Bill Maher’s “Religulous” Blasphemy
October 1, 2008 by Jeff White
This year I have seen more and more news stories that bring scripture to life like never before.
Bill Maher, a standup comedian, talk show host, actor, political commentator and agnostic, set out to mock God in his new movie, Religulous. But in so doing, he simply helped validate God’s Word.
2 Peter 3:3
Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts.
Isaiah 5:20
Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!
Religulous challenges the existence of God as presented by Christianity and other major religions. In doing so, Bill Maher travels around the world mocking those that hold strong religious convictions. The film focuses on the most fringe elements of the various religions and attempts to depict them as the norm for those of us that worship God.
My first reaction to this film was anger. That’s not the reaction we should have as Christians. First, we should pray for Bill Maher. Not a patronizing prayer, but a sincere prayer for this man’s salvation.
Second, this is just one more sign that Jesus’s return is imminent. Instead of being mad, rejoice! And keep watching for the return of Christ. We’re one day closer than we were yesterday!
Paul said we should be angry but sin not. I think your anger is normal and healthy. It would have been unhealthy and unchristian anger if you would have emailed Bill Maher and condemned him. So in the end your response to pray is totally right on but I encourage you and other Christians: quit being ashamed of a healthy righteous anger that God can and does use to spur us to action.
I know anger can get out of control but if I read the book of the revelation of Christ, then one day if this man remains unrepentant he will face the wrath of the lamb. here on earth we need to get angry: first at the devil for his hatred of bill maher and deceiving him, second at the hollywood world system which satan has inspired, and third at religious nonsense that keeps the church feeling so guilty for having any kind of god - like emotion that it prevents us from taking charge and evangelizing for fear of being labeled a hypocrite or sinner.
I believe the scripture says we are not to fear anyone’s tongue and that we have the right to condemn every tongue that rises up against us in judgment. Does anyone honestly believe we would have an america if our fore fathers would not have gotten angry and said enough is enough. Yes we need to prayer for bill mahers’ salvation. But according to covenant principles that God has bound himself to honor Bill Maher will have one of two experiences.
Either The Lord will appear to him as he did the apostle paul. (Bill Maher is a Jew as Paul was by the way ) and he will be physically stopped from persecuting the church by the God of Heaven. Or if he remains stiff necked and unwilling to listen to the voice of the Lord who is always speaking to all men, The Lord will protect the church by taking away His hand of protection from him and Bill Mahers heart will become reprobate and then he’ll have to face the Lord in Judgment. People don’t like to hear this kind of talk anymore and preachers don’t want to preach it and if they do preach it they don’t seem to know how to do it with weeping and compassion as Jesus did when He warned, rebuked, and condemned the pharisees and then wept over the same people who were going to kill him. It’s time to stop apologizing to an ungodly media and world system that is inspired by the devil to deceive and destroy the lives of as many people as he can before Christ returns.
There is such a thing as a healthy righteous anger that spurs us to both compassion and anger at the same time.
Dan, you’re absolutely right about righteous anger. I stand corrected. I’m mad again
but still praying.
I obviously have not seen the movie, as it has not been released yet. But I take the message of it to be questioning not God, but those who have these absolute convictions about His nature and desires. I believe personally that those who claim to know exactly what God thinks, feels, and wants to be the blasphemers. In my many discussions about religion I have come to realize that mostly it is used to dived us rather than bring us together. When you inject absolutes such as “the Bible is to be read literally,” you have drawn a line in the sand that says one side is right (your own side) and on e is wrong (everyone who doesn’t agree w/ you.) It was my pastor who told me that when you think you have God figured out is when you begin to worship a false god, one of your own creation. I think Bill Maher’s challenges to these absolute convictions should be taken to heart, this movie should challenge us to re-evaluate who we are actually worshipping and for what reasons.
Hey Jeff I like this website and the articles on it. but what I don’t get is how people act like they know or even guess when God is coming back? I mean, I know that He could come back any second but nobody, not even Jesus knows when that hour is! Am I wrong somewhere? Am I missing somthing? Anyway thats kind of off topic, thanks for listening.
BRILLIANT….BRILLIANT idea for a movie. It’s about time someone told the real “truth” instead of trying to make sense of two thousand year old gibberish novels!!
I know some of the religous people out there will run away from this movie without watching it!…………..
