Why Contemporary Christian Music For Worship?

"I also believe the real motive for adopting CCM for praise and worship was not, as we were often told, to evangelize those from outside the church, but was rooted in a need to satisfy our own desires for our favourite music."

Dan Lucarini, Why I Left the Contemporary Christian Music Movement, p.18

A Christian Discourse On Halloween

          Halloween is hotly debated subject matter amongst Christian circles. Some believe the festival to be harmless and entertaining. Others maintain that it is evidence of a morally bankrupt society, and that Christians who allow their children to go trick-or-treating are compromising the faith. Halloween has certainly been a source of controversy within the church. There exists a stark contrast of perspective on this issue. Therefore, a brief exercise of discernment would be wise.

          Regardless of the effort that an individual may place into commercializing this holiday, Halloween is of Celtic origin. It was observed in Ireland and Scotland, and was adopted by the Church of Rome in the fifth century. Halloween contains occult elements, from sorcery to witchcraft to demonism. Such concepts are condemned in Scripture (Leviticus 19:31; 20:6; Deuteronomy 18:9-12; 2 Chronicles 33:6; Galatians 5:19-21). Partaking in occult activities is idolatry, which can range from Ouija boards to tarot cards to fortune telling and so on.

          People cannot, however, utterly disassociate themselves from Halloween. It is, in reality, just another day of the week. When viewed in this way, there is nothing inherently pagan about Halloween, especially as it is celebrated in our culture. Further, God is our Creator and transcends time. Everything rightly belongs to Him (Psalm 24:1; 1 Corinthians 10:26). That includes Halloween. We should be glorifying Him on a daily basis. There are good ways of going about matters in this life, and other courses of action that are not so good. It would also be wise to keep in mind that anything can be abused and misused.

          The act of a child dressing up as a cowboy and going door to door with the intention of receiving candy from neighbors is not in and of itself evil. No homage is given to false gods in doing so. To illustrate the point, the Apostle Paul declared that eating meats offered to idols is morally permissible, provided that one's own conscience and fellow brethren are not offended (1 Corinthians 10:25-33). If eating causes one to "participate" in the sacrifice itself, then why would the Apostle Paul tell his audience that it is fine for them eat the meat offered to idols?

          A person whose conscience is violated by such a cultural tradition has every right to express disagreement. Paul said, "One person regards one day above another, another regards every day alike. Each person must be fully convinced in his own mind...Therefore let us not judge one another anymore, but rather determine this—not to put an obstacle or a stumbling block in a brother’s way" (Romans 14:5; 13). If, however, a Christian does embrace the sinful themes of Halloween, then he is indeed guilty of sin and needs to repent.

Supernatural Fingerprints Embedded Throughout The Bible

"The continuity of Scripture declares a divine editor and revealer - 66 books, 40 authors and hundreds of years of history. The authors are separated by time, space and education. They come from all walks of life and most of them never met one another, yet they came together to form one central story of the Son of God, Jesus Christ.

He is shown as pre-incarnate. He is shown in prophecy as coming. He is shown as here in His first advent. He is shown as coming again in the future.

One man could produce a work with continuity but this combination of authors and times has to be divinely assembled. Man could not produce such a work."

Rev. Stanley L. Derickson, The Supernatural Origins Of The Word Of God

Debunking Generational Curse Theology

          There is a popular, but false, notion being promulgated amongst professing Christians known as the generational curse, which is the belief that spiritual defilements are passed on from parents to children. For example, one might believe that the outbursts of anger that he experiences were passed on from his parents. Sometimes these traits are even attributed to possession by demons who need to be cast away. The most common proof text used to substantiate the idea of generational curses be Exodus 20:5. On the contrary, a careful examination of that passage and others will reveal this teaching to be totally unsound and unfounded.

          First of all, the Word of God emphatically tells us that we cannot inherit the guilt of our parents (Deuteronomy 24:16; 2 Kings 14:6; 2 Chronicles 25:4; Ezekiel 18:20). God holds us accountable only for our sins, not those of other people. God punishes people for their own sins, not that of their parents. We are judged according to our conduct, (Exodus 32:31-33; Romans 14:12; 2 Corinthians 5:10), not the actions of our ancestors. We are clearly held responsible for our own choices, not that of others. As a matter of fact, Jesus indicated that God bestows grace to children (Matthew 18:1-5; 19:13-15; Mark 10:13-16). Though we inherited a sin nature from the fall of Adam, behaviors are learned and chosen. We do not inherit the sins of people who lived prior to us and cannot be punished for them.

