I hear people talk about “double standards”. If this group of people can do something, then why can’t I? If the boys can do this, then why can’t the girls do this? Most of the time, it isn’t really a “double standard” but a logic fallacy on the part of the person making the claim. The old saying “comparing apples to oranges”. Occasionally I would tend to agree with them. Sometimes I think it just isn’t fair and I get a little jealous when I hear about some things that people do that I’ve chosen not to. But what I see most is us claiming a double standard in an area so we can get by with lowering our standards on something. The real issue is that we are looking to the wrong standards.
Growing up, I remember wondering why I was not allowed to do things other kids could do. Why can’t I watch movies or TV shows that the other kids are watching? Why is it o.k. for them and not for me? What I was saying is that I wanted to do the things that everyone else was doing. I was comparing my parents standards against the other parents standards. What I didn’t see was that not only was it not o.k. for me, but it was really not o.k. for them, either. The standard my parents used was the Biblical teachings, not the other parents. I listen to the discussions going on today about movies and TV shows, music and dress codes and listen to the discussions about what is acceptable and what is not. Most often I hear people comparing groups of people or other individuals and using them as the “standard”. The direction we tend to go is, instead of holding other people accountable to a higher standard, we lower our standards to meet theirs. We don’t want to be different. We don’t want to be weird or left out. We want to be like everyone else. What I do not hear very often is people comparing their lives against a solid standard… what does the Bible say.
So what does the Bible say about movies, TV shows, music, and dress codes? Here are a few standards to look to when making those choices.
This is great. Thank you for the reminder to be Holy. When I was at your house for New Years Eve last year, I made a Resolution to have Perfect Character everyday. The only day I had perfect character since then was that January 2nd when I slept in and lounged around all day. Ha! I thought I even failed that day because I was being lazy, but someone reminded me it was the Sabbath! But since then, I try to wake up and challenge myself with that resolution and every day I fail. But with each failure God opens my eyes and mind to new perceptions. I really appreciate your message in this article about raising ourselves up to higher standards. I needed that message today as I have been contemplating a situation in which I could easily lower my standards. Perfect timing!
Wanda
Amen!! And again, I say, Amen!