DiM | “Love Broke Thru” by TobyMac

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disapproveCCM Edition.

November 24, 2016. Today we’ll be taking a look at “Love Broke Thru” by TobyMac which currently sits at #20 on 20TheCountdownMagazine.

This song is an anthem-styled love song pulling on Revivalist “Sinner’s prayer” themes ala Charles Finney. Stylistically its one of Toby’s better songs of late. Lyrically, there is no pointing the listener to Christ, just a retelling of the singer’s description of his new life or perspective. The singer is just sharing an emotional experience tied to an epiphany he had after a prayer he prayed. If you hold to decisional theology, we aren’t going to see eye-to-eye on this one. I pray you read this review with an open bible.

TobyMac – Topic (YouTube)

Lyrics (via K-Love)

Verse 1
I was feelin’ that, feelin’ that breeze
Singin’ like a song thru the tall oak trees
It was just another summer night
Had to be the last thing on my mind
Yeah, I was all but lost in the moment
I was young and runnin’ wide open
It was just another summer night
Had to be the last thing on my mind

Chorus
When love broke thru
You found me in the darkness
Wanderin’ thru the desert
I was a hopeless fool
Now I’m hopelessly devoted
My chains are broken
And it all began with You
When love broke thru

Verse 2
I did all that I could to undo me
But You loved me enough to pursue me
Yeah, You drew me out of the shadows
Made me believe that I mattered, to You (You)
You were there, You heard my prayer in that broke down dusty room
It was the first time I said, “I’m Yours”
The first time I called You Lord

Rap/Interlude
Yeah, it was late in the summer when the northeast breeze
Sang like a song thru the oak trees
Pennsylvania
She kind of caught my soul
Which had me a little more open than closed
Walls I built
Opinions I learned
Covered in the ashes of bridges I burned
Blind to the arrow that headed to my heart
But You hit the mark

Outro
I did all that I could to undo me
But You loved me enough to pursue me

Publishing: 2015 Achtober Songs/Meaux Mercy/Moody Producer Music (BMI)/Capitol CMG Genesis/TrueMuse (Admin. at CapitolCMGPublishing.com)/Bartlandia/ Simple Tense Songs (ASCAP)
Writer(s): Toby McKeehan, Christopher Stevens, Bart Millard and Bryan Fowler

Discussion

Verse 1. This verse paints quite a mental picture. Nothing comes completely into focus, but we get a sense that he’s leading up to an epiphany, or an aha! moment. This verse is pure setup, not really much to discuss here.

Chorus. This is an odd shift in the mental picture. Everything in the first verse is serene and peaceful, but now it’s all darkness, desert, hopelessness, chains. If we are giving this our best construction, I suppose we could make the assumption that Christ’s love breaking through first shatters the false notion that “I’m a generally good person” as the Law of God convicts us of our sinful state. But there is still no mention of the Gospel being preached, just a sort of inevitability of love breaking through.

Verse 2. Not much to go on for a reference point in this first line. Is he now describing live as an unbeliever as being “doing all I could do to undo me”? An unbeliever IS undone. There is a tendency for synergists to act like unbelievers just don’t know any better and are only doing what they do because they haven’t yet made the right choices, said the right prayer, or “devoted themselves” or “made Jesus their Lord and Savior” (decision theology). The problem with this way of thinking about our sin is that this isn’t how Scripture describes the sin of unbelief.

Ephesians 2:1-3 (ESV) And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.

Notice the wording is “dead in the trespasses and sins” not “dying”. Being dead precludes decisional regeneration. This is not easy to accept, I grew up in decisional theology. The point of this verse is to imply the “sinner’s prayer” and the decision to finally accept Christ (I’m Yours) as Lord.

Okay, so let’s address this point about salvation. The one who lacks faith cannot pray to God. Sure, they can utter prayers as the pagans do, but my point here is very specific, without faith, no one can draw near to God.

Hebrews 11:6 (ESV) And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.

We are not born with faith, nor the capacity to have faith, we are born dead. So how does one receive faith? By hearing the Word of Christ preached.

Romans 10:11-17 (ESV) For the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him. For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?” So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

So, I don’t take issue so much with the singer having an emotional memory of a moment he can remember first realizing that Jesus is LORD… but such emotionally dependent memories are fleeting and subjective, easily tossed about by the seas of doubt, trials, and tribulations. Rather than focus on such an internal focal point, we instead choose to focus on the moment when Christ claimed us as His own, when He declared “It is Finished”. We can also look toward our baptism, for it is God’s work, not ours.

Romans 6:3-11 (ESV) Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. We know that our old selfwas crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. For one who has died has been set free from sin. Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God. So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.

Ephesians 5:25-27 (ESV) Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.

So, the singer is pointing to his own romanticized recollection of a decision he made, presumably in light of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The comfort of the assurance of salvation needs to be solid when our emotions aren’t in check, when we are afraid, or burdened with guilt, or confused. This is the folly in tying assurance to an emotional experience, or a recollection of something you realized or a prayer you uttered. Far better to place your trust in the objective Word of God. The Promise of salvation in Christ Jesus is assured and unchanging, no matter your emotional state or physical circumstance.

