Discipleship | A People for His Name

Fallen Spirits and Their Influences on Human Music – Part I

April 26, 2012

This is the first part of a series of articles that treat a much overlooked aspect about the believer and his music: Fallen Spirits and Their Influences on Human Music. I hope that it will shed needed light on important truths that should help us as believers address some of the issues that we are facing in the music debate of our day.

Introduction

Scripture reveals the existence of a vast number of fallen spirit beings (cf. Rev. 12:4). Based on various teachings of Scripture, the following points should be considered about fallen spirits and their influences on human music:

I. Fallen Spirits Are Able to Sing and Play Musical Instruments

The Scripture speaks of all heavenly beings singing at creation, when there would have been no unfallen heavenly spirit beings: “When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?” (Job 38:7). All beings who are now fallen spirits thus had musical abilities at the creation.

Moreover, Revelation speaks of angels in the future who are given trumpets and sound them: “And the seven angels which had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound. The first angel sounded . . .” (8:6-7; cf. 8:8, 10, 12; 9:1, 13; 10:17; 11:15). These verses show unfallen angels sounding a musical instrument.

Furthermore, saints in heaven are seen both singing (Rev. 15:4) and playing instrumental music (15:3), yet they have not received their glorified bodies.

Given both that all unfallen spirit beings sang at creation (Job 38:7) and also that such beings continue to sing (cf. Rev. 5:9) and play instruments (cf. 5:8, “having every one of them harps”) in worshiping God and given that the spirits of saints in heaven likewise engage in musical worship of God that includes both singing (14:1-3; 15:4) and playing musical instruments (14:2; 15:3), we must conclude that Satan and his demons are also musical beings that continue to have the ability to sing and play musical instruments.

In CCM, Music

Learning From a Unique Distinction of David and Paul

April 24, 2012

David and Paul are certainly two of the most important Bible characters. It is interesting that these two men have the unique distinction in Scripture of being the only men who are spoken of in a particularly remarkable way.

David

Three people tell David that they regard him in one manner or another as an angel of God:

“And Achish answered and said to David, I know that thou art good in my sight, as an angel of God: notwithstanding the princes of the Philistines have said, He shall not go up with us to the battle” (1 Sam 29:9).

“Then thine handmaid said, The word of my lord the king shall now be comfortable: for as an angel of God, so is my lord the king to discern good and bad: therefore the LORD thy God will be with thee” (2 Sam. 14:17).

“To fetch about this form of speech hath thy servant Joab done this thing: and my lord is wise, according to the wisdom of an angel of God, to know all things that are in the earth” (14:20).

“And he hath slandered thy servant unto my lord the king; but my lord the king is as an angel of God: do therefore what is good in thine eyes” (2 Sam. 19:27).

In addition to the direct references about David himself, one reference speaks of David’s house being as God, as the angel of the LORD:

“In that day shall the LORD defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David; and the house of David shall be as God, as the angel of the LORD before them” (Zech. 12:8)

Paul

Paul is the only person in the NT who is likened to an angel of God, and remarkably, he goes on to add that he was received even as Christ Jesus:

“And my temptation which was in my flesh ye despised not, nor rejected; but received me as an angel of God, even as Christ Jesus” (Gal. 4:14)

Conclusion

David is the preeminent type of Christ in Scripture (cf. the use of Ps. 16 in Acts 2:25-33), and Paul is distinguished both as the exemplary follower of Christ (1 Cor. 11:1) and the only one who speaks of others receiving him as Christ Jesus (Gal. 4:14). The unique distinction that these two men share of being likened to an angel of God thus seems to be directly connected to how they were Christlike in one manner or another. For us, therefore, to be Christlike as fully as God would have us to be, we should give special attention to what we can learn from these men about being like Christ.

In Discipleship, Interpretation

Glorious Illumination from God!

April 21, 2012

Yesterday evening, I had a somewhat extensive conversation with a friend about a very serious matter. As we ended our conversation, I exhorted him not to quit and emphatically assured him that the Bible has the answers to the issues that we talked about.

Later, I found myself burdened to read Scripture. Not knowing where to read, I decided to continue reading in Ezekiel, where I had read in the morning.

