Congrats on your engagement — let us know when you know plans for the BIG DAY! And blessings on you and your family as you walk through this with your dad’s surgery, etc. We are praying for him and all of you.

Came to your blog for the first time recently and saw the music post. Glad you are venturing where angels fear to tred. I like the even-handed way you handle it, allowing that you will not try to force your view on others. It is a tough subject and surely needs to be open to discussion, not dismissed with the amoral argument.

For the record, I think the idea you attributed to Napoleon is also seen in Plato. A sampling of his quotes on the subject may be found at http://www.tesc.edu/~rprice/platomus.htm   .

I tend to agree with most of what you said. In fact, you are probably more open on the subject than I am. I need more prayer and study and prayer. My main beef is that when the amoral card is played, the discussion is effectively over. Then I sometimes will hear those same folks protesting “Haevy Metal Christian” or “Punk christian” and I’m thinking it just can’t be had both ways. If you care you can see some musing and comments on it at my site here: http://huffexpress.com/?p=104  OR  http://huffexpress.com/?p=69 . I have tried to work with this some in a class I teach and I have an essay by ALlan Bloom from “Closing of the American Mind” which is strong and perceptive and hard-hitting. You can get a copy of that book easily at any library. Might be worth reading his 10 page essay on music — a chapter in the book.

Enjoyed reading the post. Glad you are “leaning hard against the culture that’s leaning hard against us!” (line from a firned’s radio program)

Blessings!

Randy (1st Cousin)

The question we should ask is “How does that music (absent of lyrics) affect someone who has NEVER heard it before?” What message does the music have in it, and what does it communicate to someone the first time they hear it. Lots of things trigger bad memories or thoughts, even good things. The real issue is what the message of the music is, without any memory of the lyrics, either good or bad.

You are free to disagree with me man. If you don’t believe rock music and styles like it communicate sensuality and rebellion, that’s your decision. But you do need a standard of some kind, and one that is based upon Biblical principles. If yours is different than mine, that’s all right. We are still brothers in Christ. We won’t listen to each other’s music, but we can still fellowship in other ways. I might try to convince you of your error sometimes, , but I would think you would do the same for me. Perhaps you will see the light.

I would say this: if, as I understand you, rock music (and the styles similar to it) does not encourage sinful behavior such as we have mentioned, why do musicians choose to use those styles almost all the time to help communicate their wicked message from Satan? Why don’t they set their sensual, wicked lyrics to soft music, or something like more traditional church music?

Thank you for this. I see where you are coming from, but i respectfully disagree. Music stirs emotion, but i do not think that it does so to the extent that you describe.

“CCM uses a lot of those same beats and styles that the worldly musicians do. Those same styles of music that are designed and used to inflame the lust and rebelion of those who hear it, are also used by many CCM musicians to help people worship God. They change the lyrics, but that is the only noticable difference.”

This argument begs this question:

To what extent is it reasonable to make ourselves distinct from the world?

Here’s a hypothetical:

Two songs have the same exact beat. Like…the same thing.

But one song is singing about the holiness of God, sanctification and worship, while the other is about debaucherous sex.

A car is driving down the street playing the instrumental of the song song and a christian who knows the christian version thinks about the hoiness of God, while another person hears it and thinks about sex.

Same beat, two different responses. Should this song not be played in churches because of its counterpart that has its origin in hell?

The beat will remind you of one of the two songs, but the lyrics make all the difference.

If hearing a certain song takes you back to your unsaved days, then if anything you should fall in deeper love with God for choosing and saving you while you were doing everything in your power to earn death.

People will do everything in their power to corrupt things that God has created. Does that mean that we should abandon all things because the world has tainted it?

Fantastic! Bravo!

Josh Ingersoll