1 00:00:00,560 --> 00:00:03,120 To quickly review, we talked about worship. 2 00:00:03,120 --> 00:00:05,960 What is worship? We defined it most simply as a 3 00:00:05,960 --> 00:00:08,160 right response to revelation. Right? 4 00:00:08,160 --> 00:00:09,680 And each of those things are crucial. 5 00:00:10,080 --> 00:00:12,000 First, there has to be revelation. 6 00:00:12,000 --> 00:00:16,120 There has to be truth from God. Second, I have to respond. 7 00:00:16,760 --> 00:00:21,160 And 3rd, that response has to be right according to what God has 8 00:00:21,160 --> 00:00:24,520 said. We talked about the requirements 9 00:00:25,120 --> 00:00:28,000 for biblical worship. First is regeneration. 10 00:00:28,560 --> 00:00:32,200 You have to be saved. You have to be a believer in the 11 00:00:32,200 --> 00:00:35,240 Lord Jesus Christ and belong to the Church of God. 12 00:00:36,240 --> 00:00:41,200 You have to worship, as John 424 says, in spirit from within me, 13 00:00:41,240 --> 00:00:44,480 with the right heart, attitude, with love, and with reverence. 14 00:00:45,120 --> 00:00:48,680 And I have to worship in truth, according to His Word, according 15 00:00:48,680 --> 00:00:52,040 to all that He has revealed, to the directions that He has given 16 00:00:52,040 --> 00:00:55,560 us. We talked about from Deuteronomy 17 00:00:55,560 --> 00:00:57,920 chapter 10. What does the right response 18 00:00:57,920 --> 00:01:00,360 look like? And we talked about 5 things 19 00:01:00,360 --> 00:01:05,319 that Deuteronomy 10 shows us. A right response to God involves 20 00:01:05,319 --> 00:01:07,600 in awe of God. It's a reverence for him. 21 00:01:08,280 --> 00:01:10,440 It involves an allegiance to his ways. 22 00:01:10,800 --> 00:01:13,200 It's a life of commitment and submission to him. 23 00:01:14,080 --> 00:01:17,600 It's an affection for God. It's a love because we recognize 24 00:01:18,000 --> 00:01:21,360 that he has loved us, which such a great love and inexpressible 25 00:01:21,360 --> 00:01:25,960 love. 4th A right response involves activity for God's 26 00:01:25,960 --> 00:01:28,760 worship. It involves service through the 27 00:01:28,760 --> 00:01:32,640 duties that God has given us. And 5th, The right response of 28 00:01:32,640 --> 00:01:36,360 worship requires an adherence to God's will. 29 00:01:36,760 --> 00:01:41,760 It requires an obedience to the specific commands that He gives. 30 00:01:43,160 --> 00:01:46,760 We talked about last week about how God cares about proper 31 00:01:46,760 --> 00:01:50,120 worship and how Scripture contains many warnings for us to 32 00:01:50,120 --> 00:01:52,960 heed. Scripture warns US against 33 00:01:53,320 --> 00:01:57,600 unauthorized worship, which neglects truth, which neglects 34 00:01:57,600 --> 00:02:01,640 the character of God, and which neglects the directions that He 35 00:02:01,640 --> 00:02:04,840 has given us. And Scripture warns US against 36 00:02:05,160 --> 00:02:08,560 unclean worship, worship that does not have a correct 37 00:02:08,560 --> 00:02:13,480 attitude, with both reverence and love, realizing that He is 38 00:02:13,480 --> 00:02:16,240 holy and He will be treated as holy. 39 00:02:17,040 --> 00:02:20,840 We use Leviticus 10 with the death of the sons of the priest 40 00:02:20,840 --> 00:02:25,640 Aaron as an example. Genesis 4 with Cain and Abel's 41 00:02:25,640 --> 00:02:28,720 offerings. We talked about Acts 5, Ananias 42 00:02:28,720 --> 00:02:31,080 and Sapphira. We talked about what the Lord 43 00:02:31,080 --> 00:02:35,440 says in Psalm 50, warning His people the outward obedience was 44 00:02:35,440 --> 00:02:39,480 not enough, but they needed to have an inward obedience, an 45 00:02:39,480 --> 00:02:41,080 inward commitment and submission. 46 00:02:42,080 --> 00:02:44,320 And we talked about how do we heed these warnings? 47 00:02:44,880 --> 00:02:49,240 What is the way of worship? We talked about we must have 48 00:02:49,240 --> 00:02:53,480 regulated worship, which means it's regulated, it's defined and 49 00:02:53,480 --> 00:02:57,720 controlled by God's Word. And we must have reverent 50 00:02:57,720 --> 00:03:00,440 worship. We have must have worship that 51 00:03:00,440 --> 00:03:04,040 begins from the heart of understanding God's character, 52 00:03:04,480 --> 00:03:08,920 not Kim coming before him in a trivial way, in a thoughtless 53 00:03:08,920 --> 00:03:13,680 way, but a careful way, one that honors him and fears him as 54 00:03:13,680 --> 00:03:15,480 Scripture repeatedly commands us. 55 00:03:16,920 --> 00:03:20,280 And then we close with talking about Old Testament versus New 56 00:03:20,280 --> 00:03:24,560 Testament worship, right? The outward forms look very 57 00:03:24,560 --> 00:03:26,880 different, Old Testament and New Testament. 58 00:03:27,400 --> 00:03:30,760 And thankfully we don't have to follow all the laws that were 59 00:03:30,760 --> 00:03:34,280 laid down in the Old Testament. But we talked about how all the 60 00:03:34,280 --> 00:03:38,920 principles behind Old Testament worship were consistent with 61 00:03:38,920 --> 00:03:42,240 what we do now. We talked about how the 62 00:03:42,240 --> 00:03:46,520 Levitical law, the ceremonial law showed the character and 63 00:03:46,520 --> 00:03:49,600 work of God. It showed the transcendence and 64 00:03:49,600 --> 00:03:52,720 holiness of God while at the same time reminding us He's 65 00:03:52,720 --> 00:03:55,800 gracious. He allows us to come near to His 66 00:03:55,800 --> 00:03:59,160 presence. It reminds us that we are 67 00:03:59,160 --> 00:04:04,000 separated from God because of our sinfulness and that we need 68 00:04:04,000 --> 00:04:07,040 to be forgiven, We need to be cleansed. 69 00:04:07,240 --> 00:04:11,680 We need our sins atoned for. And we cannot accomplish that, 70 00:04:12,240 --> 00:04:16,399 only God Himself can. The Old Testament taught us that 71 00:04:16,600 --> 00:04:20,519 God wants His people to be separate and that he has 72 00:04:20,519 --> 00:04:24,640 absolute authority over every area and every detail of life. 73 00:04:25,400 --> 00:04:28,800 When we look at the laws, Leviticus, Numbers and 74 00:04:28,800 --> 00:04:34,000 Deuteronomy, they set Israel apart and even such thing as 75 00:04:34,240 --> 00:04:38,920 conduct clothing and food to keep them separate from being 76 00:04:38,920 --> 00:04:41,960 defiled from the by the sins of the world and to keep them 77 00:04:41,960 --> 00:04:46,800 distinct as a people who are possessed by God, who represent 78 00:04:46,920 --> 00:04:49,440 him well. And so we talked about how those 79 00:04:49,440 --> 00:04:51,600 principles are still true for us today. 80 00:04:51,920 --> 00:04:56,800 God has the same desires. He has the same intention for 81 00:04:56,800 --> 00:04:58,240 the guidelines that he's given us. 82 00:04:59,360 --> 00:05:02,880 And so as we start tonight, tonight's conversation is going 83 00:05:02,880 --> 00:05:05,320 to be a little more just that a little more free. 84 00:05:06,960 --> 00:05:11,960 We began with all of the the the commands, right? 85 00:05:12,160 --> 00:05:13,960 We know what God commands in worship. 86 00:05:14,440 --> 00:05:16,640 We know what he requires, what he expects. 87 00:05:17,240 --> 00:05:19,960 And as we move through, we're going to move to wisdom, we're 88 00:05:19,960 --> 00:05:22,000 going to move to principles, we're going to move to the 89 00:05:22,000 --> 00:05:25,520 things that we want to think about as we think about singing 90 00:05:25,520 --> 00:05:30,080 and music, and we'll get there. As we begin, we want to touch 91 00:05:30,080 --> 00:05:33,560 on, of course, worship with the body because we just finished, 92 00:05:33,560 --> 00:05:37,160 remember, last week, everything came to the one point that 93 00:05:37,160 --> 00:05:41,240 remind us worship is life. There's nothing in my life that 94 00:05:41,240 --> 00:05:43,920 is not worship. And so Romans 12/1 says I am to 95 00:05:43,920 --> 00:05:46,640 offer myself. I am the sacrifice. 96 00:05:46,880 --> 00:05:49,760 I am both the priest giving offerings to God for his 97 00:05:49,760 --> 00:05:53,400 pleasure, and I am also the offering that's continually 98 00:05:53,400 --> 00:05:56,920 offered to him for his pleasure. And so there's nothing in my 99 00:05:56,920 --> 00:06:01,000 life that is exempt. There's nothing in my life that 100 00:06:01,000 --> 00:06:05,840 is not dedicated as worship. But with clarity and with common 101 00:06:05,840 --> 00:06:08,360 sense, we know there's something special. 102 00:06:08,960 --> 00:06:12,080 There's something that God has commanded here when we meet 103 00:06:12,080 --> 00:06:16,040 together, and that's worship with His body, the church. 104 00:06:16,840 --> 00:06:19,000 You know, the command in Hebrews chapter 10. 105 00:06:19,640 --> 00:06:22,680 In fact, why don't we just turn there briefly, Hebrews 10. 106 00:06:23,320 --> 00:06:30,240 If somebody ever talks to you and they express a reluctance to 107 00:06:30,240 --> 00:06:34,000 be with the people of God, maybe they cite past difficulties or 108 00:06:34,000 --> 00:06:37,520 past ways that they've been hurt or misled and so they've lost 109 00:06:37,520 --> 00:06:41,160 their trust in the church and the leadership of God of God's 110 00:06:41,160 --> 00:06:44,080 people. This is the first place we have 111 00:06:44,080 --> 00:06:47,120 to take him. It says in verse 23 of Hebrews 112 00:06:47,120 --> 00:06:48,960 chapter 10. Let us hold fast the confession 113 00:06:48,960 --> 00:06:52,320 of our hope without wavering for he who promised this faithful, 114 00:06:52,560 --> 00:06:57,160 remember, just got done talking about Christ was the atonement. 115 00:06:57,440 --> 00:06:59,840 He completed and fulfilled everything in the Old Testament. 