I have no say with what a particular business establishment decides to do or not do with the products it wants to sell.
That's up to them.
Life Way is "owned and operated" by the Southern Baptist Convention. They have every right to do with their business establishment as they please.
One of the reasons why Life Way is pulling the movie is because a Florida pastor will introduce a resolution at the Southern Baptist Convention's annual meeting that "expresses dissatisfaction with 'The Blind Side' and any product that contains explicit profanity, God's name in vain, and racial slur."
See here's the thing...have you seen the Blind Side? It was a fantastic movie with a fantastic message. What profanity and racial slur that was there was so minor I can't even remember where in the movie it occurred. What I remember is the story of love, family, commitment, and a faith life that tears down racial and societal barriers. That was the whole point of the movie!!!
The biggest question though is when does our attempt to be set apart from this world become so extreme that we become other worldly rather than merely set apart?
Because unless we are still citizens and fellow journeyers in this world - where people cuss, where people don't even know what it means to take the Lord's name in vain, where people actually do have real problems, where drugs and violence is the rule not the exemption...you know our world - we're not going to be of much use to people living in this world.
How can grace be applied unless we're willing to get messy and dirty?
It's not that we have to praise profanity and the mess sin causes, but unless we're willing to swim deep in the mess of sin, how else does grace break through? It doesn't mean we have to participate in the sin. But we better close enough for God's grace to impact it.
I don't think our calling is to be in isolation and to create a world where there is no mess and no pain, but to take the gospel into the messy dark world and be a part of God bringing order and light and renewal in messy broken places.
That's what I think grace is about. That's what I think our calling is as a church.
Ready to get messy?
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