tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21906114475053745082024-03-18T21:33:50.803-07:00Looking Unto Jesus"Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."<br>Hebrews 12:2
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<center><a href="http://aaronblock.blogspot.com/">(Esta pagina en Español)</a></center>Aaron Blockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14606845955857824160noreply@blogger.comBlogger179125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190611447505374508.post-51070215505261499262013-12-19T20:42:00.000-08:002013-12-19T20:47:55.450-08:00Wayne Grudem's Old Earth Views Refuted<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iNSrx2aTFVs/UrPGOZrZapI/AAAAAAAABUM/qIk5WttvBlo/s1600/Gr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iNSrx2aTFVs/UrPGOZrZapI/AAAAAAAABUM/qIk5WttvBlo/s320/Gr.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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Grudem's Systematic Theology is a wonderful and extremely
helpful resource for any Christian. In fact, I would be in agreement with the
majority of what is written in it. However, when it comes to the topics of the
age of the earth and the global flood, Grudem clearly misses it.</div>
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Quite frankly, his views are inconsistent, illogical at
times, fallacious (some of his arguments), and even unbiblical. I honestly
expected better from a scholar. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Below, Answers in Genesis reviews a section of his
disappointing chapter about Creation.</div>
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See entire article here:<br />
<a href="http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/arj/v2/n1/systematic-theology-age-of-earth#fnMark_1_52_1">http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/arj/v2/n1/systematic-theology-age-of-earth#fnMark_1_52_1</a><br />
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<b>Views of Wayne Grudem</b><br />Systematic Theology,<br />Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1994</h3>
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Wayne Grudem’s theology text is immensely influential, having been translated into at least eight major languages. On the positive side, Grudem affirms <i>ex nihilo</i> creation and the direct supernatural creation of Adam and Eve (Grudem 1994, pp. 262–266). He has a helpful discussion of the biblical view of God’s relation to creation compared to the views of deists, atheists, pantheists, and others (Grudem 1994, pp. 266–270). He rejects biological evolution and presents good reasons for rejecting theistic evolution, the framework hypothesis, and the gap theory (Grudem 1994, pp. 279–286 (biological evolution), pp. 276–279 (theistic evolution), pp. 300–304 (framework hypothesis) and pp. 287–289 (gap theory). He also affirms belief in a global Flood (Grudem 1994, p. 306). In the bibliography at the end of his chapter on creation, Grudem refers to a number of young-earth books dealing with the age of the earth (most of which he identifies with “young earth view” after the citation). In this he is far more up-to-date and fair in his treatment of the young-earth view than Erickson and Lewis/Demarest are. But his old-earth arguments fail at many points.</div>
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Inconsistencies in rejecting some old-earth views</h3>
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For example, he affirms that an atheistic form of the big bang theory is inconsistent with Scripture, but his qualified wording does not rule out a theistic big bang theory (Grudem 1994, p. 275).<span style="vertical-align: text-top;"><a href="http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/arj/v2/n1/systematic-theology-age-of-earth#fnList_1_45" name="fnMark_1_45_1" style="text-decoration: none;">45</a></span> Since he is open to the evolutionary timescale as advocated by old-earth proponents who are astrophysicists and do accept the big bang as fact,<span style="vertical-align: text-top;"><a href="http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/arj/v2/n1/systematic-theology-age-of-earth#fnList_1_46" name="fnMark_1_46_1" style="text-decoration: none;">46</a></span> he must, to be consistent, be open to the big bang order of events which contradict the order in Genesis (with the earth created before the stars and sun), even though he rejects theistic evolution. In rejecting the framework hypothesis, he says that the strongest argument against it is that “the implication of chronological sequence in the [<cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;" title="Genesis 1"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Genesis 1" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Genesis%201" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Genesis 1</a></cite>] narrative is almost inescapable” (Grudem 1994, p. 303.) But if the days are sequential, then the events that occurred on each day must be sequential also (unless the text explicitly tells us otherwise, which in the case of the sun, moon, and stars, it does not). So any theistic version of the big bang theory is also inconsistent with Scripture. But Grudem does not clearly say so.</div>
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Three of his arguments against the gap theory also count against all other old-earth views, including Grudem’s tentatively-held day-age view. First, Grudem correctly says there is no verse explicitly speaking of a previous creation before this one. But likewise there is not a single verse in the Bible that explicitly speaks of or supports the idea of millions of years of time in <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;" title="Genesis 1"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Genesis 1" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Genesis%201" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Genesis 1</a></cite>. Second, he explains that if the gap theory is correct, then God calls the creation “very good” as He looks at an earth “full of the results of rebellion, conflict and terrible divine judgment” (Grudem 1994, p. 288). But in accepting the millions of years, Grudem is implying that God looked at the fossil record of death and disease, the destructive results of supernova explosions and asteroids bombarding the earth and other planets, and the other evidence of His apparently clumsy attempts at creation over millions of years, and then He called it all “very good.” Third, Grudem rightly reasons that the theistic evolution theory</div>
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must assume that all of the fossils of animals from millions of years ago that resemble very closely animals from today indicate that God’s first creation of the animal and plant kingdom [<i>sic</i>] resulted in a failure (Grudem 1994, p. 289).</blockquote>
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But the same indictment can be made of all old-earth theories, for they would concur with theistic evolution on this point. Only the young-earth view reflects the wisdom and power and creative success of our Creator, because in that view all the death and suffering is post-Fall.</div>
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As noted, Grudem rejects theistic evolution. But his first two reasons for doing so also stand against all other old-earth views. First, he says that the “purposefulness in God’s work in creation seems incompatible with the randomness demanded by evolutionary theory” (referring to the millions of random mutations that the theory requires) (Grudem 1994, p. 276). But this counts equally against the blind, random, millions-of-years process of star and galaxy evolution in the big bang theory and the randomness of the millions-of-years formation of the earth and its strata to become our current habitable planet. If Scripture speaks of God’s intelligent design of living creatures, as Grudem rightly understands, it equally clearly speaks of His intelligent design of the stars and the earth, which were made for His glory and by His wisdom and have always operated according to His righteous ordinances.<span style="vertical-align: text-top;"><a href="http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/arj/v2/n1/systematic-theology-age-of-earth#fnList_1_47" name="fnMark_1_47_1" style="text-decoration: none;">47</a></span> Grudem holds to a “straightforward biblical account of creation” to oppose theistic evolution (Grudem 1994, p. 276) and insists that the account of the Fall of Adam and Eve is a “straightforward narrative history” (Grudem 1994, p. 493). But the same straightforward exegetical approach to all of <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;" title="Genesis 1–11"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Genesis 1–11" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Genesis%201%E2%80%9311" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Genesis 1–11</a></cite> requires the rejection of all old-earth theories.</div>
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Second, Grudem quotes <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Psalm 33.6–9" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Psalm%2033.6%E2%80%939" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Psalm 33:6–9</a></cite> and says that we should reject theistic evolution because “Scripture pictures God’s creative word as bringing an immediate response” (Grudem 1994, p. 277). He rightly says that these verses seem incompatible with the idea that “after millions of years and millions of random mutations in living things” the creation was what God called for. But the verses are equally incompatible with the theory of slow gradual, millions-of-years evolution of nonliving things such as the stars, galaxies, and the earth. In fact, these verses specifically mention the heavenly bodies, but not living creatures. So, Grudem has missed the explicit teaching of the passage. God did not need and God did not take billions of years to make the earth and the heavenly objects. As the psalmist says, God spoke and it was done. He spoke and there was light. He spoke and dry land appeared. He spoke and the sun, moon, and stars came into existence. He did not have to wait millions of years for things to happen in response to His commands.</div>
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Since Grudem accepts the Creation account as straightforward history and the chronological sequence of events in <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;" title="Genesis 1"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Genesis 1" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Genesis%201" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Genesis 1</a></cite>, and since he believes the divine acts of creation were instantaneous, then by accepting millions of years he must necessarily believe that the divine creative acts were separated by millions of years. There is no other place to put the time. But where is the wisdom or even purpose of God in creating plants instantly and then waiting millions of years to create the sun, or in creating the sea and flying creatures instantly and then waiting millions of years to create land animals and man?</div>
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The importance of the age of the earth</h3>
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Before entering into a discussion of the age of the earth, Grudem says that the topic “is really much less important than the[se] doctrines:” (1) God created the universe out of nothing; (2) creation is distinct from God, yet always dependent on God; (3) God created the universe to show His glory; (4) the universe God created was very good; (5) there will be no final conflict between Scripture and science; and (6) secular theories that deny God as Creator, including Darwinian evolution, are clearly incompatible with belief in the Bible. Grudem then says that the age of the earth is much less important than two additional subjects to be treated later in his text: (7) the creation of the angelic world, and (8) the creation of man in the image of God (Grudem 1994, p. 289).</div>
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But this statement about what is most important is simply an assertion. He gives no arguments or biblical evidence to support it. In response, we should note that his first point is not explicitly stated in Scripture, although it is a sound theological conclusion based on Scripture. Contrast that to the many explicit statements about the days of creation (in Genesis and other Bible passages) and the time since creation in the genealogies of <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;" title="Genesis 5 and 11"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Genesis 5 and 11" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Genesis%205%20and%2011" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Genesis 5 and 11</a></cite> and the other chronological statements in Scripture covering the period from Abraham to Christ. Also, as I previously explained, points 3 and 4 affect our conclusions about the age of the earth and are consistent only with the young-earth view. The age of the earth is directly related to point 5 as well.</div>
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Furthermore, judging from how much God says about the age of the creation (as presented earlier in this essay) compared to how much He says about most of these other matters that Grudem mentions, the age of the earth is far more important. And the age of the earth strikes at the heart of the question of the authority of Scripture. Whether secular scientific theories (based on antibiblical, philosophical presuppositions) should be the controlling judge in the exegesis of Scripture (the hermeneutic of the old-earth views) or whether Scripture truth should be determined by comparing Scripture with Scripture and careful attention to the text and context (as young-earth proponents insist) is vitally important.</div>
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Grudem is correct that secular theories which deny God as Creator, including Darwinian evolution, are clearly incompatible with belief in the Bible. But we can only say they are incompatible with the Bible, if we interpret literally the Genesis account about the creation of the first plants, animals, and people, where ten times God emphasizes that He made these creatures as distinct “kinds” in mature form ready to reproduce “after their kind” (rather than to change from one kind into a different kind). If this be the case, then why not take Genesis literally about the date and duration of creation week and the order of creation events? Why not reject the big bang cosmology completely because Genesis says that God created the plants before the sun, moon, and stars? And why not assume that the global, world-destroying Flood would have produced a massive amount of lasting geological evidence (for example, sediment layers, erosional features, lava deposits, and fossils), instead of following Davis Young’s tranquil flood view, as Grudem appears to do? Furthermore, the evolutionary theories for the origin of the universe and the earth over millions of years equally deny God as Creator and so are just as incompatible with belief in the Bible.</div>
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The age of the earth</h3>
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Turning to arguments regarding the age of the earth, Grudem begins with a discussion of the Genesis genealogies (Grudem 1994, pp. 290–291). Earlier in his text he had said that no evangelical scholar today holds to Bishop Ussher’s date for creation (Grudem 1994, p. 273). But this statement probably was incorrect when he wrote it in 1994 and is demonstrably incorrect now, as several scholars have contended for no gaps in the <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;" title="Genesis 5 and 11"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Genesis 5 and 11" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Genesis%205%20and%2011" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Genesis 5 and 11</a></cite> genealogies (Freeman 1998, 2008; Jones 2005; Pierce 2006.<span style="vertical-align: text-top;"><a href="http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/arj/v2/n1/systematic-theology-age-of-earth#fnList_1_48" name="fnMark_1_48_1" style="text-decoration: none;">48</a></span>) I and other scholars think their arguments are compelling as well. Grudem’s argument for gaps, which he takes from Francis Schaeffer,<span style="vertical-align: text-top;"><a href="http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/arj/v2/n1/systematic-theology-age-of-earth#fnList_1_49" name="fnMark_1_49_1" style="text-decoration: none;">49</a></span> is weak. The fact that <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;" title="Matthew 1"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Matthew 1" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Matthew%201" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Matthew 1</a></cite> has missing names does not mean that <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;" title="Luke 3"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Luke 3" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Luke%203" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Luke 3</a></cite>, or <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;" title="1 Chronicles 1"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="1 Chronicles 1" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/1%20Chronicles%201" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">1 Chronicles 1</a></cite>, or <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;" title="Genesis 5 and 11"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Genesis 5 and 11" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Genesis%205%20and%2011" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Genesis 5 and 11</a></cite> do also.<span style="vertical-align: text-top;"><a href="http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/arj/v2/n1/systematic-theology-age-of-earth#fnList_1_50" name="fnMark_1_50_1" style="text-decoration: none;">50</a></span> The other verses Grudem uses are not genealogies but rather verses where (as he rightly shows) the verbal pattern “son of” does not mean a literal father-son relationship. However, <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;" title="Genesis 5 and 11"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Genesis 5 and 11" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Genesis%205%20and%2011" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Genesis 5 and 11</a></cite> do not use this “son of” language but rather say that one man “begat” (<span class="hebrewtext" style="direction: rtl; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 14pt; unicode-bidi: embed;">ילד</span>, <i>yālad</i>) another. This construction always means a literal parent-child relationship (Ham and Pierce 2006).<span style="vertical-align: text-top;"><a href="http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/arj/v2/n1/systematic-theology-age-of-earth#fnList_1_51" name="fnMark_1_51_1" style="text-decoration: none;">51</a></span> In any case, these verses cited by Grudem are irrelevant to the question of Genesis for the same reason that Matthew is—unlike these verses cited by Grudem, the Genesis genealogies give detailed chronological information and other personal details. Grudem says “it seems only fair to conclude that the genealogies of Scripture have some gaps in them” (Grudem 1994, p. 291). Actually, it is only fair, or rather faithful to all the biblical data, to say that <em>some</em> of the genealogical statements in Scripture have gaps. Neither Grudem nor his cited references have demonstrated that <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;" title="Genesis 5 and 11"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Genesis 5 and 11" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Genesis%205%20and%2011" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Genesis 5 and 11</a></cite> have gaps.</div>
