Little Child In A Manger

And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn. (Luke 2:7)(KJV)

I wrote a Christmas song a few weeks ago and sang it in the Hanging of the Greens service. I've written many songs, and the vast majority of them are contemporary christian. I will usually write as the inspiration hits me, and I firmly believe that God gives me the songs and allows me to create them through His anointing. Sometimes I will struggle with an idea for a song, especially with lyrics, for quite some time before it comes to fruition. Other times, it's like God sends me an idea, and then all the words flow into my mind and the music comes together almost by itself. As I was putting together the music for the Hanging of the Greens service, I realized that I had never written a Christmas song. So the wheels started turning--so to speak--and God inspired me with these lyrics. Worship the child in the manger as you read:

Little child in a manger
born that first Christmas morn
We treated You like a stranger
but You knew us before we were born
Please forgive us for failing
to see who You truly are
And guide us like the three wise men
who came seeking You from afar

Shepherds out on the hillside
watching their flocks by night
The angel spoke and they trembled
surrounded by such a great light
"Please fear not for I bring you
tidings of great joy...
In the city of David is born now
Christ the baby boy"

Alleluia, Glory to, Glory to God in the Highest
Alleluia, Peace on earth, good will to men

Wise men came bearing treasure:
frankincense, gold and myrrh
They sought to worhsip King Jesus
the Maker of heaven and earth
They followed a star to the cradle
where they found a young virgin girl
And Mary just smiled as she gazed at
her Savior, the Light of the World

And they cried Alleluia, Glory to, glory to God in the highest
They sang Alleluia, Peace on earth good will to men

Little Child in a manger
born that first Christmas morn
We treated You like a stranger
but You knew us before we were born
Please forgive us for failing
to see who You truly are
And guide us like the three wise men
who came seeking You from afar

You know the old saying you see on church signs around Christmas--"Wise men still seek Him." My prayer this Christmas is that all of us will keep our eyes on Jesus; and just like the wise men who were drawn to the cradle by a star that first Christmas, we will seek Him in worship.

Joey C.

Wonderful One

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. (Isa. 9:6)(KJV)

As we celebrate the holidays each year, we hear all kinds of favorite Christmas songs on the radio: songs like "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree", "White Christmas" and "Winter Wonderland" to name a few. One of my favorites has always been "It's the Most Wonderful Time Of The Year", because for me, Christmas has always been a special time. When I was a kid it was the excitement of Santa Claus, Christmas presents, lights, decorations and trees. I remember drawing pictures of Christmas trees and Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer. I was so excited on Christmas Eve, wondering when Santa was going to come. My brother and I would look at the sky and imagine seeing his flying deer and sleigh.

But as I grew up, it became a special time more for the Christ of Christmas than all the other stuff. Oh, I still love all the decorations and the songs and the family get-togethers, but now I have a better appreciation for the true meaning of Christmas: the coming of the Christ Child. We can be excited about the fact that Jesus came. He left all His glory on high and became like us, born in a lowly manger so that He could make a way for us to be restored to the Father. Just think of it...the King of kings and Lord of lords came to earth as a poor, unknown baby in a little town called Bethlehem. He sacrificed all His power and authority for us because He is wonderful. As He lay in the manger, He was beginning a journey that He knew would end at Calvary. God loved us enough to give us His only Son as the very first Christmas Gift. (Jn. 3:16)

So as you celebrate the season this year, remember what all the celebration is truly supposed to be about. If you get a little stressed out by all the shopping and parties, etc., turn to the Prince of Peace for some much needed peace and rest. When you need someone you can confide in, someone who will listen to your hurts, turn to Jesus---the Counselor. When you feel scared and alone like a little child, just turn around and let your heavenly Father put his arms around you and protect you. He wants to do all those things, because He is wonderful!

So as you sing or hear "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year" and other songs of the season, rejoice in the fact that you know the One who is Wonderful! If you don't know Him, contact me and I'll gladly help you to accept the best Christmas present of all time. It will be the most wonderful decision of your life!

Merry Christmas!
Joey C.

What A Holy God!

Isaiah 6:1-3---In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple. Above him were seraphs, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. And they were calling to one another: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory." (NIV)
I Peter 1:16---for it is written: "Be holy, because I am holy." (NIV)
I've often wondered how we would respond or react if we could get a glimpse of the Lord like Isaiah did. When we realize just how holy He is, and how unholy we are, would we fall on our face and cry out to the Lord like Isaiah, or would we turn away from the Lord in disdain? Would we volunteer for the mission God had for us, or would we walk away with indifference in our heart?

So many people have no reverence or fear of the Lord. They don't regard Him as holy, or in any case, you sure don't see any evidence that they do by the way that they live their lives. Many don't feel that they need a relationship with God. They don't particularly worry about the afterlife because they think that they are pretty good people. Some have been mislead by the erroneous concept that their good deeds are going to be weighed against their bad deeds, and if the good outweighs the bad, then they will be able to go to heaven. They compare themselves to others, and say "Hey, I'm not a rapist or a killer or anything, so I'm a pretty good person. I'm a much nicer and better person than a lot of people I've seen, so I think I'll be okay. I'll take my chances when it comes to what's after this life, because God knows that I'm not nearly as bad as others."

They forget that Jesus said that the man who looks at a woman with lust is the same as an adulterer, and that the one who hates his brother is the same as a murderer. They have no understanding of how holy God is. They don't grasp the idea that if God is perfect in holiness (which He is), then we can't come into His presence because of our sinful nature. The best we could ever hope to do falls way short of the mark. In fact, God's Word states that "even our righteousness is like filthy rags" (Isa. 64:6) when we compare it to how pure and holy God is. We can never be good enough, or do enough good things in this lifetime to earn or work our way into heaven. Unfortunately there are many mislead cults that strive to do just that. They think that if they give a certain number of years of their life to witnessing or teaching or helping the poor, etc., that they will be able to earn what God has already provided through the only means possible: the sacrifice of His only Son--Jesus. Jesus was the only perfect man Who ever lived. He is the only One Who can give us hope of an eternity in heaven because He alone lived a truly holy life. No one else who has ever lived on this earth was without sin. Jesus alone met that mark set by our Father in heaven. Only by Jesus taking the penalty for our sins, could we ever hope to be reconciled with a holy God.

