Hello. I'm
Dwayne. And I'm Lance.
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And we like to welcome
you to another episode of TKS,
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a True Knowledge of Self,
where get to know ourselves
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from a biblical perspective.
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I'd like to welcome you again.
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And in this episode
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we're going to be
answering from God's word
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the question as to whether
or not music is truly neutral.
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We've been looking at a
lot of cultural phenomenon
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and particularly
focusing on hip-hop culture,
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and we saw how this
was being blended in
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and kind of mingled
both, inside the church
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and outside of the church.
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We've seen
individuals who, in the industry
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were professing
Christianity, but we have--
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saw that the contrasts
between hip-hop culture
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and biblical
Christian culture do not mix.
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And when they
are forced together,
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they never bear the right fruit.
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And we're going to be looking
at a lot of other instances
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and principles from God's word
that show us that very fact.
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We also want to take
some time to look at history,
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and I want to review a clip
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that we've shown
in a previous episode
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regarding the
history of jazz music,
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which was a
precursor to hip-hop,
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genre or rap music, and all
the other kind of music genres
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associated in
the hip-hop culture.
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For hip-hop
culture, as a culture
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is not just involving
one particular musical genre,
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it's a kind of a blending that
embraces all musical genres.
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It's really the
form of expression
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that makes it hip-hop or not.
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So we looked at a clip
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that showed us
kind of a history lesson
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and it was focused on
the city of New Orleans.
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Now in Pre-Civil
War, America, New Orleans
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was one of the primary
melting pots in the world
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for that matter because it
was a major port for trade,
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especially the slave trade.
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So you had this kind
of cross cultural mix,
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where you had a
society that had free blacks,
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and slave
blacks, those that are,
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you know, biracial
of varying degrees,
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Creoles that were mixed of
while white and black races.
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You had slaves
from the West Indies
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coming into port
and you had slaves
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from the interior of
America in the south.
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All coming
together in this area,
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poor whites, rich
whites and obviously,
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as these different
cultures come together,
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there's different forms
of music that come together.
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And it was a very
interesting phenomena as well
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that was taking place
in that area in New Orleans
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where every Sunday
you had a special Square,
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a park, if you will that came
to be known as Congo Square,
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in which they allow the slaves
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to practice their form of
celebration, entertainment,
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and you know, for all
intents and purposes, worship.
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And they were allowed to
bring in their musical forms,
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and their expression and dance,
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and call and
response, and different things.
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And this eventually
developed into forms of music
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that we would be
more familiar with.
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One of the things that
took place as history developed
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was something called
this minstrel culture,
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minstrel show entertainment.
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And the minstrel
show was an instance
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in which white actors
and entertainers singers,
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dancers, and like comedians
would paint their faces black
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and kind of
promote the most degraded
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and stereotypical
forms of black culture.
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And really, culturally speaking,
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it's one of the first times
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where you had a truly
nationwide pop culture
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in America.
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And so for 80 years,
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this was the number one
form of entertainment in America
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where you had these shows that
would go on tours in the States
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and travel around,
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and whether it was a
city or a rural area,
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you began to have
a kind of commonality
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between people's taste for music
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and the same jokes
that they were hearing,
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and the same kind
of representations.
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And so it developed
into a very kind of twisted,
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strange, eccentric form
of degrading one society
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for the
entertainment of another.
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And black actors and writers
also participated in this
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where they
pretended to be white actors
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putting on black face.
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So it was a very strange kind
of dialogue that took place.
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But nevertheless,
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it birthed a lot
and set the stage
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for traditional
black entertainment,
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where black entertainers
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kind of had to
become minstrel actors
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in order to get recognition
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and get play in
the various venues.
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So we saw another development
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and Dwayne, as we
start to look at this idea
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of whether or
not music is neutral,
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when the kind of what
became big band of music,
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they call it, they
started to call it Gumbo music.
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And, you know, we can think,
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you know, like
when the saints come
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marching in bands
playing the brass bands,
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that even developed
further into something
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that was called the Blues.
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And it was articulated
by certain jazz historians
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and famous jazz
musicians in their own right
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that the Blues was
pretty much a blending
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of the a little bit of
angel and a little bit of devil.
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And these with their own words.
These were their own words.
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And so they took the
sacred and the profane,
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and the
blending of that together
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created this
perfect Blues sound,
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where the form of,
you know, the black plight
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was able to now be expressed
through this profound music,
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an improvisation
in self-expression
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and self-awareness,
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and Blues as it
was stated in the clip,
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was the aquifer, it was
stated, it was the aquifer
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from which all streams
of American music flowed.
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So whether that be, you
know, again, Blues, jazz,
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RnB, swing, Bebop,
Doo-wop, soul, funk,
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you know, all these things that
eventually became rock'n'roll
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and you know, heavy
metal, hip-hop music,
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rap music, all of this came
from really the same source--
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That's right. In America.
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And so that's not
really a very debatable
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because when we
looked at the history
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of how hip-hop
develops in the Bronx,
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in the '60s and '70s, we saw
it was kind of the same thing.
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It was a melting pot,
a very depraved society
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that was being affected
by all the social change
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and the social
unrest, and the poverty,
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and you had the
mingling of the same cultures.