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Aware of the young-earth theodicy, Grudem devotes a mere two paragraphs to the issue of animal death before the Fall (Grudem 1994, pp. 292–293). Earlier he had affirmed that the initial creation was called “very good.” But he added that, in spite of sin, the material world is presently good, citing <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="1 Timothy 4.4–5" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/1%20Timothy%204.4%E2%80%935" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">1 Timothy 4:4–5</a></cite>. However, in the context of the preceding verse, Paul is talking about food, not everything in the material world. Furthermore, Paul’s statement here must be interpreted in light of his <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Romans 8.20–23" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Romans%208.20%E2%80%9323" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Romans 8:20–23</a></cite> teaching about the nonhuman creation’s bondage to corruption and longing for redemption. The present creation is not all good. It is a fallen, cursed creation with remnants of goodness from the original creation.</div>
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In the section on animal death, he says that “there was no doubt death in the plant world” before the Fall (Grudem 1994, p. 292), but his comments reveal a need for further study of the creationist view on this point. He cites <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Romans 8.20–23" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Romans%208.20%E2%80%9323" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Romans 8:20–23</a></cite>, but does not discuss this very relevant text. His objection that <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Genesis 2.17" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Genesis%202.17" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Genesis 2:17</a></cite> indicates that Adam’s disobedience would only affect man is an argument from silence, which is invalid, given all the texts I discussed on this point earlier. I would agree with him that <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Romans 5.12" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Romans%205.12" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Romans 5:12</a></cite> is irrelevant to this question (though it has often been mistakenly used this way by many creationists) because context shows that the verse is only referring to Adam and his descendants. But Grudem has not refuted the young-earth argument about no pre-Fall animal death. And as we have seen, some of his own statements weigh heavily against the acceptance of millions of years of death, disease, and extinction of animals before the Fall, including the extinction of the dinosaurs 65 million years ago, which Grudem leans toward accepting (Grudem 1994, p. 293). In a footnote, he admits that having all that fossil evidence of death in a very good creation is a “difficulty” for old-earth views and “perhaps” favors young-earth Flood geology, but he asserts that “this is not a decisive objection” (Grudem 1994, p. 305, footnote 75.) Why not? God’s description of the pre-Fall creation, the impact of the Fall and the cosmic consequences of the full redemptive work of Christ is not decisive for a Bible-believing Christian?</div>
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In his later chapter on the Fall of man he does not discuss the impact of the Fall on the nonhuman creation. But in his chapter on the glorification of the believer he affirms that God cursed the ground because of Adam’s sin, “so that it brought forth thorns and thistles and would only yield food useful for mankind by painful toil” (Grudem 1994, p. 835). He quotes <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Romans 8.19–23" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Romans%208.19%E2%80%9323" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Romans 8:19–23</a></cite> to say that the creation will be set free from corruption when Christians receive their resurrection bodies. He says,</div>
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In this renewed creation, there will be no more thorns or thistles, no more floods or droughts, no more deserts or uninhabitable jungles, no more earthquakes or tornadoes, no more poisonous snakes or bees that sting or mushrooms that kill (Grudem 1994, p. 836).</blockquote>
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But he apparently does not realize that in accepting millions of years, he is accepting that the thorns and thistles and all those other things were part of the pre-Fall “very good” creation. So, none of those things could be part of the curse of <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;" title="Genesis 3"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Genesis 3" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Genesis%203" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Genesis 3</a></cite>, as he previously said. Like Erickson, he has not carefully considered the implications of his belief in the cosmic impact of the Fall.</div>
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Grudem acknowledges that young-earth biblical arguments about death have “some force” (Grudem 1994, pp. 295, 296 and 297). But he does not present those arguments very thoroughly, which significantly diminishes their force on the minds of his readers.</div>
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Science and the Flood</h3>
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<a name='more'></a>Like Erickson, Grudem frequently refers to “scientific data about the age of the earth” and the “overwhelming evidence from geology,” (Grudem 1994, pp. 279, 295, 298, 302, 307, 308) as if the data and evidence speak for themselves and scientists are unbiased, objective pursuers of truth. And like Erickson, Grudem shows little grasp of the role of <em>assumptions</em> used in the<em>interpretation</em> of the geological (and astronomical) data relevant to the age of the earth. Therefore, he believes that the scientific evidence is against the young-earth view (Grudem 1994, pp. 307–308).</div>
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In arguing against theistic evolution, Grudem says that “the scientific data do not force one to accept evolution” (Grudem 1994, p. 279). But the scientific establishment insists that the biological and paleontological data <em>do</em> force us to accept evolution. Why then should we trust the conclusions of the same godless scientific establishment about the age of the earth, when that establishment insists that the geological and astronomical data also force us to accept millions of years and reject Noah’s Flood? Why not believe God and doubt the evolutionists on all these points, especially since, as Grudem rightly says, “sin makes us think incorrectly about God and about creation” (Grudem 1994, p. 79) and most evolutionists are unrepentant sinners? To believe some parts of <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;" title="Genesis 1–11"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Genesis 1–11" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Genesis%201%E2%80%9311" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Genesis 1–11</a></cite> but not other parts is neither reasonable nor consistent.</div>
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While Grudem affirms belief in a global Noachian Flood (Grudem 1994, p. 306), he does not accept the geological evidence for the Flood and a young earth (including why radiometric dating cannot be trusted) presented in nine of the thirteen young-earth creationist books that he cites in the bibliography. But it is not clear to what extent he has read those works that he cites, since he says that some of the titles were supplied by a young-earth creationist.<span style="vertical-align: text-top;"><a href="http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/arj/v2/n1/systematic-theology-age-of-earth#fnList_1_52" name="fnMark_1_52_1" style="text-decoration: none;">52</a></span> He states plainly that he leans toward an old-earth view because of the arguments of Davis Young (Grudem 1994, p. 307)<span style="vertical-align: text-top;"><a href="http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/arj/v2/n1/systematic-theology-age-of-earth#fnList_1_53" name="fnMark_1_53_1" style="text-decoration: none;">53</a></span> who for many years was a geologist at Calvin College and who has accepted the naturalistic and uniformitarian assumptions that have controlled geology for the past 150 years. At the time of Young’s 1977 book <i>Creation and the Flood</i> (which has greatly influenced Grudem), Young believed in a global, tranquil Flood which left no lasting geological evidence, a view that essentially turns the Flood into a myth.<span style="vertical-align: text-top;"><a href="http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/arj/v2/n1/systematic-theology-age-of-earth#fnList_1_54" name="fnMark_1_54_1" style="text-decoration: none;">54</a></span> Grudem accepts Young’s interpretations of geological arguments but gives no reasons for rejecting John and Henry Morris’s strong scientific rebuttals to Young’s assertions, although Grudem cites the Morris book in a footnote.<span style="vertical-align: text-top;"><a href="http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/arj/v2/n1/systematic-theology-age-of-earth#fnList_1_55" name="fnMark_1_55_1" style="text-decoration: none;">55</a></span> He says that “the controversy over flood geology is strikingly different” from other aspects of the creation-evolution debate because “its advocates have persuaded almost no professional geologists” (Grudem 1994, p. 306). Even at the time Grudem wrote that, there were a small number of Ph.D. geologists in many countries who were young-earth creationists. There are more now. But the number of geologists who accept flood geology should not be the criteria for determining the truth. If it is, then we all (including Grudem) should accept biological evolution too, since the vast majority of biologists do. But truth is not determined by majority vote.</div>
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If Grudem does not feel confident to assess the various geological arguments, why does he trust the Christian geologists who reject Noah’s Flood and follow the assumptions and interpretations of godless, secular scientists rather than trusting Christian geologists and other geologically well-informed creationists who like Grudem do believe God’s inerrant Word about that Flood? Furthermore, the unsoundness of trusting Young is shown in the fact that Young no longer holds to the day-age view defended in his two books that influenced Grudem.</div>
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When Grudem’s theology text was published in 1994, he may not have been aware that at a 1990 conference on Christianity and science at Wheaton College, Young said that he had “repented” of his previous day-age view because of all the “textual mutilation” and “exegetical gymnastics” involved. But that so-called repentance did not lead Young to believe Genesis as literal history, as the Church did for eighteen centuries. Rather, Young advocated the utterly illogical view that <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;" title="Genesis 1–11"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Genesis 1–11" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Genesis%201%E2%80%9311" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Genesis 1–11</a></cite> “may be expressing history in nonfactual terms.”<span style="vertical-align: text-top;"><a href="http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/arj/v2/n1/systematic-theology-age-of-earth#fnList_1_56" name="fnMark_1_56_1" style="text-decoration: none;">56</a></span> Why should anyone trust a geologist (even if he professes to be an evangelical) who reasons and “repents” like that? Young has since abandoned the tranquil flood view and now argues (contrary to Grudem’s view) that the Flood was localized in the Middle East (Young 1995, p. 242). Such changing interpretations of Genesis result from Young’s elevation of current majority views in geology and archeology (which are controlled by naturalistic, uniformitarian assumptions) above the authority of the Word of God. In Young’s latest book, he is not sure what the Genesis text means for he does not clearly advocate any view, except for rejecting the young-earth view without dealing with the best defenses of that position (Young and Stearley 2008). This makes Young an unreliable guide for understanding both Genesis and the geological evidence.</div>
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The length of the creation days</h3>
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Grudem gives a few of the young-earth arguments in support of literal days (Grudem 1994, pp. 295–297). He says that the repeated refrain of “there was evening and there was morning, the Xth day” in <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;" title="Genesis 1"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Genesis 1" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Genesis%201" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Genesis 1</a></cite> is a “strong argument from context.” But he then objects that we could not have evening and morning before the sun was created on Day 4. He fails to note that all that is needed is a source of light external to the earth on the first three days. And God made that light on Day 1. Can our supernatural God not create the phenomenon of light without the sun? He did so in the middle of a sunny day to blind Saul on the road to Damascus (<cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Acts 9.4" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Acts%209.4" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Acts 9:4</a> and <a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Acts 22.6" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Acts%2022.6" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">22:6</a></cite>) and will do so in the new creation (<cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Revelation 21.23" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Revelation%2021.23" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Revelation 21:23</a> and <a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Revelation 22.5" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Revelation%2022.5" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">22:5</a></cite>). Why not on Day 1 (<cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Genesis 1.3" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Genesis%201.3" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Genesis 1:3</a></cite>)?</div>
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As noted at the beginning of this essay, <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Exodus 20.8–11" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Exodus%2020.8%E2%80%9311" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Exodus 20:8–11</a></cite> is a very important passage for the defense of young-earth creationism, and Grudem says that it “is hard to avoid” our conclusion. However, he attempts to neutralize these verses by saying that the passage teaches that the Jews were to work six days because God set a pattern of working six successive periods and resting on the seventh period (Grudem 1994, pp. 295–296). But if God created over six long ages of time and was only establishing a pattern of 6 + 1 for the Jewish work-week, He could have (and would have) used an indefinite time word or phrase,<span style="vertical-align: text-top;"><a href="http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/arj/v2/n1/systematic-theology-age-of-earth#fnList_1_57" name="fnMark_1_57_1" style="text-decoration: none;">57</a></span> rather than the only Hebrew word that means a 24-hour day. Also, Grudem declares that in the very next sentence (and commandment, <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Exodus 20.12" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Exodus%2020.12" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Exodus 20:12</a></cite>) “‘day’ means ‘a period of time’.” However, that verse does not use “day” singular, but “days” plural, and everywhere else “days” (Hebrew, <i>yamim</i>) is used in the Old Testament, the context shows that it always means literal days. Furthermore, when the commandment says that our “days may be prolonged” it does not mean that the days will be longer than 24 hours (and Grudem agrees), but that we will live a greater <i>number</i> of (literal) days, that is, a longer life. So, Grudem’s comments fail to refute the creationist argument from the fourth commandment.</div>