          The text from Exodus does not say that God would give generational curses to people. Rather, the intent of the message is that God would cast judgment on idolaters. That sin would contaminate future generations through parental influence. The family is the foundational unit of all society, and the bad habits of prior generations are more often than not passed on to descendants. This is not the same as saying that sin can be inherited from parents. Children can actually turn out better than what they were raised to be. Further, there does not have to be demons present in people for them to act out in ways that are disorderly and immoral. They just act that way on their own accord. Human nature is sinful enough on its own to be the cause of its own problems. The idea of generational curses is foolish and stems from ignorance as to what life is like.

          God punishes people who continue in their sin and rebellion against Him. He also shows mercy to those who love Him and keep His commandments (Exodus 20:6). God forgives the sins of those who repent. Consequences can be passed on to posterity. In other words, our actions can change the course of history for people alive in future generations. However, that is different from the idea of generational curses. The forgiveness of God and salvation is not beyond the reach of anybody. If there is a "curse" at all, it would only be in the sense that moral corruption has been passed on to us as a result of the fall of our first parents in the Garden of Eden. That is universal in scope, as opposed to sins being passed on individually from parents to children. 

          If we can inherit the sin of our parents, then would that also mean that we could also inherit their righteousness? Can we inherit the mercy of God? The idea that people can inherit hexes or curses from their parents is totally unbiblical. If one walks according to the Spirit through faith in Jesus Christ, then there is no condemnation for him (Romans 5:1-11; Romans 8:1). This generational curse nonsense has no doubt caused much unnecessary fear and anxiety in the lives of Christians. The Lord is faithful, rich in mercy, abounding in love, and slow to anger (Exodus 34:6; Psalm 103:8-14). Our fellowship with God has nothing to do with family ancestry. If it did, then that would make Him a respecter of persons (Acts 10:34).

Critical Exposure Of The Message Version

• Introduction:

          -The Message Bible, put together by Eugene H. Peterson, was first published in segments from 1993 to 2002. It is not so much a translation of Scripture, but a paraphrase. It is an attempt to simplify the language of the Bible to suit the language of contemporary culture. When a person invests time into comparing the Message to reputable translations of the Bible, however, he will encounter many rather significant differences as to the meaning of the text. This work appears to contain intentional doctrinal alterations, which disqualifies it from being a study tool. In fact, the modernized, slang type language utilized throughout this work is at times almost mind-boggling. Following are examples of textual perversion within the Message Bible.

• Matthew 6:9:

          -The Message: "Our Father in heaven, Reveal who you are."

          -New American Standard: "Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your name."

          -NET Bible: "Our Father in heaven, may your name be honored"

          -King James Version: "Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name."

          -Comments: Why would Jesus Christ, the revelation of God (Hebrews 1:1-3), pray that God reveal Himself? Did God need to be revealed to Himself?

• Matthew 6:13:

          -The Massage: "Keep us safe from ourselves and the Devil. You’re in charge! You can do anything you want! You’re ablaze in beauty! Yes. Yes. Yes."

          -New American Standard: "And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen."

          -NET Bible: "And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one."

          -King James Version: "And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen."
          -Comments: This is a perfect example of the Message watering down God given truth, which is irreverent. The way that this part of the Lord's Prayer is rendered is childish at best.

• John 10:30:

          -The Message: "I and the Father are one heart and mind."

          -New American Standard: "I and the Father are one."
          -NET Bible: "The Father and I are one."
          -King James Version: "I and my Father are one."
          -Comments: The unique rendering of John 10:30 presented by the Message Bible would change our understanding of the relationship between the Father and the Son. It would be changed from one of essence to a psychological one.

• 1 Corinthians 6:9-11:

          -The Message: "Don’t you realize that this is not the way to live? Unjust people who don’t care about God will not be joining in his kingdom. Those who use and abuse each other, use and abuse sex, use and abuse the earth and everything in it, don’t qualify as citizens in God’s kingdom. A number of you know from experience what I’m talking about, for not so long ago you were on that list. Since then, you’ve been cleaned up and given a fresh start by Jesus, our Master, our Messiah, and by our God present in us, the Spirit."
          -Compare to the renderings of the New American Standard, NET Bible, and the King James Version.
          -Comments: Notice how the author of the Message utterly omits homosexuality from this list of soul-damning sins, thus distorting the meaning of the text. In 1 Timothy 1:10 of the same translation, the word "homosexuality" has been replaced with "sex." That is a change from a specific act to a broad category of behaviors. Is this translator attempting to be politically correct? Further, he inserted with no linguistic justification the phrase "use and abuse the earth" into 1 Corinthians 6:9-11.