Let's see some of the scripture references to how holy God is from the New Living Translation (NLT):

• Ps. 77:13--O God, your ways are holy
• Ps. 99:3--Your name is holy!
• Ps. 99:9--for the Lord our God is holy!
• Ps. 111:9--What a holy, awe-sinpiring name he has!
• Isa. 57:15--The high and lofty one who inhabits eternity, the Holy One
• Lev. 11:44--You must be holy because I am holy
• 1 Sam. 2:2--No one is holy like the Lord!
• Isa. 40:25--"To whom will you compare me? Who is my equal?" asks the Holy One
• 1 Pet. 1:15--just as God-who chose you to be his children-is holy

There are also verses in the (NLT) which mention God's holiness:

• Ex. 15:11--Who is glorious in holiness like you
• Ps. 29:2--Worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness
• Ps. 96:9--Worship the Lord in all his holy splendor
• Isa. 5:16--The holiness of God is displayed by his righteousness
• Ez. 28:25--I will reveal to the nations of the world my holiness among my people
• Heb. 12:10--we will share in his holiness

As Christians, we are called to be holy and to live a life of holiness which sets us apart from the world. We are referred to as a peculiar people, a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation. (1 Pet. 2:9)We are to be a reflection of the goodness and purity of God. Here's some scriptures from the (NIV) that testify to that fact:

• Ex. 19:6--holy nation
• Ex. 20:8--Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy
• Lev. 20:7--Consecrate yourselves and be holy
• Lev. 20:26--You are to be holy to me
• Rom. 12:1--holy and pleasing to God
• Eph. 5:3--improper for God's holy people
• 2 Thess. 1:10--to be glorified in his holy people
• 2 Tim. 1:9--saved us and called us to a holy life
• Titus 1:8--upright, holy and disciplined
• 2 Pet. 3:11--holy and godly lives
• Rom. 6:9--righteousness leading to holiness
• 2 Cor. 7:1--perfecting holiness out of reverence
• Eph. 4:24--God in true righteousness and holiness

Let's think of that vision of Isaiah's as we consider God's holiness. Isaiah said, "I saw the Lord seated on a high and lofty throne, and His robe filled the temple." (Isa. 6:1)(HCSB) God is high and lifted up. He is holy and pure and true; before Him we are like nothing. Isaiah realized that when He said in Isa. 6:5--"Woe is me, for I am ruined, because I am a man of unclean lips and live among a people of unclean lips, and because my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of Hosts." God is holy and His thoughts and ways are much higher than ours. "For as heaven is higher than earth, so My ways are higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts." (Isa. 55:9)(HCSB)
When we come to the place in our walk with God that we truly understand in our limited capacity (with just a glimpse of His true perfection) how holy He really is, we should have a response similar to Isaiah's. We should get an increased and better perception of how utterly lowly and unrighteous we are in comparison to His perfect holiness. And then we should want to live a life that reflects those higher qualities of our Lord. We need to be careful to watch what we see and hear and say. We should live to a higher standard, shunning the wicked things that this world promotes, craves and seeks. We can only do that through the power of the Holy Spirit living in and through us. Remember that we are wearing His name, so let's strive with all we have to be holy, for ... HE IS HOLY!
Singing His Praises,
Joey C.

Thank God For What He's Done!

(1 Chron. 16:8-13) Oh give thanks to the Lord; call upon his name; make known his deeds among the peoples! Sing to him; sing praises to him; tell of all his wondrous works! Glory in his hloy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice! Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually! Remember the wondrous works that he has done, his miracles and the judgments he uttered, O offspring of Israel his servant, sons of Jacob, his chosen ones! (ESV)

This passage is referred to as David's Psalm (or Song) of Thanks. It is also recorded for us again in Psalm 105:1-6. In fact, if you compare 1 Chron. 16:8-22 and Psalm 105:1-15 you will see that they read almost exactly the same. Passages like this one are good to read this time of the year as we begin to reflect on Thanksgiving and what we're thankful for. David reminds us through this song to give thanks to the Lord and to make known His deeds, to remember His wondrous works and to tell others about them.

There's a great praise song that the choir sang during one of our fall Revival services this past September with Dr. Warren and Shane Mitchell. The song is by Paul Baloche and Don Moen and is called "Thank You, Lord". Let's read some of the lyrics as we think about being thankful:

I come before You today, and there's just one thing that I want to say:

Thank You, Lord, thank You, Lord

For all You've given to me, for all the blessings that I cannot see,

Thank You, Lord, thank You, Lord

With a grateful heart, with a song of praise

With an out-stretched arm I will bless Your name

Thank You, Lord, I just want to thank You, Lord

Thank You, Lord, I just want to thank You, Lord, thank You, Lord

For all You've done in my life, You took my darkness and gave me Your light

Thank You, Lord, thank You, Lord

You took my sin and my shame, You took my sickness and healed all my pain

Thank You, Lord, thank You, Lord

With a grateful heart, with a song of praise

With an out-stretched arm I will bless Your name

Thank You, Lord, I just want to thank You, Lord...

So what has God done in your life? What has He given you? Has He washed away your sin and shame? Has He taken your sickness and healed all your pain? Has He taken away your darkness through the brilliance of His light in your life? What about all the blessings that we just can't see with our natural eyes? Just as King David was encouraging the Israelites to remember all of God's goodness to them through His mighty acts of deliverance and the miracles He had performed while leading the nation into the covenant inheritance of their fathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, we need to be encouraged to reflect on what God's done for us-- in our nation, in our church family and in our personal lives. How has God delivered you through the terrible storms and Red Seas of your life? How has He defeated the giants that you have come face to face with? Has He stuck with you as your closest friend when others let you down? How has He provided for you and protected you through the tough times? How has He sent His gentle blessings of love, peace and mercy to you lately? We need to think on these things and be willing to tell others about them. We need to "make known His deeds among the people" with a thankful heart. As we really look at what God has done for us and how He blesses us continually, it's easy to see that God is good, all the time!

With a Grateful Heart,
Joey C.

A Godly Person Described

Lord, who can dwell in Your tent? Who can live on Your holy mountain? (Ps. 15:1)(HCSB)
This short psalm goes on to answer these two questions by briefly describing a godly person through how they live their life. By what they do and by what they don't do. I strive each and every day to be a godly man and to live my life accordingly. Sometimes I fall short of the mark, but through the power of the Holy Spirit I'm endeavoring to become more like Jesus.

Psalm 4:3 states that the Lord has set apart the godly for Himself. He has set us apart so that we will live differently than the ungodly world around us, seeking to honor God by pursuing godliness in all we do.

What kind of life should we live?
2 Peter 3:11--You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. (NIV)
Is godliness worth it?1 Timothy 4:8--For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. (NIV)
Do I have anything to gain?I Timothy 6:6--But godliness with contentment is great gain. (NIV)

What should I pursue in my life?1 Timothy 6:11--But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness. (NIV)

Let's take a look back at Psalm 15 to see some practical examples of how we can pursue godliness. According to verses 2-5, the godly person is one who:

• v.2>lives honestly, practices righteousness and acknowledges the truth in his heart
• v.3>does not slander with his tongue, who does not harm his friend or discredit his neighbor
• v.4>who despises the one rejected by the Lord, but honors those who fear the Lord, who keeps his word whatever the cost
• v.5>who does not lend his money at interest or take a bribe against the innocent

Verse 5 then closes the Psalm with a promise to us: If we do all these things, we will never be moved!
So let's take this picture of a godly person that King David has painted for us here in Psalm 15 and put it to good use as a guideline for godly living in our pursuit of godliness!
Singing His Praises!
Joey C.

