CCM

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 | “Never Been a Moment” by Micah Tyler

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Presentation1CCM Edition.

October 20, 2016. Today we’ll be taking a look at “Never Been a Moment” by Micah Tyler which currently sits at #20 on 20TheCountdownMagazine.

Today’s song is a subjective reflection on the goodness of God which might be sung honestly by a Christian applying solid theology to the lyrics of this song. It is not an evangelistic song, it doesn’t share the Gospel, and it really doesn’t do much in the way of encouraging other believers, it is purely subjective and introspective. Let’s give it a listen and then look through the lyrics.

Micah Tyler VEVO (Official Lyric Video)

Lyrics (via K-Love)

I’ve been sinner
I’ve been a saint
A little bit of both every single day
I’ve been lost
But somehow I’ve been found
There’s been some pain
Been some regret
Been some moments
I’ll never forget
But when I look back
From where I’m standing now

There’s never been a moment
I was not held inside Your arms
There’s never been a day when You were not who You say You are
Yours forever, it don’t matter
What I’m walking through
‘Cause no matter where I’m going
There’s never been a moment That I was not loved by You

You’ve been the rock
You’ve been the peace
Always showing Your good heart to me
My days are marked by grace I don’t deserve
You’ve been the price I could never pay
You’ve been the light that has led the way
No matter where I am, I am sure

So where could I go that I could wander from Your sight
Where could I run and never leave behind
Your all consuming
Heart pursuing
Grace extending
Never ending love
Your love
There’s never been a moment, no

Publishing: Fair Trade Global Songs (BMI) (admin. by Music Services, Inc.); Meaux Jeaux Music / Da Bears Da Bears Da Bears (SESAC) (admin by CapitolCMGPublishing.com)
Writer(s): Micah Tyler; Jeff Pardo

Discussion

Okay, so in this song the target audience is presumably God. The song as a whole is targeting the Christian who can relate to a similar “experience of God” as the singer. Experiences are not objective, so they are a horrible place from which to build theology. That which is not Biblical, is not theological. As I said in the intro, there is a specific context in which a person might honestly sing this song reflecting on the goodness of God in a way that affirms scripture. However, that context is narrow and not without its problems.

Verse 1. Scripture teaches us that as Christians saved by Grace, we are simultaneously sinner and saints, not merely alternating between the two. As long as we live in these corrupted bodies of flesh, we are sinners and we sin from our hearts. But, by the Grace of God through faith, we are also saints, forgiven of our sin because of what Christ has done for us in His death and resurrection.

Romans 7:22-25 (ESV) For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.

There’s a way of limiting the meaning of the opening lines of this song to fit into this Scriptural doctrine, but the listener has to do it.

The next couple of lines are playing coy with what should be an appeal to the Gospel and this frustrates me. I’ve been lost but somehow I’ve been found. This wouldn’t be a problem if the truth of the Gospel were more clearly proclaimed in the lyric of the song somewhere. Christ “finds” us, He draws us in, He saves us. He is the Good Shepherd who leaves the 99 to rescue the one that is lost (John 10:11-18; Luke 15:1-7). We are all that one that is lost. He came to rescue us, to pick us up, throw us onto His shoulders and carry us home. We were born lost due to Adam’s sin.

The rest of the verse needs to be translated into “sin”. These lines invoke modern-day evangelical speak intended to pad the punch of the Law, to soften the conviction of sin. These days you rarely hear of Sin being our primary problem; rather, you’ll hear people go on and on about “mistakes”, “regrets”, and “poor choices”. A penitent believer will see through this rhetoric as talking around the depth of our sin and depravity if looking at it through the Law of God. However, the flesh clings to the softer tones of “oopsies” and ever seek to self-justify. This first verse is very self-centered. Considering that we had an opportunity to point to the Gospel, it didn’t happen.