Thirteen verses into my reading, God gave me insight into a statement that I had noticed many times before. This time, however, the statement opened up to me in a striking way that directly addressed the exact matter that I had discussed with my friend earlier in the evening!

What’s more, this insight came from reading that I did after praying earnestly and specifically that God would fulfill His words in James 1 about granting wisdom liberally to all who ask. Although I have had many previous instances of glorious illumination from God, last night’s experience was of such a nature that I am sobered and awed at God’s ability to grant specific illumination from passages that I had read more than two dozen times previously.

Praise God for the glorious illumination that He graciously gives to us, as He sees fit!

In Prayer, Testimony

Does "All" Mean "All" in Acts 26:29?

April 19, 2012

In Caesarea, at his final defense before he was taken to be tried before Caesar in Rome, Paul testified before King Agrippa, Bernice, the chief captains, the principal men of the city, and the governor, Festus (Acts 25:23-26:32).He concluded his testimony before them by saying, “I would to God, that not only thou, but also all that hear me this day, were both almost, and altogether such as I am, except these bonds” (26:29). Does all mean all in this statement?

Several commentators believe that Paul desired that his entire audience would become Christians. Bock remarks:

In verse 29 Paul’s reply is that whether it takes a short or a long time . . . , he would pray that all who are listening to him might become a Christian as he is, with one exception, namely, that they not share his chains of imprisonment. The reference to prayer indicates that Paul desires to intercede on behalf of all the audience to become Christians. . . . The reply clearly expresses his heart.

—Darrell L. Bock, Acts in ECNT, 723

Polhill comments:

His real prayer was that not just Agrippa but everyone in the audience room would become a Christian believer. At this point Paul may have made several gestures, turning and directly addressing all in the room.

—John B. Polhill, Acts in NAC, 509

Peterson says:

Paul expresses his desire to Agrippa in very personal terms . . . In so doing, he consciously widens his appeal to everyone present. Previously, he acknowledged that many in his audience might be skeptical about talk of resurrection of the dead (v. 8). However, just as in Athens he preached about ‘Jesus and the resurrection’ to Jews and Gentiles alike (17:18), so now he addresses all together.

—David G. Peterson, Acts in PNTC, 676.

In agreement with the views of these scholars, taking Paul’s use of all to mean the totality of his hearers on this occasion seems clearly to be the only natural reading of the text.

Given the composition of his audience on this occasion, Paul’s statement is thus striking because we do not read of any previous evangelistic encounters that he had had with authority figures and other prominent people that would have given him hope that all his present audience might become Christians (see Acts 17:32-34 for an example of an encounter with authorities that did not result in the salvation of his entire audience). Even so, Paul still desired that they would.

We should learn from Paul’s example here that in spite of our previous negative experiences and regardless of the seemingly unlikely-to-become-Christians composition of an audience whom we are evangelizing, we should desire that they all would become Christians.

In Evangelism, Interpretation, Quotes

Following Paul’s Evangelistic Emphasis in Challenging People about Doing “Works Meet for Repentance”

April 17, 2012

Paul repeatedly teaches that salvation is not earned through works that people do (Rom. 4:4-8; Eph. 2:8-10; Titus 3:5-6). A focus on this teaching, however, has led many to overlook an equally important Pauline evangelistic teaching concerning works: Paul emphasized that in his evangelism of all people everywhere, he challenged them that sinners must “do works meet for repentance” (Acts 26:20).

Peterson explains this emphasis well:

Paul recalls the geographical scope of his mission, ‘first to those in Damascus’ (cf. 9:20-25), ‘then to those in Jerusalem’ (cf. 9:26-30) ‘and in all Judea, and then to the Gentiles’. He indicates that he conveyed the same message to all, declaring (apēngellon, ‘reporting’, ‘announcing’, ‘proclaiming’) ‘that they should repent and turn to God and demonstrate their repentance by their deeds’ (cf. 20:21). Challenged to preach repentance for the forgiveness of sins and a share in the messianic salvation …, Paul was as serious as John the Baptist in calling for deeds to demonstrate the genuineness of repentance (cf. Lk. 3:8; Acts 20:21). He understood conversion ‘not only in terms of forgiveness and faith, but also in terms of a full ethical transformation’

—David. G. Peterson, The Acts of the Apostles in PNTC, 670

Based on Paul’s testimony to this crucial emphasis that he had in his evangelism, we should be diligent to challenge the people to whom we witness “that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance” (Acts 26:20).