Longing For God

As a deer longs for streams of water, so I long for You, God. I thirst for God, the living God. When can I come and appear before God? (Ps. 42:1-2)(HCSB)

Have you ever been thirsty? I mean really thirsty, like you feel as if you might keel over at any moment if you don't get a nice, long, cool drink of water? I've never been marooned in a remote desert without water or come even remotely close to dying of thirst, but there have been some times when I felt like that was the case. When I was just a wee lad (that's when I was a young boy), I loved playing baseball. I remember many times playing ball in the heat of summer with the sun beating down, how I would finish up an extremely long afternoon of practice (say maybe all of a couple of hours), and then hurry to the water cooler for a big drink. Man, water never tasted so good! It's funny how I would normally shun water for some Kool-Aid or a Dr. Pepper, but when I was really thirsty nothing could hit the spot like water. Well, okay, maybe Gatorade did. But the point is, when we're really thirsty, we've got to have a drink. And we will go searching for that refreshing liquid in order to satisfy our thirst.

You know, God wants us to thirst for Him like that. He wants us to have a continuing longing in our soul that only He will satisfy as a cool drink quenches our dry, parched throats. Usually when I read Psalm 42:1-2 I think of the popular worship song, "As the Deer", by Martin Nystrom. Let's look at the opening lyrics to the song which is inspired by the scripture verses above:

As the deer panteth for the water
so my soul longeth after Thee
You alone are my heart's desire
and I long to worship Thee

You alone are my heart's desire....Is your heart desiring God alone? Is your soul longing for the Lord, yearning to spend more time in His Word? Are you thirsting for a deeper walk with God and a more meaningful worship experience with Him? If you are, Jesus wants to quench that thirst for you. Look at these scriptures that point us at God's desire to satisfy our thirst:

Isa. 55:11--Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters...(NIV)
Jn. 4:14--(Jesus speaking) But whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life. (NIV)
Jn. 7:37-38--(Jesus speaking) If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him. (NIV)

So we know that God doesn't want us to remain thirsty, but He wants to satisfy our thirst. In fact, He says He will give us "living water" (Jn. 4:10). We need to continually thirst for the living God as the psalmist proclaims in Ps. 42:1-2 in the sense that we have an ongoing, ever-growing yearning and desire for fellowship with Him. And as the deer longs for a cool drink of water, we're always to be in search of those refreshing times of prayer, the study of His Word, and those moments in worship of the One who sits on the throne and gives us living water whereby we'll never thirst again. (Jn. 4:14 & Rev. 7:15-17)

Singing His Praises,
Joey C.

It's Good To Praise The Lord

It is good to praise the Lord and make music to your name, O Most High, to proclaim your love in the morning and your faithfulness at night, to the music of the ten-stringed lyre and the melody of the harp. (Psalm 92:1-3)(NIV)

Right now, on the dry-erase board in the choir room at The Ridge, I have Ps. 33:1 displayed for our choir members. This verse kinda goes hand in hand with the one above, reminding us that it is good to praise our God. Let's look at how Ps. 33:1-3 reads in both the NIV and The Message.

NIV--Sing joyfully to the Lord, you righteous; it is fitting for the upright to praise him. Praise the Lord with the harp; make music to him on the ten-stringed lyre. Sing to him a new song; play skillfully, and shout for joy. The Message--Good people, cheer God! Right-living people sound best when praising. Use guitars to reinforce your Hallelujahs! Play his praise on a grand piano! Invent your own new song to him; give him a trumpet fanfare.

It's good to praise the Lord! Why? Because He alone is worthy of all praise. And it's fitting for the upright to praise Him. I like the way that The Message puts it, "Right-living people sound best when praising." And it's not that we necessarily sound good, we might not have the best singing voice or even be able to sing in key (but God's not that concerned about those things); but we're at our best when we're assembled together, focusing on Jesus, worshiping together in unity. It's fitting for the righteous to praise Him, because when we're gathered in His name, He's right there in our midst. (Mt. 18:20)(KJV) It's good to praise the Lord because God inhabits the praises of His people. (Ps. 22:3)(KJV) So if God's presence is in our midst and He inhabits our praises, then we can rest assured that as we gather in His name and worship Him in spirit and truth---there He is. And where God is, there is love, joy, peace, mercy, power, truth, healing, salvation, deliverance, faithfulness, strength, forgiveness, life and hope. Wouldn't you like to be in the midst of some or all of these things right now? You can. Just send your praises up to God, and He will rain down His mercy, love and power over your life! I've always marvelled at how simply praising God can alleviate and/or disintegrate things like stress, depression and anxiety. Sometimes when I'm worried or stressed out about things I find that just singing a simple praise chorus or hymn will calm me down. As we focus our attention on God and His majesty, we get a better perspective on our problems and the worries of this world. As we praise Him, thinking on the eternal blessings He's poured out on us, His children, the cares of the world pale in comparison. That thought reminds me of the beloved hymn, "Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus", by Helen L. Lemmel. You'll recall the lyrics to the chorus of the song:

Turn your eyes upon Jesus
Look full in His wonderful face
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim
In the light of His glory and grace

When we turn our eyes on Jesus, giving Him our full attention, all that this world can offer pales in the brightness of His glory-- the true Light (Jn. 1:9), the Bright Morning Star (Rev. 22:16). Truly, it's fitting for the upright to praise Him and it is good to praise the Lord!
Joey C.

The Lord Reigns

The Lord reigns, he is robed in majesty; the Lord is robed in majesty and is armed with strength. (Ps. 93:1)(NIV)


Our God reigns. He is the Sovereign Lord of all! And yet, if we're not careful, we can lose sight of that truth when we see the state of the world we live in. When we see the acts of terrorism, the natural disasters, the economy crisis, the poor and ungodly decisions of our leadership in Washington, the senseless violence, the attack on our religious liberties, the way our culture continues to paint what's good and true in an ugly hue so that what's evil and sinful is seen as the "norm", then we have a tendency to forget that God is still on the throne. But He is! In fact, He's not worried one bit about all those things because He's still got everything well under control. The Word assures us that our Lord reigns and even tells us how and to what extent He reigns. Here's some scriptures from the NIV translation which use the word "reign":

• Ex. 15:18-The Lord will reign
• Isa. 9:7-He will reign on David's throne
• Isa. 24:23-For the Lord Almighty will reign
• Jer. 23:5-6-A king who will reign wisely
• Lk. 1:33-He will reign over the house of Jacob
• Rev. 11:15-He will reign for ever and ever
• Rev. 22:5-And they will reign for ever and ever

Here's a few passages that use the word "reigns":

• Ps. 9:7-The Lord reigns forever
• Ps. 47:8-God reigns over the nations
• Ps. 96:10-Say among the nations, "The Lord reigns"
• Ps. 97:1-The Lord reigns, let the earth be glad
• Ps. 99:1-The Lord reigns, let the nations tremble
• Ps. 146:10-The Lord reigns forever
• Isa. 52:7-"Your God reigns!"
• Rev. 19:6-For our Lord God Almighty reigns

