Superbowl Sunday is becoming a mixed blessing in society. We could argue that it takes away from Sabbath rest and worship especially for those churches that continue the tradition of evening services. But that is an argument for another time. On the other hand, it is an event that gathers the good of food, the blessing of fellowship and the rest of entertainment.
But, again, as with any mixed blessing, the bad often outweighs the good. Whereas there is plenty to praise in the great athleticism, the strategizing, and the comeback spirit, we, fans of good entertainment, are now doing overtime with our discernment antennas. An event that once could safely include the presence of children now requires a background check into the newest commercials and the halftime spectacle which can range from the sublime U2 performance in 2002 to the seductive performance last night from two middle-aged women.
It is clear that what we are seeing is a combination of theatrics and vile art. Abraham Kuyper once noted that “Anything that cannot be put into an image or onto a canvas without demanding the sacrifice of modesty or injuring shame must simply be eschewed.” If we view last night as a form of art, then Americans are eschewing only modesty.
The Superbowl knows its audience. They provide a service to a population trained to desire the obscene. It’s a seduction show for young men who are seeking rest from their labors and will find it through a medium that is vastly dominated by a male audience. Young men will seek refuge in a Superbowl game only to be rewarded by partial nudity. And if young men associate rest with the reward of partial nudity, they will embrace full nudity often and will find themselves comfortable with partial nudity at the public square. Their discernment capabilities will diminish with each passing day.
When virtue is gone, what is left is body parts to show; the awakening in a society that our culture’s feast is an altar with goddesses surrounded by children and an adoring crowd of spectators cheering them on as icons. When a culture runs out of ideas, they give you their leftovers. When people forsake the truth, all that is available is the embodiment of lies. And what better way than two grown women to show a younger generation that the body is not the temple of the Spirit, but the possession of principalities and powers: the leftovers of a society who once prided in novelty and virtuous imagination?
Some may wish to boycott them next year and give them a taste of their own medicine. But I believe we can, rather, keep mentioning this exploitation and raise hell every year, and disciple our young men every year, and teach young ladies that they are valuable in God’s eyes and that their bodies are temples, not possessions of powerful men. My own thought is that if the Superbowl continues this trend, they will go into oblivion. Evil cannot prosper in the sight of a godly witness. The lesson, in my estimation, is to stand firm and fight the good fight. A mixed blessing is not the Christian’s reward or rest.
