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CTT | Maturity in Discerment

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CTTToday, let us take a some time to consider the idea of Christian Maturity and how it plays out in our discernment. For starters, I’d like to point out that discernment isn’t limited to quality assurance and quality control in theology, or a certain type of blogging that tells everyone that they are wrong. Discernment is both a gift of the Holy Spirit for the edification of the Church and a sign of maturity in a the believer who is walking according to the Spirit. We’ll start with the obvious topic of the Spiritual gift of discernment and work toward the individual responsibility of growing in maturity and how that is reflected in our discernment on a personal level.

Spiritual Gift for the Church

1 Corinthians 12:1-13 (ESV) | Spiritual Gifts

12 Now concerning spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want you to be uninformed. 2 You know that when you were pagans you were led astray to mute idols, however you were led. 3 Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking in the Spirit of God ever says “Jesus is accursed!” and no one can say “Jesus is Lord” except in the Holy Spirit. 4 Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; 5 and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; 6 and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. 7 To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. 8 For to one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, 10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish between spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues.11 All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills. 12 For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. 13 For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit. 

When we consider discernment ministry for the common good, we are focused on the gift of discerning what is of the Spirit of Truth against the spirit of error, whose source might be either our fleshly sinfulness or unclean spirits of demons. There is no other option. Notice the focus in Paul’s writing, it isn’t to get smart on all of the spirits of error; rather, it is to anchor everything according to the Spirit of God. The better you know the genuine article, the easier it becomes to identify counterfeits. Not everyone who claims a gift of discernment actually bears it… just as not everyone who claims to preach the Word of the Lord actually does so. It is the Holy Spirit who gives the gifts as He wills. Similarly, I’ve met some who think (or maybe truly desire) they have the gift of hospitality… but end up making others uncomfortable in their attempts at serving in hospitality. It happens. We should all grow in hospitality in loving our neighbors, but not all of us are called to that specific ministry. Discernment ministry is the same way. We are called to be discerning believers, but not all of us should consider it our primary ministry to the Body of Christ. The call of discernment ministry is primarily to identify spirits of error, false doctrines, and doctrines of demons. It falls to Overseers, Elders, Pastors to exercise church discipline for those who reject rebuke, correction, reproof and who refuse to repent. The shepherd drives away the wolves to protect the sheep. The overseer is a steward under the Great Shepherd, Jesus Christ. We hope that our pastors are gifted in spiritual discernment, but that doesn’t mean the sheep cannot also be keenly aware of the wolves and alert the shepherd to their presence. The problem comes in when our immaturity and fleshliness leads us to separate wrongly… as we see Paul address next.

1 Corinthians 12:12-31 (ESV) | One Body with Many Members

12 For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. 13 For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit. 14 For the body does not consist of one member but of many. 15 If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. 16 And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell?18 But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. 19 If all were a single member, where would the body be? 20 As it is, there are many parts, yet one body.

21 The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” 22 On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, 23 and on those parts of the body that we think less honorable we bestow the greater honor, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, 24 which our more presentable parts do not require. But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, 25 that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. 26 If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together.

27 Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it. 28 And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, helping, administrating, and various kinds of tongues. 29 Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? 30 Do all possess gifts of healing? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret? 31 But earnestly desire the higher gifts. And I will show you a still more excellent way.

More excellent way that what? Discernment? No. Discernment is a Gift from God. Paul is about to go into a more excellent way of dealing with the other members of the Body of Christ than what was highlighted as wrong. Those of you who are familiar with 1 Cor 13 may know what is coming, but I want to park that train for a moment. We’ll get there, but let’s take a short detour and examine the concept of Spiritual Maturity… what does it look like to be a mature Christian? Before we get to that thought, let us take a quick peek at something Paul wrote to the Corinthians in ch 3.

1 Corinthians 3:1-3 (ESV) | Divisions in the Church

3 But I, brothers, could not address you as spiritual people, but as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ. 2 I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready, 3 for you are still of the flesh. For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh and behaving only in a human way?

Ouch. He’s talking to Christians. They are still Christians… but they are immature, infants in Christ.

Walking in Spiritual Maturity

As individual believers, our biggest struggle isn’t against demons, it is against our own sinful flesh with its corrupted, self-seeking, desires. Paul exhorts us to die to our flesh, to that which is fleshly in us, so that we might live according to the Spirit. There is actually very little mention of the devil beyond resisting him… but we are routinely exhorted to flee lusts and the temptations of the flesh. The truth is that while we have been saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ our Lord, our flesh remains and is sinful. The Holy Spirit does work in us, sanctifying us… but the biggest component of that sanctification is that we are literally being put to death. Should the Return of Jesus tarry, you and I will die. There is no way around that. Our fleshly bodies are condemned under sin.

The life of the believing Christian is caught in between sinner and saint, the already(forgiven) and the not yet(sanctified). That means that we live in such a way that our works of the flesh are always sinful, and we must, by faith, remain in humble submission before God in repentance. We sin. Our flesh craves it. There are many who preach advice on how to reduce sin in your life by “avoiding pitfalls” or “following key principles” or … but the danger in this is the implication that if you are “christian enough” you’ll eventually stop sinning and finally be free from sin. That’s a lie. Your flesh is corrupt to its core. Even if Jesus returns today, your current flesh will be done away with, and in Christ those who are of faith will be granted new bodies. It has to happen. Only then will you be truly sanctified in the flesh… when He has given you a new body.

Now, here is where we get to the point of Christian Maturity… your greatest good work performed for your neighbor while on this earth, is stained by the sin of your flesh. Praise be to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, that our forgiveness, our adoption as sons and daughters of the Most High is in no way contingent upon the righteousness of our good works, but on His. So, when an opportunity to serve your neighbor arises, God is using you to bless your neighbor… but at the same time your flesh is involved so there will be sin at some level. Christian maturity is dying to the flesh to minimize the impact of your fleshliness on your neighbor, as well as learning to discern the good work from the sin of your neighbor and forgiving their sin as your sins are forgiven.

Galatians 5:13-25 (ESV) | Keep in Step with the Spirit

13 For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. 14 For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”15 But if you bite and devour one another, watch out that you are not consumed by one another.

16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.17 For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.19 Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, 21 envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. 24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.