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His arguments against literal days and for the day-age view include the fact that <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Genesis 2.4" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Genesis%202.4" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Genesis 2:4</a></cite> is a nonliteral use of <i>yôm</i> (day) in the creation account and <i>yôm</i> sometimes has a nonliteral meaning elsewhere in the Old Testament. But all his verses supporting the latter point have <i>yôm</i>connected to nouns in the construct state (for example, day of God’s wrath, day of battle, day of harvest, etc.). Furthermore, none of these verses prove a nonliteral meaning for <i>yôm</i>, because these phrases can also just as legitimately be interpreted as the first literal day of a longer time period (for example, battle, harvest, etc.). Also, in <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;" title="Genesis 1"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Genesis 1" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Genesis%201" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Genesis 1</a></cite> (as in <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Exodus 20.11" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Exodus%2020.11" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Exodus 20:11</a></cite>) we do not have this grammatical construction (nouns in the construct state with <i>yôm</i>). Rather, in <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;" title="Genesis 1"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Genesis 1" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Genesis%201" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Genesis 1</a></cite>we find <i>yôm</i> modified by number, which everywhere else in the Old Testament always means a literal day. A similar argument applies to <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Genesis 2.4" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Genesis%202.4" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Genesis 2:4</a></cite> where the construction is <i>b<span style="vertical-align: text-top;">e</span>yom</i> (literally, “in day”), an adverb (functioning as a prepositional phrase) which is not used in <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;" title="Genesis 1"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Genesis 1" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Genesis%201" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Genesis 1</a></cite> with respect to each day of creation. <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Numbers 7.10–84" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Numbers%207.10%E2%80%9384" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Numbers 7:10–84</a></cite> provides a similar use of <em>b<span style="vertical-align: text-top;">e</span>yom</em> (in verses 10 and 84, referring to a 12-day period of Jewish sacrifice) in context with <i>yôm</i> + number (verses 12, 18, 24, etc. where the days are literal, when each Israelite tribe sacrificed). So, the nonliteral<em>b<span style="vertical-align: text-top;">e</span>yom</em> in <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Genesis 2.4" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Genesis%202.4" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Genesis 2:4</a></cite> does not negate the literal interpretation of <i>yôm</i> in <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;" title="Genesis 1"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Genesis 1" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Genesis%201" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Genesis 1</a></cite>.</div>
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Grudem also raises the old (and frequently refuted) objection that too much happened on the sixth day of creation to fit into twenty-four hours. But no time duration for the events is given in the text. The miraculous events of creation (creating all the land animals, making the Garden of Eden, creating Adam, putting Adam to sleep and creating Eve) were instantaneous or required only minutes, at most. Surely, putting Adam in the Garden (for the purpose of caring for it)<span style="vertical-align: text-top;"><a href="http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/arj/v2/n1/systematic-theology-age-of-earth#fnList_1_58" name="fnMark_1_58_1" style="text-decoration: none;">58</a></span> and telling him not to eat from one tree took at most two minutes to accomplish. Grudem assumes that an “incredibly large number of animals” were named (Grudem 1994, p. 294). But what is that number? The text does not inform us of the number of “beasts of the field” and “birds of the sky” God brought to Adam to name (he did not need to name sea creatures, “beasts of the earth,” or creeping things). They may have only been only the animals that Adam would domesticate. Naming at the leisurely pace of six animals per minute, Adam could have effortlessly named 3,000 animals and birds in ten hours as God brought them by Adam (<cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Genesis 2.19" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Genesis%202.19" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Genesis 2:19</a></cite>). Nor does the text require us to think that the names were technical (for example, double- Latin), taxonomic names based on extensive scientific observations, rather than simple names like dog, pig, cow, goat, horse, duck, chicken, or robin, which have no connection to the morphology or behavior of the animals. So there is no logical or textual justification for saying that these events of Day 6 could not happen even in just twelve hours. Contrary to Grudem’s assertion, the “contextual considerations” (Grudem 1994, p. 294) do not support the day-age view.</div>
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The fact that the seventh day of creation does not have the phrase “there was evening and there was morning, the seventh day” does not necessarily imply that it is continuing through to the present time, as Grudem suggests, and that therefore the six days of creation were not literal (Grudem 1994, p. 294). The phrase’s absence may be a literary device to reinforce the fact that God completed His creation and did not resume creation activities on the eighth day of history. The parallel of the creation week to the Jewish week in <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Exodus 20.8–11" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Exodus%2020.8%E2%80%9311" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Exodus 20:8–11</a></cite> confirms that the seventh day in both weeks was completed, and it was the same length as the previous six days. Also, the past tense verbs<span style="vertical-align: text-top;"><a href="http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/arj/v2/n1/systematic-theology-age-of-earth#fnList_1_59" name="fnMark_1_59_1" style="text-decoration: none;">59</a></span> of <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Genesis 2.1–3" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Genesis%202.1%E2%80%933" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Genesis 2:1–3</a></cite> and <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Exodus 20.8–11" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Exodus%2020.8%E2%80%9311" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Exodus 20:8–11</a></cite> show that Moses is looking back at past completed days long before he wrote either book. Furthermore, Adam was created on the sixth day and lived on the seventh day and all the literal days of his literal life totaled 930 years of days (<cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Genesis 5.5" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Genesis%205.5" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Genesis 5:5</a></cite>). So, if the seventh day is still continuing, then Adam is not yet dead. But also, if we accept that the seventh day of creation week continues to our time, then this means that God is not now creating but is resting. Consequently, the processes that scientists study today are not God’s creation activities, but rather His resting activities of providence. Therefore the old-earth theories, which rely on evolutionist geological and astronomical interpretations of and extrapolations from present-day processes to say how things came into existence and how long ago, are false.</div>
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Another objection raised by Grudem to the literal-day view is that although God could have used other time words in Hebrew (rather than <i>yôm</i>), if He wanted to say He created over long ages, “the original readers knew that the word ‘day’ could mean a long period of time,” so there was no need to use one of those other words (Grudem 1994, pp. 294–295). But how does Grudem know that the Israelites at the time when Moses wrote Genesis knew this? He offers no biblical or logical justification for this assertion. None of the poetic or prophetic books of the Old Testament where a nonliteral <i>yôm</i> is used (and which Grudem cited earlier) were written at that time. So we can just as well say that the Jews only had literal uses of <i>yôm</i> to reference. Besides, orthodox Jews took the creation days literally until they, along with most Christians, accepted the idea of millions of years in the early nineteenth century).</div>
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Grudem acknowledges that the young-earth argument from Jesus’ words in <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Mark 10.6" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Mark%2010.6" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Mark 10:6</a></cite> “has some force.” His one-sentence reply is that “Jesus is just referring to the whole of <cite class="bibleref" style="font-style: normal;" title="Genesis 1–2"><a class="lbsBibleRef" data-reference="Genesis 1–2" data-version="nkjv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/nkjv/Genesis%201%E2%80%932" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Genesis 1–2</a></cite> as the ‘beginning of creation,’ in contrast to the argument from the laws given by Moses that the Pharisees were depending on (verse 4)” (Grudem 1994, p. 297). But this is precisely what creationists believe, so this does not refute their argument.</div>
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Grudem expresses hesitancy about his views on the age of the earth more than once (Grudem 1994, pp. 297, 308) and this is understandable, given his admitted need for further study. But given his uncertainty about the age of the earth, how can he be so confident in telling Christians that the age of the earth is not important and “that God may not allow us to find a clear solution to this question before Christ returns,” so that therefore old-earthers and young-earthers should just work together in peace? If the Bible teaches a young earth, then it is very important that we believe it and not compromise with contrary ideas.</div>
Aaron Blockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14606845955857824160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190611447505374508.post-74142483916515951952013-01-05T16:16:00.001-08:002013-03-26T00:25:16.050-07:00The Sounds of Acceptable Worship: Part 6—If Music Were REALLY Neutral…<div style="text-align: center;">
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Before I begin my brief study of scriptural principles of
godly worship, I feel I need to deliver just one more blow (at least for now)
at the unbiblical, unscientific, illogical philosophy that music is “neutral”.</div>
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In one debate I had a while back with a brother and
proponent of the neutrality of music, he made a curious statement. He asserted
that we are not to judge a musician by his music. Rather, we are to judge the
musician by the lyrics of his songs and the fruits produced in his life. His
point, of course, was that the style of music one uses is irrelevant because
musical sounds are subjective to one’s tastes and preferences, and communicate
different things to different people. Therefore, it is not valid to say that one type of music is any more wrong than another, or that any artist is wrong based on his music style.</div>
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I have no doubt whatsoever that having God-glorifying lyrics
in a song are crucial and bearing good fruit in one’s life and ministry is
essential. But let’s examine this brother’s logic for a moment. His statement
seems right and reasonable at first glance, but if we actually stop to think,
we will come to realize that this philosophy doesn't work in the slightest bit.</div>
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By his rationale, if the evil death metal band <i>Cannibal Corpse</i> gets saved, they can
continue to perform life shows together and make albums. They would have to
change the utterly wicked and abominable lyrics of their songs and substitute
them with God-glorifying lyrics, <i>but they
could keep every other aspect of their music the same. </i>As long as they
simply changed their lyrics, they could present their frenzied, maniacal sounds
and growling screams as a fragrant offering of worship to a holy God.</div>
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Next case in point: Voodoo priests are converted. They
continue partaking in their demon-invoking voodoo ceremonies, dancing to the
rhythms and beats of loud pounding drums—but in their chants, they substitute the
name of the various spiritual entities usually called forth with “Jesus” and
quote Scripture verses. According to the aforementioned brother’s point of
view, this would be perfectly acceptable.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Or take this hypothetical situation: members of the Church
of Satan receive Christ. They abandon their sins, but seemingly continue to
perform Luciferian rituals. Only now, Satan is not the object of their
worship—the Lord is. Rather than draw an upside-down pentagram on the ground,
they draw a cross inside a circle. Then they begin to sing and chant along to
the exact same dark tunes that they used as Satanists, but now their chants and
songs are jam-packed with amazingly theological “Reformed” lyrics. All of this is heavenly worship and a pleasing aroma to the Lord, if music is really neutral and the only thing that matters are the lyrics of a song.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Finally, please watch the following video of The Doors’
vocalist Jim Morrison. Watch beginning at <b>7:37 minutes</b>, where Morrison, while
performing live, begins speaking in different voices, whilst eerie sounds are
coming from the keyboard and guitar. He is apparently demonized. How, I ask,
could it possibly be okay to praise the Lord with such demonic and strange
melodies? How could simply changing the words he says possibly make this evil
song <i>good</i>?<br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/N6JsIepnzM4" width="420"></iframe>
</div>
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<br /></div>
Was not the slave girl with the spirit of divination preaching <u>truth</u>? (Acts 16:16-18). And yet she grieved and annoyed the apostle Paul. She was declaring something completely true ("These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to you the way of salvation."), and yet she was doing it in a way that was <i>offensive</i> and <i>blasphemous</i>. She was <i>of a different spirit</i>. So, applying this to music, we see that lyrical content <i>alone</i> is not the standard for what is pleasing to God. One can sing about deep theological truths, but sing in such an irreverent manner as to make a mockery of those truths, and of Christ.<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
If you profess to be a Christian, and all of the above
information <i>still </i>can’t convince you
of the non-neutrality of music, and you insist that I’m wrong and that <i>only</i> changing the lyrics to death metal,
voodoo rituals, Satanic ceremonies, and the songs of demoniacs will “redeem”
the music and make it perfectly appropriate for the worship of God…then I would
have to say, in all honesty, that I seriously question whether you are <i>really even saved</i>.</div>
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<br /></div>
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If you are relentlessly propounding the point of view that I
am refuting, and in complete disagreement with everything I've said, you need to
examine yourself. Examine yourself as to
the motives of <i>why</i> you are
irrationally defending an indefensible and unreasonable point of view. Are you
unwilling to give up a certain lifestyle and/or music preference? Are you
unwilling to surrender it to Christ? Does it have a special place in your
heart, a firm hold on your affections? If so, and you are not willing to give
it up for the sake of the Gospel and the glory of God, then it is an idol in
your life. You are an idolater. You are loving something more than the Lord
Himself. You must repent of your idolatry.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Examine yourself as to your profession of faith. Is it
genuine? How do you know you are truly saved? I would refer you to the following sermon: <a href="http://youtu.be/Ky8dTyPpiAo">http://youtu.be/Ky8dTyPpiAo</a></div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
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Does my position on music sound radical yet? To someone
steeped in, and desensitized by, modern Western worldly culture, it might. However,
my position is not any more radical than the Word of God. In the next post we
will take a look at how God desires for us to approach Him through worship. </div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
Aaron Blockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14606845955857824160noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190611447505374508.post-70243566939353478632013-01-03T09:44:00.000-08:002013-01-03T09:47:35.734-08:00The Sounds of Acceptable Worship: Part 5—The Spiritual Nature and Power of Music<br />
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<img height="310" src="http://onedurango.com/sites/default/files/pictures/03-13-2012-music.jpg" width="400" /></div>
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<br />
Does the Bible
affirm, like so many people today, that musical sounds, apart from any lyrics,
are neutral and harmless? Let’s explore some biblical passages that describe
the astounding impact that music can have on the human soul…and even on the
spiritual realm. </div>
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<br /></div>
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</div>
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<b>1 Samuel 16:14-23.</b></div>
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Disobedient and rebellious Saul was rejected by God as king of Israel. As a
result, “the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and a harmful spirit from
the LORD tormented him” (v.14). When Saul’s servants realized this, they
suggested to their king: “Let our lord now command your servants who are before
you to seek out a man who is skillful in playing the lyre, and when the harmful
spirit from God is upon you, he will play it, and you will be well” (v.16).
