doctrine

OT | Consecration of the Firstborn

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Christ in Gethsemane by Heinrich Hofmann

Christ in Gethsemane by Heinrich Hofmann

Last week, in our Old Testament Study, we looked at The Passover Lamb  in Exodus 12 and how it points to Christ as explained in Hebrews. This week, we will move ahead in Exodus to see how the consecration of the firstborn of Israel also continues to point to the Messiah, Jesus the Christ, Son of the Living God.

 

Consecration of the Firstborn

Exodus 13 (ESV) | Consecration of the Firstborn

13 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Consecrate to me all the firstborn. Whatever is the first to open the womb among the people of Israel, both of man and of beast, is mine.”

The Feast of Unleavened Bread

3 Then Moses said to the people, “Remember this day in which you came out from Egypt, out of the house of slavery, for by a strong hand the Lord brought you out from this place. No leavened bread shall be eaten. 4 Today, in the month of Abib, you are going out.5 And when the Lord brings you into the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, which he swore to your fathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey, you shall keep this service in this month. 6 Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day there shall be a feast to the Lord. 7 Unleavened bread shall be eaten for seven days; no leavened bread shall be seen with you, and no leaven shall be seen with you in all your territory. 8 You shall tell your son on that day, ‘It is because of what the Lord did for me when I came out of Egypt.’ 9 And it shall be to you as a sign on your hand and as a memorial between your eyes, that the law of the Lordmay be in your mouth. For with a strong hand the Lord has brought you out of Egypt.10 You shall therefore keep this statute at its appointed time from year to year.

11 “When the Lord brings you into the land of the Canaanites, as he swore to you and your fathers, and shall give it to you, 12 you shall set apart to the Lord all that first opens the womb. All the firstborn of your animals that are males shall be the Lord‘s. 13 Every firstborn of a donkey you shall redeem with a lamb, or if you will not redeem it you shall break its neck. Every firstborn of man among your sons you shall redeem. 14 And when in time to come your son asks you, ‘What does this mean?’ you shall say to him, ‘By a strong hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt, from the house of slavery. 15 For when Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, the Lord killed all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of man and the firstborn of animals. Therefore I sacrifice to the Lord all the males that first open the womb, but all the firstborn of my sons I redeem.’16 It shall be as a mark on your hand or frontlets between your eyes, for by a strong hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt.”

Here we again see that God is instituting a statute of reminder for the people in that context, and we also see a shadow of God’s coming Salvation, the promised seed that would crush the head of the serpent. As with the feast of unleavened bread, the offering of a sacrificial lamb for the redemption of the firstborn is to serve as a reminder of what God has done for Israel, and for what He will do for Creation. The latter might be more difficult to see since what takes place here is a shadow of things to come. As always, to rightly understand the Old Testament, we need to draw our understanding from the New Testament. There are two key terms or concepts that connect this statute of the Law to the Gospel of Jesus Christ: Redemption and Firstborn.

Redemption. Now, in our culture we feel we have an understanding of the concept of redemption. When a store issues us a 25% off coupon, we know that if we decide to shop at that store and present the coupon, the redemption of which means that the store pays for 25% of the item, and we pay only 75%. The store redeems the coupon by paying for (or absorbing the cost of) the discount. But this is a poor explanation for the concept of our redemption. What we have here is a declaration that every firstborn belongs to God. Either it is redeemed by an atoning sacrifice of a lamb, or it must die. Clearly, this is only expected for livestock as all male children must be redeemed and not killed. Still the statute remains as both a reminder and a promise.

Firstborn. As soon as Adam sinned, and he and his wife were made aware of their nakedness in sin, blood was shed to cover their nakedness. This animal sacrifice was not enough to fully redeem Adam (the man, or all of mankind). God promised a seed of woman would crush the head of the serpent. We saw last week that the Passover Lamb pointed to Christ. Now we see that the Lamb is needed to redeem the firstborn. But we also know that Jesus is the firstborn (John 3:16-18) Son of God. Jesus is both the firstborn (that belongs to God) AND the sacrificial Passover Lamb. Now, there was no way of knowing this was God’s plan for redeeming all of mankind at this point, for God will continue to reveal His plan throughout the Law and the Prophets. For now, this is a statute of the Law set as a reminder of His favor, His love, His Grace, and His Mercy for the children of Israel. Let us now look at how the New Testament writers drew their understanding of the Law under the inspiration of God the Holy Spirit with the Gospel of the Cross as their focal point.

Ephesians 1:3-10 (ESV) 

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, 4 even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love 5 he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, 8 which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight 9 making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ10 as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.

Colossians 1:15-23 (ESV) | Preeminence of Christ

15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 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. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 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. 19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.

21 And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, 22 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, 23 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.

Hebrews 9:11-28 (ESV) | Redemption Through the Blood of Christ

11 But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation) 12 he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption.13 For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer, sanctify for the purification of the flesh, 14 how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God.

