As a college student I learned a fascinating fact about the animal kingdom. If the temperature of a frog’s water is raised gradually, he senses no danger—not even when the water boils. This means that the poor little fellow will boil to death without ever thinking to hop to safety.
I fear that many of us aren’t much wiser than the foolish frog. Consider how Satan is slowly turning up the heat in the American living room. When television first became popular, most Christians were incensed by the occasional curse word. They complained. Sometimes, they turned off the TV in disgust. But they got used to it. Some years later most Christians were deeply troubled by the barrage of coarse language on television. They complained. Sometimes, they turned off the TV in disgust. But they got used to it. After a few more years, most Christians were disturbed by the nudity, adultery, and premarital sex on television. They complained. Sometimes, they turned off the TV in disgust. But they got used to that too.
After a time Satan’s hand returned to the thermostat. Homosexuality popped up in commercials, comedy routines, sitcoms, and shows of all kinds. Most Christians were appalled. We complained. Sometimes, we turned off the TV in disgust. But have we already got used to perversion?
The apostle Paul commands: “Present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God. […] Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of your mind” (Rom. 12:1-2). Will we obey this inspired teaching? Will we turn off the TV altogether or at least become far more selective? What’s next? Pedophilia? Bestiality? Will we “hop to safety” today or boil to death tomorrow in Satan’s worldly pot?