With his permission, they went and fetched David, a young shepherd who was
famed among the servants for being “skillful in playing, a man of valor, a man
of war, prudent in speech, and a man of good presence, and the LORD is with
him” (v.18). Upon coming into Saul’s service, he found favor in the king’s
sight; and the last verse of this chapter reads, “And whenever the harmful
spirit from God was upon Saul, <u>David took the lyre and played it with his
hand</u>. So Saul was refreshed and was well, <u>and the harmful spirit
departed from him</u>” (v.23).</div>
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</div>
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<br /></div>
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David was the ideal example of the Lord’s musician: a God fearing, humble and
blameless young man of excellent reputation—and as an added benefit, he was
also a highly skilled instrumentalist. And most important of all, the Lord was
with Him. All these traits made him a powerful musician. Notice that in order to
drive away the demonic spirit from Saul, David merely <i>played</i> his instrument. There is no mention whatsoever in this
passage of any <i>singing</i> on his part. The
melodious sounds of David’s music were powerful enough to <i>drive out demons</i>!</div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br />
<b>2 Kings 3:15-19</b>. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The king of Moab rebelled against Jehoram, the king of Israel, refusing to pay
him tribute. In hopes of recapturing this rebel nation and once again
subjecting them under the rule of his kingdom, Jehoram rallied up all the
warriors in Israel. The king of Edom and Jehoshaphat, the righteous king of
Judah, also joined him. In a dire circumstance, Jehoshaphat desired to inquire
of a prophet of the Lord for guidance. They came to Elisha the prophet. His instructions: “‘bring me a musician.’ <u>And
when the musician played, the hand of the LORD came upon him</u>” (v.15). He
then declared to them the Lord’s words. </div>
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</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Amazingly, the Lord came upon Elisha only after “the musician played”. Worshipful
tunes called down the presence of the Lord!</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Although divine prophecy did not always occur this way, in
the Old Testament there is an apparent connection between music and prophetic
utterances. In Israel, the prophetic ministry involved the use of music, and
the worship ministry was prophetic by nature. Some other examples of this:</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
-<b>1 Samuel 10:5-6 </b>(Samuel’s
prophecy to Saul after anointing him as king):<br />
“After that you shall come to Gibeath-elohim, where there is
a garrison of the Philistines. And there, as soon as you come to the city, you
will meet <u>a group of prophets</u> coming down from the high place <u>with
harp, tambourine, flute, and lyre before them</u>, <u>prophesying</u>. Then <u>the
Spirit of the LORD will rush upon you, and you will prophesy with them</u> and
be turned into another man.” </blockquote>
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
-<b>1 Chronicles 25:1-7</b> (King David’s prophetic
“worship team”):<br />
“David and the chiefs of the service also set apart for the
service the sons of Asaph, and of Heman, and of Jeduthun, <u>who prophesied
with lyres, with harps, and with cymbals</u>. The list of those who did the
work and of their duties was: Of the sons of Asaph: Zaccur, Joseph, Nethaniah,
and Asharelah, sons of Asaph, under the direction of Asaph, <u>who prophesied
under the direction of the king</u>. Of Jeduthun, the sons of Jeduthun:
Gedaliah, Zeri, Jeshaiah, Shimei, Hashabiah, and Mattithiah, six, under the
direction of their father Jeduthun, <u>who prophesied with the lyre in
thanksgiving and praise to the LORD</u>. Of Heman, the sons of Heman: Bukkiah,
Mattaniah, Uzziel, Shebuel and Jerimoth, Hananiah, Hanani, Eliathah, Giddalti,
and Romamti-ezer, Joshbekashah, Mallothi, Hothir, Mahazioth. All these were the
sons of Heman <u>the king's seer</u>, according to the promise of God to exalt
him, for God had given Heman fourteen sons and three daughters. <u>They were
all under the direction of their father in the music in the house of the LORD
with cymbals, harps, and lyres for the service of the house of God</u>. Asaph,
Jeduthun, and Heman were under the order of the king. The number of them along
with their brothers, who were trained in singing to the LORD, all who were
skillful, was 288.”</blockquote>
<br />
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Godly people were not the only ones in the Bible who used
music for spiritual purposes, however. In <b>Daniel
3</b>, King Nebuchadnezzar used music as a tool to condition the people of his
kingdom to worship an enormous golden image he had made:</div>
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<br /></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“ And the herald proclaimed aloud, ‘You are commanded, O
peoples, nations, and languages, that <u>when you hear the sound of the horn,
pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, you are to fall
down and worship</u> the golden image that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up’”
(vv.4-5).</blockquote>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
As the aforementioned passages clearly demonstrate, instruments
were used by both the Israelites and the pagan nations for religious purposes.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
The undeniable link between music and the spiritual realm is
not limited to Scripture, however. Numerous extra-biblical records throughout
history also demonstrate that musical arrangements were used by peoples,
nations, kingdoms and empires the world over to attempt to channel into the
world of the “divine”. Across time and just about in every culture without
exception, songs, tunes, melodies, symphonies and compositions have been used
as a spiritual exercise.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
And as such, music is an immensely powerful tool—capable of
ushering in the presence of the Holy Spirit at times (God permitting, of
course) …but also, inversely, having even the power to invoke <i>demonic</i> spirits.</div>
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<br /></div>
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A myriad number of musicians seem to agree that music is spiritual in nature.
Take, for instance, the following quotes by well-known artists:</div>
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<br /></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“Music is the mediator between the spiritual and the sensual life.” </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="text-align: left;">
-Ludwig van Beethoven </blockquote>
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“When the Siberian shaman gets ready to go into his trance,
all the villagers get together... and play whatever instruments they have to
send him off [into a trance state and possession]. … It was the same way with
The Doors when we played in concert... I think that our drug experience let us
get into it... [the trance state] quicker.... It was like Jim was an electric
shaman and we were the electric shaman’s band, pounding away behind him.
Sometimes he wouldn’t feel like getting into the state, but the band would keep
on pounding and pounding, and little by little it would take him over. …I could
send an electric shock through him with the organ. John could do it with his
drumbeats.” </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
–Ray Manzarek, keyboardist for The Doors, speaking of Jim Morrison (<i>No One Here Gets Out Alive</i>, pp. 158-60)</blockquote>
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“I’ve always considered that there was some way where we
were able to channel energy, and that energy was able to be, from another
source, if you like, like a higher power or something, that was actually doing
the work. I’ve often thought of us just being actually just the earthly beings
that played the music because it was uncanny. Some of this music came out
extremely uncanny” </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Bill Ward, drummer for Black Sabbath (<i>Black Sabbath: An Oral History</i>, p. 7).</blockquote>
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“We receive our songs by inspiration, like at a séance” </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
-Keith Richards, guitarist for The Rolling Stones (<i>Rolling Stone</i>, May 5, 1977, p. 55).</blockquote>
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“They [The Beatles] were like mediums. They weren’t
conscious of all they were saying, but it was coming through them” </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
-Yoko Ono (<i>The Playboy Interviews with
John Lennon and Yoko Ono</i>, Berkeley, 1982, p. 106.).</blockquote>
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“It’s amazing that it [the tune to ‘In My Life’] just came
to me in a dream. That’s why I don’t profess to know anything. I think music is
very mystical.” </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
-John Lennon (“The Beatles Come Together,” <i>Reader’s
Digest</i>, March 2001).</blockquote>
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“...it’s like I’m on automatic pilot. By the time we’re
halfway through the first number someone else is steering me. I’m just along
for the ride. I become possessed when I get on stage.” </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Angus Young, lead guitarist for AC-DC (<i>Hit
Parader</i>, July 1985, p. 60).</blockquote>
<br />
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</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
And here is an interesting quote about music and religion by a neuroscientist:</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"As I've written before in books and blogs, I am an atheist
and yet I have an empathy for religion. Intellectually, I do not think there is
a literal God. Emotionally, I am not anti-religious. One of the reasons why I
feel an emotional empathy for religion is that it reminds me of my attitude
toward music. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Many of the moral generalizations that have been applied to
religion apply just as well to music. Music is a cultural phenomenon. It
intensifies emotions. It helps cement communities. It can range from the
terroristic to the sublime. The Nazis after all had nationalistic Nazi music to
fire up their citizens, and in more recent decades we've seen cop killer music.
On the other end of the spectrum, the rousing music of the civil rights
movement advocated for equality, and Beethoven's Ninth was a politically and
socially radical statement about the joy of human solidarity. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Yet something else harder to put into words, something that
goes beyond cultural impact, unites music and religion. When I am listening to
certain pieces of music I feel a reverence creeping over me, an awe that has a
spiritual quality. For myself, classical music does it. For others, of course,
different styles of music trigger the same reverential reaction." </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
- Dr. Michael Graziano, "Why is Music a
Religious Experience?" (article)<o:p> </o:p></blockquote>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
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The list of quotes could go on and on.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Given all the clear evidence already mentioned in this
series, it would be an utterly foolish and futile attempt for anyone to <i>continue</i> to insist that musical sounds
are in any way, shape or form “neutral”. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Well, then, having gotten all this information out of the
way, I will next address a question that you, dear reader, may be asking: “If this is all true, THEN WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO LISTEN TO?” </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
If music is
not neutral and therefore not all music is appropriate—what kind of music <i>is</i> appropriate to bring to God in
worship? </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
In the next several entries of this series, I will first present some general
biblical principles for godly worship. Then, I will tackle some of the modern
subcultures and genres of our day (rock, hip hop, metal, etc), and we will
together discover if they fit the Christian worldview and are appropriate as
worship before a holy God. Afterwards, I will take on some objections by
proponents of the styles of music mentioned above.</div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 17px;"><br /></span></div>
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<br /></div>
Aaron Blockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14606845955857824160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190611447505374508.post-26823346721202197562012-12-28T08:42:00.000-08:002013-01-27T21:33:33.032-08:00The Sounds of Acceptable Worship: Part 4—What Experts Say Regarding the “Neutrality” of Music<br />
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<img height="320" src="http://dawnpeterson.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/gym-loud-music.jpg" width="320" /></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;">
Is music neutral? Let’s take a look at some interesting (and
shocking) quotes from health care professionals and other well studied, trained
and respected minds. These people are and were no amateurs…and certainly, no
dummies. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Dr. Richard Pellegrino, neurologist ("What’s
Behind the Subliminal Power of Music?" <i>Billboard</i>, Jan. 23, 1999: pp.4, 23): </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.5in;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“People
really do get ‘hooked on a feeling.’<br />
And what a powerful feeling it is: Music talks to us, and we talk back. The
grimaces and contortions made by performers and listeners alike are direct
responses to music that moves us, a way for the subconscious mind to respond to
music's message. And, like spoken and written language, music can impart
information. Extensive research has shown that exposure to certain kinds of
music improves visual and spatial reasoning, memory, and learning…<br />
Many
songs that ring up large sales not only produce endorphin highs but relate so
well to listeners' emotional lives that people create strong and long-lasting
associations between those songs and other events and people in their lives.
The songs become anchors. They trigger a flood of emotions and images: some
from experience, some from daydreams. These images have the ability to
instantaneously produce very powerful changes in emotional states...<br />
Take
it from a brain guy. In 20 years of research, I still cannot affect a person's
state of mind the way that one single song can.”</blockquote>
</blockquote>
</div>
<o:p></o:p><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Dr. Roger Scruton, research professor at the Institute for
Psychological Sciences:</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“'The ways of poetry and music are
not changed anywhere without change in the most important laws of the city.' So
wrote Plato in the Republic (4.424c). Music, for Plato, was not a neutral
amusement. It could express and encourage virtue -- nobility, dignity,
temperance, chastity. But it could also express and encourage vice --
sensuality, belligerence, indiscipline.”</blockquote>
</blockquote>
</div>
<br />
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Dr. Mathew H.M. Lee, director of Rusk Rehabilitation
Institute at New York University Medical Center:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“We've seen confirmation of music
benefits in helping to avoid serious complications during illness, enhancing
patients' well-being and shortening hospital stays.”</blockquote>
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Deforia Lane, musical therapist (“Music's Surprising Power
to Heal,” <i>Readers Digest</i>, Aug. 1992)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“Of course, music is not a magic,
but in a hospital or at home, for young people or older ones, it can be a
potent medicine that helps us all" </blockquote>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<o:p></o:p><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Dr. Max Schoen, (<i>The
Psychology of Music</i>):</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: justify; text-indent: 1.5pt;">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="text-indent: 1.5pt;">“The medical,
psychiatric and other evidence for the non-neutrality of music is so
overwhelming that it frankly amazes me that anyone should seriously say
otherwise.”</span></blockquote>
</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Dr. William Kilpatrick (<i>Why
Johnny Can't Tell Right From Wrong: And What We Can Do About It</i> ):</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“Would anyone assert that '(You
Ain't Nothin' but a) Hound Dog' has the same 'soul' as Gregorian chant? The one
inspires to prayer and contemplation, the other to shouting and stamping. Not
that there’s anything wrong with shouting and stamping once in a while, but
children these days tend to be raised almost exclusively on that sort of music.
Besides, they don't need much incentive to shout, stamp, whine, and demand.
They do these things naturally. Why should we want music that validates and
confirms such juvenile states?”</blockquote>
</div>
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</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Center for Hearing and Communication:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">“Studies show that exposure to
noise is associated with elevations in blood pressure.”</span></blockquote>
</blockquote>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<br />
<br />
<o:p></o:p>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Plato (<i>The Republic</i>):<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<br />
<q cite="http://quotationsbook.com/quote/27680/">For the introduction
of a new kind of music must be shunned as imperiling the whole state;
since styles of music are never disturbed without affecting the most
important political institutions.</q> </blockquote>
</blockquote>
<br />
<br />
Plato (<i>Laws</i>):<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"Through foolishness they deceived themselves into
thinking that there was no right or wrong in music -- that it was to be
judged good or bad by the pleasure it gave . . . a spirit of
law-breaking." (Plato, Laws).<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<br />
<br />
Aristotle (<i>Politics</i>):</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“Music directly represents the passions or states of the soul – gentleness, anger, courage, temperance... If one habitually listens
to the kind of music that rouses ignoble passions, his whole character will be
shaped to an ignoble form. In short, if one listens to the wrong kind of music
he will become the wrong kind of person; but conversely, if he listens to the
right kind of music, he will tend to become the right kind of person.”</blockquote>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<b><u>What Professional Musicians Have Said</u>:<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Dame Gillian Weir, world-renowned organist (on the high
number of beats per minute of much modern-day music):<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">“You are, in effect, hypnotised by
this thing, and there is no question but that it produces addiction.”</span></blockquote>
</blockquote>
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<!--[endif]--><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Dmitri Tiomkin, famous for his motion-picture scores and
dramatic ballads (ca. 1965):</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“The fact that music can both
excite and incite has been known from time immemorial...Now in our popular
music, at least, we seem to be reverting to savagery...and youngsters who
listen constantly to this sort of sound are thrust into turmoil. They are no
longer relaxed, normal kids.”</blockquote>
</blockquote>
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
6<sup>th</sup> Century musician Anicius Manlius Severinus Boëthius (<i>De Institutione Musica</i>):<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">“Music is part of us, and it either
ennobles or degrades our behavior.”</span></blockquote>
</blockquote>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br />
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
60’s artist Frank Zappa (<i>Life Magazine</i>,
June 28, 1968):<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“The ways in which sound affects
the human organism are myriad and subtle…The loud sounds and bright lights of today
are tremendous indoctrination tools.”</blockquote>
</blockquote>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<br />
<br />
Pop Superstar Billy Joel: <br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"Music is essentially the manipulation of sound ... It
has the power to make people feel sacred. It also has the power to
make people feel profane. You know all the things they were saying
about Rock 'n Roll in the early days, saying '<i>It's gonna subvert our youth. It's gonna make 'em all wanna have sex. It's gonna make em all go crazy</i>'? They were right." </blockquote>
</blockquote>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br />
<br />
Jimi Hendrix (<i>LIFE
MAGAZINE</i>, October 3, 1969, p. 74):</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“Atmospheres are going to come
through music because music is in a spiritual thing of its own. It's like the
waves of the ocean. You can't just cut out the perfect wave and take it home
with you. It's constantly moving all the time. It is the biggest thing
electrifying the earth. Music and motion are all part of the race of man… But I
can explain everything better through music. You hypnotize people to where they
go right back to their natural state which is pure positive—like in childhood
when you got natural highs. And when you get poeple at their weakest point, you
can preach into the subconscious what we want to say. That's why the name ‘electric
church’ flashes in and out.”</blockquote>
</blockquote>
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
In the light of such clear confirmation from the experts,
and even from musicians themselves, it is indeed a wonder that some professing
Christians continue insisting that music is a harmless, neutral medium. The
Bible makes it clear it isn’t, health care professionals say it isn’t,
musicians admit it isn’t. Why, then, are Christians the only ones playing dumb?