116 00:07:00,160 --> 00:07:05,160 Now you have access to God's presence to the most holy place, 117 00:07:05,160 --> 00:07:08,320 as it were, because of Jesus. He's brought you near. 118 00:07:09,040 --> 00:07:11,480 And so the author of Hebrews is going on to say, let's draw 119 00:07:11,480 --> 00:07:13,680 near. Let's hold fast to our hope 120 00:07:13,760 --> 00:07:16,320 without wavering, without looking back, without being 121 00:07:16,320 --> 00:07:19,760 weak, because God's faithful and directly connected to that in 122 00:07:19,760 --> 00:07:24,160 verse 24, he says, and let us consider how to stimulate one 123 00:07:24,160 --> 00:07:28,080 another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling 124 00:07:28,080 --> 00:07:31,280 together as is the habit of some, but encouraging one 125 00:07:31,280 --> 00:07:34,360 another in all the Moors. You see the day drawing near. 126 00:07:37,480 --> 00:07:40,960 So everything about our salvation leads us to the 127 00:07:40,960 --> 00:07:44,240 church. It leads us to being part of the 128 00:07:44,240 --> 00:07:47,600 body of Christ. Ephesians talks about how we 129 00:07:47,600 --> 00:07:50,760 were all made part of that. If you're saved, you're given 130 00:07:50,760 --> 00:07:54,840 the Holy Spirit and you are made a part of the church, OK, in a 131 00:07:54,840 --> 00:07:57,520 way that cannot be broken, that cannot be taken away. 132 00:07:58,120 --> 00:08:01,640 And the author of Hebrews gives the command, don't forsake, 133 00:08:01,640 --> 00:08:05,240 don't forsake our assembling together because it's God's 134 00:08:05,240 --> 00:08:10,920 command and it's God's plan. If we look at Romans chapter 12, 135 00:08:11,400 --> 00:08:15,680 if you'll turn there, remember we did, we talked about Romans 136 00:08:15,680 --> 00:08:20,200 12, verse one, offering myself as a living sacrifice. 137 00:08:23,320 --> 00:08:26,240 Immediately after that, the very next section is talking about 138 00:08:26,240 --> 00:08:30,040 spiritual gifts. It's talking about being 139 00:08:30,040 --> 00:08:31,440 connected with the people of God. 140 00:08:31,440 --> 00:08:35,880 It's talking about serving when God's people meet together. 141 00:08:36,600 --> 00:08:40,159 So the biblical command and the assumption all throughout 142 00:08:40,159 --> 00:08:43,919 Scripture is that God's people must and they will gather 143 00:08:43,919 --> 00:08:46,680 together. It's a natural thing, it's a 144 00:08:46,680 --> 00:08:51,840 commanded thing, but naturally, if you're really saved, you will 145 00:08:51,840 --> 00:08:55,120 make a priority the meeting and the Church of God. 146 00:08:57,520 --> 00:08:59,520 So again, we have worship as an individual. 147 00:08:59,520 --> 00:09:02,680 I'm a living sacrifice, and we have worship as a church. 148 00:09:02,720 --> 00:09:05,760 That's something special. God has designed the body of 149 00:09:05,760 --> 00:09:09,920 Christ to be united and to build itself up through the Word by 150 00:09:09,920 --> 00:09:11,720 the power and gifting of the Holy Spirit. 151 00:09:12,400 --> 00:09:16,480 Now, when I look at worship in my life personally, and I look 152 00:09:16,480 --> 00:09:20,000 at worship with the church, there's going to be a lot of 153 00:09:20,000 --> 00:09:21,760 overlap. There's going to be a lot of 154 00:09:21,760 --> 00:09:26,400 similar things. OK, But that just that 155 00:09:26,400 --> 00:09:30,520 underlines the fact that we should be the same people during 156 00:09:30,520 --> 00:09:34,360 the week and on Sundays. We should be the same people 157 00:09:34,800 --> 00:09:37,480 with my family or alone that I am. 158 00:09:37,560 --> 00:09:40,360 When I come to church and I meet together with the body of 159 00:09:40,360 --> 00:09:44,280 Christ, I should have the same heart attitude that leads me to 160 00:09:44,280 --> 00:09:47,680 obedience and service. And Scripture is clear. 161 00:09:47,800 --> 00:09:50,800 If you love God, you'll love others, beginning with the 162 00:09:50,800 --> 00:09:55,080 people of God. First Corinthians 13 talks about 163 00:09:55,080 --> 00:09:58,600 love, right? That's not about marital love 164 00:09:58,600 --> 00:10:01,400 primarily. The context before that is the 165 00:10:01,400 --> 00:10:04,120 church. It's using spiritual gifts, the 166 00:10:04,120 --> 00:10:06,840 way we serve. And then Paul goes on in First 167 00:10:06,840 --> 00:10:11,720 Corinthians 13 to talk about love guides that love motivates 168 00:10:11,720 --> 00:10:16,240 that the greatest commandments as Jesus sums up in Matthew 22 169 00:10:16,240 --> 00:10:20,280 or what love the Lord with everything you are and love your 170 00:10:20,280 --> 00:10:24,720 neighbor as yourself. Deuteronomy 6 and 10, it has the 171 00:10:24,720 --> 00:10:29,240 same connection. So our love for God, our worship 172 00:10:29,240 --> 00:10:33,000 of God, of God, will naturally lead us into worship with the 173 00:10:33,000 --> 00:10:35,000 church and a love for the church. 174 00:10:36,440 --> 00:10:40,080 In First Corinthians 14, right after it talks about love, Paul 175 00:10:40,080 --> 00:10:44,520 is dealing with selfishness in the practice of the church. 176 00:10:46,000 --> 00:10:49,000 The believers were trying to practice tongues in a 177 00:10:49,000 --> 00:10:51,800 counterfeit way because they wanted some recognition. 178 00:10:52,040 --> 00:10:55,880 They wanted to seem cool. They wanted to seem like they 179 00:10:55,880 --> 00:11:02,240 had something special. But Paul attacks that, he 180 00:11:02,240 --> 00:11:05,680 attacks that attitude, he attacks those motives, and he 181 00:11:05,680 --> 00:11:10,200 points out that everything that we do together is out of love 182 00:11:10,200 --> 00:11:13,120 and to strengthen the church. He says, what is the outcome 183 00:11:13,120 --> 00:11:16,400 then, brethren, when you assemble, you have a Psalm, you 184 00:11:16,400 --> 00:11:19,240 have a teaching, you have a revelation, you have a tongue, 185 00:11:19,240 --> 00:11:22,400 you have an interpretation. Let all be all things be done 186 00:11:22,880 --> 00:11:25,000 for education. Education, edification. 187 00:11:25,120 --> 00:11:28,200 Sorry, that's a hard word. Edification. 188 00:11:29,160 --> 00:11:33,640 So worship of God leads us into meeting with the church. 189 00:11:34,920 --> 00:11:38,840 When we look at Acts 242, it lists some of the specific 190 00:11:38,840 --> 00:11:44,040 things that the first church that early believers after 191 00:11:44,040 --> 00:11:46,920 Christ returned to heaven practiced. 192 00:11:48,400 --> 00:11:52,000 It says in Acts 242 they were continually devoting themselves 193 00:11:52,000 --> 00:11:55,160 to the apostles, teaching into fellowship, to the breaking of 194 00:11:55,160 --> 00:11:58,840 bread and a prayer. In verses later, it talks about 195 00:11:58,840 --> 00:12:02,440 giving and meeting needs. It talks about evangelism. 196 00:12:03,600 --> 00:12:05,800 Christ, of course, speaks of church discipline. 197 00:12:07,880 --> 00:12:11,080 But in all this, there's a consistency from what we're 198 00:12:11,080 --> 00:12:14,560 doing at home, and that leads into something special at 199 00:12:14,560 --> 00:12:19,640 church. And in everything we recognize 200 00:12:19,920 --> 00:12:26,520 that the truth is central. At home we will study the word 201 00:12:26,520 --> 00:12:31,680 of God. At home we will pray, at home we 202 00:12:31,680 --> 00:12:35,280 can sing. At home we have an attitude of 203 00:12:35,280 --> 00:12:40,080 fear towards God and love. And all those things are true at 204 00:12:40,080 --> 00:12:44,360 church. But God has given us the church 205 00:12:44,680 --> 00:12:47,640 and a special way to serve and to build one another's up. 206 00:12:48,320 --> 00:12:50,920 And so the Bible commands that we hear the word of the Lord. 207 00:12:50,960 --> 00:12:53,760 The truth is central. The Bible commands that we read 208 00:12:53,760 --> 00:12:57,520 Scripture, that we sing Scripture, that we pray, what 209 00:12:57,520 --> 00:13:02,080 Scripture says, that we give, that we have that same attitude 210 00:13:02,080 --> 00:13:05,880 of reverence. The Bible commands that we 211 00:13:05,880 --> 00:13:11,200 observe baptism and communion, and in every elements the truth 212 00:13:11,360 --> 00:13:15,040 of God's Word is central, and it draws us together. 213 00:13:17,440 --> 00:13:20,680 That's why in our church, the preaching is the preeminent part 214 00:13:20,680 --> 00:13:23,680 of the service. Not that nothing else matters, 215 00:13:24,120 --> 00:13:27,600 not that we want to downplay anything else, but the preaching 216 00:13:27,600 --> 00:13:31,680 is the place where you get the deepest expression and study of 217 00:13:31,680 --> 00:13:34,920 the truth. And so it's the time that is 218 00:13:34,920 --> 00:13:39,920 most devoted to, it's the time that's emphasized in corporate 219 00:13:39,920 --> 00:13:42,680 worship, while having some elements that are unique and 220 00:13:42,680 --> 00:13:45,320 special instructs us in the things that we should be 221 00:13:45,560 --> 00:13:49,360 practicing daily. So we want to see a consistency, 222 00:13:50,240 --> 00:13:52,520 if we're living a life of worship individually and 223 00:13:52,520 --> 00:13:56,400 personally, that will lead to a life of worship in the church, 224 00:13:56,600 --> 00:14:00,920 that will lead to an energy, to a love, to a service in the 225 00:14:00,920 --> 00:14:03,240 church. And so we draw these lines and 226 00:14:03,240 --> 00:14:07,280 connections to lay a foundation so that we can talk about 227 00:14:07,280 --> 00:14:10,760 singing. All right, I lead worship 228 00:14:10,760 --> 00:14:12,520 ministry. When you think of the word 229 00:14:12,520 --> 00:14:15,960 worship, you think of music for better, for worse. 230 00:14:16,600 --> 00:14:19,520 And that's not a wrong association, but everything that 231 00:14:19,520 --> 00:14:22,720 I've talked about previously was to remind us that worship is 232 00:14:22,720 --> 00:14:28,120 broader than that and that it's helpful for us to be careful how 233 00:14:28,120 --> 00:14:30,960 we use the word worship. What are we really talking 234 00:14:30,960 --> 00:14:33,520 about? Are we being confusing or do we 235 00:14:33,520 --> 00:14:36,240 really mean worship, which means my whole life devoted to God? 236 00:14:36,480 --> 00:14:39,880 And that means everything that happens here with us together is 237 00:14:39,880 --> 00:14:43,320 also worship because it hinges around God's Word and it's 238 00:14:43,320 --> 00:14:48,200 dictated about it. In your outline, we're going to 239 00:14:48,200 --> 00:14:51,160 talk about why do we sing? I'm going to go over those 240 00:14:51,160 --> 00:14:53,040 briefly. Some of these are taken from 241 00:14:53,040 --> 00:14:55,760 this book scene Sing. This is written by Keith and 242 00:14:55,760 --> 00:14:58,000 Kristen Getty. They're modern hymn writers of 243 00:14:58,000 --> 00:14:59,880 the church. Everything they write is 244 00:14:59,880 --> 00:15:01,840 wonderful. All their songs biblical. 