Ephesians 2:4-10 (ESV) But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

Rap/Interlude. I think we are seeing somewhat of a confession, or at least a depiction of the artist’s life. Not sure which timeframe. Maybe this was before “being saved”, or maybe it is a particular crisis of faith, but this part of the song seems a bit raw and unfiltered. But here the lyric makes Jesus out to be Cupid shooting his love arrow. /sigh. The one thing we can focus on in this is the idea that we take no part in our salvation… so the idea that Christ would save him without his knowledge like an arrow being shot without his knowledge.

Outro. This thought could also be pointing at the work of God the Holy Spirit in preserving us in the faith.

Hebrews 12:5-7 (ESV) And have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons?

“My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord,
nor be weary when reproved by him.
For the Lord disciplines the one he loves,
and chastises every son whom he receives.”

It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline?

I suppose we could do some work to try to salvage the messaging of the song if we ignored the sinner’s prayer bit and focused in on God’s discipline and reproof. That’s a bit of a stretch, but it might be helpful for those who really want to like the song due to its style.

Conclusion

While I did try to offer ways of giving the song a positive construction, the synergism presented in this song places this one in the “Disapprove” category. Stylistically this song is pretty good, but lyrically it’s a bit of a vague mess. With so many TobyMac memes with sporting the #speaklife tag, I really wish they spent more time clearly conveying the Gospel of Jesus Christ and less time being cool, relevant… and completely vague.

Hebrews 13:20-21 (ESV) Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant, equip you with everything good that you may do his will, working in us that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.

In Christ Jesus,
Jorge

DiM | “Battles” by The Afters

Faithful Stewardship 1 Comment

Presentation1CCM Edition.

November 17, 2016. Today we’ll be taking a look at “Battles” by The Afters which currently sits at #17 on 20TheCountdownMagazine.

This song aims at providing a blanket emotional encouragement for Christians to find comfort in their circumstance. It’s an anthemic appeal to emotional uplifting. There are some phrases we can try to anchor to solid theological ground. The biblical promises being invoked in this song are made from an eternal focus, not a temporal one. Applying this anthem to temporal circumstances is a mistake that undermines the Gospel of Jesus Christ. If the listener works hard at processing the theme of this song Biblically, it can be of benefit. We’ll spend most of our time focusing on the Battle won by Christ at the cross as we see referenced in Scripture. This isn’t a short post. Let’s listen to the song and then work through the lyric.

TheAftersVEVO

 

Lyrics (via K-Love)

Verse 1
This current is trying to wreck me
Like castles of sand
Castles of sand
My fear, like an enemy army
Is marching again
But I’m making a stand

Pre-Chorus
You surround me on every side
Your love is my armor, I fear no evil
Darkness runs from Your light
So I won’t be afraid
I won’t be afraid

Chorus
You’re going before me and oceans are parting
You’re fighting my battles
When my feet are failing and my heart is shaking
You’re fighting my battles
Fighting my battles
Fighting my battles
Fighting my battles

Verse 2
Time after time, You’re my refuge
You heal every scar You’re guarding my heart
Your promise, the hope that I cling to
My rescue, my friend You come rushing in

Pre-Chorus
You surround me on every side
Your love is my armor, I fear no evil
Darkness runs from Your light
So I won’t be afraid
I won’t be afraid

Chorus
You’re going before me and oceans are parting
You’re fighting my battles
When my feet are failing and my heart is shaking
You’re fighting my battles
Fighting my battles
Fighting my battles
Fighting my battles

Fighting my battles
Fighting my battles
Fighting my battles

Bridge
In my weakness, You are strong
Every trouble You have overcome
In my weakness, You are strong
Every trouble You have overcome
In my weakness, You are strong
Every trouble You have overcome
You have overcome
You have overcome

Chorus
You’re going before me and oceans are parting
You’re fighting my battles
When my feet are failing and my heart is shaking
You’re fighting my battles
Fighting my battles
Fighting my battles
Fighting my battles

Fighting my battles
Fighting my battles
Fighting my battles

Publishing: The Secret Parade/Simply Complex Songs/Songs From The Indigo Room (SESAC) (admin. by Music Services, Inc.); Nashvistaville Songs/Light The Night/Songs of the Casbah (BMI) (admin. by Disney); Vistaville Music/Bad Nacho Music/Music from the Casbah (ASCAP) (admin. by Disney); Vistaville Music (BMI) (admin. by Disney)
Writer(s): Josh Havens; Matt Fuqua; Jordan Mohilowski; Dan Ostebo; Jess Cates

Discussion

Lyrically, this song suffers a bit from abstract expressionism (think Jackson Pollock). The focus of the song is emotional encouragement and motivation. It’s supposed to allow the listener to draw encouragement from the song regardless of circumstance. The problem comes in when the listener’s theology isn’t sound… there is nothing in the song to indicate that this might be a problem. It’s a blanket “you can do it” without limits. The problem in this song, simply stated, is “What battles are we talking about?” Jesus didn’t die for you to get that dream-job you’re completely unqualified to perform. If that’s your “battle”, this song is going to be lying to you.