There's no doubt in my mind that the Lord still reigns! The only real question is --"Does He reign over your heart?" Oh, He still reigns over all the universe, and He's still Lord of all, and He's still in control. But is He in control of your life? Have you given it over to Him? You see, although God is all-powerful and all-mighty and has the authority and power to speak the cosmos into existence, He's not going to force you to relinquish the throne of your heart to Him. He cares about you and loves you enough that He gave you the freedom to choose to receive Him or not. Only you can choose to give Jesus His rightful place on the throne of your heart. Only you can decide whether or not you will allow God to reign in your life as Savior and Lord. And we know, sadly, that many will not accept Jesus as their personal Lord, (I pray that you're not one of them) but everyone will one day acknowledge and proclaim the inevitable truth of who He is. Therefore God exalted Him to the highest place and gave Him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:9-11)(NIV)(also see Romans 14:11 and Isaiah 45:23) For many, it will unfortunately be too late at that point, because they failed to take self off the throne and give it to God while they were alive on earth.(please contact me via email if you would like info. on how to put Jesus on the throne)

I'm so glad that I know that my God reigns and will reign for ever and ever! (Rev. 11:15)He's the Sovereign God who made the heavens and the earth (Jer. 32:17), the One Who was and is and is to come.(Rev. 1:8) And we also have the promise that if we believe in Him and follow after Him, enduring to the end, that we will reign with Him! (2 Tim. 2:12) Isn't that amazing to think about! Praise His name--OUR GOD REIGNS!
Joey C.

Evening Worship? You mean Church is Open on Sunday Night?

(Psalm 134:1-3))(HCSB) Now praise the Lord, all you servants of the Lord who stand in the Lord's house at night! Lift up your hands in the holy place, and praise the Lord! May the Lord, Maker of heaven and earth, bless you from Zion.

You know, each Sunday churches all over the country have evening worship services. And I'm sure that the pastors of most of those churches are often disappointed. "Why?", you ask? Because these services usually suffer from poor attendance. It's seems that no matter what they try, church leaders all over struggle with this, because many of the people just never or rarely come to an evening service. I've seen some other churches in the area use bright, flashing marquis signs, advertising their evening services, as if to say, "Hey, look! We are indeed having church tonight!" But I know that the turnout is still not what it should be. In fact, many churches have switched to a schedule of no evening services or have meetings in home "cell" groups instead. Now, here at RABC, we have Sunday night services, although I often wonder if many of our church members realize it. (You sure don't see much evidence of it on any given Sun. night!)

Now you may say, "Wow, he sure is harping about this subject!" And maybe I am, but maybe somebody needs to, because I seem to remember a passage of scripture that says something like, "we shouldn't forsake assembling together, but encourage each other, especially as the day of Jesus' return draws closer." (Heb. 10: 25)(joey's paraphrase) And each day, we draw one day closer to the day that Jesus is coming back for His church!

There are several passages in the Psalms that mention worshiping or praying or meditating in study of God's Word at night.

We see in Psalm 92, a picture of worshiping day and night:
It is good to praise the Lord and make music to your name, O Most High, to proclaim your love in the morning and your faithfulness at night, to the music of the ten-stringed lyre and the melody of the harp. (Ps. 92:1-3)(NIV)In Psalm 77, we have a passage that shows the psalmist crying out to God in distress, lifting hands in worship at night:
I cried out to God for help; I cried out to God to hear me. When I was in distress, I sought the Lord; at night I stretched out untiring hands and my soul refused to be comforted. (Ps. 77:1-2)(NIV)In Psalm 1, we see that we will be happy when we turn away from the path of sin and the advice of the wicked and instead:
Instead, his delight is in the Lord's instruction, and he meditates on it day and night. (Ps. 1:2)(HCSB)
Now, I admit that you can cry out to God in worship and meditate on His Word when you're alone at home (or somewhere esle)as well as when you're at church; but these passages to me show an underlying desire, an unquenchable longing for God that should easily prompt us to make every effort to worship each chance we get in a corporate worship service with our church family where we can encourage and be encouraged by fellow believers.

Here's another verse from Isaiah that expresses this type of longing for God, a desire to seek Him in the evening:
Yes, Lord, we wait for You in the paths of Your judgments. Our desire is for Your name and renown. I long for You in the night; yes, my spirit within me diligently seeks You, for when Your judgments are in the land, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness. (Isa. 26:8-9)(HCSB)
We see other passages in the Old Testament exhorting us to study God's Word day and night. And again, I believe that we should do it privately--some one on one time in personal worship, prayer and study with the Lord--but also we should study and worship together. In Joshua chapter 1 we read:
This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success. (Joshua 1:8)(NASB)
So you see that we are to be in worship and in study of God's Word at night as well as in the day time hours. And I don't know about you, but ever since God saved me from an eternity without Him in a terribly horrible place called hell...since He forgave me and washed away my sins with the blood of His only Son Who died in my place on the cross of Calvary... since He gave me an assurance of my salvation and eternal life that only comes through Him, I just don't want to miss a single opportunity to praise His name and express my love and thanks to Him for Who He is and for what He's done in my life! How about you? When we have this inner desire to seek Him and worship Him and study His Word in the evening as well as in the morning, we can be sure that the "Maker of Heaven and Earth" will send down His blessings on us! (Ps. 134:3)See you next Sun. Night!

Joey C.

He Is Our Ransom

Isaiah 53:3-7
He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by Him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth. (NIV)




Acts 8:32-35
The eunuch was reading this passage of scripture:
"He was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a lamb before the shearer is silent, so he did not open his mouth. In his humiliation he was deprived of justice. Who can speak of his descendants? For his life was taken from the earth."
The eunuch asked Phillip, "Tell me, please, who is the prophet talking about, himself or someone else?" Then Phillip began with that very passage of scripture and told him the good news about Jesus. (NIV)



My old friend, Phillip Brooks and I wrote a song called "He is our Ransom" back some time in the late 80s or early 90s. We were in a contemporary christian band called Ransom at the time. We ministered to youth groups and area outreach efforts all around the area. I composed some music one day on the keyboard, and Phillip heard it and wanted to try putting some lyrics to it. So he took a recording of what I had played, and came back a few days later with the lyrics and melody to this song. He had taken much of the lyrics straight from Isaiah 53 which prophesies of the suffering and sacrifice of the Messiah. Worship the One who came to serve and give His life as a ransom for many (Mk. 10:45) as you read these lyrics:

(vs. 1)He was oppressed and afflicted but He did not open His mouth

He was led like a lamb to the slaughter

And as a sheep before her shearers is silent

So was the Son of Man

For He bore the sin of many and He paid the ransom for us all

(vs. 2)You are oppressed and afflicted seems like no way out

You're trapped in a web of illusion

The Man who paid the price is here to set you free

(chorus)His name is Jesus He is our Ransom

From all the powers of hell

His name is Jesus He is our Ransom

from all the cares of this world

For He bore the sin of many

And He paid the Ransom for us all

His name is Jesus He is our Ransom

From all the powers of hell

His name is Jesus He is our Ransom

from all the cares of this world

We used this song a lot when we were closing out a performance, leading into a time of invitation or prayer time. I remember seeing many young lives touched through this song and our music ministry. It was a great time of spiritual and musical growth for me. But the most memorable thing was, that as I was growing spiritually, I was coming to a greater realization of how much Jesus cared about me and how much He actually had gone through for me. And the verse that our band used on our banner became more real:

For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many. (Mark 10:45)(NKJV)

That verse now makes me realize that it's not about us, but about those we can reach and help in Jesus' name.