This is the war that wages in our bodies while we walk as sojourners in this life. By faith we know that our home is not of this world, but until we are finally set free from these corrupted bodies of sin, we must daily contend with the flesh and its corruption. But Paul isn’t just directing this teaching to one group of believers. He isn’t just addressing “discernment bloggers” or “pastors”… he’s addressing the body of Christ, brothers and sisters in the household of faith. We often come to this passage for the rundown of the fruit of the Spirit and set that as some positive goal for “becoming a mature Christian” by working on the fruits. But I think that is missing the bigger part of this section… we need to discern the works of the flesh (within the church) and see them for what they are and crucify the flesh with its passions and desires through repentance. Notice the wording of keep in step with the Spirit. We stumble and fall in sin. Repentance and forgiveness is how we are to keep in step. You are not sinless. You sin. I sin. For us to keep in step with the Spirit, by faith we humbly ask forgiveness and repent from sin. Daily. It’s in the Lord’s prayer. And we forgive others. Daily. That’s also in the same prayer. Reflecting back to Paul’s rebuke to the immature Corinthians above, their conduct was fleshly, and were not yet ready for meat, so they had to continue feeding on milk.

A Call to Maturity

Recently, my wife and I threw a big party for my daughter. The whole day was dedicated to her, starting with having her grandparents in town to watch her in gymnastics and swim class, followed by costume party at the house with a huge bounce-house and actors pretending to be Disney characters who sang songs and played games with her and a bunch of her friends. There was a fire pit with s’mores afterwards… it was an awesome day. When it came bed time, I let my son lead the bedtime prayer because he volunteered first, and you’d have thought the entire day was ruined by my daughter’s response… oh the waterworks, fat bottom lip, and hurt feelings. My daughter just turned 4… and she was beyond tired. As a child, she lives emotionally in the moment. As an adult, I know that the entire day wasn’t wasted simply because she took offense at the end of the day for not being chosen to pray. She had a wonderful day. She’s 4. As she matures, I will expect more from her… I will expect her to weigh the events of the day against the single disappointment at the end… to consider how excited her brother was for her throughout the day that was planned for her, and not for him. But for now, she’s 4… and she was super tired and delirious.

Our culture isn’t fond of maturity. In every way it seems to insist on living the Peter Pan in Neverland fantasy where we never grow old, grown-ups are the enemy, and we can all fly and have fanciful adventures if only we hold onto our one happy thought. “Grow up” is hate speech and to uphold God’s Written Word as an objective standard is bigotry. And the church hasn’t done a good job of remaining set apart. The visible church in modern-times needs to grow up.

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

4 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.

Reprove and rebuke with complete patience and teaching. We are still both sinner and saint… even our pastors. Their good works will be tainted by their flesh. As they submit to the Spirit, so we must acknowledge the work of the Spirit in them and in His Word that they are preaching. Sure, we may cry like children and scream, and pitch a fit to punish our pastor for DARING to rebuke us in an imperfect manner, in what we deem to be less than patient teaching. Children live in that emotional space. Infants employ the same scream for every desire, and it falls to parents to discern the true need of the infant. However, as they grow and mature, we teach them to discern needs from desires and right from wrong. Paul is warning Timothy that the church will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. He is charging Timothy to preach the Word, reprove, rebuke, and exhort. A mature Christian hears the Word of the Lord being preached and humbles himself in repentance to the Word… even when the preacher’s flesh causes an offense. It’s going to happen. We are sinful creatures saved by grace. Know that your pastor is held accountable to God at a higher standard than those who are not called to the teaching ministry. Communicate with your pastor, point out the offense or error in love, being ready to forgive him as your sins are being forgiven you by God.

More Excellent Way

1 Corinthians 13 (ESV) | The Way of Love

13 If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.

4 Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; 6 it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. 7 Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

8 Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10 but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away.11 When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways.12 For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.

13 So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

Don’t confuse Love with the selfish emotion your flesh conjures up in its sinful desires and passions. Love is a fruit of the Spirit of God.

Conclusion

Whether you are exercising biblical discernment in speaking/writing a word of rebuke do what you can to remain substantive, rooted and grounded in the Word of God, and filled with love. Do not let your fleshly tone or word-choice be a stumbling block to your brother. When not speaking, be ready to discern substantive rebuke and correction even when delivered in an offensive tone. Learn to address tone without using it to overturn a substantive rebuke. Do not let your childish offendedness become a stumbling block to your own repentance. We will spend the rest of our earthly days maturing until at last we are set free from these mortal bonds, and born again into the Promise of the Resurrection.

Hebrews 13:20-21 (ESV) 20 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, 21 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.

Amen.
In Christ Jesus,
Jorge

DiM | “Good Good Father” by Chris Tomlin

Faithful Stewardship 7 Comments

Today is “Discernment in Music” (DiM) day here at Faithful Stewardship (2 Corinthians 10:4-6 (ESV)).

November 10, 2015. Today we’ll be taking a look at “Good Good Father” by Chris Tomlin which currently sits at #19 on the 20theCountdownMagazine.

The song opens up with an appeal to mystical direct-revelation much like that of Sarah Young’s Jesus Calling. We will do our best to rescue the song a bit from this mystical interpretation, but given that this is intended as a song for corporate worship that has gained popularity on the airwaves, it warrants a disapproval because it simply does not stand on its own. It fails to point the listener to Christ, it doesn’t call the sinner and saint to repentance and forgiveness so it isn’t fit for public consumption without contextual setting. As far as Corporate worship in a church setting goes, it does at least have a solid confession of the Goodness of God. However, there is a lot of junk in there and the song is not instructive for the Church; rather, it is quite mystical and contemplative in nature.

Chris Tomlin VEVO Lyrics & Chords Video

Lyrics (via KLove)

Good Good Father

Oh, I’ve heard a thousand stories
Of what they think You’re like
But I’ve heard the tender whisper
Of love in the dead of night
And You tell me that You’re pleased
And that I’m never alone

You’re a good good Father
It’s who You are, it’s who You are, it’s who You are
And I’m loved by You
It’s who I am, it’s who I am, it’s who I am

Oh, and I’ve seen many searching
For answers far and wide
But I know we’re all searching
For answers only You provide
‘Cause You know just what we need
Before we say a word

You’re a good good Father
It’s who You are, it’s who You are, it’s who You are
And I’m loved by You
It’s who I am, it’s who I am, it’s who I am

Cause You are perfect in all of Your ways
You are perfect in all of Your ways
You are perfect in all of Your ways to us

You are perfect in all of Your ways
Oh, You are perfect in all of Your ways
You are perfect in all of Your ways to us

Oh, it’s love so undeniable
I, I can hardly speak
Peace so unexplainable
I, I can hardly think
As You call me deeper still
As You call me deeper still
As You call me deeper still
Into love, love, love

You’re a good good Father
It’s who You are, it’s who You are, it’s who You are
And I’m loved by You
It’s who I am, it’s who I am, it’s who I am

You’re a good good Father
It’s who You are, it’s who You are, it’s who You are
And I’m loved by You
It’s who I am, it’s who I am, it’s who I am
You’re a good good Father

You are perfect in all of Your ways
You are perfect in all of Your ways
You are perfect in all of Your ways

Publishing: ©2014 WorshipTogether.com Songs / sixsteps Music / Vamos Publishing / Housefires Sounds (ASCAP) / Capitol CMG Paragon / Common Hymnal Digital / Tony Brown BMI Designee (BMI) (admin. at CapitolCMGPublishing.com)
Writer(s): Pat Barrett and Tony Brown

Discussion

Chris Tomlin is indeed the most prolific songwriter in our day.  Much of what he’s written is marketed as “Praise and Worship” music intended for modern, contemporary, evangelical services. It’s rather impressive when you see the sheer volume of songs credited to him, until you start to look for substance in the lyric. Sadly, it is these songs that are most likely to pop up on one of these Top20 charts… rich theology isn’t what gets top billing in Christian radio airplay.