In Evangelism, Quotes

How I Became A Christian

April 10, 2012

Having been born in India, I grew up in Macomb, IL, where my father was a Mathematics professor at Western Illinois University. Though my parents were devout Jains, they did not indoctrinate my sisters and me.

As a child, I had some exposure to Christianity but knew very little about specific Christian beliefs. I vaguely recall when I was in elementary school that some group gave me a small NT at my public school, but I was not able to really read it with any understanding (I do not recall that I really tried that many times to read it anyway).

Sometime during my childhood years, I was moved in a way that I could not comprehend then by the Crucifixion and Resurrection scenes in the movie Ben Hur. I was also exposed to and affected by Christian scenes in other movies like the Robe.

As a college student, I had exposure to some Christian beliefs through friends, books, and occasionally going to church and other religious gatherings. I recall being moved in an inexplicable way on a number of occasions when I attended a Catholic Newman Center on the campus of Western Illinois University. Although I did not much care for or really understand what else was being said or done in those services, I did find–even though I was a lost person at the time–the singing of the Lord’s Prayer near the end of each service to be a richly fulfilling and moving experience.

Moving to Cookeville, TN, I intensely pursued New Age teaching and practices for some time. I would often meditate and engage in self-hypnosis while listening to Baroque music. Some of the music tapes that I used regularly in those activities had Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring, and the Hallelujah Chorus on them. Although I heard these great Christian music pieces over and over again, I had no real comprehension of what I was hearing during those times.

On one occasion, I wandered into a Christian bookstore in a mall in Springfield, IL. While browsing through a number of books, I came across some books that warned that the New Age movement was satanic. Something in those books spoke to me, and I became concerned about what I was doing.

As time passed, I became more interested in Christianity. A visit to the Public Library in Cookeville, TN, brought some Christian books to my attention. Out of the dozens, perhaps hundreds of books at the Library on religion, God directed me to read several that presented His truth to me.

One book that I remember reading was called The Incredible Plan of God. This book provided me with a rich overview of the entire Bible story, though I was still not saved at the time.

Through my reading, I was exposed somehow to the Model Prayer from Matthew 6, and I remember praying that prayer many times before I was saved. God also led me to read some apologetics books that presented me with evidences for the historicity of the Resurrection.

Through that reading about the Resurrection as well as through my reading a tract that someone put on my car windshield, God finally opened my eyes and brought me to himself in January of 1990. I believed in God’s raising Jesus from the dead and asked Him to save me.

Looking back on all the various influences that God used over the years to bring me to Himself, I praise Him for His great mercy in sparing me in so many ways from spiritual ruin. To God be the glory—great things He hath done!

In Testimony

Let Us Glorify Our Heavenly Father for His Raising Jesus, His Chosen Davidic King, from the Dead!

April 7, 2012

Consider the following truths from Scripture:

1. Jesus, the Davidic king

Luk 1:30And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. ³¹ And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. ³² He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: ³³ And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.

Mat 2:1 ¶ Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, ² ¶ Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.

Joh 19:19And Pilate wrote a title, and put it on the cross. And the writing was, JESUS OF NAZARETH THE KING OF THE JEWS.

2. Christ, the King

Psa 2:2 The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed . . .

2:6 Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion.

3. Jesus Christ, the God-Resurrected Davidic King

Act 2:29 ¶ Men and brethren, let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his sepulchre is with us unto this day. ³⁰ Therefore being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him, that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh, he would raise up Christ to sit on his throne; ³¹ He seeing this before spake of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was not left in hell, neither his flesh did see corruption.³² This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses. ³³ Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear.

4. Christ Raised by the Glory of the Father

Rom 6:4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.

Based on these four scriptural truths, let us on this Easter especially glorify our Heavenly Father for His raising Jesus, His chosen Davidic King, from the dead!

In Exhortation

Use of "Slant Rhyme" in Hymns

April 3, 2012

I learned a new poetical concept today: slant rhyme. This term refers to the use of words that do not rhyme exactly, but have enough in common to work in hymn texts.

