“Should Christians watch Stranger Things?”
“What about Game of Thrones?”
“Is Traitors off-limits?”
These questions come up again and again, especially from younger Christians trying to take faith seriously in a media-saturated world. Often what they are really asking is not about a specific show, but about how to make wise choices when the Bible does not give a neat list of approved programmes.
This is where discernment matters.
Discernment is not about blanket rules or fear. In Scripture, discernment is the learned ability to recognise what leads us towards God and what slowly shapes us away from him. Hebrews 5:14 describes mature believers as those who have trained themselves “to distinguish good from evil”. That language of training is important. Discernment develops over time, through prayer, reflection, and honest self-awareness.
So how might a young Christian work out whether to watch a particular film or series?
1. Start with formation, not permission
The key question is not “Am I allowed to watch this?” but “What is this doing to me?” All stories shape us. They form our imagination, our sense of what is normal, desirable, or admirable. Ask, What vision of the good life does this show promote? What does it celebrate, excuse, or mock? Some shows wrestle honestly with darkness, others simply normalise it.
2. Know your own vulnerabilities
Paul reminds the Corinthians that “everything is permissible”, but not everything is beneficial (1 Corinthians 10:23). A show might be fine for one person and spiritually unhelpful for another. If something fuels anxiety, lust, cynicism, or despair in you, that matters. Discernment requires humility about our own limits, not just confidence in our freedom.
3. Pay attention to your conscience
Romans 14 is clear that ignoring conscience is spiritually dangerous, even if others disagree with your conclusions. If watching something leaves you uneasy, dulled, or defensive, that is worth listening to. God often speaks through that quiet internal resistance.
4. Ask whether it draws you towards love
Jesus tells us that the greatest commandments are to love God and love neighbour. Does what you are watching help you grow in compassion, truthfulness, and hope, or does it slowly shrink your capacity to love? Some shows contain darkness but provoke deep moral reflection. Others simply train us to consume violence, cruelty, or humiliation for entertainment.
5. Practise communal discernment
Christians were never meant to work this out alone. Talk with trusted friends, youth leaders, or mentors. Ask how others navigate similar choices. Discernment deepens when it is shared, tested, and prayed through together.
6. Be alert to what a show normalises
Discernment is not only about how something affects us personally, but about what it trains us to accept as normal. If a programme repeatedly invites us to laugh at, excuse, or celebrate what Scripture names as harmful, wisdom may mean choosing not to watch it. That is not fear or legalism, it is faithfulness.
Working out what is being normalised is rarely simple. It takes prayer, Scripture, and honest conversation with others. For parents, the responsibility goes further, not only guiding what children watch, but speaking up when content consistently shapes young imaginations in damaging ways. Formation matters, and love sometimes means saying no, and sometimes means challenging the culture that forms us.
In the end, the Christian question is not whether a show is “Christian” or “non-Christian”, but whether our watching is attentive, wise, and shaped by love. Discernment allows us to engage culture without being swallowed by it, to enjoy good storytelling without surrendering our spiritual sensitivity.
That is a skill worth learning, not just for what we watch, but for how we live.
Check our Cris’ new book titled STUCK IN THE UPSIDE DOWN where he explores these themes. https://amzn.eu/d/2uuUZKR