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
But I can just see professing believers willingly shutting
their eyes and ears to the unmistakable evidence above, and instead all too
happily pointing out the fact that I have only quoted one single verse of
Scripture so far. “What do you mean ‘the Bible makes it clear’? I don’t agree
with your interpretation of 1 Corinthians 14:7-8. Do you have more Scripture to
show me? If not, then you can’t prove that music is neutral.” </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Admittedly, my natural response to such an argument would be
a discouraged sigh of frustration, and a desire to not continue convincing said
persons any longer. I’ve been through this before with many a professing Christian,
unfortunately only to receive a similar irrational reaction. “Club frustration”
sums it up. But for the sake of those sincere souls who are truly eager to
learn more about this important issue—and who are not looking to simply justify
their love of a certain lifestyle and genre of music—I will present next more
scriptural support for the unique power and non-neutrality of music. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
Aaron Blockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14606845955857824160noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190611447505374508.post-58292350078550414932012-12-26T09:24:00.000-08:002012-12-27T10:43:08.205-08:00The Sounds of Acceptable Worship: Part 3—Is Music Neutral?<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-YQqBm46LVEg/UNiPuLjfyHI/AAAAAAAABO8/O4bls1ZbXE4/s1600/MUSICweapon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-YQqBm46LVEg/UNiPuLjfyHI/AAAAAAAABO8/O4bls1ZbXE4/s400/MUSICweapon.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Today I will be delving deeper into the conclusion of the last
part of our series. It is common to hear nowadays that music is simply a
neutral tool in the hands of men, and that therefore the type of music one
listens to does not matter; the only thing that matters is what the lyrics of
the song are saying. This manner of thinking is especially prevalent in modern
Christian circles. As a result of this philosophy, the contemporary Christian
music scene is filled with artists of every kind of music subculture and
genre—everything from Christian rock, to Christian techno, to Christian
bluegrass and country, to Christian punk, to Christian hip hop…even Christian screamo,
hardcore and metal. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
I, of course, strongly differ with this point of view. As I
previously demonstrated, music communicates a message, and therefore it is not
neutral. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Now, just to clarify: when I refer to music as not being neutral,
I am not referring to the moral sphere. I am not prepared to say that a sound,
in and of itself, can carry an inherently sinful quality. It is my present
understanding that individual sounds, notes and chords have no intrinsically
evil nature about them. I would even go as far as to say that the sound of an
angry yell, in and of itself, is not <i>necessarily
</i>evil (though it can be effectively argued that 99% of the time it <i>is</i> evil—the reason being that it the majority
of the time it comes from a sinful heart with sinful intentions). I am allowing
for the enormously rare possibility for there to be an appropriate time for an
angry yell. However, an angry yell would not be appropriate in the majority of
contexts of society and daily life—and it would especially not be appropriate
to present angry yells to a holy God as worship to Him. But more on that
later. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
In stating that music is not neutral, I am instead referring
to the scope of human emotions. Music is not emotionally neutral. It clearly
conveys a certain idea, a feeling, a state of mind. And in so doing it has the
power to influence a person emotionally, by circumnavigating the human intellect
and directing itself straight into the seat of one’s emotions: the soul. There
it can persuade a person to feel whatever the song is suggesting one to feel. Thus,
music has an even more powerful effect on a person than words could ever have.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<u>Movie soundtrack composers</u> know this—they use music
to manipulate audiences all the time. This manipulative tactic is also often
used in modern Christendom as well…during <u>church altar calls</u>. Light
guitar or piano tunes are usually played to induce people to come to the
“altar” and make a “decision” for Christ (so much for the power of the Gospel).
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
The following excerpt is from an article by Bob Jennings
entitled, <i>Music—A Message</i> (available in <i>Written Briefly</i>, a short e-book which you can freely download <a href="http://www.heartcrymissionary.com/resources/ebooks/80-written-briefly">HERE</a>):</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
But
does music communicate? Does music matter? Does it convey a message? Let's try
to demonstrate that music matters. Let's try to establish that <b>music does
communicate </b>– apart from the lyrics, apart from the listener's connotative
memories, and apart from the musicians' morality and motives. Granted, the individual
notes, like bullets, are quite neutral. It is, rather, a matter of what is done
with them. It is a matter of how they are used, that is, <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.5in; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.5in; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in;">
1. the NOTATION (what notes are played),<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 1in; text-align: justify;">
2.
the RHYTHM (how long they are played),<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 1in; text-align: justify;">
3.
the VOLUME (how loud they are played), and,<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 1in; text-align: justify;">
4.
the BEAT (an emphasis on some notes and/or percussion).<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
These
are the elements that give music a message. A given piece of music, then,
ministers an attitude, creates an atmosphere, stirs a mood, and makes an
effect. Music expresses a worldview. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
THE
NOTATION communicates. Play C-E-G on the piano; then change just one note to
play C-E-F. It is a different effect. It is a different mood, isn't it? One
sound speaks resolution and rest, while the other, warning and tension. You
don't need to know a thing about music to feel this. No one needs to have an
ambulance siren interpreted. There is an inherent message in the sound. Yes, music
talks.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
THE
RHYTHM communicates. For example, look at church hymns. "Leaning On the
Everlasting Arms" has similar content to "My Faith Has Found a
Resting Place". Yet, because of the rhythm put to it, the first is
cheerful and even lends itself to clapping, but not so for the latter which
conveys resignation. In this way, music talks.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
THE
VOLUME communicates. Take a trombone. Play one note softly. Then blare out that
same note. Something is communicated thereby. Crescendos are put on the score
for a reason. Increasing the decibels will give quite a different effect. Contrast
the delicate reflections of an instrumental quartet with the expansive tide of
a philharmonic orchestra or the overpowering electronic 'heat' of a rock band.
In this way, music talks. It moves us.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
THE
BEAT communicates. Tribal musicians work their warriors up into a murderous
frenzy with nothing but their drums! The marching band, with nothing but their
drums, can make your pulse race with a sense of foreboding power. The accent in
our speech – simply the way we say something – can reveal a whole different message
or attitude to the listener. The quality of sound talks to us.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;">
The uncanny power of music over the human soul makes it a
dangerous tool in the hands of sinful man; it can be used for the glory of God,
or to hypnotically influence people to evil feelings, emotions and desires. While
sounds in a musical piece (apart from vocals or lyrics) may not be sinful in
and of themselves, they certainly can cause a person to sin. That music is not
neutral should be unmistakable by now. But as if the above information weren't enough, we will examine next what the <i>professionals</i>
have to say about music. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
Aaron Blockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14606845955857824160noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190611447505374508.post-56391380189020501172012-12-23T14:51:00.000-08:002012-12-23T14:51:00.181-08:00The Sounds of Acceptable Worship: Part 2—Sounds Communicate<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<img height="225" src="http://talknerdy2me.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/whisper_music.jpg" width="400" /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
As we saw in the first part of our series, the Lord, a
verbal and musical being, has enabled all His creatures to worship Him through
sounds and song. And as human beings created in the image of God (<b>Gen.1:26</b>), we have been given the
capacity to worship God through sounds more than any other earthly created being.
This is because we have been given the ability to <i>communicate</i> through sounds more than any other earthly created being.
A bear and a lion may roar when aroused, but they cannot produce orderly words
to convey their feelings. A cricket and a bird may chirp, but they cannot
produce complex oratorios or cantatas. A domesticated dog or chimpanzee may be
able to express their desire to be fed, but they cannot verbally articulate
their hunger. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Man, on the other hand, has the capacity to utilize sounds
in multifaceted ways. Not only can he arrange particular sounds in orderly ways
to construct meaningful words and phrases, but he can also accentuate specific
sounds within these words and phrases to convey the precise emotion, mood,
attitude, feeling, or idea he desires to express. For example, making the
statement, “You’re not hungry,” will have a significantly different meaning
than asking the question, “You’re not hungry?” </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Verbally, the only difference between both sentences is a change in the tone of
voice.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Hence, we see that not only words communicate—<i>sounds themselves communicate</i>. We see
this very clearly in Scripture. One example:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
<b>1 Corinthians 14:7-8</b>: “If even lifeless instruments, such as the
flute or the harp, do not give distinct notes, how will anyone know what is
played? And if the bugle gives an indistinct sound, who will get ready for
battle?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
The context of this passage is the believers’ need to utter
intelligible speech in order to be understood by others and thus be able to
edify the church. But interestingly, the passage compares human language to
instrumental sounds. It shows us that as words are used to transmit information,
sounds in music (apart from any lyrical content) are used to do so as well.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Of course a keen fellow may object, “I agree that sounds communicate,
but they are entirely subjective. They communicate different things to
different people. Just how a language may be completely meaningless to one
person, but completely meaningful to another. After all, that’s what the
context of the passage is talking about!” </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
The second part of this objection is certainly true. One
language may indeed sound like mindless babble to one person, but be perfectly understandable
to another, as we see in 1 Corinthians 14. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
And granted, the information that a particular sound
communicates can be dependent on the meaning that a culture, a society, or even
an individual, gives them. For example, the sounds of the verbal tones used in
languages may differ greatly (e.g., the tone of voice in asking a question in
Mandarin does not sound at all like the tone of voice expressed when asking a
question in English). So in that sense, certain sounds can be subjective. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
However, the first part of the above objection is not
entirely true. There are certain sounds that are <i>not</i> subjective. There are certain sounds that transcend culture and
people group and language—and are understood by all. While some sounds
communicate certain things to certain people, and other things to others, many
sounds are universal.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
-A forceful, angry yell sounds like
a forceful, angry yell to anyone from any culture or background—it never
communicates “joy and happiness”. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
-The loud, startling noise of an
ambulance siren does not communicate “peace and tranquility” to anyone <i>anywhere</i>. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
-The utterly distressed and hopeless
bawl of one grieving a loss will never be understood as an exuberant shout of
joy.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
-It is hardly likely that the melodramatic
violin melodies of a romantic movie soundtrack will communicate “anger”,
“frustration” or “aggression” to any listener. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Undoubtedly and undeniably, individual sounds have a unique
and powerful ability to communicate. And thus music, which is comprised of a
sequence of sounds, also has a powerful ability to communicate, to transmit information
without words. And like certain words, phrases and sentences can have an effect
on our emotions (because of the information they’re transmitting), so can
certain noises, sounds and melodies. Music has the power to influence our
emotions. Therefore, it is apparent that music is <i>anything but neutral</i>. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Aaron Blockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14606845955857824160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190611447505374508.post-80332258153558796012012-12-21T12:42:00.000-08:002012-12-21T12:42:00.024-08:00The Sounds of Acceptable Worship: Part 1 — Created to Sing<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<img height="300" src="http://biz70.inmotionhosting.com/~scottw13//images/stories/Photos/here%20i%20am%20to%20worship%20background%20slide.jpg" width="400" /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Before we begin examining contemporary Christian music
through a biblical lens, let’s take a brief look at what the Bible tells us
about sounds and music:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<u><br /></u></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<u>Music Comes Directly from God</u></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Did you know the Lord sings? Yes! </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
<b>Zephaniah 3:17</b>: “The LORD your God is in your midst, a mighty one
who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his
love; he will exult over you with <u>loud singing</u>.”<u><o:p></o:p></u></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Music is the Lord’s “idea”; musical sounds and melodies directly
emanate from Him. </div>
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<br /></div>
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<u><br /></u></div>
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<u>All God’s Earthly Creatures sing</u>.</div>
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<br /></div>
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He has also given His creation the capacity to sing, to make
melodies, and to worship through music. The Lord gives life and breath to all
things (<b>1 Tim.6:13</b>, <b>Acts 17:25</b>). All His creatures return
this “breath of life” to Him through worship. In fact, all of creation is commanded
to worship Him:</div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<b>Psalm 150:6</b>: “Let everything that has breath praise the LORD!