15 Therefore he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant. 16 For where a will is involved, the death of the one who made it must be established. 17 For a will takes effect only at death, since it is not in force as long as the one who made it is alive. 18 Therefore not even the first covenant was inaugurated without blood. 19 For when every commandment of the law had been declared by Moses to all the people, he took the blood of calves and goats, with water and scarlet wool and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book itself and all the people, 20 saying, “This is the blood of the covenant that God commanded for you.” 21 And in the same way he sprinkled with the blood both the tent and all the vessels used in worship. 22 Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.

23 Thus it was necessary for the copies of the heavenly things to be purified with these rites, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. 24 For Christ has entered, not into holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true things, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf. 25 Nor was it to offer himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters the holy places every year with blood not his own, 26 for then he would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. 27 And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, 28 so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.

All praise, glory, and honor be to the our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. This week’s reading is a bit short because I want to save the crossing of the Red Sea for next week. For now, let us close this post with the realization and understanding that we, who are in Christ Jesus, have been fully redeemed by God in the sacrifice of the spotless Lamb of God, Jesus Christ, on the cross. By His blood you have been redeemed, once and for all. Remain in Him, holding firmly by faith to the promise of the inheritance of eternal life with Christ.

We will continue studying the Exodus and how it points to the redemptive work of Jesus Christ. I do hope you will join us again. if you have any questions or comments, please feel free to share.

Romans 16:25-27 (ESV) 25 Now to him who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for long ages 26 but has now been disclosed and through the prophetic writings has been made known to all nations, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith— 27 to the only wise God be glory forevermore through Jesus Christ! Amen.

May the Grace of God be with you today and always,
In Christ Jesus,
Jorge

DiM | “More of You” by Colton Dixon

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Presentation1Today is “Discernment in Music” (DiM) day here at Faithful Stewardship.

2 Corinthians 10:4-6 (ESV)
4 For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. 5 We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ, 6 being ready to punish every disobedience, when your obedience is complete.

Well, it looks like 20theCountdownMagazine continues to be the most reliably updated music chart. Today, at #7, we find Colton Dixon’s “More of You”. Without getting too far ahead of myself, let me just say that I was pleasantly surprised by what I found.

Lyrics (via K-Love.com)

More Of You | Colton Dixon

I made my castle tall
I built up every wall
This is my kingdom and it needs to fall
I want You and no one else
Empty me of myself
Until the only thing that’s left is

More of You
Less of me
Make me who I’m meant to be
You’re all I want all I need
You’re everything
Take it all I surrender
Be my king
God I choose
More of You
Less of me

More of You

This life I hold so close
Oh, God I let it go
I refuse to gain the world and lose my soul
So take it all I abandon everything I am You can have it
The only thing I need is

All to You I surrender
All to You my blessed Savior
I surrender all

Publishing: © 2014 9T One Songs / Ariose Music / Universal Music – Brentwood Benson Publishing / / 19 Tunes / D Soul Music (ASCAP) (Admin. at CapitolCMGPublishing.com)
Writer(s): Colton Dixon, Ben Glover, David Arthur Garcia

The video for the song adds a positive element to this analysis. Let me say in advance that I do not “like” the video artistically, but they managed to convey a Gospel message that is quite refreshing, so I find myself in a position of recommending something I actually don’t “like”.

[youtube http://youtu.be/qYXjXi8PtzQ]

Positive Elements

Verse 1. This is my kingdom and it needs to fall got me nodding my head in agreement. The first “You” is quickly clarified as a reference to God the Holy Spirit as the verse moves on to empty me of myself.

Chorus. Such a wonderfully refreshing focus on God. More of You, less of me. Wonderful. You’re all I want, all I need, everything… Be my King.

Colossians 1:9-10 (ESV) 9 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, 10 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.

Verse 2. Letting go of the cares of this life, refusing to gain the whole world, Lord take it all. The focus is good.

Luke 9:23-27 (ESV) | Take Up Your Cross and Follow Jesus
23 And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. 25 For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself? 26 For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when he comes in his glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. 27 But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God.”

Music Video. Okay, so the scene playing out in the music video doesn’t flow with the storyline of the song. I found it visually frustrating and in some places rather disturbing, until I realized that the entire music video seems to be locked into the very first verse of the song. We start with a person looking to build his own kingdom out of sand.

Matthew 7:24-27 (ESV) | Build Your House on the Rock
24 “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 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. 26 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. 27 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.”

Matthew 19:23-30 (ESV)23 And Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly, I say to you, only with difficulty will a rich person enter the kingdom of heaven. 24 Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” 25 When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished, saying, “Who then can be saved?” 26 But Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” 27 Then Peter said in reply, “See, we have left everything and followed you. What then will we have?” 28 Jesus said to them, “Truly, I say to you, in the new world,when the Son of Man will sit on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. 29 And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands, for my name’s sake, will receive a hundredfold and will inherit eternal life. 30 But many who are first will be last, and the last first.

But the really cool thing about this video comes when the main character is underwater (after the great fall of his house of sand) and he sees a treasure chest. He pulls out a helmet and puts it on. The significance of the helmet?

Ephesians 6:10-20 (ESV) | The Whole Armor of God
10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. 12 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. 13 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. 14 Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. 16 In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; 17 and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, 18 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, 19 and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak.