So glad we live in a time when these movies can be made and we won’t get burned for heresy!! woo hoo!
Hello everyone and God bless you. Part of the problem as I see it concerning people mocking Christianity is that there is so much to mock. I am a Christian but most Christians know very little about their faith. Most of contemporary Christianity is mixed with paganism - i.e. going to heaven or hell when you die and the Trinity are big ones! Man is mortal. God said to Adam dust you are and to dust you shall return. He didn’t say that when Adam died he would enter glory! Everlasting life is conditional upon faith in God. here are the options believe and receive everlasting life or don’t and perish (John 3:16). And hundreds of times in the Old Testaaament God says that He is one person. In fact Jesus said, “…this is eternal life, that they may know You [His Father] the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.”(John 17:3)
Believers….The essence of the message and the question is simple.
Ask yourself….”do you BELIEVE, or do you KNOW”. Knowing and Believing are two different things.
To BELIEVE is to have confidence in the truth, the existence, or the reliability of something, although without absolute proof that one is right in doing so: Only if one believes in something can one act purposefully.
To KNOW is to have confidence in the truth, the existence, or the reliability of something, although without absolute proof that one is right in doing so: Only if one believes in something can one act purposefully.
It’s when people tend to confuse and pretend to KNOW what’s going to happen after death, or when people to pretend to know what happened in the past, that’s when fanatism starts and ends.
IT IS OK TO SAY, I BELEIVE without Knowing… Let’s be honest with ourselves, and with others, including with God. — God knows that we do not know, but he know that we beleive,… wether we pretend to know or not.
—-”Blessed are those who believe without seeing.” John 20:29 —> who beleive without knowing, who beleive without touching…..
- Just my two HONEST cents….
-Bethel
I know I’m joining this discussion a bit after the fact, and Maher’s movie has now opened, as has “Fireproof”, but did we all see that “Fireproof” with it’s strong Christian theme, far out sold Maher’s film at the box office!
Israel was Judged many times for lack of Judgment in speaking the truth
as will the church that teaches not to judge others
we are to Judge according to the truth Gods word
Bill Maher, you wouldn’t do this to the muslim faith would you? They will come after you as they did with Sulman Rushdie. Show us if you have the guts and go on the air and make fun of the muslims .You wouldn’t because you are a coward. I said COWARD! Just because the Christian faith is tolerant and peace-loving you take such cheap shots. You have your reward Maher. You have a reward awaiting you…and for sure you wouldn’t have the last laugh….I pray that better sense will prevail and you will ask God for forgiveness( not Christianity or Christians). Maher, I said GOD, one who you ridiculed and made fun of. Ask Him for forgiveness. He still loves you despite your arrogance and foolishness.
When I read and see such things as this movie, I have more confidence in my Christian faith, have you seen somebody persecute a lie? Truth is always persecuted, and this is what the Bible foretold about the last days! But be aware: “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows” (Galatians 6:7)
“Bill Maher, you wouldn’t do this to the muslim faith would you?”
Actually, the movie addresses Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Scientology, Satanism, and a variety of other fringe religious sects, like Jews for Jesus and polygamists.
So yes, he would, and did.
As a former Christian, I feel this movie highlights some very important aspects that practicing Christians do not take into consideration. For one, it is arrogant to assume that you are right and everybody else is wrong when there is no evidence that Christians are more right than any other religion. Unfortunately, Christianity is spread via ignorance and fear and not sound, reasonable arguments. Do you realize that followers of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam all recognize the Old Testamount as valid, yet these doctrines have different ideas on the path to salvation? These problems need to be addressed.
If Christians want to be taken more seriously, they have to confront the major problems with religion. As we saw in the movie, there are people out there claiming to be Jesus Christ. Not too many people take this seriously, but it highlights the problem of using faith instead of skepticism to elucidate truth. Maher is attacking the argument, not so much the people. So pay attention to the discussion and address the argument with reason and logic or Christianity will continue to lose followers.
prayforbillmaher.com I would like to see a serious effort to pray for Bill Maher’s conversion. I think it’s the correct response to the movie, and the right thing to do. To that end, my husband and I set up this blog. Please go there, and send people there, and show that you intend to pray by commentary with your opinions. We were poking a little fun at Bill and ourselves when we put a Visa and Mastercard logo on there with two angels holding it up. Go read for yourself.