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You had the
Black American culture,
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and you had the
West Indian culture,
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Latin American culture
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that was all
converging in this area,
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and they came up with
this new form of expression
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through the break
dancing and the aerosol writing
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and the DJing and the emceeing
that was almost similar,
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in my estimation, it
was extremely similar
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to what you saw in New Orleans
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there in
Pre-Civil War era, America.
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And so I think it's
very significant to know
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becausenow where we
are, in modern America,
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and we still have all
of these genres present,
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you know, Blues never went away,
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jazz is still present.
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RnB is still present,
rock'n'roll is still present,
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alternative music,
all these other things
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are still present,
and the modern Christian,
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the modern person
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has to navigate
through these things.
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They have to deal with
how we to interpret sacred
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and profane,
especially now in the church.
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Is it okay to just
listen to whatever kind of music
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and you know, maybe
just put godly lyrics to it
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when we talk about
holy "holy hip-hop",
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put godly lyrics to something,
no matter what kind of form,
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and form of expression is coming
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as long as the words are
okay, that makes it okay,
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or is there really a standard.
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Is music neutral or is it not?
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Well, this is an
excellent question
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and in order to
answer it in a way,
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at least from the Christian
and biblical perspective,
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we obviously have
to go to the word.
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Music, we should
look at that first,
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like why, what
was in the mind of God
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when He was giving
music to His people.
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The Bible makes it very
clear, even in the Book of Job
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that you know, the sons of God,
they came together, they sang.
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And you know, God
believes in music.
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I believe God is
the author of music.
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It talks about in Ezekiel 28,
Lucifer, which is a good name,
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Lucifer means light
bearer or son of the morning.
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And when God made
Lucifer in Ezekiel 28,
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it says he had
pipes inside of him.
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So that Lucifer was
a very musical being.
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God loves music and music
is wonderful, the problem is,
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is that of course,
as Lucifer transitioned
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from being a light bearer
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to now becoming God's
enemy and a slanderer,
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this is how he earned the
name Satan and the devil so on.
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So number one, music is not bad.
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Music is definitely not bad.
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So we can't make
an arbitrary statement
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and just refrain
from all forms of music?
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Most definitely.
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I mean, you know, it
would be extremely anti
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or extra biblical to
say that music is bad,
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we should stay
away from all music.
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What we have to do
is like anything else.
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You know, we have
been studying the Bible,
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we've been
looking at the fact that
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the same way God
has a true culture,
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Satan has counterfeit cultures,
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God has true religion,
Satan has counterfeit religion,
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God has true church,
Satan has counterfeit church.
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God has true worship,
Satan has counterfeit worship.
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So it is God has true music,
you know the concepts of music
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and then Satan of course, will
try to counter that as well.
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So that, in essence,
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again, we're talking
about this perversion.
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Changing that which is true
into that which is not true.
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So there can be a perversion
even when it comes to music?
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They definitely
can, they definitely can.
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And this is why,
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what we can do is pull
principles from the Bible
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that can help guide
us when it comes to:
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how can I know if
what I'm listening to
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is something that is
acceptable or not to the Lord?
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So the first position that
the Christian holds is that:
00:10:02.96\00:10:05.43
I will not do anything
that displeases my God,
00:10:05.47\00:10:08.74
I will not do
anything that will offend God.
00:10:08.77\00:10:12.27
I want to make
sure that whatever I do
00:10:12.31\00:10:14.34
is to the glory of God,
00:10:14.38\00:10:15.71
as 1 Corinthians
10:31 admonishes us.
00:10:15.74\00:10:18.78
So the first thing I want to do
00:10:18.81\00:10:20.15
is look at how God even
brought music to His people.
00:10:20.18\00:10:24.95
And this would take us
back to the Old Testament
00:10:24.99\00:10:26.96
in 1 Chronicles 9.
00:10:26.99\00:10:28.89
And the Bible tells us something
00:10:28.92\00:10:30.26
I thought was very interesting.
00:10:30.29\00:10:31.63
In 1 Chronicles 9,
00:10:31.66\00:10:34.40
it's actually
speaking about the priests,
00:10:34.43\00:10:37.43
it's speaking specifically,
especially about the Levites.
00:10:37.47\00:10:41.24
And the Levites were
men that held Holy Office
00:10:41.27\00:10:44.11
and they were individuals
00:10:44.14\00:10:45.47
that function in the
capacity of the priesthood.
00:10:45.51\00:10:48.44
And the Bible says
in 1 Chronicles 9:33,
00:10:48.48\00:10:51.88
talking about
the Levites, it says,
00:10:51.91\00:10:53.88
"And these are the singers,
00:10:53.92\00:10:56.62
chief of the
fathers of the Levites,
00:10:56.65\00:10:59.05
who remaining in
the chambers were free,
00:10:59.09\00:11:01.46
for they were employed
in that work day and night."
00:11:01.49\00:11:05.19
Literally, the
Levites, part of their work
00:11:05.23\00:11:07.00
is that they were
employed in the singing
00:11:07.03\00:11:09.93
and they
actually lead out in this.
00:11:09.96\00:11:11.87
And it wasn't just
singing because if you go
00:11:11.90\00:11:13.77
just a few pages
over to 1 Chronicles 15,
00:11:13.80\00:11:16.57
you see that in verse 16,
00:11:16.60\00:11:19.01
David, he actually
spoke to the Levites
00:11:19.04\00:11:20.54
and he gave instruction,
and notice what it says,
00:11:20.58\00:11:22.48
and this is
inspired instructions.