And I love that once the main character finds his friend again, he passes on the helmet, which is a picture of evangelism.

Concerns

Video. As pleasantly surprised as I was with the video’s ending and the focus of the lyric of the song, it wasn’t without some concern. Primarily, the idea that the helmet is all we need. I mean, read the full passage from Ephesians 6, there is so much more that Paul was trying to convey. We live in a time when the visible church keeps trying to make “becoming a Christian” as simple as possible… relevant… and palatable for the unbeliever. Some have made it as simple as raising their hand and agreeing silently while the speaker leads in the “sinner’s prayer”… and they’re good so they just need to become members, volunteer, give money, and invite friends. By the way, that isn’t the Gospel. The “hope” there is that eventually the Gospel will catch up to the church member and overtake them or something, but I digress. Regarding the passing along of the helmet of Salvation, maybe it was an artistic choice to simplify the visual, but I think it leaves too much room for error. It takes a full Gospel to create a full Christian. The gift of faith (shield) doesn’t come through “our testimony”, it comes through hearing the Word of God (Sword of Truth).

Romans 10:14-17 (ESV)14 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? 15 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!” 16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?” 17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

Lyrics. Lyrically, the major concern here is that the song seems to skip over the need for us to deny ourselves in a real sense, or at the application level. It’s great to “want” to be emptied of “me” and to ask God to do that work in our hearts, but at the application level we must repent daily, take up our crosses and follow Christ. How do we follow Christ? We die to ourselves, we die to the flesh so that we might walk in the Spirit. As long as we live in these mortal bodies, this will be a continual process. We must take every thought captive, and tear down every lofty opinion that raises itself against the Knowledge of God. We must bear fruit in keeping with repentance. In popular Christian music, I get so frustrated with the tendency to sing anthems of self-importance with all of the great things “I” can do because “I’m a Christian”, but when it comes to denying ourselves and repenting the songs make that an appeal for something God has to do. We need the Law (as Christians who still walk in the world in fallen flesh) to convict us of sin, and we need the Gospel for the forgiveness of sin. The song does not clearly convey Law and Gospel, particularly in the confession, repentance, and the forgiveness of sin.

Conclusion

This song turned out better than expected. While the video is odd to me, and the closeups on Colton in the transitions just seem out of place to me, but overall it is not bad. While this song does not clearly convey Law (sin, confession, repentance) it does present a Gospel message and focuses primarily on keeping a Christ-centered focus and attitude of humility and deference to God. Colton Dixon’s voice is phenomenal and the song is a solid pop song. While I don’t care so much for the visual styling of the video and the brevity of verse, the chorus has the right focus to serve as a reminder for Christians driving to and from work, school, or play.

Jude 1:24-25 (ESV)
24 Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, 25 to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.

In Christ,
Jorge

OT | The Passover Lamb

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Christ in Gethsemane by Heinrich Hofmann

Christ in Gethsemane by Heinrich Hofmann

There has been a great deal of emphasis recently on Jewish traditions, calendars, and ceremonies in the books and sermons in evangelical circles. Some of it is good, but a lot of it is sketchy. We seem to have forgotten Sola Scriptura, and we’ve lost sight of the covenants in Scripture and their role in Christianity. We are of the New Covenant, bought by the blood of Jesus Christ. The Old Covenant points to Jesus, who then fulfilled the covenant in His body, as the Lamb of God. Over the next several weeks we will be looking at the Old Testament drawing our understanding of it not from the Midrash, but from the New Testament. Today, I want to start at the Exodus, with a look at the Passover.

The Passover

Exodus 12 (ESV) | The Passover
1 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, 2 “This month shall be for you the beginning of months. It shall be the first month of the year for you. 3 Tell all the congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month every man shall take a lamb according to their fathers’ houses, a lamb for a household. 4 And if the household is too small for a lamb, then he and his nearest neighbor shall take according to the number of persons; according to what each can eat you shall make your count for the lamb. 5 Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male a year old. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats, 6 and you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month, when the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill their lambs at twilight.

7 “Then they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat it. 8 They shall eat the flesh that night, roasted on the fire; with unleavened bread and bitter herbs they shall eat it. 9 Do not eat any of it raw or boiled in water, but roasted, its head with its legs and its inner parts. 10 And you shall let none of it remain until the morning; anything that remains until the morning you shall burn. 11 In this manner you shall eat it: with your belt fastened, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. And you shall eat it in haste. It is the Lord’s Passover.12 For I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am the Lord.13 The blood shall be a sign for you, on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you, when I strike the land of Egypt.

14 “This day shall be for you a memorial day, and you shall keep it as a feast to the Lord; throughout your generations, as a statute forever, you shall keep it as a feast. 15 Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. On the first day you shall remove leaven out of your houses, for if anyone eats what is leavened, from the first day until the seventh day, that person shall be cut off from Israel. 16 On the first day you shall hold a holy assembly, and on the seventh day a holy assembly. No work shall be done on those days. But what everyone needs to eat, that alone may be prepared by you. 17 And you shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread, for on this very day I brought your hosts out of the land of Egypt. Therefore you shall observe this day, throughout your generations, as a statute forever. 18 In the first month, from the fourteenth day of the month at evening, you shall eat unleavened bread until the twenty-first day of the month at evening. 19 For seven days no leaven is to be found in your houses. If anyone eats what is leavened, that person will be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he is a sojourner or a native of the land. 20 You shall eat nothing leavened; in all your dwelling places you shall eat unleavened bread.”