Joey C.

Praise to a Compassionate God

Hallelujah! My soul, praise the Lord. I will praise the Lord all my life; I will sing to the Lord as long as I live. (Psalm 146:1-2)(HCSB)

Compassionate. Could that word be used to accurately describe you or the way you act towards others? What does it really mean anyway? My dictionary defines "compassionate" as: having or displaying compassion. So, what's compassion? "Compassion" is defined as: sympathetic concern for the suffering of another, together with the inclination to give aid or support or to show mercy. I'm not sure that I could truthfully say that I'm always very compassionate. In fact, I'll just be honest and admit that I know I'm not as compassionate as I should be most of the time. But I do know one person who is: God. And He is actually three Persons in One: The Father, The Son and The Holy Spirit---all of whom are loving and compassionate.

You know, Psalm 146 gives us some examples of God's compassion, but the Bible records evidence of His great compassion towards us throughout the Old and New Testament. We can see it demonstrated time and again in Jesus' ministry in the gospel accounts. He was constantly reaching out to those around Him with compassion, touching and healing those who were shunned and outcasts, loving children who were considered bothersome by others, showing true concern for "sinners" who were ridiculed by the religious elite, cleansing lepers who were defiled in the eyes of society, caring for the poor and the hungry who many simply ignored. Even in the midst of some of the greatest miracles recorded in the Bible, it's clear that Jesus' compassionate heart is what compelled Him to do the impossible. In Matt. 9:35-36 we read, "Then Jesus went to all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and every sickness. When He saw the crowds, He felt compassion for them, because they were weary and worn out, like a sheep without a shepherd." (HCSB) So it's clear that Jesus ministered to the needy out of love and with great compassion. Let's take a quick look back at Psalm 146:6-9 and see some of the ways that our Lord is merciful and compassionate.

• vs.6--He remains faithful
• vs.7--He executes justice for the exploited, He gives food to the hungry, He frees prisoners
• vs.8--He opens the eyes of the blind, He raises up those who are oppressed, He loves the righteous
• vs.9--He protects foreigners, He helps orphans and widows, He frustrates the ways of the wicked

Here are some other scriptures to note which proclaim God's great compassion: Ex. 22:27, 33:19, Dt. 4:31, 32:36, Neh. 9:17,19, Ps. 51:1, 103:8, 145:8, Joel 2:13, Jonah 4:2, Rm. 9:15, James 5:11 And one of my favorites, revealing God as our loving, Heavenly Father, is Psalm 103:13--"As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him." (HCSB)
With a merciful God like ours, who is "gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, rich in faithful love" (Joel 2:13), it's easy to echo the psalmist and say: I will praise the Lord all my life; I will sing to the Lord as long as I live. (Psalm 146:2)(HCSB)
Joey C.

Two Ways: The Path of Sin or The Path of Praise

(Psalm 1:1-2)(HCSB) Happy is the man who does not follow the advice of the wicked, or take the path of sinners, or join a group of mockers! Instead, his delight is in the Lord's instruction, and he meditates on it day and night.


I love reading the Psalms. And each time I start over at Psalm 1, I'm intrigued by the two ways or paths that the psalmist contrasts. We have the way of the wicked, or the path of sin, and the way of the righteous, or the path of praise. When we look at the metaphors used to describe the righteous and the wicked, it always humbles me to realize that I'm counted with the righteous, not because of anything I've done or anything I am apart from Christ, but only because of what Christ has done for me and is doing through me. It also inspires me to continue striving to live the righteous life that God has called me to, realizing that it's only by God's grace and mercy that I'm not following the way of the wicked today.

As we can see in verses 1-3, when we forsake the way of the wicked and the path of sin, and instead turn to the Lord and the path of praise, praising Him by delighting in His Word and reading it, studying it, meditating on it day and night; God in turn blesses us tremendously. Look at how verse 3 describes the blessings of the righteous person: He is like a tree planted beside streams of water that bears its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers. (HCSB)

I love it! God plants us beside streams of water to sustain us so that we won't wither, we bear fruit when it's time, and everything we do prospers! Wow! The same can't be said for the wicked however, as we see in the verses to follow:

(v.4) the wicked are like chaff that's blown away with the wind
(v.5) the wicked will not survive the judgment
sinners will not be in the community of the righteous
(v.6) the way of the wicked leads to ruin

I'm glad that the Lord watches over the way of the righteous! (v.6) And I'm happy to realize that I'm that "happy man" referred to in verse 1 because of what Jesus did for me on the cross. He made atonement for my sins (and yours) once and for all, so that I don't have to continue following the way of the wicked. Instead, I can choose to delight in the Lord's instruction and follow the path of praise!


Singing His Praises (Ps. 96:1-3),
Joey C.

Enter His Gates with What?

Shout triumphantly to the Lord, all the earth. Serve the Lord with gladness; come before Him with joyful songs. Acknowledge that the Lord is God. He made us, and we are His--His people, the sheep of His pasture. Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him and praise His name. For the Lord is good, and His love is eternal; His faithfulness endures through all generations. (Psalm 100)(HCSB)


Have you ever felt that your worship seemed to be blocked somehow? Like you were trying to praise God but there was some kind of barrier up? I know that there have been times when I couldn't seem to sense the Lord's presence as much as at other worship moments. I was reading through Psalm 1oo the other day and it hit me that much of the time we may be struggling with our worship because we're trying to "enter His courts with praise" when we haven't even passed through "His gates" yet.


What do I mean? Look at what verse 4 says again-- Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise. Many times we may fall short in our worship because we aren't entering in with thanksgiving, with a thankful heart. We're sincerely trying to worship Him and praise Him in His courts, but we can't because we've been held back at the gates due to our lack of thankfulness and thanksgiving! I decided to title this entry "Enter His Gates With What?" because so many times we act like we've never seen that word before. It's as if we say, "Thanksgiving? Isn't that just the holiday on a Thursday in late November? What in the world could the psalmist be talking about?" We have so much to be thankful for, but it seems that our culture has raised us up in such a way that we're never satisfied. We're all looking out for number one, and we don't have time to acknowledge what God has done for us. We need to stop and realize how blessed we are, and take the time to express our thanks to our loving God. Let's take a quick glance at a few scriptures in the (HCSB) translation that speak of thanks and thanksgiving.

