Evidence for God from Science

its been a while since i posted, but to those familiar i am recently born again and really adjusting to a new life in Christ. in this transition, since I am a musician my music has changed its lyrical content to be centered around Christ. the style hasnt really changed. it falls under the underground rap category so i doubt youll be hearing it at church youth rallys but its still glorifying Christ in a different sound which could be beneficial to opening up the door to kids in the secular realm of music i sound the same as to Christ/God.

anyways, im piddling around on the web today and started looking up false preachers which when i delved into that, apparently anyone and everyone on TBN are heretical antichrists, etc and so forth and have it all wrong. i always knew there was something fishy about Mike Murdock but not Hagee! say it aint so....who can i trust?

anyways in my google search i noticed some headline about christian rock/rap being devils music

http://www.jesus-is-savior.com/Evils%20 ... -devil.htm

thats one of the ones i read....anyways.....under this impression am I to stop doing music all together if its not happy sing and praise time in a church with an organ? i didnt feel bad doing music until now....yikes!

this ultimately gets into my dilemma of wanting to know what to believe and what not to believe. I try to remain as objective as possible but all truth is not revealed to me at once with a complete understanding. short of reading the bible the whole way through in one shot and trying to fully understanding it which is impossible, its hard to imagine reading it at any interval and piecing everything together properlly.

i know im reading too much into being wrong about stuff but it freaks me out so much and gets me kinda frustrated with this whole new life in Christ/walk with God.

What do i do?!

P.S. as an edit, the above mentioned site is filled with all kinds of Alex Jones loving rhetoric and subscribes to 911 conspiracies, etc. While it would be hard for me to accept anything they spout, using Biblical scripture to prove their points about my concerns with music/etc. is my cunundrum.

Draw close to God. Learn to hear his voice and then listen to it and disregard the legalists who would like you to believe they speak for God.

Hey, they used to think the waltz was scandalous because it brough the male and female bodies in contact with each other. Far more important is the heart of the ones involved. Certainly if a person is tempted to sin by the waltz or rock music they should learn to stay away from those activities.

I find that site uses poor argument and generalizes too much. I just don't think it makes a clear case for rock music alone.

Interestingly, there are certainly some classical pieces of music that can be extremely powerful, seductive, depressing, or full of evocative rhythms and moods.

i have been giving it thought. my friend said i was thinking way too much into it and i can see where shes right but i just want to make sure im at least trying to understand things clearly because apparently thats where alot of confusion and dissension in the church comes from is lack of understanding.

its weird the music they talk about is from the early 90's and im more into the bands of today like Sleeping Giant, The Great Commission, etc. it is detrimental to my hearing and the dancing alone is enough to completely destroy your knees and spine but i love that kind of music with a passion which started from secular tastes. nowadays i get into more christian hardcore for the spiritual value because its incorporating a passion for god.

my biggest concern is hearing the lord and what he says and hearing a spirit that is not the lord. im so new to this and sometimes it does feel like god isnt answering even if he is listening. i admit i need to read the bible more though, really gotta get on the ball with that.

thank you all so much for your input and id love to hear from other members their thoughts! i think this subject also taps into deeper discussions which id love to engage in given the time. i dont have the internet so i use alot of time at the library to book shows and promote my music.

ratgibson wrote:its weird the music they talk about is from the early 90's and im more into the bands of today like Sleeping Giant, The Great Commission, etc. it is detrimental to my hearing and the dancing alone is enough to completely destroy your knees and spine but i love that kind of music with a passion which started from secular tastes. nowadays i get into more christian hardcore for the spiritual value because its incorporating a passion for god.

Sorry, just the description of what it does to you physically is funny. Lol.

my biggest concern is hearing the lord and what he says and hearing a spirit that is not the lord. im so new to this and sometimes it does feel like god isnt answering even if he is listening. i admit i need to read the bible more though, really gotta get on the ball with that.

Yes, I think reading the bible will help. I think that's all I want to say about that for right now. It's too bad you don't have the internet.

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Here's where I'm at and from where I submit my thoughts on this.