Chorus. The first couple of lines are truish of the Believer, if the perspective being drawn is that of God (being outside of time and space) knew His sheep from before the creation of the world, and redeemed us from all eternity for all eternity (Hebrews 10; Revelation 13:1-8). This is heady stuff and can be expounded upon Biblically, but it also can be taken in weird directions without solid theology supporting the thoughts. Without invoking the mystery of God’s timelessness, we might be led to think of this in a way that down-plays or even overlooks the fact that we are born dead in sins and trespasses and hostile to God. For those who grew up in Christian teaching that affirms paedobaptism, this intro to the chorus might also ring true as a reminder of what God accomplished for them in the waters of Baptism. For those of you who reject sacramental Baptism, this corrective measure will not aid you.

The third line, There’s never been a day when You were not who You say You are, is objectively true.

Hebrews 13:7-9 (ESV) Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. Do not be led away by diverse and strange teachings, for it is good for the heart to be strengthened by grace, not by foods, which have not benefited those devoted to them.

The chorus, though, comes right back to “me”. So the eternal quality of the Love of God ends up being invoked to say how special I am… which, at least for me, distracts from Praising God for Who He Is. Guard your hearts against this theology of glory.

John 3:16-18 (ESV) “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.

I bring this verse up to serve as a reminder of the Message of the Gospel. It isn’t merely that God loves you; it is that He loved you despite your total wretchedness, He died in your place taking the punishment you deserve, and rising again on the Third day to forgive you of your sin, in His Name. He paid the price you couldn’t pay, to give you a forgiveness you don’t deserve. That’s the message of the Gospel. Thankfully, the next verse of the song steers a little closer to this understanding of the Gospel.

Verse 2. Closer, but the message is being conveyed subjectively, as if the singer is having a special experience or revelation of God’s grace, peace, and love. I don’t think that’s the singer’s intent, but that’s how the song reads. It’s not a song that says, “hey, this is Truth from God’s Word”; rather, it is a song that says “hey, I now see that this is how God’s been to me”. That’s a stylistic choice that seeks to carve out a “personal relationship” of Christianity in a culture that tries so hard to make all “truths” subjective. Still there are gems in this verse that are worth acknowledging:
My days are marked by grace I don’t deserve
You’ve been the price I could never pay (though I’d rather it say “You paid”, because I’m not sure what going on theologically behind the “you’ve been the price”).
Adam and Eve deserved instant death for their sin in the Garden (Genesis 3). God extended His Grace to them and to all of us who were born to them.

Verse 3. This verse is a collection of descriptors of the Greatness of the Love of God. It’s not the Gospel, but it is good news and nothing that is said here is wrong.

1 John 4:8-11 (ESV) Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.

Conclusion

This song doesn’t clearly present the Gospel, though it does proclaim the greatness of God’s Love. There is a narrow context where this song can be a helpful reminder of the Love of God for us, but it requires a lot of solid theology on the part of the listener/singer. With its best construction, it is still a bit self-centered rather than Christ centered. It’s not a song for the unbeliever, there is really no Law and the Gospel is implied and a bit muddled (which generally happens when you try to present Gospel without the Law). Now, for a Christian who is struggling with the gravity of their sin already, being crushed by the weight of condemnation from a different source, then this song might provide some comfort… but please share the clear Gospel of Jesus Christ to just such an individual. This song doesn’t go the full distance from despair to repentance and absolution.

2 Corinthians 13:11-14 (ESV) Finally, brothers, rejoice. Aim for restoration, comfort one another, agree with one another, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you. Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the saints greet you. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

In Christ Jesus,
Jorge

DiM | “Thy Will” by Hillary Scott

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Presentation1CCM Radio Edition.

July 27, 2016. Today we’ll be taking a look at “Thy Will” by Hillary Scott and the Scott Family, which currently sits at #17 on 20theCountdownMagazine.

You may know Hillary Scott as a country singer in the band Lady Antebellum. It’s a good band, as secular country music bands go, but not one that proclaims the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I have absolutely no problem with being in a band as your vocation. None whatsoever. I don’t even have a problem with being in a secular band as your vocation. I have no problem with listening to secular music. None whatsoever. But a song doesn’t become a Christian song simply because the artist says it is, or the artist claims to be a Christian. A song is a Christian song when its lyric proclaims the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Hillary Scott is a gifted singer. The song doesn’t stand on its own… and I worry about the theology driving the songwriters. It’s a song begging for the Gospel to be preached to the singer. I pray we learn to preach the Gospel to those asking these questions.

