What are the dangers of too much amusement? - Amusement - TouchPoints

Isaiah 5:12They furnish wine and lovely music at their grand parties—lyre and harp, tambourine and flute—but they never think about the Lord or notice what he is doing.

2 Timothy 3:2-4People will love only themselves and their money. They will be boastful and proud, scoffing at God, disobedient to their parents, and ungrateful. They will consider nothing sacred. They will be unloving and unforgiving; they will slander others and have no self-control. They will be cruel and hate what is good. They will betray their friends, be reckless, be puffed up with pride, and love pleasure rather than God.

James 4:4You adulterers! Don’t you realize that friendship with the world makes you an enemy of God? I say it again: If you want to be a friend of the world, you make yourself an enemy of God.

Too much amusement can turn our focus away from God.

Amos 6:1-6What sorrow awaits you who lounge in luxury in Jerusalem, . . . You push away every thought of coming disaster, but your actions only bring the day of judgment closer. How terrible for you who sprawl on ivory beds and lounge on your couches, eating the meat of tender lambs from the flock and of choice calves fattened in the stall. You sing trivial songs to the sound of the harp and fancy yourselves to be great musicians like David. You drink wine by the bowlful and perfume yourselves with fragrant lotions. You care nothing about the ruin of your nation.

Ephesians 4:19They have no sense of shame. They live for lustful pleasure and eagerly practice every kind of impurity.

Excessive amusement can lead to misplaced priorities.

Proverbs 27:20Just as Death and Destruction are never satisfied, so human desire is never satisfied.

Ecclesiastes 2:1-2I said to myself, “Come on, let’s try pleasure. Let’s look for the ‘good things’ in life.” But I found that this, too, was meaningless. So I said, “Laughter is silly. What good does it do to seek pleasure?”

Ecclesiastes 6:9Enjoy what you have rather than desiring what you don’t have. Just dreaming about nice things is meaningless—like chasing the wind.

Focusing on amusement can make life empty of meaning and satisfaction.

Proverbs 21:17, 25Those who love pleasure become poor; those who love wine and luxury will never be rich. . . . Despite their desires, the lazy will come to ruin, for their hands refuse to work.

Proverbs 28:19A hard worker has plenty of food, but a person who chases fantasies ends up in poverty.

Excessive amusement can lead to unmet basic human needs.

Genesis 9:21, 24One day he drank some wine he had made, and he became drunk and lay naked inside his tent. . . . When Noah woke up from his stupor, he learned what Ham, his youngest son, had done.

Genesis 19:32-35“Come, let’s get him drunk with wine, and then we will sleep with him. That way we will preserve our family line through our father.” So that night they got him drunk, and the older daughter went in and slept with her father. He was unaware of her lying down or getting up again. The next morning the older daughter said to her younger sister, “I slept with our father last night. Let’s get him drunk with wine again tonight, and you go in and sleep with him. That way our family line will be preserved.” So that night they got him drunk again, and the younger daughter went in and slept with him. As before, he was unaware of her lying down or getting up again.

Job 36:14“They die when they are young, after wasting their lives in immoral living.”

Isaiah 5:22What sorrow for those who are heroes at drinking wine and boast about all the alcohol they can hold.

Isaiah 56:12“Come,” they say, “let’s get some wine and have a party. Let’s all get drunk. Then tomorrow we’ll do it again and have an even bigger party!”

Hosea 7:5On royal holidays, the princes get drunk with wine, carousing with those who mock them.

Luke 8:14“The seeds that fell among the thorns represent those who hear the message, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the cares and riches and pleasures of this life. And so they never grow into maturity.”

1 Corinthians 10:6-8These things happened as a warning to us, so that we would not crave evil things as they did, or worship idols as some of them did. As the Scriptures say, “The people celebrated with feasting and drinking, and they indulged in pagan revelry.” And we must not engage in sexual immorality as some of them did.

Galatians 6:8Those who live only to satisfy their own sinful nature will harvest decay and death from that sinful nature. But those who live to please the Spirit will harvest everlasting life from the Spirit.

Excessive amusement can have destructive emotional, physical, and spiritual consequences.

Titus 3:3Once we, too, were foolish and disobedient. We were misled and became slaves to many lusts and pleasures. Our lives were full of evil and envy, and we hated each other.

1 Peter 2:11Dear friends, I warn you as “temporary residents and foreigners” to keep away from worldly desires that wage war against your very souls.

Excessive amusement can become addicting and can quickly start to control us.

Luke 21:34-36“Watch out! Don’t let your hearts be dulled by carousing and drunkenness, and by the worries of this life. Don’t let that day catch you unaware, like a trap. For that day will come upon everyone living on the earth. Keep alert at all times. And pray that you might be strong enough to escape these coming horrors and stand before the Son of Man.”

Those living for amusement will not be prepared to meet Christ at his return.