245 00:15:02,200 --> 00:15:04,680 And so some of these points are from their book. 246 00:15:05,360 --> 00:15:08,520 There are five reasons why you need to sing. 247 00:15:09,480 --> 00:15:12,480 The first one is that we are created to sing. 248 00:15:12,880 --> 00:15:16,160 You were created to sing. No matter what you think of your 249 00:15:16,160 --> 00:15:22,840 musical ability, God made you to sing, MacArthur said. 250 00:15:22,840 --> 00:15:26,080 This music is the gift of God, a common grace to the world to 251 00:15:26,080 --> 00:15:28,520 give them a means of expressing their emotions. 252 00:15:29,920 --> 00:15:34,440 Music was made as a tool for people, and we were made from 253 00:15:34,440 --> 00:15:37,440 music. That's why music resonates with 254 00:15:37,520 --> 00:15:41,960 every person. It may in a different way, but 255 00:15:41,960 --> 00:15:45,760 it has a significance to every person and in every culture 256 00:15:45,840 --> 00:15:49,680 across the world. We're a relational response of 257 00:15:49,680 --> 00:15:52,080 beings. We're designed to respond, to be 258 00:15:52,080 --> 00:15:54,520 worshippers, and to express that response. 259 00:15:54,760 --> 00:15:57,000 You see that in sports. You see that in a response. 260 00:15:57,000 --> 00:16:00,600 When you see a natural wonder, something beautiful in nature, 261 00:16:00,960 --> 00:16:04,480 When we see a feat of strength or ability, or when we receive 262 00:16:04,480 --> 00:16:08,080 exciting or alarming news, we're responders. 263 00:16:08,320 --> 00:16:14,080 That's who God made us to be. And music is an Ave. of response 264 00:16:14,240 --> 00:16:17,640 that God created in US and for us. 265 00:16:18,560 --> 00:16:21,320 When we understand God's creation, it points back to his 266 00:16:21,320 --> 00:16:26,080 nature, right? It underlines the fact that God 267 00:16:26,560 --> 00:16:29,760 delights in beauty, that God creates beauty. 268 00:16:30,080 --> 00:16:32,640 He doesn't just make things to be functional. 269 00:16:33,240 --> 00:16:38,280 He makes things to be enjoyed and being made in his image. 270 00:16:38,920 --> 00:16:46,160 We enjoy what he enjoys and we we desire to enjoy things as 271 00:16:46,160 --> 00:16:49,760 well to appreciate beauty. It points us to the fact that 272 00:16:49,760 --> 00:16:52,320 beauty is not in the eye of the beholder. 273 00:16:52,800 --> 00:16:56,120 Beauty is not subjective. And that's kind of a 274 00:16:56,120 --> 00:16:59,160 conversation outside of tonight, outside the scope of tonight. 275 00:16:59,560 --> 00:17:01,320 But I would encourage you to think about that. 276 00:17:01,480 --> 00:17:05,839 God creates beauty. God defines beauty in creation. 277 00:17:05,839 --> 00:17:07,920 What does it say? Everything he made was good. 278 00:17:08,800 --> 00:17:12,000 God made the trees pleasing to the eye and good for food. 279 00:17:13,160 --> 00:17:15,800 And so we were created to engage in music. 280 00:17:16,200 --> 00:17:21,760 And music is unique because it doesn't just express or or allow 281 00:17:21,760 --> 00:17:25,839 us to feel or enjoy. It carries words with it. 282 00:17:26,880 --> 00:17:31,360 It communicates specifically. And the most thing, the most 283 00:17:31,360 --> 00:17:34,360 important thing that music can communicate, that it can carry 284 00:17:34,800 --> 00:17:37,960 is truth. And so I would encourage you to 285 00:17:37,960 --> 00:17:41,440 think about the fact that we are created to sing OK, someday in 286 00:17:41,440 --> 00:17:45,960 heaven you will sing well, you will sing perfectly, but for 287 00:17:45,960 --> 00:17:51,080 now, God created you to sing second, that we are commanded to 288 00:17:51,320 --> 00:17:54,960 OK, this is the easy one. All throughout the Psalms it 289 00:17:54,960 --> 00:17:57,440 says or sing to the Lord a new song for he has done wonderful 290 00:17:57,440 --> 00:18:00,440 things. Psalm 33 says sing for joy in 291 00:18:00,440 --> 00:18:02,680 the Lord. O you righteous ones, praise is 292 00:18:02,680 --> 00:18:05,840 becoming to the upright over and over and over. 293 00:18:06,040 --> 00:18:10,720 We are commanded to sing. That's pretty cut and dry, 294 00:18:10,880 --> 00:18:12,880 right? It's a command for us. 295 00:18:13,480 --> 00:18:16,320 It's not arbitrary. We're commanded to sing for our 296 00:18:16,320 --> 00:18:19,880 good because we were created to 3rd. 297 00:18:20,480 --> 00:18:25,120 We are compelled to sing. We as believers have an inward 298 00:18:25,320 --> 00:18:29,200 response to revelation that causes us to sing. 299 00:18:30,320 --> 00:18:35,440 Colossians 316 and 17, if you want to turn there and we'll 300 00:18:35,440 --> 00:18:38,560 stay. There is a crucial text for 301 00:18:38,560 --> 00:18:43,880 talking about singing in the New Testament, and it says that we 302 00:18:43,880 --> 00:18:46,720 sing with thankfulness in our hearts to God. 303 00:18:50,000 --> 00:18:53,880 Believers are compelled to sing because they have received a 304 00:18:53,880 --> 00:18:57,800 great salvation from a great God and they are overwhelmed by it. 305 00:18:57,800 --> 00:19:01,920 They were overcome by it. A motivation to sing is 306 00:19:01,920 --> 00:19:04,640 unchanging. We're motivated by the sacrifice 307 00:19:04,640 --> 00:19:07,040 of our Savior and the glory of God. 308 00:19:09,520 --> 00:19:15,000 Now something to distinguish is emotion and volition. 309 00:19:15,600 --> 00:19:18,640 OK, we talked before about a spirit and attitude of worship. 310 00:19:19,160 --> 00:19:23,800 Too often we get confused because we think singing and 311 00:19:23,800 --> 00:19:26,720 worship music should be about emotions. 312 00:19:27,480 --> 00:19:31,040 But that is not what worship is about because that makes it very 313 00:19:31,040 --> 00:19:34,840 man centered. What worship is about is a 314 00:19:34,840 --> 00:19:38,360 choice, is a response, is an attitude that I bring as a 315 00:19:38,360 --> 00:19:42,360 worshipper to exalt God. And therefore I can always have 316 00:19:42,360 --> 00:19:46,680 that same response regardless of how I feel, because how I feel 317 00:19:47,240 --> 00:19:52,120 is based on my circumstances. But my worship is not about how 318 00:19:52,120 --> 00:19:55,840 I feel. It's about my choice to respond. 319 00:19:56,240 --> 00:19:59,680 It's about me understanding the grace and glory of God and 320 00:19:59,680 --> 00:20:04,800 saying He is worthy. And I cannot help but sing and 321 00:20:04,800 --> 00:20:08,000 respond. John Piper said singing is the 322 00:20:08,000 --> 00:20:11,520 Christian's way. God is so great that thinking 323 00:20:11,520 --> 00:20:15,480 will not suffice, There must be deep feeling and talking will 324 00:20:15,480 --> 00:20:17,160 not suffice, there must be singing. 325 00:20:18,400 --> 00:20:20,600 So it's not that there's no emotion in worship. 326 00:20:21,800 --> 00:20:25,040 We can fall into one of two camps, thinking that emotional 327 00:20:25,040 --> 00:20:28,160 experience is everything or no emotion. 328 00:20:28,760 --> 00:20:31,480 I must sing. Intellectually, I wonder which 329 00:20:31,480 --> 00:20:35,960 way our church leans. But the truth is neither of 330 00:20:35,960 --> 00:20:39,760 those extremes. The truth is that worship and 331 00:20:39,760 --> 00:20:44,600 seeing is a response from my heart that's based on knowledge, 332 00:20:45,120 --> 00:20:48,640 knowing God, knowing what he's done, but comes out of a 333 00:20:48,640 --> 00:20:52,480 response that naturally wells up in my heart as I'm thankful for 334 00:20:52,480 --> 00:20:57,560 what I'm for, what God has done. And when I choose to praise, 335 00:20:57,760 --> 00:21:02,320 when I choose to obey and do what he's commanded by singing 336 00:21:02,320 --> 00:21:06,640 to him, by acknowledging, then my emotions are corralled, my 337 00:21:06,760 --> 00:21:11,920 emotions are corrected. Bob Coughlin, who is one of the 338 00:21:11,920 --> 00:21:14,040 leaders of the Sovereign Grace Ministries, we sing many of 339 00:21:14,040 --> 00:21:16,840 their songs. He says suppressing or ignoring 340 00:21:16,840 --> 00:21:19,280 your feelings when you sing contradicts what singing is 341 00:21:19,280 --> 00:21:21,920 designed to do. Passionless singing is an 342 00:21:21,920 --> 00:21:27,400 oxymoron. So the trick is, if my emotions, 343 00:21:27,400 --> 00:21:31,640 if my feelings aren't right when I come to sing, I can't be 344 00:21:31,640 --> 00:21:35,800 deterred by that. I have to choose to sing because 345 00:21:35,800 --> 00:21:39,320 I choose to respond to the revelation of God in a right 346 00:21:39,320 --> 00:21:42,800 way. And as I sing, as I'm reminded 347 00:21:43,040 --> 00:21:46,400 of who God is, what he's done, as I'm reminded of who I've 348 00:21:46,400 --> 00:21:50,600 become because of his work in my life, I will sing. 349 00:21:50,640 --> 00:21:53,960 I will be compelled inwardly, not outwardly, but I'll have a 350 00:21:53,960 --> 00:21:57,960 right response. So we sing because we're created 351 00:21:57,960 --> 00:22:01,840 to, because we're commanded to, we're compelled. 4th We sing 352 00:22:01,840 --> 00:22:06,080 because we're congregated to, because God says sing together, 353 00:22:06,240 --> 00:22:08,320 because there's a significance in the gathering. 354 00:22:08,920 --> 00:22:13,600 In Colossians 316 and 17 it says that we teach and admonish one 355 00:22:13,600 --> 00:22:16,800 another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs. 356 00:22:17,440 --> 00:22:21,440 So part of our instruction and our encouragement and our 357 00:22:21,440 --> 00:22:24,000 building up one another is singing to one another. 358 00:22:24,080 --> 00:22:27,960 It's singing with one another. We are congregated, we are 359 00:22:27,960 --> 00:22:30,320 gathered to sing, and there's a significance there. 