Praise the LORD!”</div>
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<b>Psalm 117</b>: “Praise the LORD, all nations! Extol him, all peoples!”</div>
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<br /></div>
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One of these expressions of worship, of course, is singing:</div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<b>Psalm 66:1-2</b>: “Shout for joy to God, all the earth; <u>sing</u> the
glory of his name; give to him glorious praise!”</div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<b>Psalm 67:3-5</b>: “Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the
peoples praise you! Let the nations be glad and <u>sing for joy</u>, for you
judge the peoples with equity and guide the nations upon earth. Selah. Let the
peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you!” </div>
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</div>
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<br /></div>
<u><div style="text-align: justify;">
<u><br /></u></div>
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<u>God’s heavenly creatures also sing to the Lord</u>:</div>
</u><br />
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<b>Job 38:7</b>: “…when the morning stars <u>sang together</u> and all the
sons of God shouted for joy?”</div>
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<br /></div>
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Most commentators believe the term “morning stars” to be
figuratively referring to angelic beings, rather than literal stars.
Regardless, this passage is more clear:</div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<b>Revelation 5:8-9</b>:<b> </b>“And
when he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four
elders fell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp, and golden bowls full of
incense, which are the prayers of the saints. And they <u>sang</u> a new song,
saying, ‘Worthy are you…’”<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
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</div>
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<span style="text-decoration: underline;"><br /></span></div>
<u><div style="text-align: justify;">
<u><br /></u></div>
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<u>All of God’s creation “sings”</u>:</div>
</u><br />
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<b>Psalm 65:12-13</b>: “The pastures of the wilderness overflow, the hills
gird themselves with joy, the meadows clothe themselves with flocks, the
valleys deck themselves with grain, <u>they shout and sing together for joy</u>.”
</div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<b>Psalms 96:11-13</b>: “Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth
rejoice; let the sea roar, and all that fills it; let the field exult, and
everything in it! Then shall all the trees of the forest <u>sing for joy</u>
before the LORD, for he comes, for he comes to judge the earth. He will judge
the world in righteousness, and the peoples in his faithfulness.”</div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<b>Psalm 98:7-9</b>: “Let the sea roar, and all that fills it; the world
and those who dwell in it! Let the rivers clap their hands; let the hills <u>sing
for joy together</u>”. </div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<b>Isaiah 44:23</b>: “<u>Sing</u>, O heavens, for the LORD has done it;
shout, O depths of the earth; <u>break forth into singing</u>, O mountains, O
forest, and every tree in it! For the LORD has redeemed Jacob, and will be
glorified in Israel.” </div>
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<br /></div>
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The intricate and ordered sounds and movements of nature are
described as songs and praises of joy unto the Lord. </div>
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</div>
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<span style="text-decoration: underline;"><br /></span></div>
<u><div style="text-align: justify;">
<u><br /></u></div>
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<u>In glory, the saints will continue to joyfully sing to the Lord for all
eternity</u>:</div>
</u><br />
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<b>Revelation 14:2</b>: “And I heard a voice from heaven like the roar of
many waters and like the sound of loud thunder. The voice I heard was like the
sound of harpists playing on their harps, and they were <u>singing a new song</u>
before the throne and before the four living creatures and before the elders.
No one could learn that song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the
earth.”</div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<b>Revelation 15:2-4</b>: “And I saw what appeared to be a sea of glass
mingled with fire--and also those who had conquered the beast and its image and
the number of its name, standing beside the sea of glass with harps of God in
their hands. And they <u>sing the song</u> of Moses, the servant of God, and
the song of the Lamb, saying, "Great and amazing are your deeds, O Lord
God the Almighty! Just and true are your ways, O King of the nations! Who will
not fear, O Lord, and glorify your name? For you alone are holy. All nations
will come and worship you, for your righteous acts have been revealed.”</div>
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<br /></div>
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Thus we see that sounds and music are no accident, and
neither are they purposeless or meaningless. They flow directly from the
character and being of God Himself. He is a verbal being, and as such He has
privileged His creatures with the capacity to not only communicate through
sounds, but also to worship Him through them. </div>
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<br /></div>
Aaron Blockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14606845955857824160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190611447505374508.post-73757733058273163732012-12-19T12:33:00.003-08:002015-10-13T21:05:08.361-07:00The Sounds of Acceptable Worship: Introduction<br />
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<img src="http://img.ehowcdn.com/article-new/ehow/images/a04/fn/qd/music-bible-800x800.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></div>
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<span style="text-align: justify;">As of today, I will embark on a series of teachings about a
highly controversial topic in modern day Christendom: Christian music. I hope
to answer important and relevant questions for believers today—such questions
as:</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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</div>
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“What does the Bible say about music?”</div>
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“What music and musical styles should we listen to as Christians?”</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
“Can I worship God through <i>any</i> type
of music?”</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
“Is music neutral?”</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
“What about Christian rap, metal and rock n roll?”</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<br />
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I will also respond to statements often made by believers,
like:</div>
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<br /></div>
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</div>
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“The rhythms and beats of a song
aren’t important; the only thing that matters is that the lyrics are
God-glorifying.”</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
“Many people are hearing the Gospel and being saved in [favorite artist’s name]’s
concerts. There is so much fruit. The Lord is <i>has to be</i> pleased with their music.”</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
“We need to conform to the culture in order to reach them for Christ. That’s
what Paul did!”</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<br />
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In reality, the question of how we should approach God in
worship shouldn’t be so controversial. It <i>is</i>,
however, because most Christians almost always engage this issue with much
passion. This very often results in unreasonable behavior. Debates centered on
the music controversy sometimes even result in personal attacks, unnecessary
qualms and division between Christians. All this is owing to the fact that whenever
the habits or practices so dear to one’s heart are called into question, it is
hard for such a person to look at a matter objectively. Emotions are involved. Biblical,
objective reasoning tends to give way to subjective opinions and attempts to
justify one’s behavior, lifestyle and choices. When it comes to an issue like
music, even a believer known for his consistent walk with the Lord and
diligence to study the Word may go hermeneutically berserk, irrationally
clinging to an unbiblical point of view—throwing away all biblical principles
of interpreting Scripture by eisegetically mangling biblical texts to conform
them to his point of view. Rather than
“test everything” (1 Thes.5:21) by searching the Scriptures diligently like the
Bereans (Acts 17:9), this type of person may rather cling even tighter to his
own beliefs without wanting to give them much thought or look deeper into the
issue. He may become defensive toward those who dare question his point of
view, and respond to any arguments against his views with accusations and ad
hominem attacks aimed at the debater himself, rather than at the arguments his
debater is propounding. Instead of sincerely seeking the Lord in prayer, and
searching out wise counsel from godly men, he may rather run to, and surround
himself with, those of his own persuasion—a “support group” of sorts.<br />
<br />
I’m not a
fan of modern psychology by any means, but this field of study has coined a
term to describe the aforementioned dilemma: cognitive dissonance. When one
comes across new information that directly contradicts one’s beliefs or
behavior, such a person’s reaction will be to either: 1) conform to this new
information, accepting it, however difficult and uncomfortable it may be, or 2)
find some means to <i>suppress</i> the new
information to reduce the uncomfortable tension—such as by attempting to justify
his existing beliefs or behavior using inconsistent pretexts…or even by
choosing to immediately dismiss and ignore the information altogether. </div>
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<br /></div>
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I mention this because you, dear reader, may find yourself
reacting in such a way to the information I am about to present. You may begin
to feel uncomfortable, and even angry. You may feel like simply dismissing it
as another rant from a “legalist”. Questions may begin to race through your
mind, such as, “Is he saying such and such an artist is in sin?”, “Is he saying
<i>I</i> am in sin?”, “Is he saying this or
that instrument/music style is sinful?”, “Is he saying I can’t worship God
through this or that type of music?” I kindly beseech you to please continue
reading my posts before coming to any conclusions as to what I am actually <i>saying</i>. And please take the time to
carefully examine everything I mention with the Bible. Our authority is God’s
Word, and not man’s opinions. Man can,
and does, err—no matter how much he may be used of God. And the simple truth is
that I can err, which is why you need to test everything I say with Scripture. If
I write something unbiblical, please feel free to throw it out. If I write
something that makes you feel uncomfortable, search the Scriptures to see if
what I am saying is so, regardless of how you feel. Pray and ask the Lord for
wisdom. </div>
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<br /></div>
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One of the verses I quoted above says in context:</div>
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<br /></div>
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“Do not despise prophecies, but test everything; hold fast
what is good. Abstain from every form of evil.” <br />
(1 Thessalonians 5:20-22)</div>
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<br /></div>
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I sincerely hope and pray you will heed to the above
admonition.<br />
<br />
<br /></div>
Aaron Blockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14606845955857824160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190611447505374508.post-3505905065119798362012-05-06T15:33:00.000-07:002012-05-06T15:33:00.191-07:00BLOODLINES DOCUMENTARY- John Piper<iframe src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/28323716?title=0&byline=0&portrait=0" width="500" height="281" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe>
<br>Aaron Blockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14606845955857824160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190611447505374508.post-74817165859437258702012-05-03T15:54:00.001-07:002012-05-03T15:54:58.106-07:00Don't Waste Your Providence<iframe width="500" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Dk51PMlcIoU" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
<br>Aaron Blockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14606845955857824160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190611447505374508.post-86027468186399234202012-04-30T16:12:00.000-07:002012-04-30T16:21:52.421-07:00WHAT WERE THE CRUSADES ALL ABOUT?<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/TPAcW4X8fsg" width="500"></iframe>
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
Here's a good article on the subject written some years ago by the same guy on the video:<br />
<a href="http://www.frontline.org.za/articles/crusades_all_about.htm"><br />http://www.frontline.org.za/articles/crusades_all_about.htm</a></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The recent Hollywood epic Kingdom of Heaven has provoked a flurry of articles re-evaluating the crusades. According to the Director, Ridley Scott, the Knights Templar were the “rightwing or Christian fundamentalists of their day.” Scott, who describes himself as an agnostic, has gone on record stating: “If we could just take God out of the equation, there would be no f…. problem!” Reinforcing popular stereotypes about the crusades, Scott’s politically correct, anti-Christian Kingdom of Heaven has been described by Professsor Jonathan Riley-Smith, one of the foremost authorities on the crusades, as “Osama Bin Laden’s version of history” which “will fuel the Islamic fundamentalists.”</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The popular misconceptions about the crusades are that these were aggressive wars of expansion fought by religious fanatics in order to evict Muslims from their homeland, and force conversions to Christianity. Those who really believe any of that betray their ignorance of history.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br />
A REACTION TO JIHAD</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The crusaders were reacting to over four centuries of relentless Islamic Jihad, which had wiped out over 50% of all the Christians in the world and conquered over 60% of all the Christian lands on earth – before the crusades even began. Many of the towns liberated by the crusaders were still over 90% Christian when the crusaders arrived. The Middle East was the birthplace of the Christian Church. It was the Christians who had been conquered and oppressed by the Seljuk Turks. So many of the towns in the Middle East welcomed the crusaders as liberators.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Far from the crusaders being the aggressors, it was the Muslim armies which had spread Islam from Saudi Arabia across the whole of Christian North Africa into Spain and even France within the first century after the death of Muhammad. Muslim armies sacked and slaughtered their way across some of the greatest Christian cities in the world, including Alexandria, Carthage, Antioch and Constantinople. These Muslim invaders destroyed over 3,200 Christian churches just in the first 100 years of Islam.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br />
DEFENSIVE WARS</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
As Professor Thomas Madden in The Real History of the Crusades points out: “The crusades to the East were in every way defensive wars. They were a direct response to Muslim aggression – an attempt to turn back or defend against Muslim conquests of Christian lands. Christians in the 11th Century were not paranoid fanatics. Muslims really were gunning for them…Islam was born in war and grew the same way. From the time of Muhammad, the means of Muslim expansion was always by the sword…Christianity was the dominant religion of power and wealth…The Christian world therefore was a prime target for the earliest Caliphs and it would remain so for Muslim leaders for the next thousand years…The crusades…were but a response to more than four centuries of conquests in which Muslim had already captured over two thirds of the Christian world.”</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
THINKING THE UNTHINKABLE</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
As the London Telegraph points out: “A more realistic view of history requires less retrospective fantasy and more brain work. It means forcing your heads around to see what motivated men and women centuries ago. Try to think the unthinkable – that the Crusaders were right, and that we should be grateful to them.”</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