• Colossians 2:9:

          -The Message: "You don’t need a telescope, a microscope, or a horoscope to realize the fullness of Christ, and the emptiness of the universe without him. When you come to him, that fullness comes together for you, too. His power extends over everything."

          -New American Standard: "For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form."

          -NET Bible: "For in him all the fullness of deity lives in bodily form."

          -King James Version: "For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily."

          -Comments: Why would the Apostle Paul need to make mention of astrology, which is condemned by God?

• Additional Commentary On The Message Version:

          -"...there are numerous websites and articles devoted to the translation errors in The Message, too numerous to reiterate here. Suffice it to say that The Message has engendered more criticism for its lack of serious scholarship and outright bizarre renderings than just about any other Bible version to date. One common complaint from many who read The Message or hear it read aloud is “I didn’t recognize it as the Bible.” Other critics declare The Message to be not a paraphrase of what the Bible says, but more of a rendering of what Eugene Peterson would like it to say. In an interview with Christianity Today, Peterson described the beginning of the creative process that produced The Message: “I just kind of let go and became playful. And that was when the Sermon on the Mount started. I remember I was down in my basement study, and I did the Beatitudes in about ten minutes. And all of a sudden I realized this could work.” (Got Questions, "What is The Message (MSG)?")

Thoughts On Consulting Experts

        Our perception of facts changes as new discoveries are made, whether they pertain to scientific or mathematical inquiry. What is at this moment termed common knowledge in our culture could be deemed mistaken in future generations. The process of investigation for truth requires persistent work and effort. It requires determination, as well as a great sense of humility. We should be staying informed and testing new ideas. That is how we conduct research, which is the process of uncovering truth. Even so, we do not have all the answers to the questions of life.

        We have finite minds that are liable to error. The same is equally true of the greatest thinkers in mankind. Experts do not know everything. Being a specialist in one sphere of learning does not make that person an expert in every aspect of a particular field. Professionals may also have to cite other professionals who are more qualified in different areas. They can even contradict one another, using the same data (which is subject to interpretation). Some fields have few experts working in them.

        It would be wise to consult the most trustworthy and authoritative figures which are relative to the subject matter. Such people would not likely act by themselves. Respectable experts objectively examine published resources and attend academic conferences to discuss questions. Competent scholars hold themselves and each other accountable. They publish their conclusions for the public to praise or criticize accordingly.

        God gave us counselors to guide us in truth (Proverbs 24:6). Though we are fallible beings, our reasoning capacities are reliable. We must carefully weigh the work of various professionals against others. This must be done objectively. The evidence backing up a scholarly view is of greater importance than the scholarly view itself. We do not know everything, however. The wisdom provided by experts is valuable only insofar that it conforms to already established facts and is consistent with the nature of reality. Scripture is the final standard of authority for the Christian (2 Timothy 3:15-17).

The Myth Of Life Existing On Other Planets

"Howard Smith, a senior astrophysicist at Harvard, made the claim that we are alone in the universe after an analysis of the 500 planets discovered so far showed all were hostile to life.

Dr Smith said the extreme conditions found so far on planets discovered outside out Solar System are likely to be the norm, and that the hospitable conditions on Earth could be unique.

“We have found that most other planets and solar systems are wildly different from our own. They are very hostile to life as we know it,” he said."

Heidi Blake, "Alien life deemed impossible by analysis of 500 planets"

Christ's Burial Garments Are An Argument For The Resurrection

          "and the handkerchief that had been around His head, not lying with the linen cloths, but folded together in a place by itself." (John 20:7, NKJV)

          The significance of the facial cloth being separated from Christ's burial garments is not known for sure, but the details mentioned do have an interesting apologetic thrust supportive of Him being resurrected bodily from the grave. 

          If the resurrection story was an elaborate hoax, then why would the handkerchief that once rested on His face be moved and folded neatly in a separate spot of the tomb? Why would thieves waste their time doing such? Why would Jesus waste this much time, if He were an impostor who needed to escape quickly so as to bolster the credibility of some falsehood?

          Without a doubt, this point is a problem for the theories circulated in an attempt to discredit the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

The Enlightenment Got It Wrong: The West's Debt to Christianity

"It's a rock-solid Western conviction: All men—and women—are created equal. But where does it come from? Well, not the Enlightenment.

Few modern historians have done more to educate the public about the ancient and classical world than Tom Holland. His 2004 book, "Rubicon: The Last Years of the Roman Republisc," won the prestigious Hessell-Tiltman prize, which is awarded to history books of "high literary merit."

