The Message Bible: Helpful or Heretical?

I’ve been told that The Message translation is pure heresy and the polar opposite to the NKJV is bible. (which is apparent the one that Jesus read) Maybe that is what makes it so intriguing to me. I visited Half Price Books yesterday. I made my way into the Religion section and began to search for The Message bible as inconspicuously as possible. I dared not let any of my friends discover me holding one. It would something akin to having the police find me in a bank vault wearing a black ski mask holding bags of money marked with dollar signs. When I picked it up I almost expected it to start to glow red and burn my hand. But to my surprise, it didn’t. After I paid for it I tucked the supposed book of damnation underneath my arm and gingerly made my way out to my car only after scoping out the parking lot for any possible fundamentalist christians. When the coast was clear I darted to my volkswagen. As I was driving home I glanced down at the book lying in my seat. When I came to a red light I picked it up. It was one of those books that just feels good to hold. That matters a lot to me. I’ve picked up books that looked interesting and put them back because they felt uncomfortable. Similarly I’ve purchased books that I didn’t have much interest in until I picked them up. (I can’t resist really flexible books with matte finishes) I have yet to see whether or not the message will defile my soul. Updates to come….

Should non-Christians be on worship teams?

At first I was unmistakably clear about my stance on this discussion. I still reside in the same set of beliefs however, I cannot help but wish I was wrong. Let me explain why.

The word of God is quite clear about who is and IS NOT supposed to be in leadership. A few examples would be in Paul’s letter to Timothy where is giving his young, but able disciple a few guidelines for choosing leaders for the church. We’re going to break it up and evalutate closely, just to make sure we aren’t missing anything.

1 Timothy 3:2 “An overseer, then, must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, prudent, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not addicted to wine or pugnacious[argumentative] but gentle, peaceable, free from the love of money. He must be one who manages his own household well, keeping his children under control with all dignity (but if a man does not know how to manage his own household, how will he take care of the church of God?), and not a new convert so that he will not become conceited and fall into the condemnation incurred by the devil.”

Wow. These are some pretty high standards. Even for christians. But maybe I’m being harsh so lets analyze this carefully to see if most christians qualify. Let’s see, husband of one wife…good… temperate …good…respectable…ok…hospitable…for the most part…able to teach…ouch…gentle…ok…free from the love of money…check…keeping kids under control…ouch again…and what is this? “and not a new convert so that he will not become conceited and fall…”. Hmmm. It seems to me that the people Paul recommends for leadership are those who are seasoned in the Lord and have walked with him for a while. If being in leadership can be as detrimental to new convert as Paul says, then how destructive can it be to allow someone, who is an unbeliever, under the wrath of God, subject to their carnality, and slaves to their flesh’s desires, who’s every whim is marred by depravity, to be on your worship team? I’ll take a wild guess here and say quite. So it seems that you aren’t doing any favors to an unbeliever by allowing them to carry leadership responsibilities, you are actually hurting them. Aside from that, you trust a non-believer to fullfill ANY of these requirements. Because if they do not acknowledge God’s holy standard then how can you expect them to do any of these? You honestly cannot, because even though a unbeliever may have a set of moral standards, they are still depraved and slaves to their flesh and you can’t trust them to do anything the Lord as asks because they have not yet submitted their lives to Him and his standards. Good morals ARE NOT enough.

I feel it’s important to firmly establish where or not your tambourine player needs to redeemed by the blood of the Lamb. I think to best investigate this, lets look at God’s orignal, “Worship Leaders”, the Levites. It is a common relation to make between the Levites of the old testament and worship leaders of today. In Numbers as God is giving Moses the steps that the Levites needed to take to fullfill their duties. This is how the bible describes it.

Numbers 8:20-22 “Thus did Moses and Aaron and all the congregation of the sons of Israel to the Levites; according to all that the Lord had commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so the sons of Israel did to them. The Levites too, purified themselves from sin and washed their clothes; and Aaron presented a wave offering before the Lord.”

We see here part of ritual performed by the Levites required them to be cleansed. In Malachai 3:3 it says that the Lord will “…purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, so that they may present to the Lord offerings in righteousness.” How can an unbeliever offer anything righteous to God if even at his best his righteousness is as filthy rags? It seems apparent that non-christians don’t fit the bill for leadership. This, however, is only the beginning of the problems with allow unbelievers on your worship team.

I believe it is common understanding that we call band a worship team because we operate with a common goal and purpose by the vehicle of unity in the spirit. Paul had strong opinions about this one,

2 Corinthians 6:14 “Do not be bound(lit. unequally yoked) together with unbelievers; for what partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness? Or what harmony has Chirst with Belial, or what has a believer in common with an unbeliever? Or what agreement has the temple of god with idols?”