360 00:22:30,640 --> 00:22:33,800 And if we're so focused on ourself and my experience, we 361 00:22:33,800 --> 00:22:35,840 forget. I'm gathered with the people of 362 00:22:35,840 --> 00:22:41,440 God for them. God put me here for them to 363 00:22:41,440 --> 00:22:45,560 benefit them. And of course, I'm corrected and 364 00:22:45,560 --> 00:22:47,920 convicted and encouraged as well. 365 00:22:48,760 --> 00:22:51,680 But my attitude should be thinking about the people around 366 00:22:51,680 --> 00:22:56,400 me. Years ago when Drew was here in 367 00:22:56,400 --> 00:22:59,840 youth ministry, Pastor Lance's son, before we went off to 368 00:22:59,840 --> 00:23:03,040 Indiana, they had a kind of a joke, a running gag that they 369 00:23:03,040 --> 00:23:06,400 would say in the youth group, right when they talk about the 370 00:23:06,400 --> 00:23:08,960 meeting of the church together and about singing, they would 371 00:23:08,960 --> 00:23:13,120 say, I just want to be served. I just want to be served, all 372 00:23:13,120 --> 00:23:15,080 right? Because that's the attitude that 373 00:23:15,080 --> 00:23:18,560 most of us come with. We come to church to be served. 374 00:23:18,720 --> 00:23:20,640 We come to church to gain something. 375 00:23:22,040 --> 00:23:23,600 But that that's not our attitude. 376 00:23:24,280 --> 00:23:26,840 That's not a biblical Worshipful attitude. 377 00:23:26,960 --> 00:23:30,000 Because I if I love God, then I love the people that I'm going 378 00:23:30,000 --> 00:23:32,480 to see on Sunday. And I think about how can I help 379 00:23:32,480 --> 00:23:33,920 them? How can I build them up? 380 00:23:33,960 --> 00:23:37,480 How can I encourage them even in the way that I'm singing when 381 00:23:37,480 --> 00:23:42,000 I'm standing next to them. And 5th, we are commissioned. 382 00:23:42,520 --> 00:23:45,520 Singing is a witness and it's designed by God. 383 00:23:45,520 --> 00:23:50,800 That way there is something powerful when the people of God 384 00:23:50,800 --> 00:23:55,560 sing together, united in spirit, united in truth, singing with 385 00:23:55,560 --> 00:23:58,680 vigor and with passion and with delight. 386 00:23:59,480 --> 00:24:03,880 Psalm 89.1 says. Psalm 89.1 says I will sing of 387 00:24:03,880 --> 00:24:07,400 the loving kindness of the Lord forever to all generations. 388 00:24:07,400 --> 00:24:10,360 I will make known your faithfulness with my mouth. 389 00:24:11,920 --> 00:24:15,120 So singing is a witness. It's a call to believers and 390 00:24:15,120 --> 00:24:18,200 it's a call to unbelievers saying this is our God. 391 00:24:18,480 --> 00:24:20,160 This is the one who demands to be worshipped. 392 00:24:20,680 --> 00:24:23,400 So those are 5 reasons that we sing. 393 00:24:25,240 --> 00:24:29,920 And we ask, what must we sing? And here we start to get a 394 00:24:29,920 --> 00:24:33,400 little bit more specific. OK, we're going to get to it. 395 00:24:33,400 --> 00:24:36,240 We're going to have a discussion about what we sing. 396 00:24:36,760 --> 00:24:38,160 We're going to talk about content. 397 00:24:38,600 --> 00:24:41,160 If you look on the back of your outline, I put some lyrics 398 00:24:41,160 --> 00:24:42,280 there. All right. 399 00:24:42,640 --> 00:24:46,480 So what I enjoy doing when we talk about these things is 400 00:24:46,480 --> 00:24:48,920 saying let's just not talk about this. 401 00:24:49,360 --> 00:24:51,720 Let's analyze. Let's pick apart these songs. 402 00:24:51,880 --> 00:24:54,320 And so we're going to do that tonight and I'm going to ask you 403 00:24:54,320 --> 00:24:56,520 to do that and to evaluate these songs. 404 00:24:57,840 --> 00:25:00,640 But what must be sing Scripture is clear. 405 00:25:02,720 --> 00:25:06,400 You already there, hopefully in Colossians 3/16/17. 406 00:25:07,360 --> 00:25:10,360 This provides guidelines for what we must sing. 407 00:25:11,440 --> 00:25:13,960 At its core, what we must sing is the word. 408 00:25:14,520 --> 00:25:18,400 What we must sing is the truth. It must be biblically based, 409 00:25:18,520 --> 00:25:22,560 scripture filled, doctrinally rich songs. 410 00:25:23,280 --> 00:25:26,720 I've had conversations with people in schools and in other 411 00:25:26,720 --> 00:25:31,000 churches that they'll say, well, the songs you pick are just too 412 00:25:31,000 --> 00:25:35,960 wordy, or not everybody can understand these songs, or 413 00:25:37,000 --> 00:25:38,840 people don't know these songs because they're not on the 414 00:25:38,840 --> 00:25:40,600 radio. So why don't we pick something 415 00:25:40,600 --> 00:25:43,040 that's a little more mainstream, OK? 416 00:25:43,240 --> 00:25:46,480 It's a little more, it's a little more watered down, but we 417 00:25:46,480 --> 00:25:49,760 can serve these people by giving them something they already 418 00:25:49,760 --> 00:25:51,800 know. That's at a base level that 419 00:25:51,800 --> 00:25:54,160 different people from different churches can all agree on. 420 00:25:55,320 --> 00:25:59,080 But that's a compromise. And if you look at Scripture, 421 00:25:59,680 --> 00:26:04,680 you cannot deny that it says sing richly, OK, right here in 422 00:26:04,680 --> 00:26:08,920 verse 16 of Colossians 3, Let the word of Christ richly dwell 423 00:26:09,200 --> 00:26:14,720 within you, OK? So let God's Word be at home 424 00:26:14,720 --> 00:26:16,400 within your heart. Lance has talked about that. 425 00:26:16,400 --> 00:26:19,240 That's what the word dwells mean means that means it's always 426 00:26:19,240 --> 00:26:21,240 here. It's always in my mind. 427 00:26:21,320 --> 00:26:24,920 It's never far away. It's always what I'm thinking 428 00:26:24,920 --> 00:26:29,040 about. It's always in my life. 429 00:26:29,680 --> 00:26:32,600 I'm always thinking about it. I'm always drawn back to 430 00:26:32,600 --> 00:26:37,720 Scripture and it says, let it richly, abundantly, lavishly, 431 00:26:37,960 --> 00:26:42,880 overwhelmingly dwell within you. And then it goes on to say with 432 00:26:42,880 --> 00:26:45,720 wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and 433 00:26:45,720 --> 00:26:48,360 hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in 434 00:26:48,360 --> 00:26:53,800 your hearts to God. So connected there is that one 435 00:26:53,800 --> 00:26:57,320 of the major ways that we allow God's Word to richly be at home 436 00:26:57,320 --> 00:26:59,880 in our hearts is through our singing. 437 00:27:00,760 --> 00:27:04,160 And so there are 8 principles in your outline briefly that would 438 00:27:04,200 --> 00:27:07,040 I'd like to illuminate from this verse. 439 00:27:07,040 --> 00:27:10,560 OK, first is we must sing the word richly. 440 00:27:10,720 --> 00:27:13,440 OK, abundantly, let it richly dwell within you. 441 00:27:15,280 --> 00:27:17,960 We must sing the word #2 continually. 442 00:27:18,480 --> 00:27:20,800 It says let it dwell within you. Let it be at home. 443 00:27:21,080 --> 00:27:23,120 Don't stop it. It's got to keep going. 444 00:27:23,120 --> 00:27:27,680 God's Word is always there. So we must sing the Word richly, 445 00:27:28,280 --> 00:27:33,880 continually and wisely, it says, with all wisdom, understanding 446 00:27:33,880 --> 00:27:36,400 the principles and the teaching of Scripture. 447 00:27:36,640 --> 00:27:40,600 OK, there's a depth there, there's a thoughtfulness there. 448 00:27:40,920 --> 00:27:45,680 There's an imparted wisdom from men who have studied God's Word 449 00:27:45,680 --> 00:27:48,440 and given years of thought to it to help us. 450 00:27:49,000 --> 00:27:51,480 It's why important that that we sing songs written by 451 00:27:51,520 --> 00:27:57,800 theologians, not by artists. Richly, continually, wisely, 452 00:27:57,800 --> 00:28:01,440 forth, instructively. We sing instructively. 453 00:28:01,560 --> 00:28:04,560 That's how we learn. That's how we teach and admonish 454 00:28:04,560 --> 00:28:10,200 or correct one another. Fifth, we sing diversely with 455 00:28:10,200 --> 00:28:12,520 psalms and hymns and spiritual songs. 456 00:28:13,160 --> 00:28:15,080 Those are just different types of songs. 457 00:28:15,760 --> 00:28:19,320 Paul says here, and he says the same phrase in Ephesians 5, and 458 00:28:19,320 --> 00:28:23,400 the significance is not in You must sing these three categories 459 00:28:23,400 --> 00:28:28,280 of songs, but the significance is saying there are a variety of 460 00:28:28,280 --> 00:28:32,280 songs that are filled with God's truth that benefit the church, 461 00:28:32,440 --> 00:28:36,720 that you should sing Psalms, who likely refers to songs that are 462 00:28:36,720 --> 00:28:39,240 Scripture, OK? They're the actual words of 463 00:28:39,240 --> 00:28:42,600 Scripture. Hymns are songs that are 464 00:28:42,600 --> 00:28:48,040 structured theologically, OK, So they explain a doctrine. 465 00:28:48,320 --> 00:28:50,480 They use different parts of Scripture and bring it together 466 00:28:50,480 --> 00:28:52,280 so we give a fuller understanding. 467 00:28:52,720 --> 00:28:57,080 And spiritual songs can mean songs of testimony, songs of 468 00:28:57,080 --> 00:29:00,560 response and expression. Although we always need to start 469 00:29:00,560 --> 00:29:05,320 with God's revelation, there is a place for songs that give us 470 00:29:05,320 --> 00:29:09,160 words to say how thankful we are to give us words to say how I'm 471 00:29:09,160 --> 00:29:12,320 yearning for heaven. They give us words to say I 472 00:29:12,400 --> 00:29:17,240 understand my mission now. So that's the significance. 473 00:29:17,240 --> 00:29:19,880 We must sing diversely. Number six, we must sing. 474 00:29:19,880 --> 00:29:23,280 Thankfully it says singing with thankfulness in your hearts to 475 00:29:23,280 --> 00:29:29,840 God. 7th we must sing inwardly. In verse 17 it says whatever you 476 00:29:29,840 --> 00:29:34,000 do in Word or deed, do all. Oh, I'm sorry. 477 00:29:34,000 --> 00:29:37,120 In verse 16, inwardly it says singing with thankfulness in 478 00:29:37,120 --> 00:29:40,080 your hearts to God. So the significance again is 479 00:29:40,080 --> 00:29:43,160 that worship comes from the inside, the spirit, and then it 480 00:29:43,160 --> 00:29:45,800 spills out. It's not only something we do 481 00:29:45,800 --> 00:29:51,480 outside just to perform a task. And in verse 17 #8 is 482 00:29:51,480 --> 00:29:54,800 submissively says whatever you do in Word or deed, do all in 483 00:29:54,800 --> 00:29:58,680 the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to him through God 484 00:29:58,680 --> 00:30:01,840 the Father. So everything is about him. 485 00:30:02,240 --> 00:30:05,000 Everything we sing is it's a mission to his truth and 486 00:30:05,000 --> 00:30:07,880 recognizing everything should be aimed at Him. 487 00:30:08,360 --> 00:30:12,240 Everything should magnify him. If I'm singing a song and it's 488 00:30:12,240 --> 00:30:15,280 talking about me more than it's talking about Jesus, probably 489 00:30:15,280 --> 00:30:18,760 not a good song. So those 8 principles are in the 490 00:30:18,760 --> 00:30:21,800 text to help us understand and give us principles how we should 491 00:30:21,800 --> 00:30:25,040 sing. In Ephesians chapter 5, verses 492 00:30:25,040 --> 00:30:29,080 18 through 20, it's a parallel passage, but there it uses the 493 00:30:29,080 --> 00:30:32,520 same language except that instead of richly dwelling God's 494 00:30:32,520 --> 00:30:35,280 Word, it says be filled with the Spirit. 