First off, the song is absolutely correct in its confession that believers serve a Good Good Father. In fact, God the Father is the standard by which we measure Good.

Mark 10:17-22 (ESV) | The Rich Young Man

17 And as he was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and knelt before him and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 18 And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. 19 You know the commandments: ‘Do not murder, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother.’” 20 And he said to him, “Teacher, all these I have kept from my youth.” 21 And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” 22 Disheartened by the saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

We know that Jesus, being God the Son, is Good; therefore, He is calling attention to this man’s pride and self-righteousness. Jesus exposes the man’s belief that he is good in his own sight, thus his definition of Good isn’t a proper one. When our definition of “good” is downgraded to a comparative goodness to our neighbor, it paves the wide path of self-righteousness which runs counter to the Gospel of Repentance.

The intended audience of a song written for corporate worship is those attending church. I wish that I could say “believers” but with so many churches these days running with the “churching the unchurched” model, that cannot be assumed. Evangelicalism is awash in entertainment and confusing attendance with regeneration… if you can just get sinners to keep coming back they are as good as “saved”. If you don’t preach Law and Gospel, you’re just entertaining unbelievers and giving them false-assurance of salvation by works (attending, volunteering, giving).

No Gospel in this Song

Nowhere in this song is Christ, the cross, sin, or repentance mentioned. The world doesn’t have a problem giving ascent to the idea of a Loving God when they are granted ample leeway to define what that Love looks like. They’ll sing along and really belt out “I am loved because its who I am” for as long as you want to repeat the Bridge… they can even declare His perfection in His Ways… as long as their sin is never addressed and they are never called to repentance.

No Biblical Instruction

Getting back to the problem of mystical direct-revelation, the first stanza doesn’t refute the lies of the world with Scripture… no… it appeals to tender whispers of love in the dead of night. /sigh.

There is also the truism of the refrain that “I am loved”. I say truism, because it is true in a broad sense that isn’t specifically salvific.

John 3:16-18 (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.

Ephesians 2:8-9 (ESV)

8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast.

God’s perfect Love for us drives His Grace in delaying the judgement until the second coming of Christ and in giving His Only Son Jesus as an atoning sacrifice for sin. But salvation comes by grace through faith… and those who lack Faith in Him who bore our sins and transgressions in our place on the cross will taste the second death, the final judgement.

The Holy Spirit calls us to repentance and points us to Jesus Christ, the Only begotten Son of the Living God. There is a very awkward (contemplative/mystical/sensual) repetitive section in the song that I want to address regarding the as you call me deeper still into love. Let’s look to the Gospel According to John where Jesus gives the Promise (and teaches the role) of God the Holy Spirit.

John 14:15-31 (ESV) | Jesus Promises the Holy Spirit

15 “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, 17 even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. 18 “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. 19 Yet a little while and the world will see me no more, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. 20 In that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. 21 Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him.” 22 Judas (not Iscariot) said to him, “Lord, how is it that you will manifest yourself to us, and not to the world?” 23 Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. 24 Whoever does not love me does not keep my words. And the word that you hear is not mine but the Father’s who sent me. 25 “These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. 26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. 28 You heard me say to you, ‘I am going away, and I will come to you.’ If you loved me, you would have rejoiced, because I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. 29 And now I have told you before it takes place, so that when it does take place you may believe. 30 I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming. He has no claim on me, 31 but I do as the Father has commanded me, so that the world may know that I love the Father. Rise, let us go from here.

Now, our human self-righteousness tends to hijack the language here regarding the “keeping of His commandments and His Word”. We all sin. This isn’t saying that one has to be sinless to love the Father. Wrong sense of the word “keep”. We should be reading this as in cherishing the Word of the Lord in our hearts in the Proverbs sense of the word.

Proverbs 1:1-7 (ESV) | The Beginning of Knowledge

1 The proverbs of Solomon, son of David, king of Israel:

2 To know wisdom and instruction,
    to understand words of insight,
3 to receive instruction in wise dealing,
    in righteousness, justice, and equity;
4 to give prudence to the simple,
    knowledge and discretion to the youth—
5 Let the wise hear and increase in learning,
    and the one who understands obtain guidance,
6 to understand a proverb and a saying,
    the words of the wise and their riddles.

7 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge;
    fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Even if I can get past the nonsensical repetition of what can only be assumed a tender whisper of love in the dead of night from (Hopefully God the Holy Spirit), “come deeper still into love”… there is no instruction for the Believer in how to answer that call. King Solomon and his father King David pointed to the Word of the Lord. The Written Word of the Lord, even while they had a Prophet of the Lord in their midst. Psalm 119 is a great example, too. Bear in mind, though, that King David and King Solomon were also under the Law of Moses, so they were under obligation of the Law in addition to the Law of Faith. The Chris Tomlin song isn’t pointing to the external Word, the Written Word of God, it is pointing to some internalized emotional experience… an indulgence of whispers in the dead of night. Brothers and sisters, this is dangerous… and no where in Scripture are we instructed to seek God in this manner. We are instructed to seek Him in His Word. To grow in the fullness of the knowledge of Christ.

If only the we’re all searching was descriptive of the Church studying the Word of God. But no, that’s not where contemplatives search for God. They operate under the false-notion that if they engage in “spiritual disciplines” they can find God apart from Scripture… and so this confession of we’re all searching is one of a mystical approach… a fleshly, sensual, emotional one. No one seeks after God. God draws sinners by His Word. If His Word isn’t being preached, no one is seeking Him… they seek replacements for the God they’ve rejected.