00:11:22.51\00:11:23.88
So it's really God giving
instruction to the Levites.
00:11:23.91\00:11:26.65
It says, "And David spake
to the chief of the Levites
00:11:26.68\00:11:30.19
to appoint their
brethren to be the singers
00:11:30.22\00:11:33.49
with instruments
of musick, psaltery
00:11:33.52\00:11:36.73
and harps and symbols sounding
00:11:36.76\00:11:39.59
by lifting up
the voice with joy."
00:11:39.63\00:11:41.96
So that means that the
Levites were instrumental,
00:11:42.00\00:11:44.40
not just in leading
the people into singing,
00:11:44.43\00:11:48.37
but also in conducting the music
00:11:48.40\00:11:50.71
and making sure the
music was done right.
00:11:50.74\00:11:52.67
God actually handed
down heavenly music,
00:11:52.71\00:11:55.68
music that is birthed
from the heart of God.
00:11:55.71\00:11:57.91
He handed it down when
He established a people,
00:11:57.95\00:12:00.18
which was Israel,
and He gave them music
00:12:00.22\00:12:03.25
but He gave it
specifically to the Levites.
00:12:03.28\00:12:05.22
And the Levites
were the leaders,
00:12:05.25\00:12:06.76
they were if you would
call it the choir leaders,
00:12:06.79\00:12:08.79
you know, of the day.
00:12:08.82\00:12:10.16
And they were the ones
that would lead the people
00:12:10.19\00:12:12.09
and instruct and guide.
00:12:12.13\00:12:13.46
While knowing this,
00:12:13.50\00:12:14.83
the Bible teaches something
very important about Levites,
00:12:14.86\00:12:16.56
that's very key,
it's in Deuteronomy 10.
00:12:16.60\00:12:19.73
So in Deuteronomy 10,
00:12:19.77\00:12:21.80
here's what the Bible
says about the Levites.
00:12:21.84\00:12:23.94
And if only these
things were understood,
00:12:23.97\00:12:25.91
we would understand that
00:12:25.94\00:12:27.34
you know, the Levites today,
we would call them pastors,
00:12:27.38\00:12:30.05
you know, the
pastors should be functioning
00:12:30.08\00:12:32.71
in a capacity that the
Levites were functioning
00:12:32.75\00:12:35.28
in which is this.
00:12:35.32\00:12:36.65
It says in Deuteronomy 10:8,
00:12:36.69\00:12:39.35
"At that time the Lord
separated the tribe of Levi,
00:12:39.39\00:12:43.49
to bear the Ark of
the Covenant of the Lord,
00:12:43.53\00:12:45.86
to stand before the
Lord to minister unto Him,
00:12:45.89\00:12:49.90
and to bless His
name unto this day."
00:12:49.93\00:12:52.63
So when you think of
the function of the Levite,
00:12:52.67\00:12:55.27
you're thinking of someone
00:12:55.30\00:12:56.64
who was called to
minister unto the Lord.
00:12:56.67\00:12:59.07
There was someone to
bless the name of the Lord.
00:12:59.11\00:13:01.51
They were to you know,
to bring forth a wonderful,
00:13:01.54\00:13:04.71
beautiful, holy
influence unto the people.
00:13:04.75\00:13:07.72
In a book called Desire of Ages,
00:13:07.75\00:13:09.08
which has an
excellent commentary
00:13:09.12\00:13:10.59
on the life of Christ,
00:13:10.62\00:13:11.95
it states a
powerful point in page 448,
00:13:11.99\00:13:14.52
paragraph 3, and it
talks about the Levites here
00:13:14.56\00:13:17.19
that I think is noteworthy.
00:13:17.23\00:13:18.73
Is says, "With
sacred song and thanksgiving
00:13:18.76\00:13:20.90
the worshipers
celebrated this occasion.
00:13:20.93\00:13:23.26
A little before the
feast was the Day of Atonement
00:13:23.30\00:13:26.30
when after
confession of their sins
00:13:26.33\00:13:28.24
the people were declared
to be at peace with heaven.
00:13:28.27\00:13:31.11
Thus, the way was prepared
for the rejoicing of the feast.
00:13:31.14\00:13:34.64
'O give thanks unto
the Lord, for He is good,
00:13:34.68\00:13:37.01
for His mercy endureth
forever' (Psalms 106:1)
00:13:37.05\00:13:40.65
rose triumphantly,
while all kinds of music
00:13:40.68\00:13:43.89
mingled with shouts of Hosanna
accompanied the united singing.
00:13:43.92\00:13:48.26
The temple was the
center of the universal joy.
00:13:48.29\00:13:52.19
Here was the pomp of
the sacrificial ceremonies.
00:13:52.23\00:13:55.83
Here, range on either
side of the white marble steps
00:13:55.86\00:13:59.30
of the sacred building,
00:13:59.33\00:14:00.80
the choir of Levites
lead the service of song.
00:14:00.84\00:14:06.14
The multitude of worshippers
00:14:06.17\00:14:08.01
waving their
branches of palm and myrtle
00:14:08.04\00:14:10.01
took up the strain
and echoed the chorus,
00:14:10.05\00:14:13.28
and again the
melody was caught up
00:14:13.31\00:14:14.82
by voices near and afar off,
00:14:14.85\00:14:16.58
till the encircling
hills were vocal with praise."