495 00:30:36,080 --> 00:30:38,600 There's so much confusion in churches about what does it mean 496 00:30:38,600 --> 00:30:40,360 to be filled and led by the Spirit. 497 00:30:40,520 --> 00:30:43,200 People will teach all kinds of things, like it means talking in 498 00:30:43,200 --> 00:30:46,520 gibberish, or falling on the floor, or convulsions, or this 499 00:30:46,520 --> 00:30:49,320 or that, or receiving a revelation in your mind. 500 00:30:49,920 --> 00:30:56,520 No, in Ephesians 5 all the same things result as in Colossians 501 00:30:56,520 --> 00:31:03,760 3, which means letting God's Word richly dwell within you is 502 00:31:03,760 --> 00:31:05,680 the same as being filled by the Spirit. 503 00:31:06,440 --> 00:31:09,040 Does that make sense? Let's turn there. 504 00:31:10,120 --> 00:31:16,520 Ephesians chapter 5, verse 18. Do not get drunk with wine, for 505 00:31:16,520 --> 00:31:18,720 that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit. 506 00:31:19,240 --> 00:31:22,760 Speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual 507 00:31:22,760 --> 00:31:24,320 songs. All that sounds familiar. 508 00:31:24,920 --> 00:31:27,320 Singing and making melody with your hearts of the Lord. 509 00:31:27,720 --> 00:31:30,280 Always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord 510 00:31:30,280 --> 00:31:33,720 Jesus Christ to God, even the Father, and be subject to one 511 00:31:33,720 --> 00:31:36,160 another. So when we let the word of 512 00:31:36,160 --> 00:31:41,360 Christ dwell richly within us, then we sing and we're thankful. 513 00:31:41,960 --> 00:31:46,640 When we let the Spirit fill and lead us, we sing and we're 514 00:31:46,640 --> 00:31:50,000 thankful and we submit. It's the same things. 515 00:31:50,280 --> 00:31:53,720 So it teaches us that when we let God's Word dwell richly 516 00:31:53,720 --> 00:31:58,360 within us, we are being led by God's Spirit because the two 517 00:31:58,360 --> 00:32:02,080 work in tandem. God's Spirit works with his Word 518 00:32:02,480 --> 00:32:06,200 in order to change our lives and to make us like Christ. 519 00:32:10,200 --> 00:32:14,920 So those are some principles from Colossians 3 more quickly 520 00:32:14,920 --> 00:32:18,400 than I had planned. What happens when we sing three 521 00:32:18,400 --> 00:32:20,920 things? Biblical songs exalt? 522 00:32:21,840 --> 00:32:27,000 They exalt God, they lift him up, they put him on display #2 523 00:32:27,640 --> 00:32:32,480 Biblical songs edify, they build up, they teach, and they 524 00:32:32,480 --> 00:32:38,840 strengthen the church #3 biblical songs express. 525 00:32:40,680 --> 00:32:43,080 They express our response to God. 526 00:32:45,560 --> 00:32:49,160 Our emotion and our experience are shaped and sanctified by 527 00:32:49,160 --> 00:32:52,560 God's truth so that we can express in a right way. 528 00:32:53,240 --> 00:32:55,680 And we see all kinds of expressions modelled in 529 00:32:55,680 --> 00:33:01,600 Scripture, uncertainty, but then it's guided by Scripture to a 530 00:33:01,600 --> 00:33:06,560 place of faith. We see despair, but it's guided 531 00:33:06,560 --> 00:33:09,360 by God's revelation to a place of trust. 532 00:33:10,880 --> 00:33:15,440 We see sorrow over circumstances or sin, but we're guided by 533 00:33:15,440 --> 00:33:19,600 God's revelation to a place of confession and of peace and of 534 00:33:19,600 --> 00:33:23,960 trust. And so biblical songs do these 535 00:33:23,960 --> 00:33:27,520 three things. They exalt, they edify, and they 536 00:33:27,520 --> 00:33:30,800 express. This is what should happen when 537 00:33:30,800 --> 00:33:35,520 we sing good songs. Not all kinds of other things. 538 00:33:36,280 --> 00:33:40,120 But we can boil it down to that if we're singing rightly, then 539 00:33:40,120 --> 00:33:44,920 in our church Christ is exalted, the church is built up, it's 540 00:33:44,920 --> 00:33:50,640 edified, and we express a right response to who God is. 541 00:33:52,440 --> 00:33:56,040 And the question then? Is will you then worship? 542 00:33:58,280 --> 00:34:02,520 Will you then worship? Will you lead it in your family? 543 00:34:03,800 --> 00:34:06,320 Will you teach your children about worship? 544 00:34:06,320 --> 00:34:09,840 Not just about singing, but about the fact that worship is 545 00:34:09,840 --> 00:34:12,120 life. That it's submission and 546 00:34:12,120 --> 00:34:14,760 reverence to God. It's a response to Him. 547 00:34:19,480 --> 00:34:22,280 I wanted to spend some time. Talking about issues tonight, 548 00:34:22,840 --> 00:34:25,920 branching out, something a little more informal. 549 00:34:26,800 --> 00:34:29,400 It's funny, you get up here and you don't know how long it's 550 00:34:29,400 --> 00:34:31,679 going to take and then you realize you have enough material 551 00:34:31,679 --> 00:34:34,880 for like 4 weeks. So we're going to. 552 00:34:34,880 --> 00:34:38,679 Simplify a little bit. I really enjoy the conversations 553 00:34:38,679 --> 00:34:41,080 that we have in the young and old Bible study. 554 00:34:41,320 --> 00:34:44,080 It's called Impact, and they meet together every other Sunday 555 00:34:44,080 --> 00:34:47,679 night and they always challenge me with thoughtful questions. 556 00:34:48,040 --> 00:34:49,840 They always challenge me to be prepared. 557 00:34:50,360 --> 00:34:54,000 A couple of years ago we did a study through every section of 558 00:34:54,000 --> 00:34:57,120 theology. So that means we studied who God 559 00:34:57,120 --> 00:34:59,400 is, who Christ is, the Holy Spirit. 560 00:34:59,680 --> 00:35:02,360 We studied what is this, what are the scriptures? 561 00:35:02,560 --> 00:35:07,120 We studied everything from angels to salvation to death to 562 00:35:07,120 --> 00:35:09,880 heaven. We studied all these things and 563 00:35:09,880 --> 00:35:13,800 it was so wonderful. The questions that would form 564 00:35:14,360 --> 00:35:19,160 because right theology, right teaching leads to right living, 565 00:35:19,840 --> 00:35:23,560 because the natural question is, OK, now that I know this, how 566 00:35:23,560 --> 00:35:25,320 does this make an impact in my life? 567 00:35:26,040 --> 00:35:28,960 How does this change and guide me in the way I live? 568 00:35:29,640 --> 00:35:32,720 So we've talked about a lot of theological things and we've 569 00:35:32,720 --> 00:35:36,360 talked about spirit and truth, but we want to boil it down and 570 00:35:36,360 --> 00:35:39,320 I want to talk a little bit tonight about applying that 571 00:35:40,040 --> 00:35:44,960 because it's our responsibility, first of all, to be wise and God 572 00:35:44,960 --> 00:35:50,040 honoring in the way that we participate in church and also 573 00:35:50,040 --> 00:35:53,480 in the music that we listen to, even though singing is just a 574 00:35:53,480 --> 00:35:56,440 small part of it. Singing can become such a 575 00:35:56,440 --> 00:36:00,720 controversy, and there's so many voices and false teachings out 576 00:36:00,720 --> 00:36:06,280 there. When we talk about songs. 577 00:36:06,280 --> 00:36:10,040 In church. There's always the battle, 578 00:36:10,040 --> 00:36:13,880 right? New songs, old songs, familiar 579 00:36:13,880 --> 00:36:17,120 songs, new songs. How do you make those decisions? 580 00:36:18,840 --> 00:36:21,240 When we think through the. Principles that we've drawn from 581 00:36:21,240 --> 00:36:23,240 Scripture. It becomes simple. 582 00:36:23,880 --> 00:36:27,240 The significance of what we sing, either together in this 583 00:36:27,240 --> 00:36:32,520 church or what I sing at home, is not in the style of music. 584 00:36:32,880 --> 00:36:35,360 It's not in the instruments that are used. 585 00:36:35,680 --> 00:36:39,920 The significance is not in the era that it was written. 586 00:36:40,160 --> 00:36:44,960 It's not in the way it sounds. The significance of the songs 587 00:36:44,960 --> 00:36:47,920 that we sing is about their content. 588 00:36:48,400 --> 00:36:52,520 It's about truth. Are the songs that we sing and 589 00:36:52,520 --> 00:36:54,520 we listen to filled with God's truth? 590 00:36:54,880 --> 00:36:58,840 Because if they are, they will draw a right response from God's 591 00:36:58,840 --> 00:37:02,400 people, from God's people who are ready to worship and are 592 00:37:02,400 --> 00:37:05,680 living a life of worship. They will be ready to respond. 593 00:37:06,640 --> 00:37:11,640 If we listen to or sing songs that are weak, that are vague, 594 00:37:12,000 --> 00:37:16,880 OK, it will, it will help no one. 595 00:37:17,720 --> 00:37:19,640 It's not going to draw anyone to worship. 596 00:37:19,880 --> 00:37:22,160 It's not going to remind us of who God is. 597 00:37:22,160 --> 00:37:24,200 It's not going to remind us of what he's done. 598 00:37:24,400 --> 00:37:26,640 It's not going to remind us of our responsibility. 599 00:37:26,880 --> 00:37:29,880 It's not going to nourish us in our spiritual walk and build us 600 00:37:29,880 --> 00:37:31,960 up. It is not going to glorify God 601 00:37:32,200 --> 00:37:37,080 because God's made it clear He is glorified in specificity, in 602 00:37:37,080 --> 00:37:41,280 teaching, in understanding the fullness of his character. 603 00:37:41,960 --> 00:37:46,200 And so we have to set aside all of the things that we prefer, 604 00:37:46,720 --> 00:37:52,000 and we have to hold on to the one question What pleases God, 605 00:37:52,000 --> 00:37:57,040 What honors God? When I first came to the. 606 00:37:57,040 --> 00:37:59,640 Church music was very different here. 607 00:38:00,160 --> 00:38:01,880 The worship ministry was very different. 