Romans 3:9-31 (ESV) | No One Is Righteous

9 What then? Are we Jews any better off? No, not at all. For we have already charged that all, both Jews and Greeks, are under sin, 10 as it is written:

“None is righteous, no, not one;
11     no one understands;
    no one seeks for God.
12 All have turned aside; together they have become worthless;
    no one does good,
    not even one.”
13 “Their throat is an open grave;
    they use their tongues to deceive.”
“The venom of asps is under their lips.”
14     “Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.”
15  “Their feet are swift to shed blood;
16     in their paths are ruin and misery,
17 and the way of peace they have not known.”
18     “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”

19 Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God. 20 For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin.

The Righteousness of God Through Faith

21 But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— 22 the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. 26 It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

27 Then what becomes of our boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of law? By a law of works? No, but by the law of faith. 28 For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law.29 Or is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also, 30 since God is one—who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith. 31 Do we then overthrow the law by this faith? By no means! On the contrary, we uphold the law.

Law and Gospel. Law identifies sin, Gospel grants forgiveness by grace through faith.

Conclusion

The pendulum of “progressive Christianity” is still swinging left here in the US and we are actively exporting this brand of religion around the world. There are some who are trying to reverse the trend, trying to point out the error in slipping away from Sola Scriptura and instead turning to the schemes of men. I’m praying for a revival or reformation of evangelicalism to return once more to the written Word of God, to preaching Law and Gospel, sin and Grace, repentance and forgiveness in the Name of Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.

Jude 24-25 (ESV) | Doxology

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, 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.

Amen.
In Christ Jesus,
Jorge

DiM | “All I Need is You” by Lecrae

Faithful Stewardship 7 Comments

Today is “Discernment in Music” (DiM) day here at Faithful Stewardship (2 Corinthians 10:4-6 (ESV)).

November 5, 2015. Today we’ll be taking a look at “All I Need is You” by Lecrae. This song held the top spot on the Top Billboard Gospel Songs for the week of September 6, 2014. The Billboard chart really loves Lecrae, who held 4 of the 15 spots on the chart that week. Why are we reviewing this song today? Because I was driving my car this past Tuesday…

I’ve mentioned it before, but there are 2 main Contemporary Christian Music (CCM) stations in my area (Augusta, GA), WAFJ 88.3FM and Air1. I generally have my radio set to WAFJ, but I frequently have to switch to Air1 to dodge Beth Moore or some advertisement for a heretic coming to the area to speak at a local conference/church. Sometimes I just have to turn off the radio altogether. I don’t always remember to flip back to WAFJ, since while I’m driving that’s my priority… driving. This past Tuesday, while I was grabbing some fast food on my way back from errands, this song played on the radio. I was completely confused by it. Since I was in my car, waiting in the drive-thru line, I didn’t take the time to look up the back-story of the song… so I took to twitter with my first reaction after the song finished and the lyrics still tumbled in my mind…

confusedtweets

The first tweet went out just before I was handed my food. Once I got to my desk I finalized the DiM post for Tuesday and then started researching this Lecrae song to find some backstory. While this song does stay firmly in the “disapprove” category, I want to clearly state its intended context up-front. It was not properly setup by Air1 either in an intro or outro, so just hearing these lyrics in the mix of other vaguely “Christian” songs immediately tripped by “Jesus is my bearded girlfriend” brand of false-worship alarm. The lyrics themselves don’t clear it up, unfortunately, but I found an MTV interview that clarified Lecrae’s intent with the song. Not stellar, but at least it clears up the focus of the song… it’s to/for/about his wife, not God.

Let’s be honest — for all the great things that hip-hop has achieved culturally, shining a positive light on monogamous relationships certainly isn’t one of them. The genre has faced plenty of criticism for being misogynistic, and while we have to accept that a sizable portion of that is purely for entertainment, there are still very few artists waving the flag for healthy relationships. Lecrae hopes to change that, beginning with a song like “A I Need is You.”

“When you see Jay Z and Beyonce, [you think], okay, marriage is cool now. They set a trend and I think that’s healthy,” he explained. “It’s just continuing with that trend of — what if we’re monogamous? What if we’re consistent in our relationships? What if we tell the truth? What if we don’t lie? What if we don’t cheat? What if we love somebody and we’re not afraid to say it in a hip-hop song? You’ve gotta continue to set trends and be different.” Read More

Lecrae also did an interview with Billboard Music where this track was discussed a bit:

“I just want to be able to die saying I gave it my all in terms of being a voice,” says Lecrae. “All this stuff is nice to me — being seen and heard and all that stuff — and I’m sure that’s the dream for a lot of people. But for me, they’re hammers and nails. So it’s like, the Grammy is a hammer, but what am I going to build with it?”

Lecrae is well aware that the fans who have carried him this far — from the Christian music community to the stadium locker rooms — may worry that he will leave the inspirational message behind as he eyes the mainstream. “Some people assume that you’re now going to be talking about whatever appeals to culture,” says Lecrae. “Like, ‘Now you’re going to be talking about drugs and sex.’ I’m not going to do that. But I will be talking about things that both people in the church and out of the church are concerned with and think about. Love. This whole video shoot is about love and being in love, and everybody can relate to that.”

As if on cue, Darragh enters the kitchen carrying their son, who has just been woken up from his afternoon nap. The little boy is not happy about this, aggressively rubbing his eyes and fighting consciousness.

“Hey, champ!” whispers Lecrae. “I love you!” Darragh hands the toddler to Lecrae, and the child nuzzles his head into his father’s chest and seems to relax. “Consistency, man; integrity, character — [I’m just] representing those aspects that are not, for whatever reason, within hip-hop culture,” he continues. “It’s almost like people can’t even believe that they can coexist. That’s a win for me, for people to be able to say, ‘Faith, fatherhood, monogamy exists in hip-hop.’ Yes, we’re here.” Read More

While these interviews give enough clarity for me to back down from my first tweet regarding this song, it doesn’t tip me in favor of this song being played on Christian Radio. Why? Because I struggle to find any Christian message in either of these interviews. Sure, the label “Christian” pops up here and there, but not pointing to Christ. The word “gospel” gets mentioned, but the Gospel isn’t being proclaimed. There was even mention of a cross… the one that Lecrae bears (a stigma of being a bible-thumping Christian), not the Cross of Jesus Christ. With all of this in place, let’s now look at today’s song.