21 Then Moses called all the elders of Israel and said to them, “Go and select lambs for yourselves according to your clans, and kill the Passover lamb. 22 Take a bunch of hyssop and dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and touch the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood that is in the basin. None of you shall go out of the door of his house until the morning. 23 For the Lord will pass through to strike the Egyptians, and when he sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the Lord will pass over the door and will not allow the destroyer to enter your houses to strike you. 24 You shall observe this rite as a statute for you and for your sons forever. 25 And when you come to the land that the Lord will give you, as he has promised, you shall keep this service. 26 And when your children say to you, ‘What do you mean by this service?’ 27 you shall say, ‘It is the sacrifice of the Lord’s Passover, for he passed over the houses of the people of Israel in Egypt, when he struck the Egyptians but spared our houses.’” And the people bowed their heads and worshiped. 28 Then the people of Israel went and did so; as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron, so they did.

Exodus 12:40-51 (ESV) | Institution of the Passover
40 The time that the people of Israel lived in Egypt was 430 years. 41 At the end of 430 years, on that very day, all the hosts of the Lord went out from the land of Egypt. 42 It was a night of watching by the Lord, to bring them out of the land of Egypt; so this same night is a night of watching kept to the Lord by all the people of Israel throughout their generations.

43 And the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “This is the statute of the Passover: no foreigner shall eat of it, 44 but every slave that is bought for money may eat of it after you have circumcised him. 45 No foreigner or hired worker may eat of it. 46 It shall be eaten in one house; you shall not take any of the flesh outside the house, and you shall not break any of its bones. 47 All the congregation of Israel shall keep it. 48 If a stranger shall sojourn with you and would keep the Passover to the Lord, let all his males be circumcised. Then he may come near and keep it; he shall be as a native of the land. But no uncircumcised person shall eat of it. 49 There shall be one law for the native and for the stranger who sojourns among you.”

50 All the people of Israel did just as the Lord commanded Moses and Aaron. 51 And on that very day the Lord brought the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt by their hosts.

Okay, we’ve gone through a lot of text (we skipped some verses for time sake), let’s review what have thus far before moving on to Exodus 13. In verse 5, we see God demanding that the Passover Lamb had to be without blemish. This evaluation of the lamb from either the goats or the sheep had to be made physically; therefore, it was only a shadow of the true Passover Lamb, who is truly without blemish. This is why it was so significant that John the Baptist made the following declaration as recorded in John 1.

John 1:29-34 (ESV) | Behold, the Lamb of God
29 The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! 30 This is he of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who ranks before me, because he was before me.’ 31 I myself did not know him, but for this purpose I came baptizing with water, that he might be revealed to Israel.” 32 And John bore witness: “I saw the Spirit descend from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him. 33 I myself did not know him, but he who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, this is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ 34 And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God.”

Only the Son of God could be perfect and without blemish, and only He could truly be the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.

Now, the unleavened bread is very interesting here. Firstly, God is instituting the Passover as a remembrance of His deliverance of Israel out of Egypt. The entire service, really, as evidenced by the explanation given in verse 26 and 27. The point of the Passover is to remind them of what God had done. However, as the Passover and subsequent Exodus comes, there is no time to make extensive preparations for life in the wilderness, particularly in food. Egypt gives up its riches, but we see in Exodus 12:34,39 that they left Egypt in haste and didn’t have time to leaven their bread. This is important because while the unleavened bread points to the Passover, the Passover itself is accomplished by God and the Blood of the Lamb.

The leaven is added to the bread to cause it to raise, inflate, to give a sense of increase though it is a false sense. This understanding can be drawn from Jesus’s warning to His disciples in Matthew 16. We, the children of God adopted by the Blood of the Lamb, we preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ so that all who believe in Him will not perish in Egypt (death of sin), but be freed from Egypt and brought to the Promised Land (Heaven). We dare not add anything to the bread, to falsely inflate it, or to make it more palatable for those who would hear the Gospel. The unleavened bread was to be eaten with bitter herbs, a symbol and a reminder of the harshness of their enslavement, and for us it is of our sinfulness. They didn’t make cake, there was no frosting… and when we preach Law and Gospel, the Law is indicative of the bitter herbs, for the Law convicts us of our sin, and the pure, unleavened Gospel of Jesus Christ reminds us of His Body that was broken for us. Let’s look at how the Apostle Paul referred to the leaven in relation to Communion:

1 Corinthians 5:6-8 (ESV) 6 Your boasting is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? 7 Cleanse out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, as you really are unleavened. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. 8 Let us therefore celebrate the festival, not with the old leaven, the leaven of malice and evil, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

In Exodus 12:43 we see prohibitions being added, that this Passover was not for the uncircumcised, not for the lost. Salvation, deliverance out of Egypt, is secured by no other means than Christ’s death on the cross, by the Passover Lamb. Communion is not for the unbeliever, for he who has not believed in Jesus stands condemned already.