I am an 80's child. I grew up on Van Halen, Ozzy, Iron Maiden, Dio, Motley Crue, Judas, AC/DC, Plasmatics, Dead Kennedy's, CJ's, etc...and lots of others in the Rock, Heavy Metal and Punk scene of the day. To this day, I still listen to this music and love it. So when the group, Stryper, came out in the early to mid 80's it was quite distasteful to me. It was (and remains) difficult to separate the music "of the devil" so to speak with the same music and different lyrics. I simply cannot mix the two. It's next to impossible. I can enjoy some of today's modern Christian Rock, but I have to REALLY dwell on the lyrics and even then it's difficult to make out the lyrics from just a plain listening just as it was back in my day when we'd sit next to the radio with a portable tape recorder waiting for our song to come on to record it. We'd then listen to the music over and over to get the lyrics correct and sometimes after mulitple times and confidence that we had the correct lyrics, we'd find out later that we were wrong.

So I agree to some extent that the music is "devilish", HOWEVER, I believe it is mostly my own problem and do not attribute this characteristic to today's Christian Rock that I find difficult to listen to. I suppose what gets me is if they are Christians playing rock music to God...why does it sound so much like the music seemingly promoting the opposite. Why do the bands look no different from the bands playing the non-christian rock? If I can't make out the words, how does one know the difference? Even the antics on stage almost bear no difference as the antics on the floor sometimes get pretty close to watching people "tripping"...

So once again, please understand I don't intentionally judge Christian Rock bands...it's my already tuned ear to secular music that makes me cringe and judge on my own that I don't like it. No judgement on their Christian walk...just my own bias. Hope I made sense...probably not.

Ready for some backlashing.
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Ratgibson,

I am constantly looking for new ways to spread to WORD OF GOD for today's generation. My suggestion to you is to pray alot about what God wants you to due. Maybe you are right in what you are doing right now. This is really a personal choice. In our society we are so diverse in the people that we have. I don't believe that there is just one way to witness to everyone. The one thing that you do have to be is correct about what you are saying. Tell the truth about Jesus Christ always. Trust your heart, pray and listen to the Holy Spirit always. Remember the number #1 rule is "Thus sayeth the Lord". As a Christian we can only trust in the Bible weather we agree with it or not. It is not up to us to make the Bible fit our needs or only believe the parts that we want. Accept God Word and Trust in Him.

Hope this helps

Bill

I guess I have never understood what should be deemed as "Christian music" or "Godly music." Obviously there is some offensive lyrics in music that I think are bad, ungodly. However, a lot of the secular music I hear doesn't necessarily literally praise God, but they do praise love and kindness. Then there is music that talks about life's struggles and such.. Is that really bad? Well all you have to do is open the book of psalms and see some of the struggles David went through...

I don't know. How can we exactly stamp certain types of music as being holy or unholy? At times I obviously think we can. But I also think there are numerous grey areas there as well... And it may not always come under a "Christian" label... Like you can listen to this, but you can't listen or sing to this. Seems legalistic to me too like Bart was saying...

Just a thought..

With that, does anyone here like the rippingtons? Ungodly?? Yes or no? They don't fly under a Christian label you know..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iCtGV3yCcXE

Gman wrote:I guess I have never understood what should be deemed as "Christian music" or "Godly music." Obviously there is some offensive lyrics in music that I think are bad, ungodly. However, a lot of the secular music I hear doesn't necessarily literally praise God, but they do praise love and kindness. Then there is music that talks about life's struggles and such.. Is that really bad? Well all you have to do is open the book of psalms and see some of the struggles David went through...

I don't know. How can we exactly stamp certain types of music as being holy or unholy? At times I obviously think we can. But I also think there are numerous grey areas there as well... And it may not always come under a "Christian" label... Like you can listen to this, but you can't listen or sing to this. Seems legalistic to me too like Bart was saying...

Just a thought..

Just for discussion's sake; Does God have grey areas with regard to right and wrong? And more specifically to this topic, the music you say might fall into a grey area, do you think God has His opinion of that music?
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BavarianWheels wrote:Just for discussion's sake; Does God have grey areas with regard to right and wrong? And more specifically to this topic, the music you say might fall into a grey area, do you think God has His opinion of that music?
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I'm sure He does and we should pray to Him and keep an open mind to what he has to offer... However, it's seems that many Christians think there is some magical Christian label saying what is right or wrong. It seems a bit legalistic to me. They listen to a song for 2 seconds and say this is not of God.. Maybe it simply isn't their musical taste... As an example, someone might say only God sanctions country music.. Well I'm not too up on CM, am I now going against God for this? This is what I'm questioning...

