag queens, and Netflix’s "The Baby-Sitters Club" featured a child character shaming doctors for referring to a trans, child patient by the pronouns of their biological sex.

Netflix’s "Transformers: Earthspark" has also come under fire for pushing the term "nonbinary" despite being geared to children as young as 7, while "Monster High: The Movie" features teenage characters explaining their preferred pronouns. Billionaire Elon Musk is among the many Americans who have called for parents to cancel Netflix.

Well, one could ask the question, is this an issue of free speech or simply leaving entertainment choices up to the free market?  It's a delicate issue, but I would contend that parents should know what sort of programming material is made available on platforms that offer a wide array of content.   So, it is right to call Netflix out.  Same thing with libraries that make objectionable content available to children.  Should they be shut down?  Here's what Burchett said: "It's always a First Amendment right, but the First Amendment goes so far you can't yell ‘fire’ in a crowded theater, people will get trampled running out, you could be held liable for that. So, it does have its limitations..."  He added, "I'm sure the First Amendment folks will be concerned, as they should...But again, I don't think the First Amendment was any shape, form, or fashion was designed to protect people from harming children, which is exactly what this is about."

So, at the very least, parents should be made aware of the ideas and images that are being marketed to their children.  And, parents should take the God-given responsibility to direct the spiritual growth of their children seriously.   Content that presents harmful images to children should be identified and responded to in a Scriptural manner.

We can also make sure we're identifying and supporting content that does honor God or presents a worldview that is consistent with Biblical truth.  This hopefully can tip the scales as a countermeasure to the garbage that is polluting platforms and ultimately corrupting hearts.  We should always be exhorting one another to discern between good and evil.