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Showing posts from 2014

Hallelujah (Easter Edition)

Hallelujah (Easter version) Tune: Leonard Cohen Lyrics: Mike Ainsworth with minor edits by JD Longmire V1: C                   Am I heard about a baby born C                         Am Into a world that sin had torn              F                           G                         C          G You’d wouldn't think He'd do too much to save ya              C ...

A brief apology against Exclusive Psalmody and for Inclusive Psalmody

I hold to the Regulative Principle of Worship, but do not hold to exclusive psalmody (since the Psalms themselves are not exclusive "sing to the Lord a new song...") and find the rationale towards it a hyper-scrupulous interpretation of the Regulative Principle - that is "what is not commanded is forbidden" - the problem is that there is a corollary that is often ignored - "what is commanded is required" - the hyper-RPW'er spends so much energy following the first rule that they ignore the second, to the exclusion of the liberty the New Covenant believer is given in this area. A brief apology for Inclusive Psalmody: Colossians 3:16 (New American Standard Bible) 16Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to Go d This Scripture is a cornerstone to defining the RPW in terms of music to the Lord's worship. The ...

Thoughts on Adam and Eve, Original Sin, Self-Awareness and True Faith

Pre-fall, A&E were in a state of sinlessness and circumstantially aware, but not fully self-aware. Circumstantially aware of God, so they had belief, but demonstrably not full of true faith that God was who He revealed Himself to be. This lack of true faith caused them to succumb to temptation and sin in pride and selfishness. They grasped for equality with God and disobeyed. Once they sinned, they received self-awareness of their true place before God and their position within His Creation. Naked, vulnerable, insufficient and hopeless outside of His sovereign benevolence and love. I think this may be when they received true faith, as well. The prime cause of Original Sin is lack of true faith, even in the face of God's immediate and visible imminence - self-pride and disobedience were results. That is, God makes a material example of how we are by nature sinners and doomed to sin apart from His intervention, even though we were created without sin in the beginning....