00:14:16.62\00:14:20.46
So the Levites were the
ones that held a responsibility
00:14:20.49\00:14:23.63
to make sure that the
people were being led right,
00:14:23.66\00:14:26.39
as it relates to
music and worship.
00:14:26.43\00:14:28.93
So it is that when we
think of various leaders,
00:14:28.96\00:14:30.63
I highlighted pastors
00:14:30.67\00:14:32.00
but there are other
leaders as well in the churches.
00:14:32.03\00:14:34.47
They're called that they
can also lend a holy influence
00:14:34.50\00:14:38.17
when it comes to music.
00:14:38.21\00:14:40.21
So the first thing we
can take from this is that
00:14:40.24\00:14:42.08
in the mind of
God, when He gave music,
00:14:42.11\00:14:44.75
He gave it to a
holy people, the priest,
00:14:44.78\00:14:47.62
and then it was to have a holy
influence amongst the people.
00:14:47.65\00:14:51.12
So that is the first point
00:14:51.15\00:14:52.49
is that music in the mind of God
00:14:52.52\00:14:53.92
was supposed to be something
00:14:53.96\00:14:55.52
that had and
gave a holy influence.
00:14:55.56\00:14:58.66
And God Himself is holy.
00:14:58.69\00:15:00.20
So that means
that music was designed
00:15:00.23\00:15:02.16
not just to feel
good, it was more than that.
00:15:02.20\00:15:05.63
God gave music that it would
always somehow draw the mind
00:15:05.67\00:15:09.77
and draw the heart of
the individual back to God
00:15:09.80\00:15:12.84
and back to God's heart.
00:15:12.87\00:15:14.28
So this is a
very important point
00:15:14.31\00:15:15.64
when we think
about, you know, music.
00:15:15.68\00:15:17.65
And the reason why
this, I think is so important
00:15:17.68\00:15:19.78
especially for me, is
because when I danced,
00:15:19.81\00:15:23.22
I first was
dancing in the world,
00:15:23.25\00:15:24.59
I'm dancing with
all the entertainers
00:15:24.62\00:15:26.12
and I'm going on
tours and everything.
00:15:26.15\00:15:28.26
When I got out
of hip-hop, dancing
00:15:28.29\00:15:31.69
and dancing with
all these artists,
00:15:31.73\00:15:33.60
and it was because of
Christ, it was for nothing else.
00:15:33.63\00:15:35.76
I just wanted to follow the Lord
00:15:35.80\00:15:37.17
and I wanted to honor him.
00:15:37.20\00:15:38.70
Well, I decided,
00:15:38.73\00:15:40.07
well, let me try to do
hip-hop gospel dancing.
00:15:40.10\00:15:42.00
So we would take
every hip-hop artist
00:15:42.04\00:15:44.44
that said anything about God,
and we would take the beats,
00:15:44.47\00:15:47.98
the same beats,
the same hip-hop beats
00:15:48.01\00:15:49.51
so it's the exact same music.
00:15:49.54\00:15:52.11
But what we would do is
if you know, one group said,
00:15:52.15\00:15:54.82
"I praise the Lord
and keep the faith,"
00:15:54.85\00:15:56.79
or somebody said,
"Let the church say, amen."
00:15:56.82\00:15:59.02
You know, anything that
a hip-hop artist would say,
00:15:59.05\00:16:01.22
we would just have a DJ
kind of cut those parts in
00:16:01.26\00:16:03.79
and now you had a
beat, same hip-hop beat,
00:16:03.83\00:16:06.29
same hip-hop music,
everything but it just had some,
00:16:06.33\00:16:09.83
"I praise the
Lord, I praise the Lord,
00:16:09.86\00:16:11.63
let's let the
church say amen," etc.
00:16:11.67\00:16:13.90
We started going to
all sorts of colleges
00:16:13.94\00:16:16.50
and churches and
we started to dance,
00:16:16.54\00:16:18.91
me and my friends,
we started to dance.
00:16:18.94\00:16:21.08
And we danced and
something I noticed
00:16:21.11\00:16:23.91
that I just could not ignore.
00:16:23.95\00:16:26.72
As we would dance,
people were clapping,
00:16:26.75\00:16:30.09
cheering, praising us, not God.
00:16:30.12\00:16:33.89
When we were finished dancing,
00:16:33.92\00:16:35.36
girls would still
give their phone numbers
00:16:35.39\00:16:37.03
and talking about they
want to have sex with us,
00:16:37.06\00:16:38.53
and do all these things.
00:16:38.56\00:16:39.89
I mean, every single thing
that was happening in the club,
00:16:39.93\00:16:43.77
everything that was
happening in the world,
00:16:43.80\00:16:46.13
the same things was happening
in our hip-hop gospel concerts.
00:16:46.17\00:16:49.34
It was like people were,
00:16:49.37\00:16:50.94
it was not lifting
the thoughts to heaven
00:16:50.97\00:16:53.58
and causing holy thoughts,
00:16:53.61\00:16:55.24
which should lead to a
refraining of fornication,
00:16:55.28\00:16:58.08
cussing, swearing et cetera,
00:16:58.11\00:16:59.65
but it was more
so drawing us to it.
00:16:59.68\00:17:01.45
There wasn't a change.