Lecrae Reach Records Video

Lyrics (via Air1)

All I Need is You

By my side, thick and thin
Highs and lows, don’t let go
We gone ride, we gone win
Don’t know how, all I know
(All I need is you)

Keep me in my timezone when my mind’s gone
When I’m flying home
And I’m stressed out and I’m tempted to get that styrofoam
And go pour it up, but you know what’s up
And you know that ain’t gone solve nothing
I mean Lord forbid I might fall or something
And I’m all or nothing cause (all I need is you)
To hold me down like bed straps to the psych ward
It’s killing me but you still with me when I fight hard
And (all I need is you)
You diggin’ me when I’m iggin’ you
Get with me when my card’s pulled
Coulda dealt with me but you fell for me ‘for I fell for you
To keep me on that right path and the right math
Cause you plus nothin’s everything
You my everything, saying
(All I need is)
You, ain’t gotta question my allegiance
Cause the way you love me I could never leave ya, I need ya

You, you’re all I ever needed
You’re all I ever needed

You, you’re all I ever needed
You’re all I ever needed

How did I fall in this?
No condition that get a mention but you offer this
Unconditional love, I swear I sell it all for this
I’m tryna keep it together, forgive my awkwardness
But umm, often it’s just you and me off in this
Valley of shadows and I know they tryna pick me off in this
But all I need is you
It’s funny just how off I get when I ain’t riding with you
No adjectives for yo’ awesomeness
They burning one for that burn out
This life done got ‘em all turnt out
Took time out to put time in so I turn to you when I’m worn out
All I need is you
You slow me down cause you know me now with my phony smile
And I’m acting like it’s all copacetic
It’s so pathetic, so juvenile
Know what you do
You keep me cool in the summer
When they be dressing less and I be wantin’ to show off and stunt
There ain’t nothing to want, you give me all that I need
All I need is you to keep that fire burning for me
All I need is you

You, you’re all I ever needed
You’re all I ever needed

You, you’re all I ever needed
You’re all I ever needed

Ain’t nobody gone get in the way
Put that on my money in the bank
Cause you do what them others can’t
And I love that, yea
We gone ride till the wheels fall off
Above it all, we can never fall, yea
Hold my hand, we can have it all
Hold my hand, we can have it all

You, you’re all I ever needed
You’re all I ever needed

You, you’re all I ever needed
You’re all I ever needed

You always pick me up when I’m feelin’ down
You always make it better for me some how
All I need is you, cause all I need is you
(All I need is you)

Publishing: Fellowship of The Unashamed (BMI) A Man Broke Free (ASCAP) Dramatic Pen Publishing/Almo Music Corp (ASCAP) Unashamed Music/Joseph Prielozny Music (ASCAP) Before I Die Publishing (BMI)
Writer(s): Lecrae Moore, Dustin Bowie, Latasha Williams, Joseph Prielozny, Chris Mackey

Discussion

God doesn’t even get an honorable mention in this song. There is a “Lord forbid I might fall or something”, but that’s just a turn of phrase like “heaven forbid” or “goodness knows”. The hook is “All I Need is You” with a backup track that echos “you’re all I ever needed”… when played on a CCM Radio station, I’m thinking the “you” is intended to be God the Father, the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Our LORD and Savior. But I’m thankful that is not the case, considering how many of the lines would fall into works-based self-righteousness in that setup. However, since this is a song sung to his wife, we have a different set of problems. The song has several lines of praise to his wife that leave Jesus out of the picture:

To keep me on that right path and the right math, Cause you plus nothin’s everything, You my everything, saying (All I need is)

You, you’re all I ever needed

But umm, often it’s just you and me off in this Valley of shadows and I know they tryna pick me off in this But all I need is you

There is no context given to frame this praise that could leave any room for a Christ-honoring relationship. I get the desire to promote monogamy, but God created marriage and He did so to point us to Him. The Apostle Paul anchored his admonishment for married couples in Christ, and we should do the same…

Ephesians 5:15-33 (ESV)

Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise,making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.

Wives and Husbands

Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands. 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. In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church, because we are members of his body. “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church.However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.

The Gospel of Jesus Christ is fully articulated in Paul’s teaching on the marriage relationship. So how can a Christian artist get through an entire love song to his wife without even mentioning our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ? By focusing on appealing to MTV and Billboard while “bearing the cross” of them assuming certain things about his Christianity… like that he would talk them through the Bible. Well, there’s no bible in this song. Sure, the Valley of Shadows gets a mention, but it’s okay… Lecrae only needs his wife… no one else. Never mind that when David wrote Psalm 23, the “You” is the LORD, not one of David’s wives.

Psalm 23 (ESV) | The Lord Is My Shepherd
A Psalm of David.

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
    He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters.
    He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness
    for his name’s sake.

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
    I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
    your rod and your staff,
    they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me
    in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil;
    my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
    all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord
    forever.

Conclusion

I find myself quite angry once again, only this time my anger is pointed more at Air1 for playing the song than for Lecrae for producing it. It’s our job to be discerning. Read through the MTV and Billboard interviews… Lecrae is aiming for secular relevance… his profession of Christianity is what he relies on to make him look unique in a sea of hip-hop.

“I always liked the content of a Common, but the commercial viability of a Lil Jon,” says Lecrae, who along with Washer (the two had no formal business background) launched Reach Records in Dallas in 2004. “And I would say, ‘Why don’t those worlds ever come together?’ So for me it was like, ‘Let’s do that.'” Read More

There is a need for Christian Music to preach Law to expose sin in all areas, including sexual purity, marriage, and fidelity… but CCM is seriously lacking in proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Instead it is awash in legalism, man-made law, and mysticism and idolatry. Your marriage is a gift from God intended to point you to Him. Our sinful flesh will always strive to worship the created rather than the Creator (Romans 1). Humble yourselves in repentance, and know that Christ died to pay the penalty for our sin, so that by His Grace we are saved through Faith in Christ Jesus.

2 Thessalonians 2:16-17 (ESV)

Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word.

Amen.
In Christ Jesus,
Jorge

DiM | “Just Be Held” by Casting Crowns

Faithful Stewardship 3 Comments

Today is “Discernment in Music” (DiM) day here at Faithful Stewardship (2 Corinthians 10:4-6 (ESV)).

November 3, 2015. Today we’ll be taking a look at “Just Be Held” by Casting Crowns which currently sits at #15 on the 20theCountdownMagazine.

I tend to hold bands like Casting Crowns to a higher standard because they are not simply musicians, they are youth pastors.  Whatever song they (and other “youth pastor” bands) put out is going to be assumed to carry a Christian message because, for one, the song will play on Christian radio stations, and doubly-so because Mark Hall is a youth pastor (article). The context of these DiM posts remains unchanged, we take each song individually to see if it squares with Scripture. We check the messaging of the song to see if it indeed conveys a Christian message (Law and Gospel) to a recognizable target audience (unbeliever or believer or both). While this song falls short, it is important to remember that Casting Crown still produces themed albums, and the vagueness of this song might be addressed more fully in the remaining songs of the album. Such is outside of our context here.