CHRISTIAN LOVE AND SELF SACRIFICE</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Professor Jonathan Riley-Smith explains that crusading was “an act of love” for one’s neighbour. An act of mercy to right a terrible wrong. As one church leader wrote to the Knights Templar: “You carry out in deeds the words of the Gospel, ‘greater love than this hath no man, than that he lay down his life for his friends’.”</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Professor Riley-Smith points out that the goals of the crusades were firstly to rescue the Christians of the East: Many thousands of Christians are bound in slavery and imprisoned by the Muslims and tortured with innumerable torments.” And secondly the liberation of Jerusalem and other places made holy by the life of Christ. The Medieval crusaders saw themselves as pilgrims, restoring to the Lord Jesus Christ His property. “The Crusader’s conquest of Jerusalem, therefore, was not colonialism, but an act of restoration and an open declaration of one’s love of God…It is often assumed that the central goal of the crusades was forced conversion of the Muslim world. Nothing could be further from the truth. From the perspective of Medieval Christians, Muslims were the enemies of Christ and His Church. It was the Crusaders’ task to defeat and defend against them. That was all. Muslims who lived in crusader won territories were generally allowed to retain their property and livelihood and always their religion.”</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
AGAINST ALL ODDS</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
When we think about the Middle Ages, we inevitably view Europe in the light of what it became rather than what it was. The fact is that the superpower of the Medieval world was Islam, not Christendom. The crusades were a battle against all odds with impossibly long lines of supply and cripplingly inadequate logistics. It was a David against Goliath enterprise from the beginning. The chances of success for the first crusade were highly improbable. They had no leader, no chain of command, no supply lines and no detailed strategy. The first crusade consisted simply of thousands of dedicated warriors marching deep into enemy territory, thousands of kilometres from home. Many of them died of starvation, disease and wounds. It was a rough campaign that always was on the brink of disaster.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
“Yet it was miraculously successful. By 1098, the Crusaders had liberated Nicea and Antioch to Christian rule. And in July 1099 they re-conquered Jerusalem and began to build a Christian state in Palestine.”</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br />
A JUDGEMENT OF GOD</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
When Jerusalem fell to Saladin in 1187, Christians across Europe perceived that God was punishing them for their sins. Numerous lay movements sprang up throughout Europe dedicated to purifying Christian society so that it may become worthy of victory in the East.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Professor Madden of St. Lewis University and the author of A Concise History of the Crusades has observed: “From the safe distance of many centuries, it is easy enough to scowl in disgust at the crusades. Religion, after all, is nothing to fight wars over. But we should be mindful that our Medieval ancestors would have been equally disgusted by our infinitely more destructive wars fought in the names of political ideologies…Whether we admire the Crusaders or not, it is a fact that the world we know today would not exist without their efforts. The ancient faith of Christianity, with its respect for women and antipathy toward slavery, not only survived but flourished. Without the crusades, it might have followed Zoroastrianism, another of Islam’s rivals, into extinction.” But for the crusades Europe would have probably fallen to Islam and the USA would never have come into existence.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
LEARN TO DISCERN</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Dr. Ted Baehr of Movieguide warns viewers to be “media wise enough to reject revisionist history. The problem is that the future generations could accept this politically correct, anti-Christian propaganda.”</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br />
MOHAMMED VS CHRIST</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
In his article “Self Hate, Revisionist History and Christophobia in the Movie Kingdom of Heaven” Dr. Ted Baehr notes some of the differences between Mohammed and Christ:</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
“ Mo hammed was the prophet of war; Christ is the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6-7).</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Mohammed's disciples killed for the faith; Christ's disciples were killed for their faith (Acts 12:2; 2 Tim. 4:7).</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Mohammed promoted persecution against the "infidels"; Christ forgave and converted the chief persecutor (1 Tim. 1:13-15).</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Mohammed was the taker of life; Christ is the giver of life (John 10:27-28).</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Mohammed and his fellow warriors murdered thousands; Christ murdered none but saved many (John 12:48).</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Mohammed ’s method was COMPULSION; Christ’s aim was CONVERSION (Acts 3:19).</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Mohammed practiced FORCE; Christ preached FAITH (John 6:29, 35).</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Mohammed was a WARRIOR; Christ is a DELIVERER (Col. 1:13; 1 Thess. 1:10).</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Mohammed said to the masses, "Convert or die!"; Christ said, "Believe and live!" (John 6:47; 11:25-26).</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Mohammed was swift to shed blood (Rom. 3:15-17); Christ shed His own blood for the salvation of many (Eph. 1:7).</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
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Mohammed preached "Death to the infidels!"; Christ prayed "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do" (Luke 23:34).</div>
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Mohammed declared a holy war (Jihad) against infidels; Christ achieved a holy victory on Calvary's cross (Col. 2:14-15) and His followers share in that victory (John 16:33).</div>
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Mohammed constrained people by conquest; Christ constrained people by love (2 Cor. 5:14).</div>
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Modern terrorists derive their inspiration from Mohammed and carry out their despicable atrocities in the name of his god; Christians derive their inspiration from the One who said, "Blessed are the peacemakers" (Matthew 5:9).</div>
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Modern day disciples of Mohammed respond to the terrorist attacks by cheering in the streets; modern day disciples of Christ are deeply grieved at past atrocities carried out by those who were "Christians" in name only (the Crusades, the Spanish Inquisition, etc.).</div>
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Many Muslims are peaceful and peace-loving because they do not strictly follow the teachings of their founder; many Christians are peaceful and peace-loving because they do strictly follow the teachings of their Founder (Rom. 12:17-21).</div>
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Mohammed called upon his servants to fight; Jesus said, "My kingdom is not of this world; if My kingdom were of this world, then would My servants fight . . . but now is My kingdom not from here" (John 18:36)</div>
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Mohammed ordered death to the Jews (see A.Guillaume, The Life of Muhammad, Oxford University Press [1975], p. 369); Christ ordered that the Gospel be preached "to the Jew first" (Rom. 1:16).</div>
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The Koran says, "Fight and slay the Pagans wherever ye find them" (Qu'ran 9.5); Christ said, "Preach the Gospel to every creature" (Mark 16:15).</div>
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Mohammed's mission was to conquer the world for Allah; Christ's mission was to conquer sin's penalty and power by substitutionary atonement (2 Cor. 5:21; 1 Pet. 3:18).</div>
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Mohammed claimed that there was but one God, Allah; Christ claimed that He was God (John 10:30-31; John 8:58-59; John 5:18; John 14:9).</div>
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Mohammed's Tomb: OCCUPIED! Christ's tomb: EMPTY! ”</div>
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JIHAD VS THE GOSPEL</div>
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The word “crusade” does not appear in the Bible, nor is it commanded. However, Jihad is the sixth pillar of Islam and the second greatest command of Muhammad. It is not only commended, but commanded in the Quran.</div>
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The crusades ended many centuries ago. However Islamic Jihad is carried out to this day. Millions of Christians have been slaughtered throughout the centuries by Islamic militants – such as the 1.5 millions Armenians murdered in Turkey in 1915. Christians have continued to be slaughtered by Islamic militants in Indonesia, the Philippines, Sudan and Nigeria to the present day.</div>
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Therefore, before Christians fall over themselves to apologise for the crusades, which ended over 700 years ago, it would be wise to first learn from reliable sources what the crusades were all about, and study the Islamic teachings and track record of Jihad over the last 14 centuries. “Slavery, Terrorism and Islam – The Historical Roots and Contemporary Threat” would provide a good introduction. Those who do not know their past have no future.</div>
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For an analysis of the distortion of theology and history in Ridley Scott’s epic, anti-Christian propaganda against the Crusaders, see our review: Kingdom of Heaven – Hollywood’s Crusade Against Christianity.</div>
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Dr. Peter Hammond</div>
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<br />Aaron Blockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14606845955857824160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190611447505374508.post-18853087941418315842012-03-27T21:07:00.000-07:002012-03-27T21:07:04.239-07:00Why Sing So Many Cross-centered Songs - C.J. MahaneyAmen! <br />
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<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/vGLrzyOY1SA" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br />
<br>Aaron Blockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14606845955857824160noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190611447505374508.post-8513764073047577182012-02-21T19:07:00.001-08:002012-02-21T19:07:51.957-08:00Hebrews 6 Does Not Teach that a Christian Can Lose His Salvation - Tim Conway<iframe width="500" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/aPZzJiQkZZk" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br />
<br>Aaron Blockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14606845955857824160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190611447505374508.post-66766475137381746912012-02-13T20:43:00.000-08:002012-02-13T20:46:43.756-08:00What are You Offering to the Lord?<div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RsGbuIPumIE/TznlLtza5qI/AAAAAAAABGE/p5ZY0_Vlblk/s1600/leviticus+sacrifice.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RsGbuIPumIE/TznlLtza5qI/AAAAAAAABGE/p5ZY0_Vlblk/s320/leviticus+sacrifice.jpg" width="284" /></a></div><br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">"'A son honors his father, and a servant his master. If then I am a Father, where is my honor? And if I am a Master, where is my fear? says the LORD of hosts to you, O priests, who despise My name. But you say, "How have we despised Your name?" By offering polluted food upon my altar. But you say, "How have we polluted you?" By saying that the LORD's table may be despised. <br />
When you offer blind animals in sacrifice, is that not evil? And when you offer those that are lame or sick, is that not evil? Present that to your governor; will he accept you or show you favor?' says the LORD of hosts" <br />
<b>Malachi 1:6-8 </b></blockquote></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Rebellious Israel thought it acceptable to offer up to God a half-hearted sacrifice. They believed the Lord would approve of their pathetic sin offerings of defiled food. God commanded them to bring the best of their flock to be sacrificed on the altar, but for some reason they assumed He would not mind them bringing to His table their lame and sick animals. At least they were doing <i>something </i>for the Lord, right? After all, the rest of the nations were full of pagan idolatry...wouldn't God be pleased if this nation at the very least acknowledged His existence, came before Him and offered Him <i>something</i>, as defiled as it may be?</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">To these heinous sins of hypocrisy and presumption God responds: "I have <i>no pleasure in you</i>, says the LORD of hosts, and I will not accept an offering from your hand" (Mal.1:10). "<i>Cursed be the cheat </i>who has a male in his flock, and vows it, and yet sacrifices to the Lord what is blemished" (Mal.1:14). Those who were merely going through the motions of an external religious ritual, without offering to the Lord the internal devotion of their whole hearts (as is demonstrated by their unwillingness to obey God's precisely prescribed methods of sacrifice), were despising the name of the Lord, not showing Him any fear, and were therefore cursed wretches in His sight. God didn't need their sacrifices; He allowed them to partake in the incomparable privilege of glorifying Him through this glorious act of worship...but by their lukewarmness, indifference and disobedience they made a mockery of His name.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">What does your devotion to God look like? Are you giving the Lord the firstfruits--the best--of each day? Is the body that the Lord commands you to present to Him as a living sacrifice truly holy and pleasing unto Him? Is spending time with the Lord in prayer and worship your daily priority? Are the Scriptures your daily delight? Could you really say like Job, "I have treasured the words of His mouth more than my necessary food"? Do you cry with the Psalmist, "Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight"? Are the words that come out of your mouth for the glory of God and the edification of the brethren, or are they for tearing down, gossiping and slandering? How about your thought-life: is Jesus Christ your daily meditation? Do you earnestly make an effort to fill your mind and heart with the Scriptures? Do you contemplate on those things that are true, honorable, just, pure, lovely and God-glorifying, or do you find yourself often meditating on the sinful things of the world? And your time--is it used for the Kingdom of God and the furtherance of the Gospel? Are you redeeming the time, or are you squandering your precious hours meaninglessly on trite games, entertainment and distractions?</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">What are you presenting before the altar of the Lord? If you gave your boss at work what your offer to God, would you be fired? If royalty or the president of your country were to show up at your house to visit, would they be shown more attention, respect, dignity, time and devotion than what you give to the Lord? </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">"For from the rising of the sun to its setting My name will be great among the nations, and in every place incense will be offered to My name, and a pure offering. For My name will be great among the nations, says the LORD of hosts." (Mal. 1:11)</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">May our devotional life be a sweet-smelling incense, and may the sacrifice of our heart be a pure offering before Him. The Lord is worthy, and His glory is the only thing that matters. </div><br><br />
<br>Aaron Blockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14606845955857824160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190611447505374508.post-33441343977846942852012-02-09T11:26:00.000-08:002012-02-09T11:28:04.850-08:00Peruvian Martyr: Rómulo Sauñe<div style="text-align: justify;">I just finished reading a book called <i>The Path and the Peacemakers</i>. It's about the Church's triumph over terrorism in Peru in the 80's and 90's, during the days of the <i>Sendero Luminoso</i> ("Shining Path"), a Marxist-Leninist-Maoist terrorist group that saught to "liberate" the country of imperialist oppression...killing more than 30,000 people in their "war for freedom". They succeeded in taking over many towns and villages in the Andean regions and in the jungles. Among their main enemies were the Christians, who stood against everything their murderous group represented. Thousands of believers fell victim to their brutal violence. Bible translator Rómulo Sauñe was one of them.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/rtQ_hDpJoX4" width="420"></iframe></div><br>Aaron Blockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14606845955857824160noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190611447505374508.post-82731454504414717392012-01-23T10:46:00.000-08:002012-01-23T10:46:02.282-08:00The Just Shall Live by Faith Not by Feelings - Don Johnson<iframe width="500" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/bMWprs0YiWg" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br />