00:17:01.48\00:17:02.82
It was literally like
just bringing the world
00:17:02.85\00:17:04.19
into the church.
00:17:04.22\00:17:05.55
I had a very similar experience,
00:17:05.59\00:17:06.99
you know, from the
emceeing standpoint
00:17:07.02\00:17:08.96
is when I came out of the world,
00:17:08.99\00:17:11.43
I embraced the
gospel, came into the church,
00:17:11.46\00:17:14.30
and I had literally
kind of quit cold-turkey,
00:17:14.33\00:17:18.30
I quit emceeing just as I
had quit smoking and drinking.
00:17:18.33\00:17:23.47
I understood that it was
something that didn't mix
00:17:23.51\00:17:26.88
with what I was getting
ready to commit my life to.
00:17:26.91\00:17:28.84
That's right.
00:17:28.88\00:17:30.21
But when I came into the church,
00:17:30.25\00:17:31.58
I met individuals in
the church that were rhyming
00:17:31.61\00:17:35.12
and emceeing, and still kind
of embracing hip-hop culture
00:17:35.15\00:17:37.55
and I said, well,
they grew up in this
00:17:37.59\00:17:39.99
or they've been in
this so I guess, it's okay.
00:17:40.02\00:17:42.32
And they were
kind of rationalizing
00:17:42.36\00:17:43.69
and somehow howl,
no, no, it's okay,
00:17:43.73\00:17:45.09
it's just you just got to
change the words, you know.
00:17:45.13\00:17:47.60
So I literally
said, "Man, that's easy,
00:17:47.63\00:17:49.50
that's a easy assignment.
00:17:49.53\00:17:50.93
So all you saying is I just
got to put religious lyrics?
00:17:50.97\00:17:54.24
"So I literally went
back to my DJ, my producer,
00:17:54.27\00:17:58.17
who I already told
that I quit, I'm out,
00:17:58.21\00:18:00.18
you know, it was nothing,
and we were getting ready
00:18:00.21\00:18:02.14
to move to the next stage
00:18:02.18\00:18:04.15
you know,
professionalism and really,
00:18:04.18\00:18:06.45
so my stuff was
already getting shopped around.
00:18:06.48\00:18:09.42
And he was very upset that
I was stepping away like this.
00:18:09.45\00:18:13.02
And so when I called
him up and said, "Hey, man,
00:18:13.05\00:18:14.46
I got a solution, I heard
that this is going to be right
00:18:14.49\00:18:16.66
and we're going
to keep it moving."
00:18:16.69\00:18:18.03
So I use the same
music, the same production.
00:18:18.06\00:18:21.46
All I did was, I took
all of my existing set,
00:18:21.50\00:18:24.43
you know, all of
my existing songs.
00:18:24.47\00:18:26.53
I saw where I could change
00:18:26.57\00:18:28.17
'cause I was already a
conscious, you know, MC.
00:18:28.20\00:18:30.51
So I didn't you know,
00:18:30.54\00:18:31.87
curse a lot in my
rhymes or anything like that,
00:18:31.91\00:18:34.18
so I made a
couple of adjustments,
00:18:34.21\00:18:36.44
you know, in area where I said,
00:18:36.48\00:18:38.18
you know, were I
was cursing the church,
00:18:38.21\00:18:41.02
I would then just, you
know, adjust in a little bit
00:18:41.05\00:18:44.89
and make simple adjustments.
00:18:44.92\00:18:46.25
And then I wrote a
whole new set of songs
00:18:46.29\00:18:48.72
with the same production
00:18:48.76\00:18:50.23
and it was now
this gospel focus,
00:18:50.26\00:18:52.56
you know, Three
Angels' Messages,
00:18:52.59\00:18:54.56
Prophecy,
Revelation all this stuff.
00:18:54.60\00:18:56.70
And I did, I went to do a show.
00:18:56.73\00:19:00.17
I went to do a show
and, you know, it was got a,
00:19:00.20\00:19:04.84
there was a promoter
that I had worked with before
00:19:04.87\00:19:09.04
that wanted me to
come out and do the show.
00:19:09.08\00:19:10.58
So I come out and to do the show
00:19:10.61\00:19:11.95
and I'm not the only
performer, there's a DJ
00:19:11.98\00:19:14.48
and there's other performers.
00:19:14.52\00:19:15.98
So I have my set
at a certain time.
00:19:16.02\00:19:17.79
I brought with me two other
Christian brothers to the show.
00:19:17.82\00:19:21.49
Another brother when I
was working with emceeing
00:19:21.52\00:19:23.79
and another former,
you know, hip-hop head
00:19:23.83\00:19:28.26
and now another individual
who's preaching today.
00:19:28.30\00:19:32.23
But we wanted to wait outside
until the time of the set came
00:19:32.27\00:19:36.74
because we didn't
want to go in there
00:19:36.77\00:19:38.11
and mingle inside
the club and all that.
00:19:38.14\00:19:39.97
So we waited outside, you
know, like good Christians
00:19:40.01\00:19:42.28
and waited for our
turn and the time came
00:19:42.31\00:19:45.11
when it was time
to go do the set.
00:19:45.15\00:19:46.68
So we went to the
door, prayed outside,
00:19:46.72\00:19:49.62
you know, for Lord's blessing.