John 3:16-21 (ESV) | For God So Loved the World
16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 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. 18 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. 19 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. 20 For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. 21 But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.”

That is not to say that Salvation isn’t available to all; rather, that Salvation (and by extension, Communion) is not available for those who do not believe in Christ. We preach both Law and Gospel, so that the lost might hear the Word of God and receive faith, a gift from God, to believe in Him and be delivered from Egypt, out of their sin and trespasses, so that they might join in the Communion of the Body of Christ.

Let us now look at how this Truth of the Passover is clarified in Hebrews.

Hebrews 10:1-18 (ESV) | Christ’s Sacrifice Once for All
10 For since the law has but a shadow of the good things to come instead of the true form of these realities, it can never, by the same sacrifices that are continually offered every year, make perfect those who draw near. 2 Otherwise, would they not have ceased to be offered, since the worshipers, having once been cleansed, would no longer have any consciousness of sins? 3 But in these sacrifices there is a reminder of sins every year. 4 For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.

5 Consequently, when Christ came into the world, he said,

“Sacrifices and offerings you have not desired, but a body have you prepared for me;
6 in burnt offerings and sin offerings you have taken no pleasure.
7 Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come to do your will, O God,
as it is written of me in the scroll of the book.’”

8 When he said above, “You have neither desired nor taken pleasure in sacrifices and offerings and burnt offerings and sin offerings” (these are offered according to the law), 9 then he added, “Behold, I have come to do your will.” He does away with the first in order to establish the second. 10 And by that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

11 And every priest stands daily at his service, offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. 12 But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, 13 waiting from that time until his enemies should be made a footstool for his feet. 14 For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.

15 And the Holy Spirit also bears witness to us; for after saying,

16 “This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws on their hearts, and write them on their minds,”

17 then he adds,

“I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more.”

18 Where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer any offering for sin.

All praise, glory, and honor be to the our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. We will continue studying the Exodus and how it points to the redemptive work of Jesus Christ. I do hope you will join us again. if you have any questions or comments, please feel free to share.

Romans 16:25-27 (ESV) 25 Now to him who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for long ages 26 but has now been disclosed and through the prophetic writings has been made known to all nations, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith— 27 to the only wise God be glory forevermore through Jesus Christ! Amen.

May the Grace of God be with you today and always,
In Christ Jesus,
Jorge

DiM | “He Knows My Name” by Francesca Battistelli

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Presentation1Today is “Discernment in Music” (DiM) day here at Faithful Stewardship.

2 Corinthians 10:4-6 (ESV)
4 For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. 5 We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ, 6 being ready to punish every disobedience, when your obedience is complete.

Today we return to 20theCountdownMagazine moving to the top rated song we haven’t reviewed. Today we will be taking a look at #6 on the chart, “He Knows My Name” by Francesca Battistelli.

Why We Do This

Before we get to today’s song, I’d like to point out that while we take the time to exercise Biblical discernment here in what we listen to on “Christian Radio”, the goal isn’t to tear down these artists. The goal, is to protect you from ambiguous or false teaching conveyed by most of what we hear on the radio. I’m not lobbying for you to turn off your radios, though I think many of us should do so from time to time, my hope is that when the questionable songs start to play, that you will remember what we searched in God’s Word. Sometimes, we can salvage a vague or blah song and add Scriptural meat to it. Sometimes, we just have to outright rebuke the theology presented, and we do so also with Scripture. Either way, if we’ve done our work well here, then no matter which song pops up, your mind will go to the Word of God. If we haven’t covered the song yet, I hope that when a line catches your attention, you will try to follow the steps we take here to search out the Scriptures. There are some songs that I’ll change the channel for, others I’ll only sing with a line or two, and others I thoroughly enjoy (either because the song is great or because I can apply proper Scriptural context to correct the vagueness). As always, if you disagree with my assessments or feel I’ve not been fair, do please speak up either in comments below or in a private message via the contact page.

Francesca Battistelli – “He Knows My Name”

Lyrics (via KLove.com)

Spent today in a conversation
In the mirror face to face with
Somebody less than perfect
I wouldn’t choose me first if
I was looking for a champion
In fact I’d understand if
You picked everyone before me
But that’s just not my story

True to who You are
You saw my heart
And made something out of nothing, so

CHORUS
I don’t need my name in lights
I’m famous in my Father’s eyes
Make no mistake
He knows my name
I’m not living for applause
I’m already so adored
It’s all His stage
He knows my name
He knows my name

I’m not meant to just stay quiet
I’m meant to be a lion
I’ll roar beyond a song
With every moment that I’ve got

True to who You are
You saw my heart
And made something out of nothing

CHORUS

He calls me chosen
Free, forgiven
Wanted, child of the King
His forever
Held and treasured
I am loved

I don’t need my name in lights
I’m famous in my Father’s eyes

CHORUS

Publishing: © 2014 Word Music, LLC, Francesca Music (ASCAP) (All rights on behalf of itself and Francesca Music adm. by Word Music, LLC) / Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Upside Down Under (BMI) (All rights on behalf of itself and Upside Down Under adm. by Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC) / CentricSongs, 2 Hour Songs (SESAC) (Adm. by Music Services) Scripture quotation is from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version ® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Produced by Ian Eskelin
Writer(s): Francesca Battistelli / Mia Fieldes / Seth Mosley

Without a doubt, Francesca has an amazing singing voice. The song is very well done (this acoustic version is my favorite sounding version). Let’s see if its content matches its performance.

