Online Courses
The current practice of Christian consumer culture is defunct.
We can’t keep evaluating visual stories just on their problematic content. Yes,
some forms of entertainment could be a temptation to us, and it is
wise to guard our hearts and minds and avoid the defilements of the world.
After all, we want to make sure that we honor the first and greatest
commandment—to love God supremely.
But there’s a second commandment we’re forgetting.
Jesus said a comprehensive Christian ethic requires another precept—to
love our neighbor as ourselves. And as we discover in the parable of the Good
Samaritan, our neighbor is anyone we come into contact with.
Anyone.
Even if that contact is minimal. Even if we technically don’t know them. Even if all we’re
doing is paying them to entertain us.
Too often, we have failed to love our entertainers as we
love ourselves. Yes, their onscreen actions may sometimes prove to be a
stumbling block to us. But more
importantly, our consumer-driven, self-focused actions have proven to be a
stumbling block to them. That
violates the second greatest commandment—and, as a consequence, the first
commandment as well.
That’s zero for two. The odds are not in our favor.
Personal Purity Isn't Enough is a
paradigm-shattering exploration of the Christian’s forgotten duty when engaging
with popular culture. This course is the first and only of its kind—eschewing a self-centered legalism on the one hand and a freedom-toting licentiousness on the other.
If you’re ready to forever change how you view
entertainment, for the glory of God and the good of your neighbor, this course
is for you.
** [This course is no longer publicly available] **
Praise for Personal Purity Isn't Enough
“As someone who has long studied and meditated on the
intersection of faith and art, I can recommend this course unequivocally.
Stewart takes a fascinating, well-informed and virtually unique approach.”
- Joseph W. Smith III, film critic and author
of Sex and Violence in the Bible and Transparency: A
Cure for Hypocrisy in the Modern Church
“Cap Stewart remains a clear and reasonable Christian voice
on sexual issues that are starving for exactly that.”
- Paeter Frandsen, author of the Spirit
Blade trilogy
“A holy church in the Age of Entertainment must address the
Christian’s relationship to Hollywood. With great clarity, well-grounded in
Scripture, Cap Stewart’s work is an essential and invaluable voice in pointing
all of us to the least talked about but most important issue for Christians in
their entertainment choices.”
- Wayne A. Wilson, author of Worldly
Amusements and Senior Pastor at Acton Faith Bible Church
“The content in this course is astounding. . . . What
[Cap] has collected is...action-worthy in every way for the believer.
His analysis is clear, biblical, and relevant to the modern evangelical church.
The church needs to hear this message!”
- Marian Jacobs, staff writer for Lorehaven
Magazine and author of Drawn from the Water
“Abraham Kuyper famously said, ‘There is not one square inch
in the whole universe over which the risen Christ does not cry, “Mine!”’ For years
now, Cap Stewart has been showing us how that’s true for cinema too; he’s
showing Christians how we can watch movies to the glory of God.”
- Jon Dykstra, Editor of Reformed
Perspective Magazine
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It’s one of the most famous, and arguably one of the best, lectures
in recorded history. Its insight into human nature has kept it in circulation
for over 150 years. Its focus is a much-neglected principle that every
Christian struggling with sin needs to understand.
Unfortunately, it isn’t exactly an easy read.
The lecture title? The
Expulsive Power of a New Affection. The lecturer? Scottish minister,
professor, and social reformer Thomas Chalmers.
This free online course was created to make The Expulsive Power easily accessible to
a modern audience. Paraphrased, revised, and abridged, Overcoming the Lusts You (Hate to) Love turns Chalmers’ masterful
work into a 20 minute audio lecture. Divided into five short lessons, it will
equip you to grasp both the seriousness and the simplicity of killing your
sinful habits.
Because, when it comes down to it, there are really only two
possible solutions:
- Avoidance
- Replacement
The first is the most popular (“just say no,” “steer clear
of temptation,” etc.), and yet it is an approach doomed to fail. We can’t avoid
or hide from the problem if our problem is internal. The second
option—replacement—is the only true and lasting solution to the seduction of
worldly enticements.
In other words, the only way you can learn to discard the
sins you love is to learn to love something else even more.