Music and Our Affections

Music has a unique and powerful ability to stir the affections. Back in high school, music albums became the backdrop for my life, fueling my happiness or sadness, introspection or extraversion. My emotions were often out of line with reality largely because of how the music amplified them.

Music is pervasively used to create or build emotion. Watch almost any scene of a movie and you will find music accompanying the action. Different genres use different music, but we can usually identify the genre by the music used. For example, if I were to mention suspense thriller, a genre that depends upon the emotions of anxiety and fear, you might immediately imagine hearing high pitched strings in a dissonant chord or the foreboding rumble of a minor step like the famous melody from Jaws. Or if music is absent, the lack creates a stark, often bleak silence, that will probably later be contrasted with music.

Now that I’ve gotten a little older, I’ve learned that beyond just elevating emotions, music can have a redemptive, energizing affect when it glorifies God. I think of artists who have made music that fed my passion for God, artists like Rich Mullins. In college, I was listening to his song Creed and told my pastor that the lyrics to the song were amazing. For those who aren’t familiar with Mullins, he took the Apostle’s Creed and created a song around it. It is worth noting that it was through that song that I was first introduced to the ancient creed.

While I would affirm that the Apostle’s creed is powerful in its simple, concise presentation of the Gospel, it was the words and the music that combined to raise my affections for God.

Music holds power. That is why it is important that we think properly about the music and words that we listen to. I don’t mean that a person must just listening to self-proclaimed “Christian music.” I do think it is important to filter all incoming messages through a biblical grid. Here are three questions that I find helpful when I think about the music I listen to:

  • What is the song or album communicating about God and the world? All communication is coming from a particular worldview. What worldview is being expressed in the lyrics? Does its representation of God or humanity line up with the testimony of the Bible? Does it give me insight into a particular cultural worldview?
  • What sorts of emotions does the music elicit? This is a very subjective question, but an important one nonetheless. Music elicits emotion. I think that is a design by God. However, do these emotions coincide with a message that glorifies God? Or do they create an attitude that dishonors God?
  • Does the message of the music correspond to the emotions that the music evokes? Sometimes the lyrics of a song will present a sad truth, but be contrasted by a happy tune. I don’t think this is right or wrong in and of itself. But it is important to be aware of what the artist is doing. Does the message line up with the music?

I am concerned with the last question, because if sin or a wrong worldview is presented with music that evokes a happiness or joy, my emotions can be confused with reality. That is not a good thing. On the other side of the spectrum, if a glorious reality of God is communicated through music that does not inspire the same sense of glory, then the music has worked against the message.

Music moves us all. Let us be both mindful and intentional about how we allow it to affect us.

Thoughts for Friday Morning

This morning I offer to you a list of sundry thoughts.

  • I relish coffee. Too much. What beverage do you enjoy?
  • I am ready for autumn. Summer, you have overstayed your welcome. I understand that you usually stay through August, and even pop by to visit throughout September, but this year it has to stop. I’m kicking you out. You don’t pay rent, you run the A/C on high all the time, and you’re melting my ice cream. Get a job.
  • There has been a lot of buzz about the “Twitter button.” So for those of you that know of blogs or have a blog that uses a “tweet” button like Tweetmeme’s or Topsy’s, know that Twitter just came up with their own. It’s pretty sweet. Twitter walked onto the playground and told Tweetmeme to give him all his lunch money. Tweetmeme probably will.
  • If you could have any book, what would it be? This is more of a question and less of a general thought. But say I were to give away a book, what book would you secretly desire that it be? Leave a comment. I dare you. You won’t.

    • If you have any thoughts you’d like to share, feel free to leave them in the comments.

Interpreting the Bible: Five Rules

The following is the second of a two-part a guest post by Alan Hicks.

In my last post I presented a brief introductory history of hermeneutics from the Protestant Reformation. Now let’s look at some of those rules of interpretation. We instinctively use many of these same rules when we read other literature as well, whether it is a novel, a magazine, or a car manual. Becoming aware of them will help us to interpret the bible with greater clarity and accuracy.

And Now…The Rules

  • The Bible will never contradict itself. This is the first and most important rule of hermeneutics. If the same God is the author of all sixty-six books, and God never lies or changes, then there will be an internal consistency.
  • Genre matters. We must keep in mind the genre that we are reading if we are to interpret it correctly. Poetry must be understood as poetry, historical narrative as historical narrative, apocalyptic as apocalyptic, etc. When David says in Psalm 22:6, “I am a worm and not a man,” we are not to imagine a worm with a little crown on his head. He is obviously using a metaphor to explain that he is in a state of humiliation.
  • The human author matters. We must keep in mind the human author that God is using to write the particular book we are reading. We will see certain personality traits come out, certain concerns that that author has, certain themes they are highlighting, and so on.
  • Historical and cultural context matters. We must take details in their historical and cultural context. Why does Jesus wash the disciples’ feet? Why are lepers avoided? Why is the sign above the cross written in three languages? The answers to these questions may not always be fully answered in Scripture and we might need to do some investigations of our own.
  • The analogy of faith. The analogy of faith states that vague or unclear passages must interpreted by clear passages. This way you do not make a big deal out of a teaching that may result from you misunderstanding a hard verse.
  • Bonus Round. Lastly, keep in mind that, in the words of J. I. Packer, “the ultimate context of every verse is the whole Bible.” Keep what you are reading in the context of the chapter, the book, and the whole Bible.