Verse 1. If we are looking for the enemy in this song, this verse seems to be the only one that names an enemy. Here, it is “fear”. The first line mentions a current working against the singer in a “castles in the sand” metaphor. The metaphor doesn’t get fully developed which leaves me a bit confused early on. Like when artist begins speed-painting or splatter painting but stops before the image is fully formed. Let’s look to Scripture for this “castles in the sand” motif.

Matthew 7:24-27 (ESV) | Build Your House on the Rock

“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.”

Well, this doesn’t really bring clarity to our song today, but let’s talk about what Jesus is teaching. Notice he’s talking about those who build their houses on God’s Word versus those who do not. Doctrine matters, folks. What is the foundation of your doctrine? What do we do with this, then, strive to keep the Law better? No, the answer does not rest in our own law-keeping; rather, the answer rests on Christ, the Living Word of God. In Him we find both Law and Gospel, both the conviction of our sin and the forgiveness of the same. Let’s look to 1 John 1, the full chapter:

1 John 1 (ESV)

The Word of Life
That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us— that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete.

Walking in the Light
This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

Amen. Keeping the Word of Christ means confessing sin and trusting in His finished work on the cross for the forgiveness of our sin, and in the Resurrection on the Last Day into eternal life by God’s Grace through the sacrifice of His Son Jesus Christ.

Now back to the song. The artist doesn’t complete this metaphorical picture. Is his theology the sand castle or is it merely his current circumstance? If the former, then we should expect something corrective as the song progresses. If the latter, then we’re left wondering what current is that is trying to wreck the sand castle circumstance of the singer. If this were a secular song playing on secular radio, I wouldn’t be trying to hard to find the Christian theme, and I’d simply assume the artist is describing their dreams and desires as sand castles being attacked by reality. Why? Because pop culture has bought into this “positive thinking and self-esteem can overcome reality” mantra. Christians shouldn’t, but they’ve bought into it, also. Anyway, the pivot from describing the problem to setting up the solution has the singer “making his stand”. Are we still on sand? Unfinished, underdeveloped metaphor. Who or what are we standing against, our own fear army marching towards (inside of) us? Are we standing against the unnamed current? Is the current an outside actor, like “life”, “reality”, Satan, trials and tribulations? I don’t think there is a specific answer, because the goal of the song is to be a generic anthem for all listeners to insert their own “villain”. For those who really love the CCM songs that I’ve added to the “Disapproved” list, I could even be considered the villain, for the purpose of this song.

Pre-Chorus. Because God is everywhere we are always surrounded by Him. The question is have you been baptized into Christ, into His death and resurrection? The next line invokes the armor of God, but not from Ephesians, I think it comes more from a Psalm 91 perspective (an often mis-applied and eisegeted Psalm) paraphrasing v14 “Because he holds fast to me in love, I will deliver him; I will protect him, because he knows my name (Ps 91 ESV). Pulling from Ps 91 for this line is my attempt to salvage the concept of God’s love being our shield; but, this Psalm points to Christ as our refuge and our strength. It is Christ who dwells in the secret place of the Most High. It was this Psalm that Satan twisted in his attempt to tempt Christ to sin by throwing Himself from the pinnacle of the Temple (Matt 4).

Our culture has gotten away with redefining love in the most unbiblical of ways, so treating the word “love” here as representative of the Gospel is vague. With so much of the visible church processing everything emotionally rather than doctrinally, I think we are doing the church disservice in shortcutting the Gospel of Jesus Christ by appealing to “love” only. When the Apostle Paul was writing his letter to the Ephesians, he taught concerning the armor of God and preparedness for battles.

Ephesians 6:10-20 (ESV) | The Whole Armor of God

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak.

Christ is our armor. We are baptized into Him, sealed by Him, forgiven by and because of Him. Please understand that I’m not saying it is wrong to say that God’s love is our armor, I’m saying we need be more specific because God’s Word teaches more. God has revealed Himself to us in His Word, and we are masking Him with emotional short-cuts. Please re-read what Paul wrote under the inspiration of God the Holy Spirit. These are God’s Words, breathed out for us. It is on these words we should build our houses.

The song then reminds us that darkness flees the Light of God’s Word. That is true. The end of this pre-chorus is a declaration that the singer won’t be afraid. That’s an emotional state that we cannot guarantee in our flesh. This song is anthemic, so it’s a motivational pep-talk not generally taken as a guarantee, but still the problem is there. The objective truth is that the darkness cannot blot out the Light of God. Set your faith on the Truth of God’s Word, not on the fickle frailty of human emotions.

John 1:1-18 (ESV) | The Word Became Flesh

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light.

The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John bore witness about him, and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me.’”) For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known.

John 3:16-20 (ESV) | For God So Loved the World

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed.

Chorus. Well, the chorus is flat. Eisegetically reading the singer/listener into Exodus, where God led Moses and the children of Israel out of Egypt by a cloud during the day and pillar of fire during the night and literally parting the Red Sea for them to pass through the waters of their salvation from Pharaoh. This all pointing to Christ, but when eisegeted in this manner it makes a different promise that isn’t found in Christ. What are the battles here? Christ has won the battle against sin, death, and the Devil. It is Finished. That doesn’t mean we won’t have to endure struggles, trials, even tribulations in this life. Christ has already won the battle, and in Him we have our victory… eternal Life. Our feet are always failing in this life, as long as we walk in this fallen world in corrupted flesh. We Christians live in the “in-between” being simultaneously saints and new creations in Christ Jesus; yet we are also sinners in fallen flesh. As long as the earth continues by God’s Grace, we look forward to Christ’s Return, to the Great Day of the Resurrection when we will finally be rid of this sinful flesh and welcomed into eternity with Christ, forevermore. Our feet fail, our hearts fail and are shaken, but Christ is unchanging. He has already won the battle that matters.