VEVO Lyric Video

Lyrics (via KLove)

Verse 1
I’m so confused
I know I heard you loud and clear
So, I followed through
Somehow I ended up here

I don’t wanna think
I may never understand
That my broken heart is a part of your plan
When I try to pray
All I got is hurt and these four words

Chorus
Thy will be done
Thy will be done
Thy will be done

Verse 2
I know you’re good
But this don’t feel good right now
And I know you think
Of things I could never think about

It’s hard to count it all joy
Distracted by the noise
Just trying to make sense
Of all your promises
Sometimes I gotta stop
Remember that you’re God
And I am not
So

Chorus
Thy will be done
Thy will be done
Thy will be done

Like a child on my knees all that comes to me is
Thy will be done
Thy will be done
Thy will

Bridge
I know you see me
I know you hear me, Lord
Your plans are for me
Goodness you have in store

I know you hear me
I know you see me, Lord
Your plans are for me
Goodness you have in store
So

Thy will be done
Thy will be done
Thy will be done

Like a child on my knees
All that comes to me is
Thy will be done
Thy will be done
Thy will be done

I know you see me
I know you hear me, Lord

Publishing: © 2016 W.B.M. Music Corp. / EKT Publishing, admin. by W.B.M. Music Corp. (SESAC); WB Music Corp. / Thankful For This Music, admin. by WB Music Corp. (ASCAP); Songs of Universal, Inc. / G650 Music/Pure Note Music, admin. by Songs of Universal, Inc. (BMI).
Writer(s): Hillary Scott, Emily Weisband and Bernie Herms

Discussion

Overall, the song is begging for theodicy, an answer for the question “if God is good, then why is there so much evil in the world?”. It is an honest lyric in that the singer is asking questions we all ask from time to time. However, within these honest questions there is also evidence of bad theology. So, the honesty of the questions does not make them good questions by default.

As for the target audience and purpose for the song, I believe it is intended to be a song of prayer. It focuses on 4 words from the Lord’s Prayer, two of which form the song title, and the object of the “you” and “thy” in this song I’m assuming to be the God of the Bible.

Verse 1. A confession of being confused is a good thing, but in common vernacular here in the U.S., it can also be a loaded turn of phrase indicating that the source of confusion is mixed messaging from the messenger, or even hypocritical double-speak. So let’s continue in the lyric. I know I heard you loud and clear So, I followed through Somehow I ended up here… and there it is. I did what you asked me to do, and now I’m here. This is an accusation. Now this doesn’t mean she’s putting God on trial just yet, we see in the book of Job that he hadn’t done anything to “deserve” his trial (though we dare not suggest he was sinless, because he wasn’t). But noticed the claim to having heard God (I’m assuming) “loud and clear”. I don’t know where she goes to church, but with so many big-box churches catering to celebrities and spewing vision-casting leadership driven bad theology, she could be referring to “life tip” sermons filled with man-made law as the source of her hearing from God, or she could be referring to direct revelations she had while practicing the sort of channeling or divination presented in “Jesus Calling” (available at and heavily marketed by your local “christian” bookstore). What we don’t see is her questioning God based on the Written Word of God.

So, the first part of the first verse at least presents the questions:
I’ve done everything You told me to do, God, now why am I here?
I did everything I knew to be right, why am I being punished?
I did everything your church told me to do, so why is none of it working?

The second part presumes an answer based on limited knowledge of Scripture and then extrapolates that assumption into a solution that resembles faith, or at least how faith is generally described in modern evangelicalism. The limited knowledge of Scripture is the idea that God is sovereign over all things. While that is true about God, it doesn’t guide us in the Law nor does it explicitly point to the Gospel, it simply asserts that God is over all things. That’s what I mean by limited knowledge of Scripture, it is Truth that God is Sovereign, but that truth alone does not give us much to go on. The singer then takes that nugget of truth and assumes that since God is sovereign, then clearly she is suffering because God wants her to. I may never understand That my broken heart is a part of your plan is vague enough to be corrected theologically, but it can also run contrary to the full character of God revealed in Scripture. It ignores the problem of sin, the true source of death and heartache in this temporal life.