Positive Elements

The idea that we don’t need to be famous in this life because God knows who we are is awesome. It is important to remind Christians that regardless of your personal successes or failures, what matters is if He knows your name. Not just in His Omniscience, but in a knowing that comes from having repented of our sin and believed in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Let’s look at some verses.

John 10:14-18 (ESV) 14 I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. 16 And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd. 17 For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.”

Luke 10:17-20 (ESV) 17 The seventy-two returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!” 18 And he said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.19 Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you. 20 Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”

Revelation 3:1-6 (ESV) | To the Church in Sardis
1 “And to the angel of the church in Sardis write: ‘The words of him who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. “‘I know your works. You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead. 2 Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your works complete in the sight of my God. 3 Remember, then, what you received and heard. Keep it, and repent. If you will not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come against you. 4 Yet you have still a few names in Sardis, people who have not soiled their garments, and they will walk with me in white, for they are worthy. 5 The one who conquers will be clothed thus in white garments, and I will never blot his name out of the book of life.I will confess his name before my Father and before his angels. 6 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’

Matthew 10:24-33 (ESV) 24 “A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. 25 It is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher, and the servant like his master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign those of his household. 26 “So have no fear of them, for nothing is covered that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. 27 What I tell you in the dark, say in the light, and what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops. 28 And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. 29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. 30 But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. 32 So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven, 33 but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.

So, we’ve explored the idea of what is truly important as far as fame and notoriety are concerned as demonstrated in Scripture. This is such an important theme for us (Christians) to grasp when this world tempts us to focus on ourselves rather than on Christ and His Gospel. While this theme is important, the song doesn’t do a good job of conveying it properly. While the lyrics include a citation of the ESV for Bible quotes, there are no Bible quotes in the song. At best, there are soundbites that can be found in the Bible, but nothing is actually quoted.

Concerns

Title. There are a lot of concerns in this song. Let’s start with the title of the song, “He knows my Name”. Firstly, we serve a God who is omniscient, who knows everything. We saw earlier that every hair on our head is numbered, and God loves us, and He knows our hearts. Also, our names are written in the Lamb’s book of Life, that is what we must rejoice in, the promise of Heaven through Jesus Christ our Lord. But why this focus on our name? The song is overly focused on us, as though God chose us because of something  possess rather than by His Grace. The only name that matters, is the Name that is above all names, Jesus.

Verse 1. So she spent time speaking to herself in the mirror. This screams post-modern progressive notion of “finding myself” or “getting to know myself”. She defines herself as “less than perfect”, well that’s pious and slightly emotive, but it is incomplete. The Mirror we should be looking in is the Law, and according to the Law we are hopelessly and irrevocably sinful, dead in our sins and trespasses.

Romans 1:18-23 (ESV) | God’s Wrath on Unrighteousness
18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. 19 For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20 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. 21 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. 22 Claiming to be wise, they became fools, 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.

Romans 1:28-32 (ESV) 28 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. 29 They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, 30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, 31 foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. 32 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.

Ephesians 2:1-3 (ESV) 1 And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 2 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— 3 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.

When we look in the mirror, we should recognize all of mankind. For our flesh is corrupt and our hearts were darkened by unrighteousness. That is the Law, that is the perfection of God from which we fell when Adam sinned. And it is from this state, that the Grace of God is revealed in Christ who is the Good Shepherd who laid down His life for us, so that we might have life in Him. That is the answer to this dilemma, that Christ died to rescue us from our sin (the Gospel). So this contemplative nonsense about having a conversation in the mirror is concerning. Any thought of this being merely a lyrical device evaporates in the next line “I wouldn’t choose me first if I was looking for a champion”. Uhm… the Gospel of Jesus Christ is NOT that He was looking for a champion in fallen man. God has never needed a Champion. God called and equipped Gideon and then God gave him the victory… God didn’t “find a champion in Gideon”. Same with all of the other judges and with King David. This rings of the narcissistic theology sold by Osteen, “Discover the Champion in You“. No. Soli Deo Gloria, means that everything God does is for His Glory and for His Name’s sake.