Here are some of the more interesting words used as slant rhymes that I have found in my recent study of a number of hymnals:

God – flood, blood, stood, abroad, abode

Lord – Word

love – prove, rove, remove

Savior – favor

faith – death

grace – praise; praise – always

Christ – price

perfume – tomb

sacrifice – replies; sacrifice – life

come – womb

obey – away

do – go

come – home

Him – sin; sin – clean

more – storm

oppressed – rest

dire – cry

eyes – price

lost – most

eve – live

name – diadem

proclaim – Lamb

cross – distress

men – train

grave – have

confessed – blest

noon – dome

men – again

alone – home

too – refuse

state – grace

sound – town

name – stream

form – torn

Learning of and understanding this practice is going to make my project of setting many of the Psalms to music much easier!

In Music

Some Interesting Stats for Bible Readers

March 31, 2012

Today, I analyzed all the books of the Bible for the number of chapters, verse, and words in each book. These data and some derivative information bring out some interesting statistics for Bible readers.

I. Using the numbers of chapters, verses, and words in each book, I calculated three other statistics: average number of verses/chapter; average number of words/chapter; and average number of words/verse.

-Psalms has the most chapters (150), verses (2,461), and words (43,738)

-Five books have only one chapter (Obadiah; Philemon; 1 John; 2 John; and Jude); 2 John has the fewest verses (13), and 3 John has the fewest words (294)

The following chart shows the derivative statistics for the book having the highest number in each category and the book having the lowest:

Book	Verses/Chap	Book	Words/Chap	Book	Words/Verse
Luke	47.96	I Kings	1114.23	Esth	33.73
Jonah	12.00	Psalms	291.59	Prov	16.43

The differences between the highest and lowest values in each category are remarkable.

II. A comparison between Psalms and each of the books with the highest values in the derivative categories likely explains why Psalms is one of the easiest books to read:

-Luke (47.96 verses/chapter) vs. Psalms (16.41 verses/chapter; 13^th lowest)

-1 Kings (1114.23 words/chapter) vs. Psalms (291.59 words/chapter; lowest)

-Esther (33.73 words/verse) vs. Psalms (17.77 words/verse; fourth lowest)

III. A different comparison should help put reading through the Psalms into better perspective:

Book	Words	Verses	Chapters
Psalms	43738	2461	150

Luke	25939	1151	24
Acts	24245	1007	28
	50184	2158	52

Luke	25939	1151	24
John	19094	879	21
	45033	2030	45

John	19094	879	21
Acts	24245	1007	28
	43339	1886	49

This data shows that reading through either Luke-Acts or Luke-John entails reading more words than Psalms (6446 more words for Luke-Acts; 1295 more words for Luke-John). Reading John-Acts, you read 399 fewer words than reading Psalms.

Many people may have read Luke-Acts, Luke-John, or John-Acts through in a week. If so, you should be able to read the Psalms through in a week with a similar amount of effort!

For more information, see my PDFs: Statistical Analysis of the Books of the KJV Bible and my Six-fold Analysis of the Books of the KJV Bible. The first one gives the information for all the books in Bible order; the second lists the books in order from lowest to highest in each category.

In Bible reading

Some Music Principles from the Psalms

March 30, 2012

Using the Detailed Statistics facility in BibleWorks 7 to analyze the Psalms, I compiled some interesting statistics. These statistics seem to provide some helpful guidelines for our music perspectives.

In the KJV, the 150 chapters of Psalms have a total of 2461 verses and 43,738 words. The average verse length for the book is 17.77 words.

The Psalms range in length from 2 verses (Ps. 117) to 176 verses (Ps. 119). These two Psalms also have the fewest and the most total words, respectively: 33 words (Ps. 117) and 2445 words (Ps. 119).

On average, Psalm 120 has the shortest verses (13.14 words per verse) and Psalm 53 has the longest verses (27.71 words per verse). Interestingly, Psalm 119, the longest Psalm by far, has quite a low average verse length of 13.89 words (fourth shortest).

These statistics suggest the following principles for our music:

1. Having some songs that are very short (e.g., only one stanza) is in keeping with what we find in God’s perfect songbook.

2. Stanza lengths of 13 to 28 words would match the range for the average lengths of verses for the 150 chapters of Psalms.

3. Having some songs that are much longer than others also would reflect God’s practice.

In Music

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