At the end of this verse, we are still left with a very real question that most in the visible church are asking and even praying. The presumed answer of “God must have a reason for me to be going through this… I hope I can hold on long enough to see what it was” isn’t so much faith as it is positive self-talk. It’s self-focused, and doesn’t point to Christ who is the author and perfecter of our faith.

Hebrews 12:1-2 (ESV) Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

I’d like to address this question more fully scripturally, but let’s get through the rest of this song first.

Chorus. So the chorus of the song is simply “Thy Will be Done” repeated over and over again. “Do what You want to do, LORD.” While it is indeed part of how we were taught to pray, why not pray the rest of the prayer (Matthew 6; Luke 11)? We’ll get back to this point in a bit, but I want to do so after the second verse.

Verse 2. Yes, God is good. This is an attempt to affirm or confess the goodness of God. Very difficult to do from an emotional place when you’re in despair. That is why it is so important to me to point out that Faith is not an emotion. Our emotions are fleshly, Faith is not part of our flesh. Notice the “but”… it doesn’t feel good all of the time, not even for Christians. In fact, the life of a Christian very rarely “feels” good, because the world hates us. It hates us because it first hated God. It doesn’t feel good because the wages of sin is death, and as long as we live in this temporal flesh, we will have to struggle with sin. Struggle doesn’t feel good. Feelings are a terrible way to find God or search for Him or to try to muster up faith in Him.

Now, to this point the song has been theologically poking at Romans 8, so we’ll look at that in a minute. In the next section, however, I think it starts poking at a passage in James.

James 1:2-4 (ESV) Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

We find in this second verse a similar thread that we found in the first verse, a bit of an accusation that on some level God isn’t or doesn’t seem to be keeping His promises to the singer, and then she backs out of that thought with a “I’m not God, You Are”… it’s a pious statement, again, treating faith as a sort of blind trust in a Supreme being that I want to know and think I know but I don’t know and am confused by what seems to be double-talk, or even a failure to keep promises.

What promises? The song doesn’t say. The local “christian” bookstores are filled with so-called promises of God that are out there and simply need to be claimed, or earned, or declared. Most of these books are filled with false-promises, blasphemous lies spoken/written from the imaginations of men. God’s promises are True and Amen. We find them in His Written Word, the Scriptures.

Bridge. The endless repeat of the chorus and the bridge ends the song in much the same way it began. I’m doing my part, Lord, I know you see me and hear me but all I’m getting is ‘Thy will be done’. She’s still asking for an answer. What has she done wrong? What should she be doing? Why won’t You answer her? What is she missing?

Conclusion

Well, she’s missing the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I’m not saying she “isn’t saved”, I’m saying she’s spending so much time looking to circumstances and seeking direct revelation about them, she is missing the Promises of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. She is also missing the Law, or has been filled with man-made laws presented as some quid-pro-quo arrangement for blessings and prosperity. She doesn’t seem to understand the role of sin and death in this temporal life with its heartaches and struggles. You know, the early Church struggled with heavy persecution, imprisonment, torture, and death. I can think of no more relevant source for encouragement than the Epistles of the New Testament, written in a time and under persecution most of us may never witness or understand.

James 1:2-18 (ESV)

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

Let the lowly brother boast in his exaltation, and the rich in his humiliation, because like a flower of the grass he will pass away. For the sun rises with its scorching heat and withers the grass; its flower falls, and its beauty perishes. So also will the rich man fade away in the midst of his pursuits.

Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him. Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.

Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.

Romans 8:18-30 (ESV)

For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. 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. Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.

1 Peter 1:1-13 (ESV)

Greeting
Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,
To those who are elect exiles of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood:

May grace and peace be multiplied to you.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully, inquiring what person or time the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories. It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look.

Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

These Church fathers endured tough times, hard persecution, and the LORD blessed them, not in temporal comforts, but in eternal Hope, Faith in Jesus Christ and in the Resurrection. Christ grew His Church through the preaching of His Word. These are the answers to the questions of this song. Christ is the answer, for all of eternity.