Verse 2. I don’t like the “time after time” qualifier to God being the singer’s refuge. Either the singer is indicating that he’s sought refuge in God “time after time” (which means there are times when the singer hasn’t) or the singer is admitting that there are times when it didn’t seem like God was there keeping him safe. Either way, it’s more emotional than factual. God IS our refuge… always. When we wander away, led astray by our own sinful, fleshly, desires… God is still our refuge, and His Holy Spirit convicts us of our sin and leads us to repentance and then He forgives. So, you see, despite our failures, He is always our Refuge and our Strength. Read Paul’s words in Eph 6 again, belt of Truth, helmet of Salvation, breastplate of Righeousness (Christ’s Righteousness given to us), the gospel of Peace, shield of Faith, and the sword of the Spirit. None of these listed are of our own doing or contribution. All of it comes from Christ.

Bridge. Christ has indeed overcome every trouble. He is our strength when we are weak… and we are always weak.

Conclusion

Christ has already won the battle against sin, death, and the devil. I dislike how this song presents this truth as something we are waiting to see rather than the objectively knowable victory that occurred at the cross. What remains is not a battle that Christ is fighting, but growth and maturing of the corporate Church and each of us as members of the Body. That is what is truly missing in this song. In this life we will face many hardships, trials and tribulations. These are not battles that Christ has to fight for us, He has already won. He is already seated at the Right Hand of the Father.

This song doesn’t present the Gospel in any meaningful way, so it doesn’t get an “Approved” rating. If the listener narrows the definition of “my battles” and is looking to eternity for the Promise of Salvation, it can be a decent song of encouragement. That work must be done by the listener, though, for the lyric is written quite vaguely and artistically. The intent is to be emotionally motivational for everyone. There is nothing concrete to hold onto in this song’s lyric.

In closing, I’d like for us to read through the opening chapter in Paul’s letter to the Colossians.

Colossians 1 (ESV)

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,
To the saints and faithful brothers in Christ at Colossae:

Grace to you and peace from God our Father.
We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel, which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and increasing—as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth, just as you learned it from Epaphras our beloved fellow servant. He is a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf and has made known to us your love in the Spirit.

And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy; giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.

And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister.

Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church, of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God that was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known, the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to his saints. To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me.

We proclaim Christ and Him crucified for our sins. He is returning soon for His Church. Lord, come quickly. Amen.

In Christ Jesus,
Jorge

DiM | “Come Alive (Dry Bones)” by Lauren Daigle

Faithful Stewardship 1 Comment

disapproveCCM Edition.

November 08, 2016. Today we’ll be taking a look at “Come Alive (Dry Bones)” by Lauren Daigle which currently sits at #18 on 20TheCountdownMagazine.

Lauren Daigle has one of my favorite voices to listen to on the radio. God gave her a beautiful voice. This post isn’t about Lauren’s voice. It’s about the song and the theology being presented in its lyric. There have been several emails and comments lately rebuking me for judging the hearts of the artists. That’s not what we are doing, we are examining the lyric and the theology being presented (or what’s missing from the lyric, namely the Gospel). Let’s begin today by watching how the artist describes what this song is about.

Come Alive (Dry Bones) | Story Behind The Song | Lauren Daigle & Michael Farren

Today’s song pushes the Word of Faith Heresy. The notion that God somehow requires us to speak things into existence for Him to move, or to save. The idea that faith becomes a sort of fuel that we use to empower our words. This is not how Scripture teaches prayer, faith, or the Salvation of God. Notice how smoothly the songwriters slide into narcissistic eisegesis, reading ourselves into Ezekiel, as if this Prophecy was about us or about some formula we need to follow in order to save others. Now the problem these two wanted to write a song to address is real. Their solution simply isn’t a biblical solution. The Biblical solution is to preach Law and Gospel, repentance and the forgiveness of sins. Let’s listen to the song, read through the lyric, and then discuss the theology.

LaurenDaigleVEVO

Lyrics (via K-Love)

Through the eyes of men it seems there’s so much we have lost
As we look down the road where all the Prodigals have walked
One by one the enemy has whispered lies then led them off as slaves

But we know that you are God, Yours is the victory
We know there is more to come that we may not yet see
So with the faith You’ve given us we’ll step into the valley unafraid

(chorus)
As we call out to dry bones come alive, come alive
We call out to dead hearts come alive, come alive
Up out of the ashes, let us see an army rise
We call out to dry bones come alive

God of endless mercy, God of unrelenting love
Rescue every daughter, bring us back the wayward sons
By Your Spirit breathe upon them, show the world that You alone can save
You alone can save

(chorus)
As we call out to dry bones come alive, come alive
We call out to dead hearts come alive, come alive
Up out of the ashes, let us see an army rise
We call out to dry bones come alive