When speaking of being unequally yoked, Paul is using imagery of the common day where a heavy load would be pulled on a cart of sorts by a team of oxen. They were yoked together. The only way this works is if, the oxen are of somewhat equal strength and if they both go the same direction. So quite plainly, if we allow unbelievers onto our worship team, we are being yoked or bound to an unbeliever. And NO unbeliever has the ability to carry the mantle of a leader. They simply DO NOT QUALIFY. The qualifier? The blood of Jesus.

However, I am not completely unsympathetic to the opposing view. I have a friend right now, that is unsaved and if I allow him to play with me, he’ll attend One Voice. I wish so badly that I could bring him in with a justified and clean conscience, but when I read what the word clearly states, I know it cannot be so, however I am not worried, him playing with me on a Thursday night at OV is not the only way to reach him for Jesus. And until I can find some biblical justification, I remain with my current view. From what the bible tells us, it is for not only our benefit, but also for the benefit of the unsaved person.

A Conversation With Morgan Freeman

I had a moment of self discovery today. I can’t say I’m pleased with what I found. Because what I found is ugly. Wicked. Petty. And I have a suspicion that I’m not the only one with this troll living in the caverns of my heart.
Let me give you some background. I work at a music store where we rent instruments to children for school programs. Trumpets, clarinet, flutes, violins, marimbas, the whole assortment. Our company puts a huge emphasis on answering the phone with unbridled excitement and basically having a smile so big that it reaches through the phone and smacks them in the face.
It was nearing the end of a long and really busy day. I’ll admit, that morning, before I had burned out, I was answering the phone like a clown who just chugged 10 shots of espresso. Tons and energy. Tons of happy. Tons of customer service. By the end of the day I began to care less and less about each phone call. Instead of trying to help each person find what they needed and take care of them well I found myself just trying to end each conversation as fast as possible.
But then the phone rang. Again. I looked at the clock. 5:31. I was supposed to be off at 5:30. I just stared at it for a few moments and with a sigh, picked up. As soon as I began talking to this man I realized something.

This guy sounded exactly like Morgan Freeman.

I was actually pretty sure it was Mr. Freeman himself to be honest. Suddenly, I didn’t care that is was time for me to be leaving. I was asking questions, being helpful, offering to bend over backwards just to help this guy. At the end of the conversation we had decided that I was going to put an instrument on hold for him. Then came the moment of truth, I asked him for his name and number to put on the instrument on hold. When he gave me his name the smile on my face faded to a dissatisfied frown. He wasn’t Morgan Freeman. I finished taking down his information and walked into the backroom to put his trumpet on the hold shelf. As soon as I put the instrument down it hit me. I became keenly aware of what was going on in my heart. Then the question arose.

Why did I treat the supposed Morgan Freeman better than others?

I eased myself down onto a wooden stool because I felt the answer coming and I knew it would not be pleasant. I, for whatever reason, felt that Morgan Freeman deserved better treatment than others. I acted as though he somehow had more worth than all the others I had spoken with that day. I treated him like a king because I perceived him to be so meritorious that treating him with any less respect would be disrespectful to a man of his stature. That, is the mindset that motivated my actions. Whether or not I want to admit it, that is the truth.
I began realize how shallow and worldly that kind of thinking is. I was basing this man’s worth on the perception that he was a famous, rich, intelligent, and interesting individual. Someone, that I felt was worth my time. I was using the world’s standard for judging people to determine his caliber.

What a fool I have been.

How could I think I know so much about Jesus and totally miss this? When you read this gospels what is Jesus doing? Healing people, teaching them, counseling them,…LOVING them. Jesus DID NOT love anyone upon the basis of their merit. As Martin Smith put it, “King or cripple, they were the same to you…” He loved them because Jesus was God in the flesh, therefore He was LOVE in the flesh. It was his nature to love. It did not matter whether someone was a king, cripple, fishermen, tax collector, soldier, peasant, leper, prostitute, rich ruler, or fool, Jesus loved them all. There is no partiality with God. (Romans 2:11) So how can I, a professing Christian treat anyone with less respect? If Jesus is my example I have much to learn. Fortunately I’ve discovered the standard for which to determine someone’s worth. I must value people as God himself values them. I must imitate Christ.

“Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humiltiy of mind regard one another as more important that yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. Have the attitude in youselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in the appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” Phillipians 2:3-8

Of all things that Jesus did, one thing I have so much trouble wrapping my mind around this. Jesus washed the disciples’ feet. God in the flesh, got on his hands and knees and washed the dirt and camel feces off of the feet of a fisherman. When I think of Peter, I think of Gomer Pile from the Andy Griffith show, or Patrick the starfish from spongebob squarepants. I mean, of all the disciples, not only was he of low stature but definitely not the brains of the bunch. Yet, God, knelt down in the dust that he created and with the hands that formed the universe, washed Peter’s feet. Not only that but Jesus washed Judas’ feet too. Though Jesus knew what was in the depths of his heart and how he would betray him, he still humbled himself.
What excuse could I possibly produce to explain to God why I shouldn’t do the same? How can I treat anyone as if they are worth any less another. Think of someone that really gets under your skin, someone that you have much difficulty loving. Jesus allowed himself to be beaten, mocked, crucified, mocked more, and crushed by the wrath of God for that person just as much as he did for you and me. If Jesus considers them to be worth his life, how can we look down upon anyone? We have no justification for such things.

So please allow me to challenge you as well, to consider the worth of a person. If you need a point of reference, consider the cross, where God made sentiment for man.

In Regards to Selfishness...

I think there are times in our lives where an event, a conversation, a observation, or something of that sort that brings a revelation plowing into our minds. In that moment we may not fully understand what we are feeling, but some time after, we find ourselves reflecting on it, pulling it all together, trying to make sense of it.
Something like this happened to me when I was around 11 or so. I’m normally not the type to have vivid recollection of memories but this one I have kept for years. Though it feels more like the memory refuses to die, not kept alive by my choosing, but having a will of it’s own, not allowing itself to be forgotten.

My dad was playing 3rd base for our church’s softball team. This position was the least favored among all of the players, with the exception of my dad. The reason being that almost everytime there was a line drive the ball would streak down the 3rd baseline directly at the players shins, or waist at best. I can’t even remember how many times I saw one of those hits whistle towards my dad as he planted himself directly in front of it, with a smirk sneaking across his face, figuring that if he didn’t catch it at least his chin, chest, or legs would stop the ball from getting out of the infield. My dad was my hero.

It was nearing the last innings of the game and my dad had caught one of those legendary line drives to secure the 3rd out. The whole team cheered and jogged toward the dugout, each person making certain they patted my dad in congratulations.

I had suddenly realized that had a craving for a candy bar and was waited by the chain link fence for my dad as he strode off the field. I asked him if he had any money so that I could get a candy bar and a drink. My dad fished around in his pockets and produced a single dollar bill. He apologized for the shortage on snack money and said that was all he had.
Thinking nothing of it I darted over to the concession stand eager to satisfy my craving for chocolate. I plopped down on the bleachers and began eating my chosen candy bar, pausing only to sip my soda. I remember that I was half way through when I glanced over and saw my dad sitting on the bench with his teammates sweating and worn out from playing so whole-heartedly.

That’s when it hit me.

My dad only had one dollar and because I got myself a candy bar and a soda he would have no money to get anything for himself. I had thought only of myself and what I wanted. I didn’t even consider whether or not my dad might want something.

This may seem like a small thing but I was crushed by the depth of my selfishness. I grabbed the remaining part of my half-eaten candy bar and sprinted over to the dugout. I pressed my tear-streaked face against the fence and asked him to come out.

When he walked over to me I began to cry unashamedly and told him that I was sorry that I didn’t save any money for him to get anything and offered the rest of my candy bar to him. With a smile he told me that he didn’t want anything anyway and eating candy while running around playing softball would make him feel sick. He grabbed my shoulders and pulled my close to him in a hug. Sobbing, I shuddered in his arms. He hugged me until I managed resolve my crying into quick gasps and sniffling.

Right about then the current batter hit a fly ball which was easily captured by an infielder. My dad asked me if I was ok and I said I was. Satisfied he turned and stepped back onto the field. I immediately began walking toward my dad’s truck stopping only to throw the rest of my candy bar into the trash. I climbed into the cab and curled up in the floorboard. I don’t know how long a sat there. I didn’t cry anymore. I just sat there, staring at dad’s pager that was lying in the seat. He always kept with him since he was a volunteer firefighter.
I felt like my sorrow had gone beyond shame and began to look more like self-loathing. My dad was and always has been so selfless. I just didn’t understand why I wasn’t more like him. I kept thinking, “How could I be so selfish?”

I’m pretty positive that by the next morning I already forgotten about the whole ordeal. I was way to busy trying save the world as Sonic the Hedgehog.

I still have those moments though. My hope is that as God sanctifies me through his Holy Spirit it will happen less and less. I feel trying to live out Phillippians 2:3 is my life goal and a quite a venture it is!

May we all continue to grow in humility and love, putting others before ourselves, just has Jesus gave himself up for us.

“Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not {merely} look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, {and} being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” Phil 2:3-8