Casting Crowns Official Lyric Video

Lyrics (via Casting Crowns Website)

Just Be Held

Hold it all together
Everybody needs you strong
But life hits you out of nowhere
And barely leaves you holding on

And when you’re tired of fighting
Chained by your control
There’s freedom in surrender
Lay it down and let it go

So when you’re on your knees and answers seem so far away
You’re not alone, stop holding on and just be held
Your worlds not falling apart, its falling into place
I’m on the throne, stop holding on and just be held
Just be held, just be held

If your eyes are on the storm
You’ll wonder if I love you still
But if your eyes are on the cross
You’ll know I always have and I always will

And not a tear is wasted
In time, you’ll understand
I’m painting beauty with the ashes
Your life is in My hands

Lift your hands, lift your eyes
In the storm is where you’ll find Me
And where you are, Ill hold your heart
I’ll hold your heart
Come to Me, find your rest
In the arms of the God who wont let go

Publishing: © 2013 Sony/ATV Tree Publishing (BMI) All rights on behalf of Sony/ATV Tree Publishing administered by Sony/ATV. / My Refuge Music (BMI) (adm. at CapitolCMGPublishing.com) / Songs of Universal, Inc. (BMI) / G650 Music (BMI) / Songs for Emily Music Publishing (ASCAP). All rights reserved. Used by permission.
Writer(s): Mark Hall, Bernie Herms, Matthew West

Discussion

After listening to this song for the first time, I had some strong concerns over the shallowness of the message. After last week’s DiM post, I wanted to make sure that I was giving each song a fair shake, so I asked my wife to assist me in this review. Now before we discuss the song for ourselves, let us review what Casting Crowns share on their website regarding this song.

“I was out with my students surfing in Florida once and we were just learning how to get up and how to do this thing. I never mastered it, but when I got the closest to getting on the board a wave hit me and I went rolling.  I rolled so many times that I realized I didn’t know where up was. I couldn’t figure out where the air was. The light was going everywhere and that was a terrifying feeling of no control (absolutely no control). I think when life’s storm hits us, that’s what we’re looking for. We’re looking for something we can grab onto and steady ourselves…we may even look at our faith that way. I need to grab onto God and steady myself, but what I’m finding even in our recent storm of life with our little girl Hope, and all the things that she’s been through medically, is that I just can’t grab a hold of something. What I’ve got to understand is that God is taking a hold of me. Instead of being the ‘fixer Daddy’ that grabs a hold of whatever I can and makes this work, I’ve got to understand that I’m already in His hands. I’m already being held and I’m already in His control and in His protection, even in the chaos. This song, to me, reminds me that I am being held by Him. As crazy as it is when I look around me, I’ve got to rest in that truth.”

My wife gave the song a listen and after listening to the song, we discussed several points we will be exploring later in this post. Then I asked my wife to read the above description, and her response was, “Well, so the song is a positive secular song with a really moving back-story performed by a professing Christian“. I quite agree.

So, let’s take a look at the lyric of the song. Who is the target audience of this song? Based on the back-story and some context clues in the chorus and in the second verse, I think it is safe to assume this song is intended for believers. While that doesn’t mean we don’t need to hear the Gospel in this song, it merely means that we needn’t make allowances for how this song comes across to an unbeliever. We don’t expect this song to be played for the unbeliever to understand, and that’s okay, as long as we are aware of this.

Verse 1. The general theme of this first verse is that the listener is living his (or her) life as he sees fit,  under his own control and that in so doing he is resisting God from taking care of things for him. There is an odd separation between the Christian life and the “life” that  supposedly hits us out of nowhere. But life doesn’t come out of nowhere… it’s always right here, in our faces. Sure, we sometimes engage in escapism and choose to ignore life for a season, but we are the ones taking a leave of absence… life continues. More importantly, “life” isn’t some impersonal cosmic force like fate or karma. There is no such thing as “life” separate from God. There is only the Creator, the created, sin, death, grace, forgiveness, and the resurrection for those who Believe. So the song is addressing an errant worldview in the listener, but it isn’t identifying that worldview as errant. Instead, it attempt to provide an answer within the framework of that worldview, that the believer who is struggling to keep “life” under control should instead simply let go of his struggling. While some might argue that the message here is to cast your cares on Christ, that isn’t the language of the turn at the end of this verse. The main problem with this verse, is how it encourages the notion that when things get tough, it’s because of something you did or didn’t do, and the solution is to let go and stop holding on. As a blanket problem & solution statement, it falls flat.

James 1:2-4 (ESV) | Testing of Your Faith

2 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4 And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

Steadfastness isn’t really the same as let go and stop holding on. It’s more of a hold on and stand firm idea. There is also the phrase, “there is freedom in surrender”… not found in Scripture. But it does seem to be a popular charismatic theme… the idea of “surrendering to the spirit” is central to New Age Presence theology. For most, the idea of discerning the spirits runs contrary to this finding freedom in surrender to the spirit. On a practical level… just what is the listener supposed to do with the notion of “surrendering or letting go”? Sound theology tells us to confess sin, repent, and place our faith in Christ Jesus. In his closing remarks to his second letter to the Corinthians, the Apostle Paul writes, “Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. Let all that you do be done in love.” 1 Corinthians 16:13-14 (ESV)

Chorus. The chorus doesn’t help provide any clarity, really. Sure, the listener is on his knees (either in prayer or in worship), but looking for answers? We look to the scriptures for answers, we pray for strength, forgiveness, mercy, and grace… but prayer is a one-way street. We pray to God, and trust in Him to provide for our needs according to His Will and for His Glory. But when we take this line of the chorus and flip it, what do we get? We get an assumption that spending time on our knees in prayer should produce answers. Do we worship God to get answers or do we worship Him because He is God? No, don’t look to Victoria Osteen for the answer, she’s way off-base. We pray to God because He is God. We make our petitions known to Him, we confess our sins and ask forgiveness, and we worship and trust Him because of Who He Is.

The line in the chorus that really stands out as problematic for me and doubly-so for my wife, is Your world’s not falling apart, it’s falling into place. Presumptuous blanket assertion. Dear Christian, the world is falling apart. It’s going to be utterly destroyed. Your world isn’t yours… and while there are times when things will be better and make sense in this life, that isn’t always the case… because this world is not our home.

1 John 2:15-17 (ESV) | Do Not Love the World

15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. 17 And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.

If the goal is to rescue the messaging of this song, then I say focus entirely on letting go of Your World. Let go of your dreams, aspirations, self-proclaimed destinies. In this way, we can at least save 2 lines of the song, for God is on His throne. When you hear “just let go” instead think, “do not be anxious for anything”. Our hope is not in our selves, or in our circumstances, our hope is in the Lord.