Subsequent books about the rise of the Persian Empire and the rise of Islam have received similar accolades. Put simply, when it comes to the ancient world, Holland knows his stuff, and no one doubts it.

That's why it's wise to pay attention to what he has to say about how the coming of Christianity, and in particular the writings of St. Paul, shaped our world.

Writing in the storied British literary and political journal, the New Statesman, Holland told readers how the Christianity of his childhood gave way to an obsession with ancient empires. "When I read the Bible," Holland wrote, "the focus of my fascination was less the children of Israel or Jesus and his disciples than their adversaries: the Egyptians, the Assyrians, the Romans."

While he "vaguely continued to believe in God, [Holland] found Him infinitely less charismatic than [his] favourite Olympians: Apollo, Athena, Dionysus."

Like many historians, Edward Gibbons and other Enlightenment writers convinced Holland "that the triumph of Christianity had ushered in an 'age of superstition and credulity.' and that modernity was founded on the dusting down of long-forgotten classical values."

At this point his readers were probably thinking, "quite right!" But the story doesn't end there, as suggested by the title of the article, "Why I was wrong about Christianity."

He wrote that, "The longer I spent immersed in the study of classical antiquity, the more alien and unsettling I came to find it." Especially its callous disregard for human life. The Spartans, he noted, practiced "a peculiarly murderous form of eugenics." Julius Caesar may have killed a million Gauls and enslaved another million.

It wasn't only the body count, Holland says. It was also "the lack of a sense that the poor or the weak might have any intrinsic value." This led Holland to view the Enlightenment's insistence that it owed nothing to Christianity as not credible.

Let's assume that most people in the post-Christian West still believe "that it is nobler to suffer than to inflict suffering" and that every human life has equal value. We don't get that from the Greeks and Romans.

As Holland notes, it was St. Paul who proclaimed the "foolishness of the Gospel."

It was the honest evaluation of the historical record that led Holland, an agnostic, to write that "In my morals and ethics, I have learned to accept that I am not Greek or Roman at all, but thoroughly and proudly Christian."

Here's praying that he becomes Christian in other ways, as well. In the meantime, I'm grateful for this unexpected bit of apologetics. It's a much-needed reminder that even modern criticisms of Christianity are indebted to Christianity itself."

https://www.christianpost.com/voice/the-enlightenment-got-it-wrong-the-wests-debt-to-christianity.html

The Dangers Of Anti-Intellectualism

         Scripture says that although our mind is liable to error, it is a gift of God. It needs to be guided by His divine revelation and grace. God is a rational and intelligent being. So are we, but not to the same extent. He has created the universe in an orderly fashion. We are made in His image and His likeness (Genesis 1:26). Therefore, to be anti-intellectual means failing to show appreciation for the abilities that He has bestowed upon us. Our minds are a gift of God to be used. This presupposes it being the means by which civilization is built up and us glorifying Him.

          It is a truth that God cares more by an infinite margin about our hearts than about the number of college degrees that we may obtain in this life. He wants to restore our fallen bodies. However, that does not mean the use of our rational faculties is to be pitted against our emotions or soul. An anti-intellectual attitude is not an acceptable approach to the Christian life. Hosea 4:6 says that the people of God are destroyed for a lack of knowledge. The Apostle Paul told his audience to not be children in understanding, but wise and examples of purity (1 Corinthians 14:20).

          Ignorance can be a rather dangerous thing. It certainly is nothing to be proud of. Toddlers get their fingers burnt when they touch a hot stove as a result of their uninformed curiosity. We should know and understand our worldview, which is the means by which we interpret events around us. God gave us a mind. We learn and understand new concepts by utilizing it.

          If literally everybody were to stop seeking higher levels of education, then that would inevitably collapse our civilization because nobody would be competent to work jobs that require obtaining those more advanced skills. Examples would include the legal and medical fields. This demonstrates an anti-intellectual worldview to not be workable. If a person has so much distrust in scholarship, and takes that level of skepticism to its logically consistent end, then he will inevitably be led to agnosticism. Nothing can be known for sure. That is insanity.

          An anti-intellectual worldview is psychologically unhealthy. An anti-intellectual worldview is cultic, as is evidenced by the Watchtower Society forbidding adherents from investigating the truthfulness of its claims. An anti-intellectual worldview is both irrational and unbiblical. Wanting a career is not inherently sinful. It is also not wrong to learn from people that we disagree with. In the real world, we will encounter people with non-Christian worldviews. What we should be on guard against is turning our pursuits into idols. What we should be on guard against is our tendency to become prideful as a result of our material achievements.