• giving thanks always for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ (Eph. 5:20)
• Give thanks to the Lord (1 Chron. 16:8, 34)
• Give thanks to the Lord for He is good. (Psalm 136:1)
• But thanks be to God, who gives us victory through our Lord Jesus Christ! (1 Cor. 15:57)
• Give thanks in everything, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. (1 Thess. 5:18)
• Let us enter His presence with thanksgiving (Psalm 95:2)
• I will offer You a sacrifice of thanksgiving (Psalm 116:17)
• through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God (Philippians 4:6)

It's clear that God means for His people to be thankful and to live our lives with thankful hearts. So I want to encourage all of you to clothe yourself with thankfulness and thanksgiving when coming to church or when attending some worship event. Think about the great things that your loving Father God has done for you in your life---like your salvation, forgiveness through the blood of Jesus, adopting you into His royal family, making you heirs with Christ, giving you eternal life, sending the Holy Spirit to guide you and comfort you---and then you can pass through His gates and truly enter into His courts and praise Him!
Joey C.

The All-Knowing, Ever-Present God

Ps. 139:1---Lord, You have searched me and known me.
Ps. 139:7---Where can I go to escape Your Spirit? Where can I flee from Your presence? (HCSB)





Omnipotent----Omnipresent----Omniscient
Three strange-looking words that describe our Almighty God. Webster's Dictionary defines these words like this:

Omnipotent: having unlimited or absolute power or authority
Omnipresent: being present or in existence everywhere at once
Omniscient: knowing everything
It's hard for us with our limited understanding to comprehend the total implications of what these words tell us of the character and attributes of God. I mean just think about it. God has unlimited power and authority; He is present everywhere at the same time, and He knows everything there is to know. It's hard to fathom! How can someone know everything and be everywhere at once? I don't know, but God does---it's easy for Him---it's just the way He is.

In my Holman Christian Standard Bible the heading under Psalm 139 reads "The All-Knowing, Ever-Present God." So the psalm is mainly speaking of God's omniscience and His omnipresence, but it also implies and testifies to His omnipotence. Let's face it-- if God is all-knowing and ever-present, then He has got to be a supreme being of the utmost power.

Let's see what Psalm 139 teaches us regarding God's omniscience and omnipresence:
vs.1: God knows us and searches our hearts.
vs. 2: He knows what we do and when we do it.
He knows what we're thinking.
vs. 3: He knows where we go.
He is aware of all our ways.
vs. 4: He knows what we want to say before we say it.
vs. 5: He encircles us and places His hand on us.
vs. 7-12: We can't hide from His Spirit or His presence.
vs. 13-16a: He created us and knew us before birth.
vs. 16b: He planned all our days before our life began.
vs. 17-18: His thoughts are great and vast.


Wow! God knew us and had our life planned out before we were even born. (v.16) He formed us and knit us together in our mother's womb. (v.13) That sort of takes the whole idea that the Pro-Choice movement likes to push on us, (that the fetus is just a lifeless clump of cells), and blows it right out of the water. God created us and He knows us. He sees what we do and where we go. (v.2-3) He even knows what we say and think! (v.2 & 4) It kind of reminds me of the old Christmas song by Gillespie and Coots, "Santa Claus is Comin' To Town". If you recall, the lyrics in the song say--"He sees you when you're sleeping--He knows when you're awake--He knows if you've been bad or good so be good for goodness sake." ---The difference here being that we know God is a real person. He does see us. Even when we try to distance ourselves from God and hide in the darkness, He is there and He sees. (v.11-12, 16) We can't hide from God. Wherever we run to in our attempt to flee, God is there waiting for us.


When I was a teenager I wrote a song based on Psalm 139. It was entitled "You Will See". The main idea of the lyrics was that no matter what we do or where we go, God sees. And He cares. He's not an omnipotent God who's just watching and waiting for us to mess up so He can zap us with a lightning bolt like the Zeus of Greek mythology. Oh, He is a just God, and the evil will reap what they sow. (Prov. 22:8, Gal. 6:7) But He watches over us with love as a loving father leading His children. He wants us to follow Him so that He can take care of us and keep us from harm.


I'd like to end this blog entry with the prayer which closes Psalm 139. I hope that you'll pray this prayer as you read the words:


Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my concerns. See if there is any offensive way in me; lead me in the everlasting way. (Ps. 139:23-24)(HCSB)


Joey C.

Found a Wife? That's a Good Thang!

Proverbs 18:22--A man who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor from the Lord. (HCSB)
Proverbs 19:14--A house and wealth are inherited from fathers, but a sensible wife is from the Lord. (HCSB)


To you husbands out there: (OK, if you want, you ladies can read too!)


Earlier this month, my wife, Lisa, and I celebrated our anniversary. I praise God for my wife and I want to encourage all of you husbands out there to do the same. I know that marriage is not always smooth sailing, and most of us go through rocky stages or bumpy rides in our relationships with our wives, but as the scripture above reminds us, our wives are from the Lord and those of us who find wives obtain favor from the Lord.

Now I understand that sometimes from a man's point of view it seems that our wives might be from the devil instead of from the Lord and that they frequently appear to be anything but sensible, but for the most part we would probably all agree that they are a good thang! I know that for me, I don't know if I could make it through all the stuff this world throws at me without my wife there to love me and help me with my struggles. There's just something about having a loving spouse to come home to after a really tough day on the job, etc.

It's especially blessing when our wives love God. In fact, all too often it's the wives who take on the role of spiritual leadership in the household and in our families when God didn't design it that way. But thanks to all those Christian moms and wives out there for stepping up and leading their children and their husbands when the man of the house didn't! Where would a lot of us be today had it not been for a godly mother or a godly wife?


A capable wife is very precious and beneficial to her husband. Look at this passage from Proverbs 31:10-12---Who can find a capable wife? She is far more precious than jewels. The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will not lack anything good. She rewards him with good, not evil, all the days of her life. (HCSB)


It's so great to have a wife that you can trust in, and all of us husbands need to do a better job of showing our love and affection towards our wives. We need to try harder to do the little things that mean so much to them, like surprising them with cards or flowers or a dinner date, etc. Do something unexpected to show her you still love her and always will. We need to remember to follow Christ's example and the instructions we find in Ephesians 5:25, 28-29---Husbands, love your wives, just as also Christ loved the church and gave Himself for her---In the same way, husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hates his own flesh, but provides and cares for it, just as Christ does for the church, since we are members of His body! (HCSB)


So let's remember that our wives are truly a good thang! And the next time they seem to be acting in a manner that to us is not sensible, just remember that you have obtained favor from the Lord, give her your most sincere smile, and tell her that you love her. She'll probably give you a funny look, you guys know what I mean, but she'll show her appreciation if you do your best to love her the way Jesus does.
Joey C.

Praise God for The Word---READ IT--then DO WHAT IT SAYS!