1 Peter 1:3-9 (ESV) | Born Again to a Living Hope

3 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, 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 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. 8 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, 9 obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

Peter wasn’t puffing up his readers with false hope in everyone’s world “falling into place” in this life. Peter was pointing them to the Resurrection, to the Kingdom of Heaven. We should do likewise in our speech, prayer, and songs.

In the end, we get the call to just be held. Well, that’s great… I’m sure this is quite the comfort for the believer enduring real trials and tribulations in this life. This is where we need the body of Christ, our brothers and sisters in the household of faith. To encourage us in the Word, to extend grace and good works for the up-building of the body of Christ.

James 2:14-17 (ESV) | Faith Without Works Is Dead

14 What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? 17 So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

So, while the song directs the listener inwardly or surrendering in a mystical sense, God’s word urges us to love one another in Christ Jesus. Modern Evangelicalism is drowning in self-focused emotional mysticism… some of it even taking on a sensual note (thankfully, not in this song).

Verse 2. The second verse is better than what we’ve seen thus far in the song. However, there is still the subtle conditional statements that seem to hinge knowledge of the truth upon what the listener does. IF your eyes are on the storm you’ll doubt…, but IF your eyes are on the cross you’ll know… The target audience of this song is already suffering from thinking they need to do something to merit favor… and the song has given the listener empty commands to “just let go” and “stop holding on” and “just be held”… when the listener needs to hear, “your sins are Forgiven you, You are Mine, no one can take you out of My Hand, I am coming back soon, this world is not your home, I’ve gone to prepare a place for you, etc” the real Promises of God to His Bride, to His Body, to His Children. My point being that the truth is the truth even if your eyes are fixated on the storm. Tell me the truth to get my eyes off of the lie, don’t place the truth behind a contingency of me first getting my eyes off of what I’m fearing. That’s too much like “seek God and then the Gospel will set you free”… which is backward.

Bridge/Close. The best line in the entire song is Come to Me, Find your rest. I have a feeling that this was the intended message of the entire song… but it faltered in its execution. Trying to comfort a believer who is burdened by a false worldview without correcting that worldview is an exercise in futility. It’s like trying to treat an infected wound without removing the foreign object. When it comes to finding rest in Christ Jesus, I think the best place to look is Hebrews 4.

Hebrews 4 (ESV)

4 Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us fear lest any of you should seem to have failed to reach it. 2 For good news came to us just as to them, but the message they heard did not benefit them, because they were not united by faith with those who listened. 3 For we who have believed enter that rest, as he has said,

“As I swore in my wrath,
‘They shall not enter my rest,’”

although his works were finished from the foundation of the world. 4 For he has somewhere spoken of the seventh day in this way: “And God rested on the seventh day from all his works.” 5 And again in this passage he said,

“They shall not enter my rest.”

6 Since therefore it remains for some to enter it, and those who formerly received the good news failed to enter because of disobedience, 7 again he appoints a certain day, “Today,” saying through David so long afterward, in the words already quoted,

“Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts.”

8 For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken of another day later on. 9 So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, 10 for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his.

11 Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience. 12 For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. 13 And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account.

Jesus the Great High Priest

14 Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Amen. This rest doesn’t come by striving, or by escaping, or by lying to yourself (so-called “positive thinking”); rather, this rest comes by Grace through Faith in Christ Jesus.

Conclusion

If the best line in the song could have been made more clear earlier in the song, I probably wouldn’t have disapproved of it. In fact, I’m still somewhat torn on the disposition of this song on the list, but the errors in the song are significant. We can’t just allow such a sloppy worldview to persist while seeking to encourage a struggling brother/sister in Christ. In the end, the problems outweigh the marginal benefits of vague appeals to churchy sayings like “let go and let God” or “find freedom in surrender” or other such nonsense. As Stewards of God’s Grace and His Written Word, we can do better than that. We must do better than that… Preach the Word, both in season and out of season.

2 Thessalonians 2:16-17 (ESV)

16 Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace, 17 comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word.

Amen.
In Christ Jesus,
Jorge

CTT | Gospel Tract Needs More Gospel

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CTTWe don’t see a lot of Gospel Tracts these days while we are out and about. Two weeks ago while shopping at a local Home Improvement store, my son announced his need to use the restroom. While waiting for him to finish his business, I noticed what looked like a gospel tract lying on the toilet paper dispenser. I thought, “hmmm… don’t see that very often these days”. I picked it up quickly and read the cover, “You Say You’re Saved But…” Huh? Okay, then… wasn’t going to leave this behind. Today we’ll work through this tract and the need to distinguish Law and Gospel.

Audience for the Tract

So the front of this tract says this:

You
Say
You’re
Saved

But…

Who is the target audience of this tract? This is a common question we ask here during our Discernment in Music (DiM) posts, so there is clearly a force of habit at play, but seriously, who is the target audience of this tract? Someone who says they are “saved”. That is a particularly Christian turn of phrase. It’s a churchism. So this is a tract that was left in the bathroom stall of a Home Improvement store targeting professing Christians? I agree that there is a lot of bad teaching out there and that the problem of false converts is real, but this is an odd approach to addressing that problem. Without opening the tract, I’m already wondering, “why isn’t this at a Christian bookstore or Megachurch?” I’m concerned about the “but…” in bold letters. What is this tract going to use to counter the reader’s profession of faith?

Does your life magnify Jesus Christ?

Ouch. So, okay… the test for “am I saved” is “Does my life magnify Jesus Christ”? The tract then says

Colossians 3:17a, 1:18c, “And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus…that in all things he might have the preeminence.”
SO, LET ME ASK YOU. ARE YOU SAVED?

It was at this point that I almost lost it in that store. We’ll get to the proof-texting at play in just a minute, but taken at face value, is there ANYONE alive who can rightly claimed to be saved if this is the first test? No. Only Jesus, the Christ, the Messiah, Son of the Living God passed this test. And because He did and then gave His Life as a substitutionary atonement for our sin, by the Grace of God and through Faith in Christ Jesus our unrighteousness is exchanged for His righteousness.

Now, let’s deal with the proof-texting. They didn’t even bother to let the Scripture speak for itself. The took a phrase from a verse in Chapter 3 and closed its thought with a phrase pulled from Chapter 1. Does the Bible not plainly teach on salvation anywhere in scripture, such that we are left to matrix the most fundamental of doctrines? In truth, Chapter 3 does contain the Gospel… but since this tract is trying to beat up the reader with Law right out of the chute, the author has taken a Gospel passage and turned into a commandment. The book of Colossians isn’t a dictionary or a lexicon where we strip mine ideas and phrases to construct new thoughts, laws, or principles. It was a letter, written by the Apostle Paul to the Christians in Colossae. This is the only reference to Colossians made in this tract, and they literally flipped the message backwards in their only proof-text. Paul begins with the Preeminence of Christ and builds up the reader into good works as the outflow of the work of the Gospel, yet this proof-text takes good works as that which gives the Lord Jesus preeminence in our lives, proving our salvation. Let’s look at the text in order.