608 00:38:02,440 --> 00:38:06,840 It was organized around a choir and a piano and an organ, and 609 00:38:06,840 --> 00:38:11,640 overtime that is all changed. But that's not because I have a 610 00:38:11,640 --> 00:38:17,400 specific preference that changed out of necessity because we have 611 00:38:17,400 --> 00:38:21,680 certain people in this church who play certain instruments and 612 00:38:21,680 --> 00:38:27,280 who are willing to serve. And so because style is not 613 00:38:27,280 --> 00:38:30,560 what's significant, the style musically of our church has 614 00:38:30,560 --> 00:38:33,760 evolved over the years. And yes, I have say in that, 615 00:38:34,360 --> 00:38:37,600 yes, I have leadership in that. And yes, you could say that I'm, 616 00:38:37,600 --> 00:38:39,800 I'm probably biased and I like guitar music. 617 00:38:40,000 --> 00:38:43,840 That's fine, but at the end of the day, my concern is what 618 00:38:43,840 --> 00:38:48,000 honors God, what exalts Him and puts forth His truth, and what's 619 00:38:48,000 --> 00:38:50,400 the best way that we can accomplish that. 620 00:38:51,200 --> 00:38:53,720 And so we do that with the people that we have, that God 621 00:38:53,720 --> 00:38:56,440 has provided, and the skills that they have. 622 00:38:57,600 --> 00:39:00,040 Romans 14 is a really important passage. 623 00:39:00,240 --> 00:39:03,600 We're talking about music because it helps us understand 624 00:39:03,600 --> 00:39:07,120 Christian liberty. What Paul says in the Scripture 625 00:39:07,120 --> 00:39:13,400 teaches in Romans 14 is that you should have convictions, you 626 00:39:13,400 --> 00:39:16,120 should have wise reasons for what you do, and you should hold 627 00:39:16,120 --> 00:39:20,000 fast to those convictions. But if it's not expressly 628 00:39:20,000 --> 00:39:23,960 commanded in Scripture, then you cannot judge other believers. 629 00:39:23,960 --> 00:39:28,600 If they differ, OK, if they prefer a different kind of 630 00:39:28,600 --> 00:39:32,480 music. The examples in Romans 14 are in 631 00:39:32,480 --> 00:39:36,680 eating and in practicing. For example, some people might 632 00:39:37,080 --> 00:39:39,280 still practice the the festivals. 633 00:39:39,280 --> 00:39:41,960 They might go to the to the Jewish festivals and be part of 634 00:39:41,960 --> 00:39:45,600 that. Or some people might eat food 635 00:39:45,920 --> 00:39:52,080 that was first offered to idols. So false worshippers, false 636 00:39:52,080 --> 00:39:56,280 religions would offer food on the altar of their false gods 637 00:39:56,920 --> 00:39:59,240 and then later they would sell it for cheap in the marketplace. 638 00:40:00,440 --> 00:40:04,400 And so Paul is saying if you want to get a deal, it doesn't 639 00:40:04,400 --> 00:40:07,120 matter because false gods and gods are nothing. 640 00:40:07,640 --> 00:40:10,120 And food is food. So he's saying if you have a 641 00:40:10,120 --> 00:40:12,600 conviction on these things and it's not expressly laid out in 642 00:40:12,600 --> 00:40:16,240 scripture, if it's not guided and regulated by Scripture, have 643 00:40:16,240 --> 00:40:18,360 a conviction. Have a wise reason based on 644 00:40:18,360 --> 00:40:21,880 scripture and don't judge someone else if they have a 645 00:40:21,880 --> 00:40:28,200 different conviction on that. But what we do need to have? 646 00:40:28,640 --> 00:40:31,520 A unanimous conviction on is the. 647 00:40:31,520 --> 00:40:34,640 Content is the truth. And tonight I wanted to spend a 648 00:40:34,640 --> 00:40:40,200 couple of minutes talking about false teachers and churches in 649 00:40:40,200 --> 00:40:45,320 music. OK, Basically today, everything 650 00:40:45,320 --> 00:40:49,600 that calls itself Christian music and Christian culture is 651 00:40:49,600 --> 00:40:53,000 not God honoring. It's not guided and regulated by 652 00:40:53,000 --> 00:40:57,600 scripture. It is dictated and designed and 653 00:40:57,600 --> 00:41:04,680 invented by people in there for a lot of it is not helpful and a 654 00:41:04,680 --> 00:41:05,800 lot of. It is downright. 655 00:41:05,800 --> 00:41:10,080 Dangerous. In 2nd Corinthians 11. 656 00:41:10,160 --> 00:41:13,680 Verses 13 Thrift through 15. It says such men, these false 657 00:41:13,680 --> 00:41:17,080 teachers, are false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising 658 00:41:17,080 --> 00:41:18,800 themselves as apostles of Christ. 659 00:41:19,360 --> 00:41:23,120 No wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an Angel of 660 00:41:23,120 --> 00:41:25,800 light. Therefore, it is not surprising 661 00:41:25,800 --> 00:41:28,480 if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of 662 00:41:28,480 --> 00:41:31,680 righteousness whose end will be according to their deeds. 663 00:41:32,800 --> 00:41:35,920 And so tonight I wanted to make you aware of some things that we 664 00:41:35,920 --> 00:41:38,960 need to be careful of. When you look at Christian music 665 00:41:38,960 --> 00:41:41,240 on the radio and the things that are most popular in other 666 00:41:41,240 --> 00:41:45,400 churches, the majority of it centers around a couple false 667 00:41:45,400 --> 00:41:49,960 churches and false teachers. OK, one is Hillsong Prosperity 668 00:41:49,960 --> 00:41:52,720 Church. OK, it's all about making money. 669 00:41:53,320 --> 00:41:57,080 God does this for me. It's man centered idolatry. 670 00:41:57,080 --> 00:41:59,560 God is there to bless me and to give me what I think I need. 671 00:42:00,040 --> 00:42:02,080 And you've seen their music. They don't want to talk about 672 00:42:02,080 --> 00:42:04,360 sin. Hey, they don't want to talk 673 00:42:04,360 --> 00:42:06,560 about that. They talk about God helping 674 00:42:06,720 --> 00:42:09,120 their sense of shame and their weaknesses. 675 00:42:09,440 --> 00:42:11,760 They're not concerned with holiness, but they're concerned 676 00:42:11,760 --> 00:42:13,680 with emotional and material fulfillment. 677 00:42:15,120 --> 00:42:16,360 Another. False church. 678 00:42:16,360 --> 00:42:20,120 False gospel is Elevation Church, Elevation Worship with 679 00:42:20,120 --> 00:42:21,840 Stephen Furtick. OK? 680 00:42:22,760 --> 00:42:26,440 They don't teach anything that's in line with the gospel. 681 00:42:26,920 --> 00:42:29,640 And the danger is they have little snippets of truth. 682 00:42:30,120 --> 00:42:34,120 So you hear a song or you hear a 32nd clip of them teaching and 683 00:42:34,120 --> 00:42:37,640 you think, oh, that's not awful. I thought they were all awful. 684 00:42:38,320 --> 00:42:40,680 But that's how false teachers work. 685 00:42:41,200 --> 00:42:43,840 They just don't dump a bunch of bogus on you. 686 00:42:44,720 --> 00:42:50,320 They have little Nuggets of weak truth, OK, but they fill in the 687 00:42:50,320 --> 00:42:54,600 majority with false teaching. They corrupt the nature of God. 688 00:42:54,880 --> 00:42:56,560 They corrupt the nature of Christ. 689 00:42:56,840 --> 00:42:58,520 They corrupt the work on the cross. 690 00:42:58,600 --> 00:43:01,400 They don't speak about sin and God's holiness. 691 00:43:03,000 --> 00:43:08,320 Everything is man centered. One of the most dangerous 692 00:43:08,320 --> 00:43:10,920 churches and sources today is Bethel. 693 00:43:12,280 --> 00:43:15,320 They're led, the main church is led by a husband and wife 694 00:43:15,320 --> 00:43:17,800 couple, pastors Brian and Jen Johnson. 695 00:43:19,080 --> 00:43:23,160 They teach a false gospel, no repentance, and they have an 696 00:43:23,160 --> 00:43:24,920 overt plan for worldly influence. 697 00:43:25,760 --> 00:43:29,800 And I call them a cult because their teachings are so extreme, 698 00:43:30,520 --> 00:43:33,560 OK? And when I study this, it's 699 00:43:33,560 --> 00:43:36,320 scary. It's terrifying that there's 700 00:43:36,320 --> 00:43:39,120 somebody who claims to be a Church of God and yet teaches 701 00:43:39,120 --> 00:43:41,000 these things. So I wanted to make you aware of 702 00:43:41,000 --> 00:43:43,760 it. They practice mystical, 703 00:43:43,960 --> 00:43:48,880 blatantly occultic practices. OK, they teach and talk about 704 00:43:48,880 --> 00:43:53,840 waking sleeping angels of power. They teach that God always wants 705 00:43:53,840 --> 00:43:55,240 to. Heal and raise the dead. 706 00:43:56,560 --> 00:43:58,000 They teach that you can receive and. 707 00:43:58,000 --> 00:44:02,600 Reclaim anointings and mantels of power from the graves of dead 708 00:44:02,600 --> 00:44:05,520 people. They claim that gold dust and 709 00:44:05,520 --> 00:44:07,440 Angel feathers appear during their services. 710 00:44:08,480 --> 00:44:11,520 They practice soaking prayer, which means you clear your mind 711 00:44:12,000 --> 00:44:15,600 and you attempt to feel God's presence like a tingling skin or 712 00:44:15,600 --> 00:44:18,400 a hot or cold sensation or a gentle wind blowing through your 713 00:44:18,400 --> 00:44:19,480 body. Their words. 714 00:44:21,120 --> 00:44:22,640 They have their own translation called the. 715 00:44:22,640 --> 00:44:26,480 Passion translation, which is 50% longer than your Bible 716 00:44:27,120 --> 00:44:30,360 because so much new is inserted regardless of what the original 717 00:44:30,360 --> 00:44:33,240 text says. It is an entirely rewritten and 718 00:44:33,240 --> 00:44:36,440 changed book, they claim. That Christians can. 719 00:44:36,440 --> 00:44:40,000 See into the spiritual realm and become Mystics and seers. 720 00:44:40,880 --> 00:44:43,760 They've taught that Jesus lost his deity entirely at the 721 00:44:43,760 --> 00:44:46,680 incarnation and that he was incapable of anything on his 722 00:44:46,680 --> 00:44:48,760 own. That he was no longer God, that 723 00:44:48,760 --> 00:44:50,360 he no longer had the attributes of God. 724 00:44:50,720 --> 00:44:54,480 That he received an anointing of magic power at his baptism, and 725 00:44:54,480 --> 00:44:58,040 that you can receive a similar anointing like that if you pray 726 00:44:58,080 --> 00:45:01,080 and you have the right faith. They have a school of 727 00:45:01,080 --> 00:45:04,640 supernatural ministry where in their words, students will learn 728 00:45:04,640 --> 00:45:06,840 how to read, understand, and do the Bible. 