Pray to God, make petitions to Our Father in Heaven, a bold proclamation made possible only through the death and resurrection of God the Son, Jesus Christ. Seek His Will by reading His Word. The answers are there. The Holy Spirit speaks through the Written Word, pointing us to Christ Jesus.

2 Timothy 3:16-17 (ESV) 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.

Don’t look for God in your circumstances, look for Him in His Word.

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 | “Great Are You Lord” by One Sonic Society

Faithful Stewardship 2 Comments

Evangelical Worship Edition.

July 7, 2016. Today we’ll be taking a look at “Great Are You Lord” by One Sonic Society which currently sits at #20 on 20theCountdownMagazine.

Though this song is on the top 20 CCM list, it was very clearly written for corporate worship, so we’ll treat it as such and address its use over the radio. I heard it on the local CCM radio station a couple of weeks ago and thought it was a bit seeker-worshipy. I really didn’t expect it to break the top 20, but I was wrong. Is the song bad? Well, there isn’t anything bad in the lyrics. But the song isn’t particularly aimed at teaching or enforcing doctrine or the Gospel of Jesus Christ, nor does it specify the “You” or the “Lord” to whom the song is being sung. While the lyric is generic, it’s how the song is put together and performed that bothers me the most… it’s not aimed at worship, but at stirring up emotion. Emotion != worship.

 

One Sonic Society VEVO

 

Lyrics (via Essential Worship)

VERSE 1
You give life, You are love
You bring light to the darkness
You give hope, You restore
Every heart that is broken

PRECHORUS
Great are You, Lord

CHORUS
It’s Your breath in our lungs
So we pour out our praise, We pour out our praise
It’s Your breath in our lungs
So we pour out our praise to You only

VERSE 2
You give life, You are love
You bring light to the darkness
You give hope, You restore
Every heart that is broken

BRIDGE
All the earth will shout Your praise
Our hearts will cry, these bones will sing
Great are You, Lord

Chords and lyrics provided by EssentialWorship.com

Discussion

Verse 1+2. There is nothing distinctly Christian in this message. Sure, there are some general truths about God being alluded to, but try as I might I cannot think of any false religion that couldn’t make the same claims for their false gods. Buddhism perhaps, since there is no central or chief deity in that odd system. Point being, if we are going to worship the King of kings and Lord of lords in song, we can do much better than this vague stanza. To give this verse its best construction, I’d have to say that the author(s) attempted to identify the “You” of the song by covering several attributes of God. What ends up happening, though, is each attribute is glossed over thinly. The focus of the first verse is in the “restoring of the broken heart”. That’s the goal, that’s the punchline, that’s the focus. The aim of this song isn’t Worship, it’s creating an emotional experience of feeling like your broken heart is being mended.

Pre Chorus. This refrain is oddly set apart from the rest of the lyric. I wonder why it was set apart from the verses and chorus. Probably to allow plenty of instrumental build in the song, or endless repeats to give the impression that the Holy Spirit is leading the band. Again, the lyric isn’t bad, it’s how it’s being used that bothers me.

Chorus. Okay, so God breathed life into Adam’s nostrils when He created man. That same breath is what grants us life today. But we also are born into Adam’s death. There’s no mention of that truth in this song, not in any way. The closest we come to acknowledging our sin is the mention of our broken hearts. Though not necessarily an essential element of every corporate worship song (though I see no reason to avoid it) I do think it is vital in a CCM song purportedly intended to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ. That’s how CCM identifies itself as a ministry. That’s half the chorus, by the way. The other half indicates that since it’s God’s breath in our lungs (life) we pour out our praise to Him. Again, no mention of sin or regeneration or faith. The unbelievers have breath of life in their lungs, but are dead, spiritually and cannot offer praises to God. They cannot worship Him. If we alegorize the breath of life to mean the regeneration that comes by Grace through Faith in Christ, then why not point to our forgiveness as the motivation for praise? I fear it is because forgiveness is by faith alone, and not an emotion, the lyric would rather focus on the senses. Breathing, repetitive singing, focusing on “healing our broken hearts”, and then giving it a spritual context works very well at creating that warm and fuzzy feeling that seeker-sensitive mysticism aims for and calls “worship”. This chorus also focuses completely on the singer.