I don't think you understand.

God clearly prefers the music that I like and will no doubt, when I see him meet all my expectations in terms of gender, race as well as the key that the celestial choir sings Handel's Messiah in to welcome me home.

If people would just understand this and accept it then we could all just get along fine. Afterall, right's right.

Canuckster1127 wrote:I don't think you understand.

God clearly prefers the music that I like and will no doubt, when I see him meet all my expectations in terms of gender, race as well as the key that the celestial choir sings Handel's Messiah in to welcome me home.

If people would just understand this and accept it then we could all just get along fine. Afterall, right's right.

Exactly...

its been a while since i posted, but to those familiar i am recently born again and really adjusting to a new life in Christ. in this transition, since I am a musician my music has changed its lyrical content to be centered around Christ. the style hasnt really changed. it falls under the underground rap category so i doubt youll be hearing it at church youth rallys but its still glorifying Christ in a different sound which could be beneficial to opening up the door to kids in the secular realm of music i sound the same as to Christ/God.

ratgibson, I'm in the same boat as Bavarian when it comes to the music I grew up with. I still like some of the same old stuff. But I had to pull away completely with some of the stuff I used to listen to.

I't's not the type of music that you do, but where your heart is. If you're still praising God, yet doing it in your way, Amen. God cares more about your heart and where you are in relation to Him in your worship.
We all praise God in our own unique way.

First of all, I appreciate the inclination of your heart to seek God, learn His will and do what's right.

You mentioned that your new music, now glorifying Christ, could be beneficial to youth. I agree. You know the saying, "garbage in, garbage out"? It's true. If you're putting out a healthy alternative that's momentarily good for the mind and eternally good for the soul, don't stop!! Our lives are impacted by what's poured into the mind.

Read Psalm 33 in a couple different translations. Verse 3 in the KJV rocks: "Sing unto him a new song; play skilfully with a loud noise." While rap is not for me, this isn't about me; it's about one of God's missions for you. If it's to give non-believers a hunger and thirst for a rightness with Him, pursue it with all your heart -- just make sure you are daily "checking in with Him."

As you get to know your Heavenly "Daddy," you'll know what sounds just like Him, no matter the messenger. Listen for what matches overall principles in the Holy Word, and don't try to read the entire Bible in X amount of time. God gives you no "credit" for being able to say you read "the whole thing." Read with slow resolve and purpose, to get out all you possibly can. In other words, don't treat it like cleaning your room or any other chore; read the Bible like you're collecting every bit of treasure on an island that's been given to you. It isn't enough to own the island; find everything it offers!

Regarding messengers of God (who to trust???), check out Matthew 17. Verse 5 admonishes: "listen to Him" / "hear ye Him." Moses and Elijah, as much as they were God's servants, were not to be the focus; Jesus Christ was and is now. If you're listening to or watching the life of an "earthen vessel" (pretty cool and accurate Biblical term for a human being), look at the exterior but, more importantly, look for healthy contents. You'll learn to "hear Him" as you listen to the words and lives of others.

A speaker with a horrid reputation and selfish designs can actually be used to glorify God, and a sincere servant of the Risen Lord can misspeak or otherwise err. "Hear ye Him." When you listen for Him, be careful in how you reject the earthen vessel. Why?

Because you already know how it feels for you, a gifted musician, to be rejected for how you "wrap" (pun intended) messages God gives you. People make rejections for any number of reasons. Certain styles of music are simply not for me; I do not listen to all ministers; I dislike some things about Church A and a couple of things about Church B. I don't want God's message to be silenced though, so I need to either shut up and get over the voices of my own petty dislikes or "hear Him" from another source.

Socrates in his own day complained about young people's music. When King David, the great psalmist, wrote Psalm 33, he knew the difference between half singing, half mumbling a tired, old song and singing a fresh, new song with loud exuberance. So copy the birds. God doesn't give them songs for them to remain silent. Make all the new and best music you can, keeping Jesus as your ROCK!