Obviously what I have written here barely scratches the surface of hermeneutics. Many very large books have been written on the subject. If you wish to dive in to this subject (and I suggest you do if you want to get more out of your Bible study) there are two books I recommend. The first is called The Hermeneutical Spiral by Grant Osborne. It is fairly technical. The second, more reader-friendly book is called Grasping God’s Word by J. Scott Duval and J. Daniel Hays. Investing a little time in the study of hermeneutics will help you greatly profit in the study of God’s Word.

Alan is a M.Div. graduate of Reformed Theological Seminary in Charlotte, NC. He and his wife attend Grace Presbyterian (PCA) in Kernersville, NC. You can follow him on twitter. He’s an awesome dude and a good friend of mine.

Reading the Bible Devotionally

When Christians mention reading devotional material, sometimes it conjures up images of throw pillows and Chicken Soup for the Soul or that blue and pink “Extreme Teen Bible” that still sits on your bookshelf. Devotional sounds cheesy. That’s not the meaning I want to convey. When I say we must read the Bible devotionally, I mean we should give ourselves to it, fully.

Most people understand devotion, though maybe not in terms of reading the Bible. But if you think about enjoying your favorite meal, it’s likely that all the elements of devotion come into play.

For me, it’s Korean food. I’m half-Korean and grew up eating my mom’s native home-cooking. So just the thought of Korean noodles makes my mouth water. When I know that I will be dining at a local Korean restaurant, I anticipate the flavors that I will soon experience. Once I have begun the meal, I savor the smells that come from the beef, the vegetables, and the white rice. I even enjoy the smell of kimchi (if you have ever smelled kimchi, you’ll know why that’s odd).

And throughout the entire meal, my senses are engaged on the food. I’m processing the tastes and smells and textures. By the end, my hunger has been satisfied and I have enjoyed spending the hour or so enjoying good food.

This is devotion

This is not far from how the Bible talks about how we are to savor God’s Word. This is the kind of devotion that David describes in Psalm 119.

How sweet are your words to my taste,
sweeter than honey to my mouth! (Psalm 119:103, ESV)

Job exemplifies this devotion when he declares:

I have not departed from the commandment of his lips;
I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my portion of food.

These guys were not reading a textbook. They weren’t just studying the theological implications of a particular passage. They were savoring every word of grace that they received. They were worshipping the God whose words brought them life.

It is true to say the the Bible is literature. And it can be studied; we can look at genre and author and audience. It would also be true to say that the Bible is a book of truth and principles by which we can live. But first and foremost, we must remember that the Bible is God’s Word written. It is his Word communicated to us as both an expression and means of grace. It is both his message of life and the means by which he causes us to live. Let us devote ourselves to daily receiving the grace he offers through his Word.

The Grounding of the Gospel

Human ingenuity is an amazing thing. Just yesterday, I connected with at least ten people who are geographically dispersed and complete strangers to me. All with one search on a twitter directory website.

Technology has made the world a smaller place. You can find people who share your same interests in a matter of seconds. Then you can read what they have to say on their blog, get minute-by-minute updates from twitter, and even interact with them through facebook, e-mail, online chatting, and on and on the list goes.

But one of the insidious side effects of this social networking revolution is that it has such a potential to draw us into a reality that isn’t real. I think of the teens that I interact with on a weekly basis and how many of them have no context for life before facebook. The challenge becomes being intentional about differentiating between online friends and real-life friends. Because there is a difference.

Real-Life Community

As my wife wisely said to me yesterday, God created us with a need for community. But that doesn’t mean “online community.” I don’t mean that online community or facebook or twitter are bad things. I don’t believe that they are. But when these online venues become our only place of interaction with other humans, something is out of balance.

When we are not intentional about our purpose for blogging, tweeting, facbooking, or whatever it is, we put ourselves in a precarious position. At least in my experience, it can be so easy to let an interest in online community become its own world where my mind lives. RSS feed updates. Facebook friends. Clever twitters to impress people I don’t actually know. The online world becomes the focus of my attention, while the real world is ignored.

The Reality of the Gospel

One of the wonders of the Gospel is that the story of Jesus’s life, death, and resurrection grounds us in ultimate reality. It is not just a story, but real occurrences that have implications for my life at the deepest levels. Jesus died as an atonement for my sins and rose again, vindicated by God the Father. He demands that I live life with specific purpose in response to what Christ has accomplished. I have a mission to go and make disciples that transcends online communities.

Beyond this, the Gospel should give us an eternal perspective. Although we live in the moment, we have a view that each moment is building toward an end, when we will be reunited with our King, Jesus. But online community tends to militate against an eternal perspective because it puts such a focus on the here and now.

I know that technology can be used by intentional people for the glory of God. I’ve read John Piper’s reasons for using twitter. And if the goal is glorifying God in the lives of other real-life people through twitter or facebook, then the internet and technology are just mediums through which to fulfill our God-given purpose.

But when the medium becomes our reality, we are in danger. The Gospel grounds us in a historical reality with present implications and an ultimate destination. We must never let ourselves be drawn from that.