There are 12 Step programs for persons who are addicted to something -- we have Alcoholics Anonymous, Gamblers Anonymous, etc. Is it now time that a Charlie Anonymous be established for those who are addicted to Charlie Sheen and all his antics?
Charlie Sheen has dominated the news of late to the point of crowding out that guy in Libya -- whose name is Quadaffi, or Khadafi, or Khadafy, or Gadaffi or Quaddafi or (insert your favorite spelling). Such heavy weights as NBC's Today show and Fox News gave extensive amounts of time to this person whose life is in a very tragic unraveling stage! It is crystal clear that media people are mesmerized by this guy Charlie Sheen for some unexplained reason.
His antics get top billing in the world of mass media communications. He is reported to be the highest paid actor in television. But that is not enough for Charlie. He is demanding a 50 per cent pay hike for his work in "Two and a Half Men." Maybe the poor guy just can't make ends meet with a salary of 2 million dollars PER EPISODE -- he wants it upped to 3 million dollars for each episode!
Among other things he is a prime example of the truth that very few persons can handle wealth and power in a responsible way. You see this massively demonstrated in Washington DC and state capitols throughout our entire republic on a daily basis.
But what is really wrong here? It is the fact that Charlie is demonstrating that when you become self-centered and try to run your own life apart from the grace of God, you are going to foul up in many different ways. Every human is born into this world with an inclination to ignore God and live a life that focuses on the self.
Long ago a man, whom God called to warn his generation of impending judgment and destruction if there was not massive repentance on the part of the citizens and their leaders (political and religious), made a most accurate observation about the human race -- "O LORD, I know the way of man is not in himself; it is not in man who walks to direct his own steps." (Jeremiah 10:23).
Charlie Sheen, because he is very high profile, is showing millions of people what a disaster your life can become when you ignore the calling and claims of Almighty God through Jesus Christ that is extended to every human being on the face of this planet.
There will be those who may come to his defense and in light of statements just made cry out, "Who are you to judge?" The fact is that I am not making a judgment as such but simply conveying what Jesus Christ, the absolute Authority on all matters pertaining to human behavior and relationships, has to say.
First, He said we would really know who people are by the kind of "fruit" they manifest in their lives -- see Matthew 7:17-20. Their speech, conduct, and relationships will clearly reveal as to whether their primary motive in life is to seek and do the will of God or whether it's the person who stares back at them in the bathroom mirror each morning that is calling all the shots day by day until one is buried in a cemetery!
Second, He said we are to be "light" and "salt" in this world if we faithfully follow Him. That simply means we convey the light of God's truth, the reality of salvation from sin through Jesus Christ, and as salt, resist all evil in whatever form it appears. Charlie has provided no evidence in either speech or in conduct that he desires to be "light" or "salt" in the advancement of the Kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ! (See Matthew 5 about the salt and light responsibility).
Third, Jesus said that those who are faithfully following Him would experience hostility time after time in the world -- that is, hatred and violent acts under various circumstances, depending on where one is located. In some parts of the world there are places where Christians are violently attacked and even killed; others are beaten, tortured, and imprisoned. Here in the United States it hasn't reached that stage yet, but the hostility is growing in verbal attacks, court decisions, and certain negative reactions to the witness of Christianity. Charlie has provided no evidence that he has been on the receiving end of hostility because he is a follower of Jesus Christ.
Is there hope for Charlie? So long as he draws a breath and his heart continues to beat, there is that possibility that his eyes will be opened and by the grace of God he will see that his greatest need is to seek mercy and forgiveness through Jesus Christ, Who sacrificed His life on a Roman cross 2,000 years ago so that Charlie and all the members of the human race, including you and me, could be forgiven of all sin and be a part of Jesus' Kingdom forever and forever where there is no pain, no grief, and no trouble of any kind.
But in the meantime as the media prattles on about Charlie is it time to establish a Charlie Anonymous? Maybe you can be the one to start a chapter in your community!
Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. --- Galatians 6:7,8
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. --- Romans 6:23
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