Bridge. Overall, this is truish but vague. It’s meant to serve as a climax to the emotional frenzy of the song. When will the earth shout His praise? On the Last Day? In Eternity? Not sure what the reference is here. Up until now, the singer has been pouring out his praise to the Lord because God’s breath was in his lungs. Not sure what is being referenced in this line. Our hearts will cry and these bones will sing. The emotional connection to the heart has been the focus of this song all along, but the addition of bones singing is interesting. In modern-day evangelicalism we see a lot of references to the valley of dry bones (Ezekiel 37:1-14). They eisegete themselves or their local church body into the prophecy as the dry bones that need “revival”. Nevermind verse 11, where God makes clear the interpretation of the dry bones:

Ezekiel 37:11 (ESV) 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.’

Context. It can be a major buzzkill sometimes. That’s not to say that it doesn’t point us to something, because it does. It points us the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We are all born dead in sins and tresspasses, cut off, without hope, without faith, condemend.

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.

The prophesying that Ezekiel does to the bones and to the breath points to the preaching of the Word of God, the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which is the power of God to Save.

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.

Indeed, by Grace through Faith in the preached Word of Christ we are saved out of the kingdom of darkness and granted the Hope of Salvation in Jesus Christ our LORD.

Romans 1:16 (ESV)For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.

So, I know I went on a bit of a side track there, but I wanted to make the Gospel of Jesus Christ the clear focal point of the Scriptures.

Conclusion

This song is ill-suited for CCM Radio play. I wouldn’t recommend it at all for such use. As for this song being appropriate in corporate worship? There is nothing blatantly wrong in the lyric, but there is also no clear, Biblical objective of the song either. Emotional revivalism is pointless manipulation of the masses. The song doesn’t serve any purpose within a church service, it doesn’t teach or reinforce sound doctrine. Now there are many who will read this who truly believe that the point of worship is to feel emotionally moved toward God. That is not how the Bible defines worship. This song was written to evoke emotion, not worship. I’m sure many folks will like the song, and consider it helpful in “getting them into an attitude of worship”, but those are not Biblical arguments, they are fleshly.

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.

CTT | Trey Pearson and CCM

Faithful Stewardship 1 Comment

Last week, I saw the following headline from theBlaze pop up on my Facebook feed:

Christian Rocker Comes Out as Gay:
‘I’ve Tried My Whole Life to Be Straight’

Naturally, I was curious as to who this “Christian Rocker” was and wanted to know how the CCM Industry would spin it. After some searching, I realized that this poor young man’s crisis of faith had already published previously, and the community should have picked up on several warning signs. What we have here isn’t a sound Christian suddenly performing a 180º turn, merely the revealing of an unbeliever’s unrepentance.  Today, I want to focus your attention more on the Contemporary “Christian” Music (CCM) industry than on the man, Trey Pearson and his rebellion.

That article from the Blaze is mostly a rehash of the original interview posted here. The interview’s title is “A Modern Gospel”, but it isn’t a modern gospel, it’s a false one. Some heartbreaking quotes:

…“I’m gay, and one of the only people who knows is my wife.”…

…“Most of us reach at least one pivotal moment in our lives that better defines who we are. These last several months have been the hardest—but also have ended up being the most freeing months—of my life. To make an extremely long story short, I have come to be able to admit to myself, and to my family, that I am gay.”…

…“There is a weight that has been lifted, and I have never felt so free. I cannot even believe the joy and lightness I feel from being able to accept myself, and love myself, for who I truly am … but I have also lost some of the closest people in my life. I have felt betrayal by people I loved a lot, and cared so much about.”…

…“I’m starting over in so many ways. It is freeing, but it’s also starting out lonely”…

In the article, we see Trey fully fixated on himself while taking shots at Christians for not treating him the way he thinks he should be treated. Really, Trey? You’re leaving your wife. Your wife is no longer your wife, you’ve made her out to be merely part of what you’ve now decided isn’t the real you. Rather than resist sin, you’ve decided to identify by it, and expect others to accept your sin as something that should be embraced, celebrated, and even loved. The “joy and lightness” you’re describing now is no more substantial than the adrenaline high most get from doing something they know is wrong. This isn’t freedom, it is bondage to sin. This hedonistic gospel is no gospel at all. There is no life in it, only death. Let’s turn quickly to Paul’s comments regarding sin in his letter to the Romans, a rather hedonistic society in its day even by modern standards.