So breathe, Oh breath of God now
Breathe, Oh breath of God
Breathe, Oh breath of God now breathe
Breathe, Oh breath of God now breathe
Oh breath of God
Breathe, Oh breath of God now breathe

(chorus)
As we call out to dry bones come alive, come alive
We call out to dead hearts come alive, come alive
Up out of the ashes, let us see an army rise
We call out to dry bones come alive
We call out to dry bones come alive

Oh come alive

Publishing: © 2014 CentricSongs (SESAC) / Word Music & Pocket Full of Rocks Publishing (ASCAP)
Writer(s): Words and Music by Lauren Daigle and Michael Farren

Discussion

There is so little clearly stated in this song lyric, that I decided to look up a “behind the scenes” type video. As a former NAR guy, I recognized the Ezekiel 37 theme immediately, and the entire thrust of the song is Word of Faith (WoF) false teaching. Hopefully you watched the intro video to see what went into the inspiration of the song. I’d like to reiterate, the problem they cited as their focus, that they wanted to write a song to comfort the mother of a prodigal child, is real. The theology in this song presented as a solution is utterly false, we’ll get to that, but know that I’m not in any way discrediting the stated goal, we want to reach out to the prodigals and their hurting families, but we want to do so Biblically. False hope is no hope at all.

Verse 1. The WoF Evangelicals don’t really have a solid grasp on the Biblical concept of sin, particularly original sin we’ve inherited from Adam. WoF folks like Creflo Dollar and Joyce Meyer are always pushing the “little gods” teaching that once we get saved we are now little gods who should be decreeing and declaring health and prosperity and authority and victory over sin. Joyce Meyer has even gone on to declare that she is not a sinner. So, she’s declared herself better than the Apostle Paul… made herself one of the super apostles Paul derides in 2 Cor 11-12. WoF is false, heretical, teaching. It takes our eyes off of Christ and onto ourselves changing prayer into spell casting and supplication into blasphemous demands. So when this segment has such a poor grasp on sin, one has to ask what is meant by prodigals walking away being led off as slaves. It’s heavily coded speech. WoF teachers have no vocabulary for sin, so they invent “word curses” and “soul ties” that (of course) require us to take authority over and break. They make sin to be something that clings to you externally in their false theology and thus something you need to break away from. You can’t look to Scriptures for clarity because none of this is taught in Scripture, you have to have one of these false teachers esplain[sic] it to you in one of their many books for sale at the local “Christian” bookstore.

In the parable of the Prodigal son, the prodigal is led away by his own sinful desires. There is no external tempter in that story, no externally driving force taking the boy captive. He sins from the heart, as do we all. As Christians, we are simultaneously sinner and saint. We are sinners in the flesh due to the corruption of original sin, and we are saints by Grace through Faith in Christ Jesus. The first three lines of this song demonstrate a lack of understanding of the nature of sin and our sinful nature.

The next two lines are generally true. God IS the victory. Jesus Christ literally IS our victory, in His Body and Blood shed for the forgiveness of sin. He IS the temple, He IS the Head of His Church, whom He washed by water with His Word to make Holy. The Victory was sealed at the Cross, when He declared “It is Finished”! There is more to come in this life than we can see, that is true, but our focus should be on what God has already revealed in Scripture, not in constantly hoping to see something new.

The last line of the verse shifts from the notion of the Prodigal over to eisegeting Ezekiel 37 for the chorus.

Chorus. As we call out to dry bones… What does this mean? The stated inspiration for this song is Ezekiel 37. Let’s read through the prophecy being hijacked here.

Ezekiel 37:1-14 (ESV) | The Valley of Dry Bones

The hand of the Lord was upon me, and he brought me out in the Spirit of the Lord and set me down in the middle of the valley; it was full of bones. And he led me around among them, and behold, there were very many on the surface of the valley, and behold, they were very dry. And he said to me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” And I answered, “O Lord God, you know.” Then he said to me, “Prophesy over these bones, and say to them, O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord.Thus says the Lord God to these bones: Behold, I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live. And I will lay sinews upon you, and will cause flesh to come upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and you shall live, and you shall know that I am the Lord.”

So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I prophesied, there was a sound, and behold, a rattling, and the bones came together, bone to its bone. And I looked, and behold, there were sinews on them, and flesh had come upon them, and skin had covered them. But there was no breath in them. Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to the breath, Thus says the Lord God: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe on these slain, that they may live.” So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived and stood on their feet, an exceedingly great army.

Then he said to me, “Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. Behold, they say, ‘Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are indeed cut off.’ Therefore prophesy, and say to them, Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will open your graves and raise you from your graves, O my people. And I will bring you into the land of Israel. And you shall know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves, and raise you from your graves, O my people. And I will put my Spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you in your own land. Then you shall know that I am the Lord; I have spoken, and I will do it, declares the Lord.”

Dear Christian, you are NOT Ezekiel. In fact, Ezekiel isn’t even doing what these WoF folks are claim this passage is teaching. Ezekiel isn’t mustering up something to declare, the LORD God took Ezekiel into the Valley, commanded Ezekiel to speak the Word of the Lord and then told Ezekiel exactly what to say to the dry bones, and then the Lord did the work of saving. This is NOT prescriptive of how we are to go about Christian prayer life. The LORD God explains what this vision is about, it is about the whole house of Israel being brought to life by God. It points forward to Christ, the Way the Truth and the Life, the Only way of Salvation.