00:19:49.65\00:19:51.52
And then we went
inside, we got our wristbands,
00:19:51.55\00:19:53.56
we went to the bar
and we just got water,
00:19:53.59\00:19:55.79
you know, people
look at as funny.
00:19:55.82\00:19:57.43
And then we
went up, did our set.
00:19:57.46\00:19:59.56
And when we did a set
00:19:59.59\00:20:00.93
something very strange happened,
00:20:00.96\00:20:02.30
something very
revolutionary for me happened.
00:20:02.33\00:20:05.00
I'm going through,
it's I think it was about
00:20:05.03\00:20:06.67
like maybe a 15 minute
set, so it was pretty full.
00:20:06.70\00:20:10.07
So we're going
through and you know,
00:20:10.11\00:20:12.61
normally when you're emceeing,
you're have a different,
00:20:12.64\00:20:14.64
all these kind of
different scenarios that happen
00:20:14.68\00:20:16.44
when you're in a club or
in a little concert hall,
00:20:16.48\00:20:19.71
where you have a group
that comes to the front
00:20:19.75\00:20:21.68
and they're really listening,
you know, they are kind of,
00:20:21.72\00:20:24.82
you know, joining with
the, with the stage show
00:20:24.85\00:20:26.99
and they're really focused
00:20:27.02\00:20:28.36
and really
listening to the experience.
00:20:28.39\00:20:30.23
And then there are some people
00:20:30.26\00:20:31.59
that might be out there talking,
00:20:31.63\00:20:32.96
some people out
there at the bar,
00:20:32.99\00:20:34.33
there might be some
people on the dance floor,
00:20:34.36\00:20:35.70
some people doing different
things in different areas.
00:20:35.73\00:20:37.80
And as I'm going through the set
00:20:37.83\00:20:39.17
and you have that
kind of pit in the front,
00:20:39.20\00:20:41.10
and then I look
off in the distance
00:20:41.14\00:20:42.67
and as I was
preaching the gospel in my mind,
00:20:42.70\00:20:45.64
I see a girl, you
know, and a guy dancing.
00:20:45.67\00:20:50.48
You know and this
girl is dancing in a way
00:20:50.51\00:20:52.65
that has nothing to do
00:20:52.68\00:20:54.08
with the Bible and Christianity.
00:20:54.12\00:20:55.58
She's dancing just
like we we're in the world.
00:20:55.62\00:20:57.52
And she's dancing to my
song. That's right. Yup.
00:20:57.55\00:21:00.22
She's dancing to
my song and my lyrics
00:21:00.26\00:21:02.99
while I am talk about
giving your heart to the Lord
00:21:03.02\00:21:04.93
and prophecy and
things coming upon the earth,
00:21:04.96\00:21:07.50
and the second coming of Christ.
00:21:07.53\00:21:08.86
And she's dancing to my song
00:21:08.90\00:21:10.33
just like she
would to any other song.
00:21:10.37\00:21:12.87
And when that, when I saw that
00:21:12.90\00:21:14.94
and I'm
performing at the same time,
00:21:14.97\00:21:16.77
I never stopped, but
a voice came in my head
00:21:16.81\00:21:19.84
and said, "Son,
this does not mix."
00:21:19.87\00:21:23.95
It's not just about the
words that you're speaking,
00:21:23.98\00:21:27.32
it's also about the
music, the music does matter.
00:21:27.35\00:21:30.52
And from that point
forward I had to quit,
00:21:30.55\00:21:32.65
you know, I had to
walk away because I saw
00:21:32.69\00:21:35.02
that if I continue
going then that track
00:21:35.06\00:21:36.96
I'm going to be
converted to it versus me
00:21:36.99\00:21:39.16
converting others to the gospel.
00:21:39.19\00:21:41.00
And that is the
consistent issue,
00:21:41.03\00:21:42.90
is really and truly what
is going on in your heart,
00:21:42.93\00:21:46.03
what is going on in your mind?
00:21:46.07\00:21:47.57
When you play your
music, is it causing the mind
00:21:47.60\00:21:50.74
to dwell more upon
Christ, His crucifixion,
00:21:50.77\00:21:54.08
His resurrection,
His working in heaven
00:21:54.11\00:21:58.01
on our behalf that
we may be like Him?
00:21:58.05\00:22:00.88
Is it promoting
character development?
00:22:00.92\00:22:02.78
Is it helping us
00:22:02.82\00:22:04.52
want to be more separated
from sin and the world,
00:22:04.55\00:22:08.29
or is it drawing us closer
to the things of the world?
00:22:08.32\00:22:11.36
Does it allow me
to be a reflection
00:22:11.39\00:22:13.33
of the character
of God before others,
00:22:13.36\00:22:14.90
or does it cause me to
be more of a reflection
00:22:14.93\00:22:16.70
of the world before others?
00:22:16.73\00:22:18.07
These are all the
things that we need to consider
00:22:18.10\00:22:20.14
when we're embracing
these forms of music.
00:22:20.17\00:22:22.30
As an example, if
you look in the Bible
00:22:22.34\00:22:24.17
when it talks about
those who come to Christ
00:22:24.21\00:22:25.87
in Psalms 40:3, it says,
00:22:25.91\00:22:29.84
"He hath put a
new song in my mouth,
00:22:29.88\00:22:32.28
even praise unto our God:
Many shall see it and fear,
00:22:32.31\00:22:36.42
and shall trust in the Lord."