Romans 6:15-23 (ESV) | Slaves to Righteousness

What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness. I am speaking in human terms, because of your natural limitations. For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification.

For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. But what fruit were you getting at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

So you see, Paul points out the hard truth of the so-called “freedom” trey is currently experiencing… it’s a freedom in regards to righteousness, meaning that giving yourself over into slavery of sin is to rid yourself of all righteousness. We have no righteousness of our own, so we must become slaves to righteousness by faith in the Righteous One, Our LORD Jesus Christ. In denying the Law of God (specifically that sexual immorality is sin), he’s cut himself off from the very Gospel of God, forgiveness from the sin he refuses to acknowledge as sin. What we see here is a man who is still firmly planted in Romans 1.

Romans 1:18-32 (ESV) | God’s Wrath on Unrighteousness

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things. Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.

For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.

And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Though they know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.

Which leads us to the focus of this discussion here. Yes, Trey is in unbelief and I pray the Holy Spirit open his eyes to the Truth, that Trey’s hardened heart and stiffened neck against the Truth of God be softened. But Trey has a platform that the CCM Industry has built for him, and that our godless society is capitalizing on. Check out this troubling segment of the View.

A wife and two children, and all he can think about is himself and his passions. He put all of his faith into his ability to “be something he wasn’t”. Folks, that isn’t the Gospel. The Object of saving faith is NOT our ability to uphold the Law. The Object of our faith is Christ Jesus.

I will concede one point… in part. If the visible church keeps preaching sanctification as a choice we make, it’s teaching the wrong thing. The Law clearly pronounces homosexuality as sin. Abominable sin. As sinful human being, sinless perfection is outside of our reach and beyond our strength to attain in this life on our own. Repentance is a daily act of faith, not a one-time contract that relies on your sanctified perfection to maintain. We must encourage our brothers and sisters in Christ who struggle with same-sex attraction to continue bearing the fruit of repentance, just as we who struggle with heterosexually immoral temptations need to. Your secret addition to pornography is no less abominable than their same-sex attraction, in the eyes of God they are both sexual immorality, sexual sin, on par with Idolatry, and punishable by death. And they are both covered, paid in full, by the Perfect atoning sacrifice of our LORD Jesus Christ on the cross. Repent, and be forgiven in Jesus’ Name. Take up your cross, die to self, and follow Christ daily. There will come a day when at last we will be free of this sinful, fallen flesh, and we will be given new bodies in the Resurrection. Until then, the righteous live by Faith, not by their own works.

The CCM Problem

As I mentioned earlier, I found an older article from 2013 (Sojourners link) that should have raised several warning flags concerning Trey Pearson and the CCM Industry. That it didn’t indicates that the majority of the Visible church is sleeping or flat-out derelict in their duty to preach sound doctrine and to hold CCM (and themselves) accountable. If you have some time, read through the interview… it is quite telling of the problems within the CCM Industry and with Trey’s theology. These issues, even if Trey can’t speak for the entire industry perfectly, are clearly driving forces behind why so many of our DiM posts end up in disapprovals and warnings. The industry is deeply flawed, and the Church is blindly eating it all up. Let’s look at some of the more damning quotes in the SOJO article:

SOJO: What about the industry surprised you?

Trey: I have been in the industry for 11 years full time, so that’s a bit of a loaded question! I was pretty naive coming into the industry. I assumed everyone there was just trying to make great art, to glorify God. But it was more than that. I thought that what these musicians were doing was somehow sacred, distinct from the “secular” music that other artists were producing. That is what I had been taught as a teenager, by people that were really influential in my life.