Colossians 1:1-23 (ESV)

1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, 2 To the saints and faithful brothers in Christ at Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father.

Thanksgiving and Prayer

3 We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, 4 since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, 5 because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel, 6 which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and increasing—as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth, 7 just as you learned it from Epaphras our beloved fellow servant. He is a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf 8 and has made known to us your love in the Spirit. 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.11 May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, 12 giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. 13 He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

The 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.

There are so many places to look for the Law of God which convicts us of sin… why do violence to the text, twisting the Gospel into a Law that cannot be fulfilled by our flesh (proof-text portion was underlined above)? Paul goes on in Chapter 2 to warn against being led away or shifting from the hope of the Gospel that was preached to them, particularly for those who would seek to enslave them once again under the elementary principles of law-keeping as a means of proving their salvation (like this tract seems to want to do).

Colossians 2 (ESV)

2 For I want you to know how great a struggle I have for you and for those at Laodicea and for all who have not seen me face to face, 2 that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, to reach all the riches of full assurance of understanding and the knowledge of God’s mystery, which is Christ, 3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. 4 I say this in order that no one may delude you with plausible arguments. 5 For though I am absent in body, yet I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good order and the firmness of your faith in Christ.

Alive in Christ

6 Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, 7 rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving. 8 See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ.9 For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, 10 and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority. 11 In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, 12 having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead. 13 And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, 14 by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. 15 He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.

Let No One Disqualify You

16 Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. 17 These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ. 18 Let no one disqualify you, insisting on asceticism and worship of angels, going on in detail about visions, puffed up without reason by his sensuous mind, 19 and not holding fast to the Head, from whom the whole body, nourished and knit together through its joints and ligaments, grows with a growth that is from God. 20 If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations— 21 “Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch” 22 (referring to things that all perish as they are used)—according to human precepts and teachings? 23 These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh.

Colossians 3:1-17 (ESV) | Put On the New Self

3 If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. 3 For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. 5 Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity,passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. 6 On account of these the wrath of God is coming. 7 In these you too once walked, when you were living in them. 8 But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth. 9 Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. 11 Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all. 12 Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, 13 bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. 14 And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. 15 And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. 17 And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

This is a Gospel Epistle… not a test of proving your salvation. Salvation isn’t something you prove by how well you’ve maintained the preeminence of Jesus Christ in your works. What does Paul point his readers to, their good works? Absolutely not! He points them to the preeminence of Christ, His finished work on the Cross for our sake, the Gospel of Hope that was preached to them, the forgiveness of sin by faith in Jesus Christ, for God took our debts of sin and transgressions and left them nailed to the cross of Jesus Christ. Paul transitions, painting a picture of our having joined in the death of Christ in water baptism, and Paul urges us to walk in newness of life by faith. You see, good works flows as the result of our regeneration in Christ, but Paul isn’t making them the proof of salvation here. We will continue to fall short and we will continually need to forgive one another, as we ask for forgiveness in our daily prayers.

This tract continues to take the Gospel passages and twists them into Law, accusing the professing Christian reader of not truly being saved since they cannot live up to standard of Jesus Christ. We’ll continue with the tract for a bit longer.

Does it show in your Lifestyle?

Now, we need to be careful here. We agree that a life of faith should look differently from a life of unbelief, we know this from the Epistle of James. If there is no visible difference in our lives, then can such a faith that produces no good work truly be saving faith? That’s a fair question and that should be where this question is pointing. Sadly, the tract goes back into the burden of law while skipping Gospel passages.

2 Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold all things are become new.”
The “old things” here are the desires one had prior to salvation in Christ Jesus. When someone gets truly born again they are brand new. All the sins they once enjoyed are no longer a part of the will or the life of the new believer, and have been replaced…

See what they did there? If sin is still tempting to you, you aren’t truly born again. Because when you are born again, those desires go away and are replaced with Godly desires. Is that what the Bible teaches? That our flesh becomes perfect once we are born again? Not in this life. Will we be able to measure our salvation by our earthly perfection? Nope. Am I exaggerating the points being made by this tract? Let’s look at the remaining headings:

  • Does it show in your love? Do you love Jesus more than ANYTHING? The only way that is possible is if you are saved….John 14:15, “if ye love me, keep my commandments.”
  • Does it show that he is your LORD? Luke 6:46, “and why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?”…if you profess Jesus Christ as Lord, but have never given Him full control of your life, you say you are saved, but it seems just to be a mere profession without salvation.

So, when the tract finally gets around to the Gospel, we get a list of commands:

YOU MUST:

  1. Accept that you are a sinner Romans 3:23, For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.”
  2. Agree with God, and repent of your ins 2 Peter 3:9, “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering toward us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.”
    Acts 17:30, “And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men everywhere to repent:”
  3. Call on Jesus and ask Him to save you Romans 10:9-10,13, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, though shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

Okay, so the reader goes through this list… and within an hour (I’m being generous), the believer will still fail every single one of the tests of salvation presented in the tract. The closing paragraph just before the contact information for the local church that purchased the tract breaks my heart.

God tells us to examine ourselves whether we be in the faith. Let the Lord search your heart. Will you listen to what He has to say to you? If you are not saved, are you willing to call upon the Lord Jesus and ask Him to forgive your sins and save you? Will you give Him your HEART and LIFE? REMEMBER, HE WANT TO SAVE YOU!

If only the Gospel had been clearly presented in the tract… without being crumpled into law. The professing Christian who still struggles with sin, with making Jesus Christ preeminent in his works (words and deeds) isn’t saved? This Gospel tract is an example of confusing Law and Gospel, and it provides no rest for the reader, no hope for the believer, nothing but works-based assurance.

Conclusion

Don’t share tracts like these. Get rid of them. Learn the proper distinction between Law and Gospel. It isn’t your place to measure the good works of one of Christ’s servants, merely to preach law and gospel and let the Holy Spirit work in His people. The Law is holy, and profitable for exposing sin and putting it to death in our flesh. We will all die. Our flesh is cursed, it is rotten and decayed due to sin. Please read through 1 Corinthians 15… Paul repeats the Gospel and then goes on to explain the Resurrection that is to come. We are indeed made new creatures by faith in Christ Jesus, but as long as the old flesh remains, it is being brought to death (by the Law of God as punishment for sin) so that when that which is our flesh finally passes away, that which is Spiritual will rise again in Christ Jesus.

1 Thessalonians 5:23-24 (ESV)

23 Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.

In Christ Jesus,
Jorge