Romans 1:1-7 (ESV) 1 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, 2 which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, 3 concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh 4 and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, 5 through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations, 6 including you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ, 7 To all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Chorus. I struggle with first line of the chorus, “I don’t need my name in lights”, because immediately my mind goes to, “that’s an easy thing to declare when your name is in lights”. I found myself also tripping over the fact that her name is prominently displayed on her album cover. Sure, it’s not “in lights” but it still trips me up. It evokes the same response as when I hear a multi-million dollar televangelist preach about how the love of money is idolatry right before insisting that if you want God to work in your life just send him “seed money”. To make things a bit less emotional and a little more scriptural, I find it to be much like the rich young ruler who claimed to keep the whole Law and wanted to follow Jesus, only to have Him say, “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me (Matthew 19).” It’s easy to tell others who have not, that what you have isn’t what is important, especially if in the telling, you get to keep what you have. Now let’s get to this “He knows my name” line that gets repeated (and is in the title of the song). The disclaimer in the lyrics says it pulls quotes from the ESV Bible. Let’s search for that line in the ESV. One hit, from Psalm 91.

Psalm 91:11-16 (ESV)
11 For he will command his angels concerning you
to guard you in all your ways.
12 On their hands they will bear you up,
lest you strike your foot against a stone.
13 You will tread on the lion and the adder;
the young lion and the serpent you will trample underfoot.
14 “Because he holds fast to me in love, I will deliver him;
I will protect him, because he knows my name.
15 When he calls to me, I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble;
I will rescue him and honor him.
16 With long life I will satisfy him
and show him my salvation.”

Did you catch what went wrong there? The “he” in verse 14 is no longer pointing to God, it is pointing to “he who dwells in the secret place” in verse 1, which points to the Messiah. This should be made clear when you realize the “I” is pointing to the deliverer of him. God is the deliverer. God is promising to deliver the Messiah and protect Him, because He knows God’s Name. Satan understood that this Psalm was Messianic, which is why he tried to twist it to tempt Jesus in the wilderness (Luke 4)

Verse 2. Now we open up the floodgate of narcissistic eisegisis, purpose-driven style.  When does the Bible call us Lions? Jesus Christ is the Lion of Judah and the Lamb of God. We are sheep. Our strength lies in knowing the Good Shepherd, hearing His voice and obeying Him. To God be the glory.

Bridge. Again, we have another self-centered, purpose-driven song that declares forgiveness without mentioning repentance or confession or even of our sin. Remember the “less than perfect” from earlier? Might as well say “I’m human, but God has forgiven me for that shortcoming and now I’m a champion”. That ain’t the Gospel, Jack. There is only one way to God, only one way to being secure in the promises listed in this Bridge, and that is through Jesus Christ (not our name, or our inner champion).

Conclusion

This song is just self-esteem pop pushing purpose-driven narcissism. I’m all for reaching out to those who feel “less-than”, but the answer is to speak the Truth in Love, not pump people up with false notions of “the champion in side of you” or “you are famous just the way you are”. The end-state of hyper-self-esteem is lawlessness. We now live in a society that has been pumped so full of self-esteem-falsehood that it is now unconscionable to tell a child in public school whether or not they are a boy or a girl. Without a doubt, Francesca was blessed with a gift from God to sing. I pray that in the future her songs be more biblically sound and clear. As for this song, I cannot recommend it to a friend.

Acts 20:28-35 (ESV) 28 Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood.29 I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; 30 and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them. 31 Therefore be alert, remembering that for three years I did not cease night or day to admonish every one with tears. 32 And now I commend you to God and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified. 33 I coveted no one’s silver or gold or apparel. 34 You yourselves know that these hands ministered to my necessities and to those who were with me. 35 In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”

In Christ Jesus,
Jorge

DiM | “Start a Fire” by Unspoken

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Presentation1Today is “Discernment in Music” (DiM) day here at Faithful Stewardship.

2 Corinthians 10:4-6 (ESV)
4 For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. 5 We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ, 6 being ready to punish every disobedience, when your obedience is complete.

Well, it looks like 20theCountdownMagazine is the most reliably updated music chart. Let’s take a look at the #3 song “Start a Fire” by Unspoken.

Music Video

Lyrics (via Soundlyrics.com)

This world can be cold and bitter
Feels like we’re in the dead of winter
Waiting on something better
But am I really gonna hide forever?

Over and over again
I hear Your voice in my head
Let Your light shine, let Your light shine for all to see

(Chorus)
Start a fire in my soul
Fan the flame and make it grow
So there’s no doubt or denying
Let it burn so brightly
That everyone around can see
That it’s You, that it’s You that we need
Start a fire in me

You only need a spark to start a whole blaze
It only takes a little faith
Let it start right here in this city
So these old walls will never be the same

Over and over again
I hear Your voice in my head
They need to know
I need to go
Spirit wont you fall on my heart now

(Chorus)

You are the fire You are the flame
You are the light on the darkest day
We have the hope we bear Your name
We carry the news that You have come to save
Only You can save

(Chorus)

The song is very catchy and motivational. The chorus is presented as a prayer or an anthem for the church to rally around something. It’s steeped in analogy without clarity.

Positive Elements

This song seems to be pulling from a couple of Biblical references, but only by borrowing the imagery of the analogies. The first is that of being a light of the world.

Matthew 5:1-16 (ESV) | The Sermon on the Mount
1 Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him.
2 And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:
3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
5 “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
7 “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.
8 “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
10 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. 13 “You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet. 14 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

Philippians 2:12-18 (ESV) | Lights in the World
12 Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, 13 for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.14 Do all things without grumbling or disputing, 15 that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, 16 holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain.17 Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all. 18 Likewise you also should be glad and rejoice with me.