Ephesians 2:1-10 (ESV) | By Grace Through Faith

And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

This is the Salvation of the LORD. If we are crying out to dry bones, to those who are dead in trespasses and sins, we had better be crying out with the Word of the Lord that has already been breathed out in Scriptures, we had better be preaching Law (that all have sinned and fallen short) and Gospel (repentance and the forgiveness in Jesus’ Name).

So getting back to this chorus, there’s a WoF logic loop that we need to address. WoF teaching at face-value, we see what looks like us commanding God to do something we want Him to do. That’s blasphemous. But their response will likely take the form of “no, we are participating in what He wants to do in the Earth”. So He can’t just do it? No, we have to activate His Will in the earth by our words filled with faith (or something along those lines). It’s circular and not based in Scripture. As we saw in Ez 37, they can’t teach it from the actual text, they have to paraphrase very loosely and then just declare that this is how it all works.

There is also a line in the Chorus that seems to pull from Joel’s Army / Dominionism / New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) false teaching. What’s with all of this militant langauge? The New Testament is focused on the Church, the faith once and for all delivered to the Saints. We are told to Preach the Word so that those who hear it might be granted saving faith in Jesus Christ.

Romans 10:11-17 (ESV) For the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him. For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?” So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

Verse 2. I like this verse. It’s a good verse. It’s incomplete, but if the song had a good chorus and solid supporting verses this could be good. So, “spirit breath upon them” is odd but could be right in the right context. It’s odd because it seems to be asking God to save as He wills, which is a solid petition, but one that doesn’t truly fit the synergism that these artists, modern-day evangelicals, and the WoF teachers hold. God’s Word gives us the means through which the Grace of God for the forgiveness of sin is applied to us. He has been gracious enough to provide us with His Written Word in our own languages. As we saw in Romans 10:11-17, Faith comes by hearing and hearing through the word of Christ. Preaching of the Word is a primary means through which God grants us saving faith. Let’s look at how the Apostle Paul described scripture in 2 Tim 3:14-17.

2 Timothy 3:14-17 (ESV) But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.

Instead of twisting, mixing, paraphrasing, summarizing, and supplanting Scripture… Preach the Word. The New Testament Epistles read like sermons. Let the Apostolic writings speak for God, for they are His Word. Stop looking for formulas and rituals and codes and prescriptions in the Old Testament… they weren’t written about you, they were written about Christ for you.

Hebrews 1:1-4 (ESV)  | The Supremacy of God’s Son

Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs.

The rest of the song slides into new-age “presence” theology, emotional mysticism, trying to drum up a “feeling” of being in God’s presence. It’s self indulgent and it’s an empty solution to the mother of a prodigal child.

Conclusion

This song encourages the listener to eisegete Ez 37 through the lens of WoF heresy. In attempting to address a real problem, it fails horribly due to unsound theology and a twisting of scripture. The desire to comfort the mother of a prodigal is a good desire, but providing false comfort via WoF nonsense only adds insult to injury. What the prodigal child needs is the Law of God preached, and the conviction of the Holy Spirit of God unto repentance, and then the child needs to hear the Pure Gospel of Jesus Christ so that he might be granted Faith. This is God’s doing, and we have His Word given to us in the Scriptures.

To the mother of the prodigal, we share in your grief. For the Body of Christ is One Body, and we are all individual members of it. “If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together” (1 Cor 12:26 ESV). We pray, asking the LORD to bring the prodigal home. We reach out as the body of Christ to bring Law and Gospel to the prodigal.

James 5:19-20 (ESV)

My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.

But most importantly, we need to address the false teaching that is leading so many astray. The sort of teaching that ignores the reality of original sin, the danger of apostacy, and the ever-present need for the Gospel of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of our sin. Christians need to hear the Gospel. In fact, the gathering of the saints on Sunday mornings is to gather together around the Preached Word of the Gospel of Grace. We need to preach the full counsel of God’s Word, both Law and Gospel, rightly divided. To those who think little of their sin, they need the Law Preached full-bore. To those who are crushed by the weight of their sin, we preach the Gospel of Grace for the forgiveness of sin. We trust God the Holy Spirit to continually draw His sheep, for He loves them far more than we can ever imagine. Our Hope is in eternity, our Hope is in the LORD. Salvation belongs to Him.

Revelation 21:1-7 (ESV) | The New Heaven and the New Earth

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” And he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment. The one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son.

Christ is our victory, He is the only begotten Son of God, and He is the Good Shepherd.

Revelation 22:20-21 (ESV) He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!
The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all.
Amen.

Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!
In Christ,
Jorge

 

DiM | “Rise” by Danny Gokey

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disapproveCCM Edition.

November 01, 2016. Today we’ll be taking a look at “Rise” by Danny Gokey which currently sits at #17 on 20TheCountdownMagazine.