729 00:45:08,200 --> 00:45:12,880 OK, how to practice His presence, how to witness, how to 730 00:45:12,880 --> 00:45:17,280 heal the sick, prophecy, preach, pray, cast out demons, and much 731 00:45:17,280 --> 00:45:20,760 more. The controversy in the last 732 00:45:20,760 --> 00:45:22,440 couple years. Is that they encourage their 733 00:45:22,440 --> 00:45:25,080 church to pray for the resurrection of a 2 year old 734 00:45:25,080 --> 00:45:27,320 girl who died who was the daughter of a worship leader. 735 00:45:27,720 --> 00:45:29,960 And they prayed saying if we pray and believe hard enough, 736 00:45:30,120 --> 00:45:34,480 God will resurrect her. So they are people who have 737 00:45:34,480 --> 00:45:37,640 taken the name of Christ and taken all these mystical, 738 00:45:37,760 --> 00:45:41,080 satanic, occultic practices and just mashed them together. 739 00:45:41,920 --> 00:45:44,760 And we need to be aware of this because when you hear one of 740 00:45:44,760 --> 00:45:47,240 their songs, we don't understand all of that. 741 00:45:48,000 --> 00:45:51,000 They'll even take some hymns like it is well and do their own 742 00:45:51,000 --> 00:45:53,120 version and you listen to it and you're like, oh, that's, that's 743 00:45:53,120 --> 00:45:55,920 not awful. They were good singers. 744 00:45:56,080 --> 00:46:03,040 They're good musicians, but they lead you away from the truth and 745 00:46:03,040 --> 00:46:06,760 they are false teachers and they are deceptive and they are 746 00:46:06,760 --> 00:46:10,040 dangerous and the. Unfortunate thing is that. 747 00:46:10,480 --> 00:46:13,800 So much in Christian worship is directly associated with them, 748 00:46:14,480 --> 00:46:16,680 and if people associate with these people, if they spend time 749 00:46:16,680 --> 00:46:18,840 with them and teach with them and sing at their churches and 750 00:46:18,840 --> 00:46:21,920 write songs with them, it shows a lack of discernment, lack of 751 00:46:21,920 --> 00:46:24,720 truth, or possibly a lack of true salvation. 752 00:46:25,440 --> 00:46:28,720 So there's names like Cody Carnes, Brandon Lake, now 753 00:46:28,720 --> 00:46:30,400 Fiddle. Wickham does everything with 754 00:46:30,400 --> 00:46:33,200 Bethel. We know in scripture it. 755 00:46:33,200 --> 00:46:36,080 Says. Who you spend time with, you 756 00:46:36,080 --> 00:46:40,000 will become like them. In First Corinthians, Paul was 757 00:46:40,000 --> 00:46:42,200 dealing with some of the church who associated with false 758 00:46:42,200 --> 00:46:45,400 teachers who denied resurrection at all of the body. 759 00:46:46,160 --> 00:46:49,080 And that he said associating with false teachers always leads 760 00:46:49,080 --> 00:46:51,440 us astray. It leads to a weakening of our 761 00:46:51,440 --> 00:46:54,000 conviction and our commitment to live a holy life. 762 00:46:54,320 --> 00:46:58,000 In 1533 of First Corinthians it says don't be deceived, Bad 763 00:46:58,000 --> 00:47:01,480 company corrupts good morals, become sober minded, become 764 00:47:01,480 --> 00:47:04,920 clear minded, have clarity because you have it from God's 765 00:47:04,920 --> 00:47:08,560 word as you ought and stop sinning for some have no 766 00:47:08,560 --> 00:47:11,440 knowledge of God and I speak this to your shame. 767 00:47:12,080 --> 00:47:15,040 So he's saying have a clear mind, don't be clouded, don't be 768 00:47:15,040 --> 00:47:18,720 confused, don't have a mind that's like it's drunk, like 769 00:47:18,720 --> 00:47:22,440 it's unthinking. Even names like Chris Tomlin 770 00:47:22,520 --> 00:47:26,920 have become questionable because they do so much with churches 771 00:47:26,920 --> 00:47:30,960 like Bethel and Elevation and they sing their songs. 772 00:47:31,880 --> 00:47:34,200 These people come more and more like the people they tour and 773 00:47:34,200 --> 00:47:36,600 write songs with. So this. 774 00:47:36,600 --> 00:47:38,880 Is a key problem. With everything that's called 775 00:47:38,880 --> 00:47:41,240 worship music. OK, it's. 776 00:47:41,360 --> 00:47:44,720 Written by people. Who are not believers, who are 777 00:47:44,720 --> 00:47:47,880 blatantly false teachers. And we're doing it for a profit 778 00:47:47,880 --> 00:47:51,880 and for influence. The worship music industry is 779 00:47:51,880 --> 00:47:54,480 built on entertainment, not edification. 780 00:47:55,040 --> 00:47:56,760 It's built for profit, not for truth. 781 00:47:58,120 --> 00:48:00,160 The temptation is watered down truth. 782 00:48:00,560 --> 00:48:03,160 You sing things that are generic and vague enough that everybody 783 00:48:03,160 --> 00:48:04,920 can sing it and it doesn't bug anybody. 784 00:48:05,760 --> 00:48:08,480 You appeal to this wider on an audience and you make more money 785 00:48:10,000 --> 00:48:11,640 then the. Result is that Christian radio. 786 00:48:12,520 --> 00:48:17,200 Is garbage OK? Everything that is easy to 787 00:48:17,200 --> 00:48:22,720 listen to is mostly garbage. There are some gems you can pull 788 00:48:22,720 --> 00:48:27,680 out, but the majority of it is awful and there are very few 789 00:48:27,680 --> 00:48:31,080 trustworthy and reliable Christian musician. 790 00:48:33,080 --> 00:48:35,200 And so as we're coming. To an end. 791 00:48:35,960 --> 00:48:38,680 I wish we had more time for this tonight, but I ask you to turn 792 00:48:38,680 --> 00:48:41,840 over your handout. OK? 793 00:48:41,840 --> 00:48:46,080 On this I put 2 songs that are from the top ten of. 794 00:48:46,080 --> 00:48:50,880 CCLICCLI is the organization that handles all the royalties 795 00:48:51,000 --> 00:48:54,600 and the copyrights for basically all songs sung in churches. 796 00:48:55,280 --> 00:48:58,040 So these two songs, Graves in the Gardens and Gratitude are in 797 00:48:58,040 --> 00:49:00,760 the top 10 sung in churches across the world. 798 00:49:01,160 --> 00:49:04,560 OK. And you look at it and at first 799 00:49:04,560 --> 00:49:08,000 glance, I mean, it doesn't look awful. 800 00:49:08,400 --> 00:49:10,720 I mean, there's no blatant heresy in it. 801 00:49:11,280 --> 00:49:14,560 But when you evaluate it, you understand how man centered it 802 00:49:14,560 --> 00:49:18,640 is, how weak it is and how useless it is. 803 00:49:19,680 --> 00:49:23,640 And you understand that it does not honor God because it does 804 00:49:23,640 --> 00:49:27,120 not give an accurate picture of him. 805 00:49:27,120 --> 00:49:29,640 A revelation. Graves into gardens. 806 00:49:29,920 --> 00:49:35,320 OK, I was at a Christian School and they sung this every month 807 00:49:36,640 --> 00:49:40,560 and it just killed me. You look. 808 00:49:40,560 --> 00:49:42,600 At their first verse. I searched the world that 809 00:49:42,600 --> 00:49:44,800 couldn't fill me, and at the end, every desire is now 810 00:49:44,800 --> 00:49:48,960 satisfied here in your love. So we're meeting felt needs, OK? 811 00:49:48,960 --> 00:49:51,640 We're not needing spiritual needs, taking care of sin. 812 00:49:52,600 --> 00:49:53,880 We're singing about our felt needs. 813 00:49:54,240 --> 00:49:58,080 There's nothing better than you. OK, that's vague, but not awful. 814 00:49:58,480 --> 00:50:01,280 I'm not afraid to show you my weaknesses, my failures and 815 00:50:01,280 --> 00:50:02,360 flaws. Lord seen them. 816 00:50:02,440 --> 00:50:04,320 You've seen them all and you still call me friend. 817 00:50:05,600 --> 00:50:09,160 First of all, sin is not weaknesses, failures and flaws. 818 00:50:09,360 --> 00:50:10,840 OK, that's a little bit of a cop out. 819 00:50:11,200 --> 00:50:13,000 OK? Sin is an offence against the 820 00:50:13,000 --> 00:50:17,280 perfect holy God that requires eternal judgement in hell. 821 00:50:19,240 --> 00:50:23,800 And let's not call God our friend. 822 00:50:25,000 --> 00:50:29,440 Let's not Scripture calls God our Father. 823 00:50:30,800 --> 00:50:32,480 It's the. Title of reverence. 824 00:50:32,480 --> 00:50:37,560 And authority. Scripture calls God our master 825 00:50:38,400 --> 00:50:41,640 as slaves. It's the title of reverence and 826 00:50:41,640 --> 00:50:43,680 authority. Not that there's no love, there 827 00:50:43,680 --> 00:50:47,720 is, but the way we relate to God begins with reverence. 828 00:50:48,160 --> 00:50:50,600 It begins with honoring Him and understanding His character. 829 00:50:52,080 --> 00:50:53,400 Can you look through the rest of the song? 830 00:50:53,600 --> 00:50:56,120 There's some vague metaphors. The God of the mountain is the 831 00:50:56,120 --> 00:50:59,680 God of the valley. What does that mean? 832 00:51:01,760 --> 00:51:05,120 It means whatever you want because it's vague and then it 833 00:51:05,120 --> 00:51:09,600 goes into some some. Proclaims God does these things. 834 00:51:09,800 --> 00:51:13,560 You turn graves into gardens. Cool. 835 00:51:14,320 --> 00:51:16,960 Like what? What does that mean? 836 00:51:17,480 --> 00:51:19,640 God's a gardening God. We're going back to Eden. 837 00:51:19,880 --> 00:51:22,640 You turn bones into armies. OK, Probably a reference to 838 00:51:22,640 --> 00:51:24,000 Ezekiel. Dry bones. 839 00:51:24,120 --> 00:51:25,520 You guys have never heard the kids song. 840 00:51:25,520 --> 00:51:26,520 I don't know if you've read that. 841 00:51:26,720 --> 00:51:28,760 Believe it's in Ezekiel. It's Ezekiel in the 30s 842 00:51:28,760 --> 00:51:31,520 someplace. But it talks about God showing 843 00:51:31,520 --> 00:51:34,160 Ezekiel that he's going to bring Israel back and resurrect them 844 00:51:34,160 --> 00:51:35,800 though they were scattered and dead. 845 00:51:36,400 --> 00:51:39,920 OK, But it's just vague. It's just a bunch of things that 846 00:51:39,920 --> 00:51:42,160 God can do for me. OK? 847 00:51:42,800 --> 00:51:45,280 You're saying you, you do these things, God, you're the only one 848 00:51:45,280 --> 00:51:49,000 who can. But the song is really about me. 849 00:51:49,080 --> 00:51:50,960 It's about what God is going to do for me. 850 00:51:52,080 --> 00:51:57,720 When you look at gratitude, my my question is, what are you 851 00:51:57,720 --> 00:52:00,920 grateful for? The name of the song is 852 00:52:00,920 --> 00:52:04,160 gratitude. What are you thankful for? 853 00:52:05,920 --> 00:52:09,840 OK, if you, if I'm going to respond to God, I'm going to, 854 00:52:09,840 --> 00:52:12,840 I'm going to be asking, yes, OK, I know what I'm thankful for. 855 00:52:13,320 --> 00:52:16,240 But it would be helpful if a song I'm singing outlines. 