Jesus first spoke to the crowd in the Sermon on the mount, and notice He was declaring the Jews to be the city on a hill. He goes on to say that unless your righteousness exceed that of the Pharisees you will not see the Kingdom of Heaven. What gives? Well, Jesus is pointing out that as God’s chosen people, they were entrusted with the Law and the Prophets, the Word of God, given to man as a testimony of who He is. That the Law and the Prophets all point to Jesus as the Messiah. This is what Paul is pointing to in Philippians when he reminds them they are to shine as lights in the world. God is the light. Christ in us is the light of the world, He does the work (Solus Christus) and grants us the will to do the work for His good pleasure (Soli Deo Gloria).

This might be a bit generous, but when the song points to “letting my light shine” I’m assuming it is prompting the listener to do good works, so that others will see these good works and give Glory to God (NOT glory to us). However, we must understand that both the will to do the good works and the good works themselves are not from us, but from God the Holy Spirit, for our flesh works against the Spirit (Galatians 5:16-26). I believe that is what is meant by the first line in the chorus being “start a fire in my soul”.

The strongest point in the song is in the bridge, when we get the Gospel nugget of “we carry the news that You have come to save, only You can save”.

Concerns

The speaker and audience of the song flip-flop oddly, so the verses are a bit disjointed. If the singer is hearing the voice of God in his head, saying “let your light shine”, why is the message so cryptic? I try to be flexible on the artistic license thing for poetry and song lyrics, but we live in an age of the visible church where everyone seems perfectly comfortable saying things “in the Name of the Lord” without any discernment or fear of blasphemy.

I don’t like the line “they need to know, I need to go, Spirit won’t you fall on my heart now”. When combined with the request for God to start a fire within us, it seems to overlook the truth that the Holy Spirit is living within us as a promise for those who believe in Jesus as the Christ. Yes there are times when the Holy Spirit stirs us and grants Spiritual Gifts for His purposes in our lives, His presence is enough for us to do the works He has laid before us, namely, preaching the Gospel. Is it wrong to ask that God the Holy Spirit to move our hearts? No. I just don’t like leaving room for “presence” theology or for Christians to act like unless “the Spirit moves them” they don’t know what they should be doing.

2 Timothy 3:16 – 4:5 (ESV) 16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete,equipped for every good work. 4:1 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: 2 preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. 3 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, 4 and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. 5 As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.

The Chorus is an exaggerated call for emotional excitement.  The soul is sometimes a reference to our spiritual being, but it is more often a reference to the seat of our emotions, or our fleshly being. There is a lot of attention being given to the lighting of a fire, a spark to set a whole blaze, fanning into flames, and burn so brightly that all around can see. But this is all imagery… for what? What does it look like to have the Holy Spirit burning brightly within us? Let’s look to scripture.

2 Corinthians 4:1-15 (ESV) | The Light of the Gospel
1 Therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart. 2 But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways. We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God’s word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God. 3 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. 4 In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 5 For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. 6 For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. 8 We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; 9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; 10 always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. 11 For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. 12 So death is at work in us, but life in you. 13 Since we have the same spirit of faith according to what has been written, “I believed, and so I spoke,” we also believe, and so we also speak, 14 knowing that he who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and bring us with you into his presence. 15 For it is all for your sake, so that as grace extends to more and more people it may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God.

As a motivational song, the goal is to “pump the audience up” to feel something in their hearts and souls to motivate them… to be a light. Paul points to what we preach, the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Now, after writing this portion based solely on the lyrics, I thought I’d check out the video. I take issue with the video’s implication that somehow going to work faithfully, steadily, and dutifully was somehow hiding (first verse). That this fire being lit in our spirit will undoubtedly mean leaving our jobs (in the middle of work, like with the bike mechanic) because they just need to know that we have better things to do. Is that what Scripture teaches? Yes, Jesus personally called His disciples and they left their nets. Is that what all Christians are called to do? Paul taught otherwise, as did Peter, when they talked about bondservants serving their masters as if their service was to the Lord.

Conclusion

I’m starting to think that vagueness or self-motivation is what makes a song rise in the charts, even the Christian charts. This song doesn’t deal with repentance, and while there is a gospel nugget in there, it is not the focus, the focus is us “burning”. Obedience to the Scriptures and the Great Commission isn’t always going to be a “felt need”. The song is mostly just fluff, icing without a cake, gravy without biscuits or mashed potato. This song allows room for a discussion regarding the problems with seeker-mergent philosophy, by sharing what Scripture says (as I did above), but for the most part I’d just skip the song entirely. It is catchy, and well sung/played, but now that I’ve seen the video I’m all sorts of unimpressed by it. It falls under the “you can change the world” pep talk, really, ignoring that “you” cannot do anything and that Christ has already done it all, and “the world” is perishing and the role of the Church is to preach the Gospel to those in the world so that they might repent and come out of it.

Jude 1:24-25 (ESV)
24 Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, 25 to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.

In Christ,
Jorge