00:22:36.45\00:22:38.25
So notice, it's a new song.
00:22:38.29\00:22:40.26
You know, this
thing about playing things
00:22:40.29\00:22:44.19
that sound exactly like
what we listen to in the world,
00:22:44.23\00:22:48.20
it doesn't work.
00:22:48.23\00:22:49.56
I remember there was a song
called 'Between the Sheets,'
00:22:49.60\00:22:51.73
and it was a song
totally and completely about,
00:22:51.77\00:22:54.60
you know, fornication.
00:22:54.64\00:22:56.00
And I remember listening
to a prominent gospel singer
00:22:56.04\00:22:59.41
and he actually
took the same exact lyric
00:22:59.44\00:23:01.81
from 'Between the Sheets,'
00:23:01.84\00:23:03.24
and started to add
this to his gospel song.
00:23:03.28\00:23:05.65
And I know in my
mind it went easy
00:23:05.68\00:23:07.35
because I was like, I
know that song and immediately
00:23:07.38\00:23:09.75
I knew everything
connected to that song,
00:23:09.78\00:23:11.55
even my own
personal experiences.
00:23:11.59\00:23:13.29
So my mind was not
ascending into a holy place,
00:23:13.32\00:23:16.39
it was not
thinking of holy things,
00:23:16.42\00:23:18.23
it was more so
deviating from that
00:23:18.26\00:23:20.23
going back to the world
00:23:20.26\00:23:21.66
and all the
reminiscent things of the world.
00:23:21.70\00:23:24.03
This is not what Christ wants.
00:23:24.07\00:23:25.40
And that's why I
believe God was offended
00:23:25.43\00:23:27.37
when the minister would
literally tell the people,
00:23:27.40\00:23:30.47
remember, before
you were Christians,
00:23:30.51\00:23:33.17
when you were unconverted,
00:23:33.21\00:23:34.58
when you were a worldly sinners,
00:23:34.61\00:23:35.94
I'm going to play the
music that you love to listen to
00:23:35.98\00:23:38.35
and practice into
when you were a sinner.
00:23:38.38\00:23:41.38
And I'm doing this
in the name of fun.
00:23:41.42\00:23:42.75
This is blasphemy.
00:23:42.78\00:23:44.12
These are things
that are offensive to God,
00:23:44.15\00:23:46.45
when we have a
minute to think about it
00:23:46.49\00:23:48.56
and not allow the music
to control our feelings.
00:23:48.59\00:23:51.19
The Bible also says in
the book of Colossians 3:16
00:23:51.23\00:23:56.33
"Let the word of Christ dwell
in you richly in all wisdom,
00:23:56.36\00:24:00.47
teaching and
admonishing one another
00:24:00.50\00:24:02.67
in psalms and
hymns, and spiritual songs,
00:24:02.70\00:24:06.88
singing with grace in
your hearts to the Lord."
00:24:06.91\00:24:09.98
So notice, the words of
Christ are to dwell in us richly
00:24:10.01\00:24:14.35
and those words of Christ
are to admonish us or teach us
00:24:14.38\00:24:18.35
and enable as to
teach and admonish others
00:24:18.39\00:24:21.06
in psalms and hymns
and spiritual songs.
00:24:21.09\00:24:23.22
So again, God is
not against the music
00:24:23.26\00:24:24.73
but it's what kind of
music, what kind of singing.
00:24:24.76\00:24:28.30
Now we've been
looking at you know,
00:24:28.33\00:24:30.17
songs and lyrics
here just a little bit,
00:24:30.20\00:24:32.50
but now I'd like to
just focus just briefly
00:24:32.53\00:24:35.10
as it relates to the music.
00:24:35.14\00:24:37.24
When I listen to
music is it a genre.
00:24:37.27\00:24:40.18
And you know, we can't recommend
00:24:40.21\00:24:41.74
any specific genre to say,
00:24:41.78\00:24:43.38
listen to this
genre, it's all okay.
00:24:43.41\00:24:45.38
Right. There's no sacred genre.
00:24:45.41\00:24:47.18
There is no sacred genre,
00:24:47.22\00:24:48.65
even though we can
see a lot of fairly,
00:24:48.68\00:24:50.39
you know, unsacred genres,
00:24:50.42\00:24:52.32
which is interesting.
00:24:52.35\00:24:53.69
But nevertheless,
are there some principles
00:24:53.72\00:24:55.62
that we can take with us
00:24:55.66\00:24:56.99
when it comes to
listening to music
00:24:57.03\00:24:58.96
and what kind of
influence is it having on me
00:24:58.99\00:25:01.86
when I'm listening to it?
00:25:01.90\00:25:03.33
You remember we did a
study where we talked about
00:25:03.37\00:25:06.03
do all things
to the glory of God
00:25:06.07\00:25:07.67
and the glory of
God is God's character?
00:25:07.70\00:25:10.01
Well, hear are some
characteristics of God
00:25:10.04\00:25:11.71
that we can consider.
00:25:11.74\00:25:13.07
In 1 John 3:2-3, the
Bible declares that God is pure.
00:25:13.11\00:25:19.55
Whatever music I listen to,
00:25:19.58\00:25:21.82
it must help my mind to
maintain in a pure state.
00:25:21.85\00:25:25.65
I must have pure thoughts.
00:25:25.69\00:25:27.06
It should help
promote pure thoughts.