Thematically today’s song is like a sequel to “Tell Your Heart to Beat Again“. This song is clearly a “positive” and even “emotionally uplifting” song, but it isn’t a clearly Christian song. The lyric in this song is completely bathed in theology of glory, a theology that makes the christian the hero. This is wildly popular in popular evangelicalism, but it isn’t Biblical. The Gospel doesn’t point to our own greatness, it points us to Christ. No, not even under the argument of “because of Christ… I’m awesome”. In today’s post, we’ll be focusing more on what Scripture teaches us to focus on, the Cross of Jesus Christ than on parsing every line of the song. Let’s give it a listen, read the lyrics, and then discuss the theology.

Danny Gokey Lyric Video

 

Lyrics (via K-Love)

There’s a brokenness inside of you
There’s a wound that still reminds you
Of the fear, shame and rejection
You have seen it, you have seen it

You know it’s time to get up
But your heart’s paralyzed, you’re so stuck
You’re past the point of trying again
You’re defeated, you’re defeated

But something inside you can’t deny
You hear the call of your creator
I made you for more, unlocked the door
I wanna restore your glory

So Rise
Breaking the dark, piercing the night
You’re made to shine
An army of hope
Bringing the world
A radiant light
A radiant light
You were made to rise, rise

Lift your head and look around you
See the dreams you lost, they have found you
And the heart that once was beating
Is coming back to life
Coming back to life

But something inside you can’t deny
You hear the call of your creator
I made you for more, unlocked the door
I wanna restore your glory

So Rise
Breaking the dark, piercing the night
You’re made to shine
An army of hope
Bringing the world
A radiant light
A radiant light
You were made to rise, rise

Shut the door on yesterday
Leave what happened in the grave
You were made to rise
You were made to shine
Creations longing for the day
For kings and queens to take their place
You were made to rise
You were made to shine

Rise
Breaking the dark
Piercing the night
Made to shine
Bring the world
A radiant light

Rise
Breaking the dark, piercing the night
You’re made to shine
An army of hope
Bringing the world
A radiant light
A radiant light
You were made to rise, rise
You were made to rise, rise
You were made to

Publishing: BMG Platinum songs, Creative Hearts Publishing (BMI) / Word Music, LLC, Howiecowie Publishing (ASCAP) / Wordspring Music, LLC, (SESAC)
Writer(s): Danny Gokey, Benji Cowart, Josh Brownleewe

Discussion

So there is no mention of Christ, nothing is presented in light of the Gospel, no repentance and the forgiveness of sins. The focus of the song isn’t on Christ, it’s on (presumably) the christian. The song is a motivational pep-talk, urging the christian to do something. I take issue with what the song is telling the listener to do, namely to look inwardly for inspiration to believe in the self, the buried greatness inside that is somehow destined to rise. While Danny does invoke “the Creator”, it’s one who is speaking from inside the listener. I’ve been worried about his theology for a while, particularly with his fascination with “the Shack”.

gokey

We’ve discussed this particular concern, but considering the problematic theology in the book regarding Our Triune God, this is worth bringing up again because of how the lyric references God. Nearly every false religion also invokes a “creator”, so simply invoking a Creator does not provide clarity, particularly not in this something inside you context. When we need encouragement, the last place we need to look for it is within ourselves… we are the ones needing encouragement. Christians look to the external Word of God.

The song presents a few lines that are theologically problematic. Let’s work through them

Verse 1. I’ve already mentioned this one in the third stanza of the first verse,

But something inside you can’t deny
You hear the call of your creator
I made you for more, unlocked the door
I wanna restore your glory

If there was some possibility that the song was pointing to eternity, this one might be given a positive spin. But that’s simply not the context of the song. What glory is your creator trying to restore in you? You were born dead in sins and trespasses. That’s what these “purpose driven life” folks can’t seem to get right. The Gospel is NOT about unlocking some potential from within you, the Gospel is about rescuing from sin, for forgiveness and eternal life.

Ephesians 2:1-10 (ESV) | By Grace Through Faith

And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

We were dead in sins and trespasses. Dead. God saves us by His Grace, through Faith in Christ Jesus, and this salvation has nothing to do with our works. There is no “hidden potential” deep within you, no glory to be restored. We glory in Christ, not ourselves. So what is Paul talking about when he mentions the good works which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in? Paul gives general guidance in chapter 4 of his letter and then breaks down some more specific guidance for various vocations. Let’s look at the general description of this New Life we’ve been called to walk in:

Ephesians 4:17-32 (ESV) | The New Life

Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds. They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart. They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity. But that is not the way you learned Christ!—assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus, to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness. Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another. Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and give no opportunity to the devil. Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need. Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.

Notice that Paul closes out this thought in the forgiveness of God in Christ Jesus. Paul is not pointing to the christian’s glory, or special calling, Paul is pointing to what we might call the “third use of the Law”, where the Law informs forgiven Christians of what a Good Work is. Jesus is the Word made flesh. This is how John introduces the Gospel to his readers. He also recorded an important question and answer in Chapter 6.

John 6:26-33 (ESV) Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal.” Then they said to him, “What must we do, to be doing the works of God?” Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” So they said to him, “Then what sign do you do, that we may see and believe you? What work do you perform? Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” Jesus then said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”

The bread of Heaven is the Word of God, Christ Jesus, who gives life to the world. The external Word is where we look for life, not inside of ourselves. This is what is so wrong with “purpose driven” theology of glory. It emphasizes the christian over the Christ.