856 00:52:16,520 --> 00:52:19,080 What am I thankful for? What are some things that we're 857 00:52:19,080 --> 00:52:22,880 thankful for? Give me some salvation. 858 00:52:23,720 --> 00:52:25,440 That's great. Yes. 859 00:52:25,800 --> 00:52:34,400 What else? For wife, Life, Wife, wife. 860 00:52:34,400 --> 00:52:37,520 And life, both of those things. Both are great and absolutely 861 00:52:37,520 --> 00:52:38,200 true. Amen. 862 00:52:38,640 --> 00:52:43,000 Yes, there are so many things and there are so many good songs 863 00:52:43,000 --> 00:52:44,280 that talk about giving thanks to God. 864 00:52:44,280 --> 00:52:45,640 We sing to Jesus. Thank you. 865 00:52:45,920 --> 00:52:48,120 The mystery of the cross. I cannot comprehend the agonies 866 00:52:48,120 --> 00:52:50,400 of Calvary. You, the perfect Holy 1, 867 00:52:51,640 --> 00:52:53,280 crushed. Your son who drank. 868 00:52:53,280 --> 00:52:56,160 The bitter cup reserved for me. And you sing that and you're 869 00:52:56,160 --> 00:53:00,160 just like, now I'll sing thank you, now I will. 870 00:53:00,320 --> 00:53:03,120 Because that articulates it in a way that I'm probably not wise 871 00:53:03,120 --> 00:53:04,480 enough to put together by myself. 872 00:53:04,760 --> 00:53:08,440 But it's good and it's true, and I have a response, but this song 873 00:53:08,440 --> 00:53:10,720 says nothing. I'm going to express my 874 00:53:10,720 --> 00:53:13,440 gratitude. And how do I do that? 875 00:53:13,440 --> 00:53:15,480 I throw out my hands. I praise you. 876 00:53:16,000 --> 00:53:19,720 I've got one response. I've just got one move arm. 877 00:53:19,720 --> 00:53:20,560 Stretch ride? Really. 878 00:53:21,280 --> 00:53:23,560 Your one response to God is to do this. 879 00:53:25,280 --> 00:53:26,720 We just spent a whole night talking. 880 00:53:26,720 --> 00:53:29,400 About how your response to God is your whole life and you're 881 00:53:29,400 --> 00:53:31,680 going to sing a song. This is how I respond by 882 00:53:31,680 --> 00:53:32,920 stretching out my arms and look at him. 883 00:53:33,800 --> 00:53:37,200 It's so, it's so shallow. It's so man centered. 884 00:53:37,960 --> 00:53:40,280 I wanted to use the example of the song Christ the Sure and 885 00:53:40,280 --> 00:53:43,080 steady Anchor because it's a metaphor. 886 00:53:43,680 --> 00:53:48,000 But in it there is great biblical truth that draws us not 887 00:53:48,000 --> 00:53:51,600 to ourselves but back to Christ. Christ the sure and steady 888 00:53:51,600 --> 00:53:53,520 anchor. OK, it's using the seafaring 889 00:53:53,520 --> 00:53:55,600 imagery. OK, it talks about the fury of 890 00:53:55,600 --> 00:53:58,320 the storm. The the moral of it. 891 00:53:58,320 --> 00:54:00,920 I will hold fast to the anchor. It shall never be removed. 892 00:54:00,960 --> 00:54:03,960 OK, I hold fast to Christ. He will never leave me. 893 00:54:04,200 --> 00:54:07,000 He will never forsake me. I cannot lose my salvation. 894 00:54:07,160 --> 00:54:11,720 So no matter what's happening in my life, I cling to Him, OK, 895 00:54:12,120 --> 00:54:15,080 even in temptation. And I realized in verse 2, 896 00:54:15,080 --> 00:54:19,080 though I justly stand accused, I will hold fast. 897 00:54:19,720 --> 00:54:22,720 Verse 3, lift your eyes to Calvary. 898 00:54:22,960 --> 00:54:26,560 This my ballast of assurance. See, His love forever proved. 899 00:54:26,960 --> 00:54:30,720 My assurance is not based on me, but it's based on the fact that 900 00:54:30,720 --> 00:54:33,920 God's love and His salvation is forever proved and accomplished 901 00:54:33,920 --> 00:54:36,080 by what Jesus did once on the cross. 902 00:54:37,640 --> 00:54:39,240 A ballast if you don't know, in a ship. 903 00:54:39,600 --> 00:54:41,400 Is the weight in the bottom of it? 904 00:54:41,800 --> 00:54:46,320 And so ships nowadays will fill up with water or they'll put 905 00:54:46,320 --> 00:54:49,800 cargo and things down there to bring stability to the ship so 906 00:54:49,800 --> 00:54:51,960 that in a storm it doesn't tip over. 907 00:54:52,040 --> 00:54:54,840 If you have weight in the bottom of the ship, it keeps it stable, 908 00:54:54,880 --> 00:54:57,240 it keeps it upright, it keeps it going. 909 00:54:57,800 --> 00:55:02,280 And so it's using this imagery to saying my steadfastness, even 910 00:55:02,280 --> 00:55:05,040 though I feel like I'm in a storm, is based on Christ and it 911 00:55:05,040 --> 00:55:07,960 speaks of heaven. So those are good truths. 912 00:55:08,200 --> 00:55:11,240 Even though this is a song that is has a little more imagery, 913 00:55:11,480 --> 00:55:15,200 it's a little more of a metaphor rather than articulating 914 00:55:15,240 --> 00:55:28,700 specific theology. There's so much more I. 915 00:55:28,700 --> 00:55:32,580 Would love to talk about. But I would just encourage you 916 00:55:32,580 --> 00:55:34,100 to have. Discernment, and that's the 917 00:55:34,100 --> 00:55:35,580 battle that we need to have in everything. 918 00:55:36,180 --> 00:55:39,140 Have discernment. Be aware of what you're 919 00:55:39,140 --> 00:55:41,900 listening to, what you're feeling you're home with, what 920 00:55:41,900 --> 00:55:44,420 your children are listening to because it matters. 921 00:55:45,300 --> 00:55:50,080 Is the Word of Christ dwelling richly in my mind because of how 922 00:55:50,080 --> 00:55:53,840 I fill my home and because of being in the Word and singing 923 00:55:53,840 --> 00:55:55,440 good songs and thinking about it? 924 00:55:56,080 --> 00:55:59,080 Or am I filling my life with triviality? 925 00:55:59,400 --> 00:56:02,280 Am I filling with my life with things that are not honoring to 926 00:56:02,280 --> 00:56:05,440 the Lord? It's so easy for us to 927 00:56:05,440 --> 00:56:09,360 compromise in the things we listen to because there's so 928 00:56:09,360 --> 00:56:13,680 much garbage out there, but we have to evaluate everything. 929 00:56:14,400 --> 00:56:18,120 My wife both hates and loves the fact I can never just listen to 930 00:56:18,160 --> 00:56:21,040 a song. I can't just enjoy a song. 931 00:56:21,480 --> 00:56:24,480 I'm listening to what it says and always have a comment like 932 00:56:24,920 --> 00:56:27,680 that's so stupid. She's like, why can't you just, 933 00:56:27,840 --> 00:56:29,400 It's not, it's not a worship song. 934 00:56:29,400 --> 00:56:31,040 It's not about Jesus. Can't you just enjoy it? 935 00:56:31,960 --> 00:56:36,280 But I can't help it and we all need to think that way. 936 00:56:36,400 --> 00:56:39,400 Not that I'm great at that, not that I have great discernment, 937 00:56:39,680 --> 00:56:43,360 but God's Word is a perfect guide and it teaches and 938 00:56:43,360 --> 00:56:46,520 instructs everyone of us so that we will be discerning and so 939 00:56:46,520 --> 00:56:49,520 that we can fill our minds and our lives with God's truth. 940 00:56:50,080 --> 00:56:52,600 And it's all the more important, as we have an example in our 941 00:56:52,600 --> 00:56:56,040 church and in our families and with our friends, to not 942 00:56:56,040 --> 00:57:00,120 compromise, OK? To not just settle for wishy 943 00:57:00,120 --> 00:57:04,840 washy, not settle for garbage, and to be careful of where our 944 00:57:04,840 --> 00:57:07,760 music's coming from. To be careful of what we're 945 00:57:07,760 --> 00:57:09,680 singing and what we're listening to. 946 00:57:10,400 --> 00:57:12,280 You don't have to make the same choices as me. 947 00:57:12,840 --> 00:57:14,640 And I would love to speak with you more if you have more 948 00:57:14,640 --> 00:57:16,440 specific questions. I'm sorry I haven't had that 949 00:57:16,440 --> 00:57:19,640 time tonight. But I want to encourage you that 950 00:57:19,640 --> 00:57:23,760 singing is wonderful and singing is valuable and important. 951 00:57:24,240 --> 00:57:25,800 I mean, it's not because I say it. 952 00:57:25,840 --> 00:57:30,160 It's not because I like music. It's because God's Word says so. 953 00:57:30,600 --> 00:57:34,520 And He gave it to you as a gift. He gave it to you as something 954 00:57:34,520 --> 00:57:40,520 beautiful, to express your response to Him, to speak to 955 00:57:40,520 --> 00:57:44,280 Him, and to look forward to heaven where someday we'll sing 956 00:57:44,280 --> 00:57:47,960 perfectly and where we can express perfectly and we'll be 957 00:57:47,960 --> 00:57:51,280 able to worship without any hindrance of distraction or 958 00:57:51,280 --> 00:57:53,560 sinfulness. And so I hope that's an 959 00:57:53,560 --> 00:57:56,400 encouragement to you tonight. And I'd love to talk with you 960 00:57:56,400 --> 00:57:59,040 more tonight, another time at church. 961 00:57:59,480 --> 00:58:02,480 I would love to make myself available, but let's go some 962 00:58:02,480 --> 00:58:06,200 prayer. Lord, we thank you for this 963 00:58:06,200 --> 00:58:07,880 night. Thank you for the clarity in 964 00:58:07,880 --> 00:58:10,760 your word. Thank you for the great depth of 965 00:58:10,760 --> 00:58:12,320 truth that you've given us in your word. 966 00:58:12,800 --> 00:58:14,920 Thank you that you've made us to sing. 967 00:58:14,920 --> 00:58:17,920 And when we do sing your truth, it is so wonderful. 968 00:58:18,360 --> 00:58:21,600 It's something that we enjoy. It's something we want to 969 00:58:21,600 --> 00:58:24,440 continually do. And we pray, Lord, that you 970 00:58:24,440 --> 00:58:27,240 would focus us on heaven, focus us on the mission we have now, 971 00:58:27,480 --> 00:58:30,920 focus us on your Word, God. We pray that it would richly 972 00:58:30,920 --> 00:58:33,720 dwell in US and that you would give us wisdom. 973 00:58:33,720 --> 00:58:37,560 We ask to do the very best we can to fill our entire lives 974 00:58:37,560 --> 00:58:39,320 with it. That it would guide us and shape 975 00:58:39,320 --> 00:58:41,040 us. It would mark us and make us a 976 00:58:41,040 --> 00:58:43,360 people set apart. Thank you that you are in 977 00:58:43,360 --> 00:58:46,240 control of all things and that no matter how we feel about a 978 00:58:46,240 --> 00:58:49,320 situation, you are working through it and you will lead us 979 00:58:49,320 --> 00:58:51,760 faithfully to the end. Thank you for the hope of 980 00:58:51,760 --> 00:58:54,600 heaven, and we thank you for this church that you've put here 981 00:58:54,960 --> 00:58:57,440 that we can serve you in it. We pray these things in your 982 00:58:57,440 --> 00:58:57,920 name, Amen.