Nightline Interview on Idolatry

The kind folks at ABC’s Nightline made their third trip to Mars Hill yesterday. The first time they came out we talked about how Jesus has blessed Mars Hill. The second time got interesting because we opened our doors to host a public debate about the existence of Satan that included Deepak Chopra. This time Nightline wanted to talk to me about the topic of idolatry. Apparently they saw my Tweet about the cult-like response to Michael Jackson’s death and thought my take on it would fit well into a series of episodes they’re doing on the Ten Commandments. I sat down for about 30 minutes with Terry Moran and we talked about how idolatry underlies all sin, how it is rooted on a false promise of happiness, how it ultimately destroys, how it is often the result of turning a good thing into an ultimate thing, and how it shows itself in our culture in how we idolize celebrities, athletes, food, family, sex, money, relationships, and achievement—or rather, what we call American culture. We also took a drive in my Jeep with the top off discussing some of the cultural idols littering my city. It was a bit precarious as the really great camera man was standing up in my Jeep as we drove around and I really did not want to kill him. But, things went well and we got some great footage of strip clubs, Seahawks stadium, Safeco Field, Starbucks headquarters, etc. as we drove by them. Most importantly they gave me the chance to explain how only Jesus is the only answer to all of our idolatry. Idols take, Jesus gives. Idols destroy life. Jesus gives new life. Idols break apart people and relationships. Jesus redeems and heals. As they always have been, the Nightline crew was a pleasure to work with and we look forward to working with them again. As soon as we have a confirmed airdate I’ll post it here.