I didn’t realize how much the industry was geared toward soccer moms, who support Christian radio. I didn’t realize how many people in the industry had really different views on what it meant to follow God, or just flat out didn’t seem to care. The Christian music industry has the same struggles with drugs, sex and power as the secular music business.  [emphasis mine]

The Christian Radio stations are inextricably linked to the Industry machine. Don’t be fooled. Don’t be lulled into the lie that they are simply dealing with the hand they are dealt from the recording studios. It matters who they target with their marketing for “business partners”, it matters that they claim to proclaim the Gospel while promoting and playing mostly ear-tickling pablum. Trey goes on to lament the art that is lacking in the CCM Industry.

The formula of CCM started with them knowing how to sell to the adult contemporary (AC) format. About a decade ago, worship music became really popular, and it has pretty much melded with that AC format. There are some slight differences at times, but it is all geared to be cool enough to make a soccer mom think that it’s edgy, and yet not be too controversial. What is intriguing to me is that you will almost never find someone making art in the rest of the music industry, trying to become an “adult contemporary” artist. You will see Top 40 [pop artists] cross over some of their songs to AC, but all the artists at the top of those mainstream AC charts right now are Rihanna, Katy Perry, Bruno Mars, Maroon 5, and Justin Timberlake. That’s a far cry from an industry that pushes young people into trying to make Christian AC music, that never ends up being about the art, but just fitting in the right formulaic words like “grace,” “saved,” “Jesus,” and trust me, they have them. And it never leads to good art. No offense to the artists that are ruling Christian music, but it’s just not at the peak of the creative music spectrum…

…Generally, only messages of certainty and positivity are promoted and accepted within Christian AC and worship music communities. It is next to impossible to create art that has transparency and honesty, expressing doubt, and vulnerability. You can see those things all throughout Scripture, but the system in place to sell albums has a very narrow view of belief that they want to promote to their consumers.

So, in these answers we are starting to see more of Trey’s theology, but we are also seeing that the CCM formula is centered on entertaining the Adult Contemporary market rather than on sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The standard isn’t God’s Word, it’s what they think they can get away with to be comfortably edgy and at least nominally orthodox (using the formulaic words he cited). Seriously though, Trey just included the Name that is above all Names in his list of “formulaic words” as a bad thing because it hinders art.

Do you see Trey’s theology emerging a bit here? Might you be inclined to guess at who he’s been listening to, and learning from? Any chance it’s a faithful exegete?

SOJO: Talk about the authors and others who started opening your eyes to other ways of thinking about God.

Trey: The biggest influence that made an impact on making me rethink the sacred vs. secular divide, and on understanding that everything is spiritual, was Rob Bell. He helped me realize again that everything that is good is from God. I stopped believing in Christian music or Christian events or anything else described as a “Christian” that didn’t seem intent on following Jesus.

I’m all for a group of Christians coming together to try to make an impact in people’s lives for the Kingdom of God. I just believe there are better ways to go about it. If you believe that everything that is good is from God, it starts to really change your perspective on how all of this works. Rob was sort of a gateway for me to other authors that have had huge impacts on me like Dallas Willard, N.T. Wright, Jurgen Moltmann, Walter Brueggemann, and many more. [emphasis mine]

There is a reason we call out these false teachers. There is a reason we need the ministries of Pirate Christian Radio, the Pulpit and Pen, the Berean Research, Wretched Radio, et al. The visible church is derelect in its duty to exercise Biblical Discernment, to mark false teachers, and guard the flock against the wolves.

Conclusion

I pray the LORD soften Trey’s heart and grant him saving faith and repentance. I pray for his wife and children, for that they might find Faith, Hope, and Restoration in Christ alone. I pray that the Church wake up and start taking their charge to keep the Faith, to keep the Word of God. Dear Christian, do the work of a Berean. Examine your doctrine with an open Bible, to see if it is good. Ensure that your local church faithfully preaches the Word of God, both Law and Gospel unapologetically. Exercise Biblical discernment in what you are listening to, purchasing online, and reading.. particularly those things that claim to be “Christian”. Hold your local CCM Radio stations accountable. They raise funds claiming to be a Christian ministry… is it true? Do they proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ? or are they merely an entertainment platform for a CCM industry looking to make a buck.

2 Timothy 4:1-5 (ESV) | Preach the Word

I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.

In Christ Jesus,
Jorge