Your word, O Lord, is eternal; it stands firm in the heavens. (Psalm 119:89)(NIV)

Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path. (Psalm 119:105)(NIV)

The Word of God, the Bible is eternal. It was there in the beginning (Jn. 1:1), and it will stand forever (1 Pet. 1:25). As a nation, we are blessed beyond measure, like never before in the history of man, to have such complete access to the Word of God. We have many different translations to make it easier to read and understand. We have countless types of study Bibles, recordings of the Bible, electronic Bibles, on-line Bibles, and endless commentaries and study materials to help us in our learning. We have stores all over town that sell the Bible, and most of us have two or more copies in our homes. But how often do we pick it up? Once a week, on the way to church? Once a month? Once a year? Does it have a thick layer of dust on it? Can you even recall where it is?

I fear that in many ways we have become like the divided nation of Israel back in the days of Josiah, King of Judah. Hilkiah the high priest discovered the Book of the Law in the Lord's temple. (2 Kings 22:8)He apparently found it, meaning it had been lost for some time! Because of their sin, and the sin of the evil kings that had preceded Josiah (King Manasseh and King Amon), they had strayed away from God for many years, and even the high priest didn't know God's Word! He had apparently never seen it before. To his credit, when King Josiah found out, he repented and made many reforms, beginning to turn the nation back to the Lord. O how I pray that our president would come to the realization that we are in the place we are in as a nation because of our neglect of God's Word! What if Obama turned whole-heartedly to the Lord, and instead of putting God's Word down and turning his back on the Christian heritage of our nation, he would lead us to exalt the Bible and put it back to the rightful place of respect and honor that it deserves? Wouldn't the USA be a better place?

We have got to start spending more time daily in God's Word. The more time we spend in it, studying it, meditating on it, the more real it becomes to us. As it becomes more real, then it begins to change our lives. As it begins to change our lives, then we begin to obey it and live it out, and it will in turn impact the world around us for the building of God's kingdom.

Look at some scriptures that speak of and confirm the greatness of God's Word:

• Jn.1:1--In the beginning was the Word
• Jn.1:14--The Word became flesh and dwelt among us
• Heb. 4:12--The Word is living, active and sharper than any two-edged sword
• Matt. 4:4--Man doesn't live on bread alone, but on every Word of God
• Deut. 8:3--Man doesn't live on bread alone, but on every Word of God
• Isa. 55:11--When it goes forth, it doesn't return void
• 2 Sam. 22:31--The Word of God is flawless
• Prov. 30:5--The Word of God is flawless
• Prov. 18:30--The Word is pure
• 1 Pet. 1:25--It stands forever
• Luke 21:33--Jesus said His words will never pass away
• Matt. 24:35--Jesus' words will never pass away
• Eph. 6:17--The Word of God is the Sword of the Spirit
• Philip. 2:16--They are words of life
• Col. 3 :16--We are to let the word of Christ dwell in us
• Isa. 40:8--The Word of God remains forever
• Jn. 6:68--Words of eternal life
• Jn. 17:17--God's Word is truth
• 2 Tim. 2:15--word of truth
• Ps. 119:9--Live according to the word
• Ps. 119:11--Treasure His Word in your heart
• Ps. 119:89--Your Word is eternal
• Ps. 119:105--The word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path
• Ps. 119:129--Your decrees are wonderful, therefore I obey them
• Ps. 119;130--The revelation of Your words brings light and gives understanding to the inexperienced
• Ps. 119:140--Your Word is completely pure
• Ps. 119:160--The entirety of Your Word is truth
• Rev. 19:13--His name is called the Word of God
  

We need to praise God for the Word. We need to start living our lives as if we really believe that the Bible is the Word of God and like we believe what it says. One of the best ways for us to praise God is to follow the instructions in His Word. To be DOERS---not merely HEARERS. (James 1:22) I mean we can read the Bible, and say that we believe it all day long, but until we start living out what the Bible teaches us, putting it into practice, it's not gonna do us or anybody else a whole lot of good!

We read in 1 Sam. 15:22 that "obedience is better than sacrifice". King Saul decided He would rather worship God his own way than to obey God's commands. Because of that disobedience, God took away Saul's kingship and gave the kingdom to a man after His own heart--- a shepherd boy named David.

So to sum it up: PRAISE--READ--DO. Praise God for His Word--Read His Word--Do His Word. God's Word, the Bible, is real, flawless and forever. We need to understand how precious it is to have such great access to the Word, and try our best not to waste the opportunity we have to study it. We need to understand that it is truth and life and that we should read it every chance we get. But it doesn't need to stop there. We need to be a people, a church, a nation that does what God's Word says!

Joey C.

Never Stop Praising God

Teach me your way, O Lord, and I will walk in your truth; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name. I will praise you, O Lord my God, with all my heart; I will glorify your name forever. (Psalm 86:11-12)(NIV)
It is not the dead who praise the Lord, nor any of those descending into the silence of death. But we will praise the Lord, both now and forever. Hallelujah! (Psalm 115:17-18)(HCSB)

We like to sing Tommy Walker's praise song "Never Gonna Stop" here at RABC because it reminds us that praise, for the believer, is eternal. It's not just for the here and now, but the worship, the praising we do now is like practice, a warm-up if you will, for when we get to heaven. Take a look at some of the lyrics of Walker's song:

So I'm never gonna stop, never gonna stop
lifting up my hands to You, lifting up my heart.
When the last day comes and goes and time will be no more,
I'll be praising You.
So I'll never let it end, just begin it all again,
thoughts of thankfulness and love I'm always gonna give.
A thousand years from now before Your throne of grace and pow'r
I'll be praising You, praising You.

It's amazing to think that in a thousand years from now we'll still be praising our Father in heaven! And it's not just wishful thinking or a song that we sing; it's a fact that we can bank on if we have truly accepted Jesus as our personal Lord and Savior. Take a look at a few scriptures which assure us of our eternal life:

For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. (Jn. 3:16) (NIV)

I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life. (1 Jn. 5:13) (NIV)
After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. (1 Thess. 4:17)(NIV)

The term "eternal" is referring to not only a length of life, but also to a quality of life. Jesus came to earth not only to give us an unending life spiritually, but to give us what the Bible calls "abundant life." (Jn. 10:10)

As we follow after Jesus, worshiping and serving Him, we begin to experience the kind of life that God meant for us to have. We find the peace and purpose of life that only He can give us. As we praise Him on a daily basis, we're getting a little practice in for eternity where we'll be in His presence forever in praise and adoration of Him!

So as we worship the Lord, let's remember that He is the One we'll be worshiping through all eternity. Let's start to act like it by truly entering in to worship when we have the opportunity at church services realizing that our eternal praises belong to Him and to Him alone. (Psalm 111:10)
Joey C.

Musical Instruments In Church? Why Not?