00:25:27.09\00:25:29.12
As I stated, if
I'm listening to music
00:25:29.16\00:25:32.03
that takes my mind
back to impure thoughts,
00:25:32.06\00:25:34.73
I can look at and say
that music can't be of God
00:25:34.76\00:25:36.77
because that's
not what God wants.
00:25:36.80\00:25:38.43
He doesn't want me to dwell
in the things of the world,
00:25:38.47\00:25:40.20
He wants me to dwell
on the things of holiness
00:25:40.24\00:25:42.04
and righteousness.
00:25:42.07\00:25:43.41
Again, the Bible
also says in John 3:33
00:25:43.44\00:25:47.64
that "God is true."
00:25:47.68\00:25:49.84
So whatever music I listen to,
00:25:49.88\00:25:52.55
it should help promote the truth
00:25:52.58\00:25:54.25
of what God wants for our lives
and not to push me in a path
00:25:54.28\00:25:57.52
or an experience that can
take me down a path of error.
00:25:57.55\00:26:00.89
Music is a mood
response mechanism.
00:26:00.92\00:26:03.39
Music can cause fear,
00:26:03.43\00:26:05.76
that's why movie
theaters and all these guys,
00:26:05.79\00:26:07.46
you know, they know how to
play certain forms of music
00:26:07.50\00:26:08.83
to make you afraid.
00:26:08.86\00:26:10.20
Yeah, it's a
psychology of music.
00:26:10.23\00:26:11.57
It is a psychology.
00:26:11.60\00:26:12.93
But God makes it clear,
there's no fear in love.
00:26:12.97\00:26:14.30
"Perfect love
casts out fear," right?
00:26:14.34\00:26:16.40
That's 1 John 4: 18.
00:26:16.44\00:26:17.81
So when I listen to music,
00:26:17.84\00:26:19.17
it is should not put
me in a state of fear,
00:26:19.21\00:26:20.88
perplexity, anxiety or violence.
00:26:20.91\00:26:23.88
That music should keep
me in a state of peace.
00:26:23.91\00:26:26.88
In fact, 1 Corinthians 14:33,
it says God is a God of peace.
00:26:26.92\00:26:31.55
Whatever music I listen to,
00:26:31.59\00:26:32.92
it shouldn't cause my heart
to go into rapid palpitations
00:26:32.95\00:26:35.82
and cause the brain waves
of my mind to lose its ability
00:26:35.86\00:26:39.46
that I can't have
good cognitive function
00:26:39.49\00:26:41.33
that I can't think
straight and reason straight.
00:26:41.36\00:26:44.03
These are principles that
God gives us from His word
00:26:44.07\00:26:46.80
that ought to guide us.
00:26:46.84\00:26:48.30
And as long as we
stick to these principles,
00:26:48.34\00:26:50.51
and there's plenty more
that we can study in scripture,
00:26:50.54\00:26:53.41
God will lead us to
know when a song is good
00:26:53.44\00:26:57.45
versus a song being bad.
00:26:57.48\00:26:59.41
There's a lot more
that we could pull out
00:26:59.45\00:27:00.78
from scripture, but
it as usual, you know,
00:27:00.82\00:27:02.42
I know our time is
limited and friends,
00:27:02.45\00:27:04.82
we are grateful that
God does provide answers.
00:27:04.85\00:27:09.22
He does provide
solutions for us.
00:27:09.26\00:27:11.56
What we have to do
is we have to search.
00:27:11.59\00:27:13.86
We got to dig deep,
we have to let God speak,
00:27:13.90\00:27:16.36
and let the rest of
the world remain silent.
00:27:16.40\00:27:18.43
And as we do this,
00:27:18.47\00:27:19.80
I believe that God will bless us
00:27:19.83\00:27:21.17
beyond our expectations.
00:27:21.20\00:27:22.97
It is true that there
are lots of scientists
00:27:23.00\00:27:25.17
and musicians who have
studied all sorts of things
00:27:25.21\00:27:27.44
and they try to
endorse what God condemns.
00:27:27.48\00:27:30.41
And this is why
the Bible even speaks
00:27:30.45\00:27:32.11
of something called
science falsely so-called.
00:27:32.15\00:27:35.38
So science never
validates the Bible,
00:27:35.42\00:27:37.95
but Bible always
validates science.
00:27:37.99\00:27:40.26
And as long as we maintain
being people of the book,
00:27:40.29\00:27:44.36
God will bless us
00:27:44.39\00:27:45.73
when we are
seeking to know truth,
00:27:45.76\00:27:47.20
because God has promised us,
00:27:47.23\00:27:48.73
if we are seeking
truth we shall find it.
00:27:48.76\00:27:51.17
For the Bible says,
"Seek, and you shall find."
00:27:51.20\00:27:54.24
We are really grateful
that you have joined us
00:27:54.27\00:27:55.77
for this episode
and we're just praying
00:27:55.80\00:27:57.74
that as you get ready to
enjoy the blessings of the Lord,
00:27:57.77\00:28:00.58
remember Proverbs 2:6,
00:28:00.61\00:28:02.28
which tells us the
"Lord gives us wisdom
00:28:02.31\00:28:04.41
and out of His mouth comes
knowledge and understanding."
00:28:04.45\00:28:07.42
God bless you.
00:28:07.45\00:28:08.78