Chorus. Can the chorus be re-interpreted to be pointing to Christ? I suppose it can and even has to in order for it to be so wildly popular, but doing so requires reshaping the focus of the song. The one Rising in the song is still the listener, and the listener has to remind himself that we are NOT the light, nor are we the hope of the world, that Christ is the Light and the Hope of the World. The lyric isn’t pointing to Christ, though, it’s pointing to the christian. The lyric might also be reshaped to point to eternity, indicating that all who are in Christ Jesus have been sealed by God the Holy Spirit, by Grace through Faith in Christ, for the Resurrection in the Last Day. Though, that Day isn’t the hope of the world that hates God. That Day will bring judgment upon the living and the dead. Only those who are covered by the Righteousness of Christ will be granted eternal life.

The biggest problem in this chorus is that it completely ignores those whose vocations aren’t given to glory or success or measurable accomplishments by the world’s standards. As we saw in Eph 4, our new lives in Christ are not particularly glorious in themselves. We love, we forgive, we speak the truth. There is no such thing as “glorious vs mediocre” Christianity… there is only Christ and Him crucified for our sins.

Verse 2. Okay, some of these lines might be reshaped a bit, but the following is just bad.

Creations longing for the day
For kings and queens to take their place

Creation isn’t longing for us to do anything. That’s putting the emphasis on the wrong thing. Creation is longing for Christ’s return. We, too, are longing for that very same thing.

Romans 8:22-25 (ESV) For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.

Skipping over that point of what it is Creation longs for leads us to think that somehow we (kings and queens) have something to do with His Return. I get that he’s invoking the promise that those who are in Christ will “reign and rule with Him” in eternity, but notice the context:

2 Timothy 2:8-13 (ESV) Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, the offspring of David, as preached in my gospel, for which I am suffering, bound with chains as a criminal. But the word of God is not bound! Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory. The saying is trustworthy, for:

If we have died with him, we will also live with him;
if we endure, we will also reign with him;
if we deny him, he also will deny us;
if we are faithless, he remains faithful—

for he cannot deny himself.

The promise of the Gospel is indeed that we will rise on the Last Day (1 Peter 1:3-12). That is not to say that we are all called to temporal greatness as the world sees greatness. In the Parable of the Rich man and Lazarus the man of faith died a beggar, covered in sores being licked by the dogs (Luke 16:19-31).

Conclusion

To consider this song a “Christian song” requires the listener to insert Christ into the lyric or behind the lyric. The lyric itself does not proclaim Christ. It is a motivational song that vaguely invokes the creator while presenting very odd theological statements that don’t rightly square with Scripture. This song is definitely a “positive” song, and an emotionally “uplifting” song, but not specifically “Christian”. The reinterpretation needed to make it a “Christian” song would also make songs like “Fight Song by Rachel Platton” a contender for a christian song. These two songs are in the same ballpark, though Gokey’s invokes a little more “spirituality” in the lyric. This is just “positive music”. It could play on any “positive” radio station without anyone batting an eye. That isn’t the standard for these DiM posts, where we are looking for the Gospel of Jesus Christ in the lyric of the song.

Hebrews 13:20-21 (ESV) Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant, equip you with everything good that you may do his will, working in us that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.

In Christ Jesus,
Jorge

Church History | A Man Named Martin

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frisermonNext Monday is known as Reformation Day. Today I thought I’d share this video series looking at the life of Martin Luther.

This is a great look at the history of Martin Luther.

Published on Sep 14, 2015
Lutheran Hour Ministries (2015) – In ‘A Man Named Martin – Part 1: The Man’ viewers encounter a 15th/16th-century religious reformer from Germany who broke ranks with the Catholic Church. This Bible study is the first of a three-part series devoted to Martin Luther — a monk whose Spirit-inspired grasp of God’s justification of sinners through faith in the Savior was the cornerstone of the Protestant Reformation.

In this five-session Bible study, Luther’s life and times are examined through the lens of history, religion and theology. Expanding on commentary from Rev. Gregory Seltz, Speaker for The Lutheran Hour, numerous scholars add their expertise and perspective to render an illuminating portrait of the life of this extraordinary human being.

The influence and impact of Luther’s life is the stuff of serious study. As a forlorn sinner feeling lost and desperate before a stern and exacting Judge, Luther desponded of all hope for eternity. But as one who came to cling to the Spirit-delivered truths of justification by faith and the liberty believers experience by God’s grace, he rebounded to become a triumphant ambassador for the Gospel.

The details of Luther’s life — his childhood with his parents Hans and Margaret, his university pursuits, his decision to become a monk, his protestation of Catholic practices, his voluminous and erudite scholastic output, his life in hiding, and his roles as husband and father — are all considered in this study. A Man Named Martin is a fresh and explorative look at an individual who, down through the centuries, has increased in importance and vitality to the Christian church.

To this day, Luther’s staunch faith and the extent of his outreach, remain a standard for Christ-centered living to believers in the 21st-century.

Among the scholars and pastors featured in this documentary are Mary Jane Haemig, Joel Biermann, Gregory Seltz, Ken Schurb, Paul Maier, Robert Kolb, Daniel Preus.

In Christ Jesus,
Jorge