But then there are some of us who hate it. Not because it’s fun, entertaining and what everyone is talking about, but because it’s dangerous. So dangerous that it’s eating away at the faith of Christian teens like an unstoppable computer virus.

I’ve seen it the danger too many times not to believe it. The subtle but sinister and, quite honestly, satanic messages shake and sometimes shatter the once strong foundation of faith in the presence of God and the truth of His Word.

How does this happen? A lie told often enough is easy to believe as truth. We’re exposed to lies every time we catch the latest video or listen to the top 40 tunes. See if any of these messages sound familiar:

“Sex before marriage is OK as long as you love each other.”

“The No. 1 goal in life is to be happy, followed closely by finding personal happiness and having a happy life.”

“Christians are stupid, judgmental, self-righteous morons.”

“All religions basically teach the same thing.”

“Homosexual behavior is an acceptable lifestyle choice.”

“An unborn fetus isn’t really human until birth.”

I could easily list 100 more tricky and treacherous pop-culture sermons I’ve personally heard in the last week.

So what’s a Christian to do?
I guess we could pack up and move to our own Christian island where all elements of pop culture have been banned and barred. But then it would be just a little difficult to obey Christ in fulfilling the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20).

I think a better solution when figuring out what to do with the untruths of the world is to look at God’s Truth. In other words, we need to put up a biblical firewall that exposes the pop culture lies for what they are. This is what the apostle Paul was getting at when he wrote:

“Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God — this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is — his good, pleasing and perfect will” (Romans 12:1-2).

As believers in a predominantly unbelieving world, we need to train our minds to test and measure every message we’re exposed to in the light of God’s Word.

What will you do next?
1. Spend more time in God’s Word. As you are rooted and grounded in the truth, you’ll be more equipped to filter out the lies.

2. Evaluate online. There are some great online tools to help you evaluate pop culture messages and how they compare to the Bible. Check out www.pluggedinonline.com and www.briomag.com

3. Know the core beliefs. Understanding and knowing the Christian faith is an incredible way to put up the firewall against the deceptive worldview that surrounds us. Check out www.capturetheirhearts.com and sign up for free e-mail devotions called Soul Fuel that deal with these core beliefs.

The bottom line — pop culture is out to shake your faith. Are you ready for the coming storm?