<br>Aaron Blockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14606845955857824160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190611447505374508.post-66497129627271203552012-01-01T18:19:00.001-08:002012-01-01T18:21:01.675-08:00Claiming to Be Wise, the Atheists Become Fools - Tim ConwayRichard Dawkins is one big fool.<br />
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<br>Aaron Blockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14606845955857824160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190611447505374508.post-22654632286954933832011-12-26T22:17:00.000-08:002011-12-26T22:18:11.460-08:00Spurgeon on Believing Evolutionary Fables<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kH__z8_ZEdM/TvliE7rGhBI/AAAAAAAABFM/ziYwtw21eis/s1600/spurgeon_chair1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kH__z8_ZEdM/TvliE7rGhBI/AAAAAAAABFM/ziYwtw21eis/s320/spurgeon_chair1.jpg" width="318" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">"The monstrous credulity of unbelief amazes me! I meet with persons who consider themselves to be bold thinkers and philosophers, and they express their astonishment that I can really believe the things which I preach: but no sooner do I learn from them what their positive creed is, than the astonishment comes to be on my side, and is a thousand times greater than theirs could be. The faith which accepts Christ has but a small throat indeed compared with that credulity which believes for instance in the development of man from a protoplasm—that creed requires the swallow of the great fish which swallowed Jonah entire. A lie ye will believe, but because the Gospel is true ye do not believe it."</div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><br />
</i></div><div style="text-align: center;">-Charles Spurgeon, <i>A Solemn Impeachment of Unbelievers</i></div><br><br />
<br>Aaron Blockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14606845955857824160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190611447505374508.post-71086982895640545032011-12-18T16:37:00.000-08:002011-12-18T16:37:35.247-08:00The Story Behind the Hymn "All Hail the Power of Jesus' Name"<span class="LimelightEmbeddedPlayer"><script src="http://assets.delvenetworks.com/player/embed.js"></script><object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" id="limelight_player_729831" name="limelight_player_729831" class="LimelightEmbeddedPlayerFlash" width="420" height="280" data="http://assets.delvenetworks.com/player/loader.swf"><param name="movie" value="http://assets.delvenetworks.com/player/loader.swf"/><param name="wmode" value="window"/><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"/><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"/><param name="flashVars" value="mediaId=0e96ab0aede643bab05dd43cc12726b1&playerForm=f2bed9d9c10a463eb0c1d3fcb562eea7"/></object><script>LimelightPlayerUtil.initEmbed("limelight_player_729831");</script></span><br />
<br>Aaron Blockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14606845955857824160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190611447505374508.post-34673903142842459112011-12-14T12:53:00.001-08:002011-12-14T12:53:12.995-08:00MEET AN ABORTED CRACK BABY<iframe width="500" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/VueODWF_dxQ" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br />
<br>Aaron Blockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14606845955857824160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190611447505374508.post-36525689522117280522011-12-09T13:40:00.000-08:002011-12-09T22:05:06.876-08:00WATCH YOUR WORDS!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_nRLjm1DQ8c/TuJ_bmCGoqI/AAAAAAAABEo/xfw0hRLl0yk/s1600/tame-tongue.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="248" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_nRLjm1DQ8c/TuJ_bmCGoqI/AAAAAAAABEo/xfw0hRLl0yk/s320/tame-tongue.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;">When I was evangelizing in Centro the other day, I ran into a very kind and sincere brother in the Lord. During our conversation, I mentioned that, although I regularly proclaimed the Gospel publicly in the open air, people didn’t want to believe. He didn’t approve of that statement, however, asserting that our words have power. As evidence of this, he quoted Proverbs 18:21: “death and life are in the power of the tongue”. In a very well-meaning and tenderhearted way, he warned me to be careful to not say negative things, as fallen angels could use those negative confessions against us, and thus we could be responsible for bringing bad circumstances upon ourselves…and could therefore miss God’s blessings for our lives. He suggested that I take that negative statement that came out of my mouth and replace it with a positive one—such as the emphatic declaration, “Many people <i>will</i> be saved!” </div><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">But does that line up with Scripture? Do our words really have power, and will they really create for us negative and positive circumstances?</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">What about the occasion when that young, zealous disciple of Jesus adamantly confessed, “Lord, I will NEVER deny you!” Peter unwaveringly declared that he would never fall away, and that he would go with Him to prison…and even to death (Mat.26:33-35; Mark 14:27-31; Luke 22:31-34). Did his positive confession reap great blessings upon his life?</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">What of the time when the Lord Jesus affirmed the truth that the Jewish people did not believe, that they did not have the love of God within them, and that they refused to come to Him that they may have life? (John 5:38-47). Should the King of glory have been rebuked for stating such negative words? </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">And what of Paul’s confession that he left Trophimus ill at Miletus (2 Tim.4:20)? Didn’t Paul know better that to actually declare a sickness upon his own friend and brother? Shouldn’t he have instead confessed that Trophimus would recover?</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">In comparison with Scripture, this relatively new doctrine of our words having life and death-creating power (invented by false teacher Kenneth Copeland in the mid-20th Century) doesn’t stand. Proverbs 18:21 is not referring to some mystical, demon-influencing or hindering ability we have in our tongues. It’s simply saying that your tongue can get you and others in world of trouble—s<i>o be careful with what you say</i>. The tongue is a fire that can set an entire forest ablaze (see James 3); out of your mouth can flow deceit, gossip, cursing, vain and haughty words, indiscretion, and many other sins. Not bridling your tongue can get you, or others, killed. Bridling your tongue, and using it wisely, can save your life, and help you to gain great favor with men. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Notwithstanding, as I explained to the amiable brother I spoke with, there is a grain of truth in that “positive confession” doctrine. Granted, most of that teaching is false, but believers are exhorted in the Scriptures to exhort one another daily with the TRUTH (Heb.3:13)—admonishing each other with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs in all wisdom—and we are to let the Word of God dwell richly in our hearts (Eph.5:19; Col.3:16). Rather than believe the lies of Satan and the world, and the deception of sin, we are to hold fast to the truth, to the commands and promises of God found in His Word, and we are to wield those promises and commands in the face of any and all temptations and trials (Mat.4:1-11; Eph.6:17). </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">So in a sense, yes, we are to “declare” those truths and promises to the Lord in prayer (Acts 4:24-30), wrestling with Him until we’ve obtained the blessing (Gen.32:24-32 ). What He has promised to do He will do (1 Thes.5:24). Of that we can be sure. Hebrews 10:23 exhorts us to “hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.” We need to believe that He will fulfill His Word, and also that He rewards those who seek Him (Heb.11:6). </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">And as it is legitimate to verbally SPEAK the truth to God, to the brethren, and even to the enemy, it is likewise legitimate to speak the truth to oneself. We are to TALK to ourselves, as David did in times of adversity. In Psalm 42:5-6 and 11, he rebukes and encourages himself:</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">“Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.”</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">It is also valid to replace a negative, ungodly thought that comes into our minds and hold it captive to the obedience of Christ—that is, to reject it and replace it with a promise or truth of Scripture (2 Cor.10:5). Philippians 4:8 tells us, “whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.”</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">But as a final note, allow me to add that in doing all of the above, we must be careful to not presume upon God. We are not to claim for ourselves healing, or a miracle, or a blessing, when He has not explicitly said so in the Scriptures, or revealed so by some other divine or providential means. Presumption is unfortunately the sin of many of our “charismatic” brethren. May it not be so with us. </div><br>Aaron Blockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14606845955857824160noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190611447505374508.post-33345508556864093932011-11-26T09:36:00.000-08:002011-11-26T09:36:58.854-08:00Recent Guadalajara Slayings<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MudbxIpdVcE/TtEjnIYsF3I/AAAAAAAABEY/UxkaQAyWTYo/s1600/Guadalajara+birds+eye.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="197" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MudbxIpdVcE/TtEjnIYsF3I/AAAAAAAABEY/UxkaQAyWTYo/s320/Guadalajara+birds+eye.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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Brethren, please pray for this city, and for us.<br />
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<a href="http://www.npr.org/2011/11/25/142766230/26-bodies-dumped-in-mass-slaying-in-guadalajara">http://www.npr.org/2011/11/25/142766230/26-bodies-dumped-in-mass-slaying-in-guadalajara</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.news24.com/World/News/Bodies-identified-in-Mexico-slaying-20111126">http://www.news24.com/World/News/Bodies-identified-in-Mexico-slaying-20111126</a><br />
<br>Aaron Blockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14606845955857824160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190611447505374508.post-14952393367602514772011-11-01T11:36:00.000-07:002011-11-02T11:00:37.880-07:00The Pan American Games Meet Mary, the Pope and Death<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN0YVeT7hJWaXai3IAAMaezVnA0H8epQbDVJjFtcbnMa_SKqRRSxEajv0Yhmtoy53SyQyCNbk1FW4uCpRKrBeXFEsG6BIi8u4BItkC456_Q8ZxqPf3kRiVTbmxHdeipUeTB8HNonKZStA/s1600/DSC00275.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN0YVeT7hJWaXai3IAAMaezVnA0H8epQbDVJjFtcbnMa_SKqRRSxEajv0Yhmtoy53SyQyCNbk1FW4uCpRKrBeXFEsG6BIi8u4BItkC456_Q8ZxqPf3kRiVTbmxHdeipUeTB8HNonKZStA/s400/DSC00275.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">The Pan American Games are now officially over. We preached in our usual spots in Centro throughout the whole two weeks of this event. Things were pretty much the same as usual as far as evangelism goes. Though I did see many tourists walking around with Pan American name tags/identification cards hanging around their necks, the majority of the people in the streets were Guadalajarans. The streets were crowded with them; as anticipated and hoped for by Guadalajaran authorities, the locals used the Games as an excuse to party, vacation, shop and walk around the town. There were many festivities, events and live music shows Downtown. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">They also closed down almost an entire major street, only a block from where we live. There they set up many booths with touristic information about other countries and parts of Mexico, PAG merchandise, souveniers, and food. This street meets a huge roundabout, also a block away from where we live; they closed half of it off and set up a giant stage where they had live bands play <i>every day </i>of the Games, from the afternoon until about 11pm. Our neighborhood was very noisy, crowded and filled with traffic (as a result of the nearby street and roundabout being closed off).</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGf3NwadoZ_CdLqDlUYK9Phr7CLzjjGKn1kGMJIouPwHXsi1NQG-AcJdOFwBxTRt3oCb-hTFoZQiOP9kiZ_gz0KX1INt79agyfcxHy4HS0Tr9E0AUqSGPrHCoaH_l9wlEomW5Ceu5d0H0/s1600/DSC00269.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGf3NwadoZ_CdLqDlUYK9Phr7CLzjjGKn1kGMJIouPwHXsi1NQG-AcJdOFwBxTRt3oCb-hTFoZQiOP9kiZ_gz0KX1INt79agyfcxHy4HS0Tr9E0AUqSGPrHCoaH_l9wlEomW5Ceu5d0H0/s320/DSC00269.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgIDjuoP_m38ORgWSHv1ajg_A9Sl6jmmk8cyf6jIjnkqptYMSwlcjM2o-UnNyl4QAeUJVsVrGhkLQWCc6UQG_3gAORw1649BRE0Avg1ZN6Z4LrqCwp2-BqFI_rhOvoMgjpvvG-KuSqkH0/s1600/DSC00272.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgIDjuoP_m38ORgWSHv1ajg_A9Sl6jmmk8cyf6jIjnkqptYMSwlcjM2o-UnNyl4QAeUJVsVrGhkLQWCc6UQG_3gAORw1649BRE0Avg1ZN6Z4LrqCwp2-BqFI_rhOvoMgjpvvG-KuSqkH0/s320/DSC00272.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
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</div>It's been about three weeks of back-to-back festivities here in Guadalajara, as five different events occurred at around the same time. First, Wednesday the 12 was the annual idolatrous celebration of the <a href="http://www.guadalajarareporter.com/arts-a-entertainment-mainmenu-93/guadalajara-mainmenu-43/arts-a-culture/29736-a-million-souls-await-la-virgens-homecoming.html"><i>Virgen de Zapopan</i></a>; then, two days later the PAG commenced; and while that was going on last week, the late Pope John Paul II's <a href="http://www.guadalajarareporter.com/news-mainmenu-82/guadalajara/29905-visit-of-late-popes-relics-inspires-devotion.html">relics</a> payed a visit to different parts of the city, attracting multitides of devoted followers; yesterday was Halloween; and finally, tomorrow is <i>Día de los Muertos</i> (Day of the Dead). Three weeks of idolatry (of Mary, the Pope, sports and dead loved ones), drunkenness, revelry, national pride, sensuality, death-worship, occultism and many other sins which I would rather not mention.<br />
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</div>Please pray for Guadalajara, and for me, as Lord permitting, I will continue to preach the Gospel almost daily this week. <br />
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</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia7eqfVmZEMWF8UZ5AVNPPsRUj_9vbTbySmP1Z63lrZ229UZr77D_dgljvnluEamcRHpQuaWf72lnmtIxHdhmj5FLLOA3pv7SPl0p2aFGP3VhkPOYRa-wiQvHwZ_dsw4zecKmfrgg63EE/s1600/PA+Games+Bones.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia7eqfVmZEMWF8UZ5AVNPPsRUj_9vbTbySmP1Z63lrZ229UZr77D_dgljvnluEamcRHpQuaWf72lnmtIxHdhmj5FLLOA3pv7SPl0p2aFGP3VhkPOYRa-wiQvHwZ_dsw4zecKmfrgg63EE/s400/PA+Games+Bones.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Above: an example of the syncretization of recent events. Skeleton mannequins adorn the streets of downtown Guadalajara (for Día de los Muertos), this year with a Pan American sports theme. </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia7eqfVmZEMWF8UZ5AVNPPsRUj_9vbTbySmP1Z63lrZ229UZr77D_dgljvnluEamcRHpQuaWf72lnmtIxHdhmj5FLLOA3pv7SPl0p2aFGP3VhkPOYRa-wiQvHwZ_dsw4zecKmfrgg63EE/s1600/PA+Games+Bones.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br />
</a></div><br>Aaron Blockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14606845955857824160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190611447505374508.post-46422480692152261952011-10-23T14:48:00.001-07:002011-10-23T14:48:29.086-07:00Forsake Everything and Preach Christ to the Arabic World<iframe width="500" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/2xhsE4VW_GY" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Aaron Blockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14606845955857824160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190611447505374508.post-60687721631524675672011-10-07T09:54:00.000-07:002011-10-07T09:54:18.310-07:00ONLY A WEEK UNTIL THE GAMES BEGIN!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eq3YOETjXe0/To8ljAEoxII/AAAAAAAABCU/M9KTc9p53bM/s1600/juegos%252Bpanamericanos%252B2011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="220" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eq3YOETjXe0/To8ljAEoxII/AAAAAAAABCU/M9KTc9p53bM/s320/juegos%252Bpanamericanos%252B2011.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">The Pan American Games in Guadalajara will commence on October 14. It's estimated that 1.5 million spectators from all over the world will attend. Our plan is to hit the streets all throughout the two weeks of the Games, proclaiming the Good News to all the mexicans and visitors. This means that potentially hundreds of thousands of people will hear the Gospel! Brethren, please pray for us, we need the Holy Spirit to work in power through us for the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ and the salvation of souls. </div><br><br />
<br>Aaron Blockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14606845955857824160noreply@blogger.com0