Hallelujah! Praise God in His sanctuary. Praise Him in His mighty heavens. Praise Him for His powerful acts; praise Him for His abundant greatness. Praise Him with trumpet blast; praise Him with harp and lyre. Praise Him with tambourine and dance; praise Him with flute and strings. Praise Him with resounding cymbals; praise Him with clashing cymbals. Let everything that breathes praise the Lord. Hallelujah! (Psalm 150) (HCSB)

Two or three years ago, I was looking at some different websites studying about worship when I came across an interesting Bible study about worship and music in the church. It was a well-organized website divided into several studies on worship, and I really enjoyed reading through it until I realized that there was an emphasis on musical instruments--that is, that instruments should not be used in church worship services. In fact, the site went as far as to state that if you played instruments in worship services that you were in danger of hell fire! You can imagine how that went over with me since I've been playing piano and saxophone in church since about age 12! At that point I realized that the site was sponsored by the Church of Christ or someone proclaiming to be a member of the Church of Christ. I emailed the guy a couple of times and tried to express my concerns, but he just seemed to reply back with an attitude of "who gave you the authority to play instruments in church? How dare you!, etc." Now, let me make it clear that I have some good Christian friends that are members of the Church of Christ, and I respect their beliefs. I don't mean to condemn them, but only to express why I believe the way that I do. Most of them will say that they don't use musical instruments in church because there's no mention of them in the New Testament, and since we're no longer under the Law and the old covenant, that the scripture in the Old Testament, which specifically speaks of instruments in worship, doesn't apply to us today.


There's just one problem with that: I ain't buying it. I guess it's a good thing that I'm a Baptist! I believe that Jesus fulfilled the Law and the Prophets, and in that sense we are no longer under the old covenant, because Jesus fulfilled the requirements of the old sacrificial worship system which was in place in Jerusalem once and for all. But that doesn't mean that we should throw out all the old testament scripture about worship!


I know that most of the references to worship in the New Testament speak of singing, for example(Eph. 5:19, Mk. 14:26), but I don't believe that means we are only to use our voices in worship. I think that the N.T. writers had more pressing and important things to write about than whether we should use instruments are not. They may have just assumed that everyone knew that instruments were acceptable for worship because of what the Old Testament says about them. I think that if it was really that important (important enough that you might be in danger of hellfire) that God would have made it plain and clear. For example, I think that we would have several passages explaining that instruments are forbidden. Instead, what I find is that the O.T. has many references to instruments being used in worship and nowhere in the N.T. does it say that we shouldn't use them. Besides that, I believe that God is the same yesterday, today and forever. (Heb. 13:8) It would be a contradiction to say that God permitted instruments in worship in the O.T. and prohibits them in the N.T.! The Bible also says that God is not like man; He doesn't dhange His mind. (1 Sam. 15:29)

Let's take a glimpse at a few of the old testament passages regarding musical instruments and the instruments named or implied in the New American Standard Bible:

• Ex. 15:20--timbrel
• Lev. 25:9--horn
• Numbers 10:1-10--trumpets
• Judges 7:16-22--300 trumpets
• 2 Sam. 6:5--all kinds of instruments made of fir wood, lyres, harps, tambourines, castanets and cymbals
• 2 Sam. 6:15--trumpet
• 1 Kings 10:12--lyres and harps
• 1 Chron. 15:16--harps, lyres and cymbals
• 1 Chron. 15:19--cymbals
• 1 Chron. 15:20--harps
• 1 Chron. 15:21--lyres
• 1 Chron. 15:24--trumpets
• 1 Chron. 15:28--horn, trumpet, cymbals, harps and lyres
• 1 Chron. 16:42--trumpet and cymbals, instruments for the songs of God
• 1 Chron. 23:5--4,000 Levites praising the Lord with the instruments David made for giving praise
• 1 Chron. 25:1-- lyres, harps and cymbals
• 1 Chron. 25:3--harp
• 1 Chron. 25:6--cymbals, harps and lyres
• 2 Chron. 5:12--cymbals, harps, lyres and trumpets
• 2 Chron. 5:13--trumpet, cymbals and instruments of music
• 2 Chron. 7:6--instruments of music, trumpets
• 2 Chron. 9:11--lyres and harps
• 2 Chron. 15:14-trumpets, horns
• 2 Chron. 23:13--trumpets, musical instruments
• 2 Chron. 29:25--cymbals, harps and lyres
• 2 Chron. 29:26--musical instruments of David, trumpets
• 2 Chron. 29:27--trumpets, instruments of David
• 2 Chron. 29:28--trumpets
• Ezra 3:10--trumpets and cymbals
• Neh. 12:27--cymbals, harps and lyres
• Neh. 12:35--trumpets
• Neh. 12:36--instruments of David
• Ps. 33:2--lyre, a harp of ten strings
• Ps. 33:3--play skillfully
• Ps. 47:5--trumpet
• Ps. 57:8--harp and lyre
• Ps. 68:25--the musicians went after the singers
• Ps. 81:2--tambourine, lyre, harp
• Ps. 81:3--horn
• Ps. 92:3--ten-stringed lute, harp, lyre
• Ps. 98:5--lyre
• Ps. 98:6--trumpets, horn
• Ps. 108:2--harp and lyre
• Ps. 147:7--lyre
• Ps. 148:3--timbrel and lyre
• Ps. 150:3-5--trumpet, harp, lyre, timbrel, stringed instruments, pipe, cymbals
• Amos 6:5--harp

I find it interesting that several references are found about the instruments of David. Now I'm not sure exactly what these instruments were, but David apparently thought that instruments played an important role in our worship of God. It's also recorded that King Solomon, David's son, made instruments for worship. (1 Kings 10:12, 2 Chron. 9:11) You know, Samuel spoke of David as a "man after God's own heart"! (1 Sam. 13:14)(NIV) He obviously played the harp (1 Sam. 16:23) and even made or at least supervised the making of 4,000 musical instruments for use in worship. (1 Chron. 23:5) That's alot of instruments! How many symphony orchestras could you make with that?


This same website I mentioned also referred to church choirs being not biblical. While I agree that worship should not be a performance or just entertainment for the congregation, I believe that choirs can be "instrumental" (please pardon the pun) in leading a congregation into worship, and in exalting the Savior. As a matter of fact, you know the voice is a musical instrument in itself. And I found evidence in God's Word that choirs or singers are indeed important and can be a powerful weapon in worship:


Singers accompanied by musical instruments:

(1 Chron. 15:16)(HCSB) Then David told the leaders of the Levites to appoint their relatives as singers and to have them raise their voices with joy accompanied by musical instruments--harps, lyres, and cymbals.

(2 Chron. 23:13)(HCSB) As she looked, there was the king standing by his pillar at the entrance. The commanders and the trumpeters were by thi king, and all the people of the land were rejoicing and blowing trumpets while the singers with musical instruments were leading the praise.

2 Great Choirs leading worship procession at the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem:

(Neh. 12:27,31)(NASB) Now at the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem they sought out the Levites from all their places, to bring them to Jerusalem so that they might celebrate the dedication with gladness, with hymns of thanksgiving and with songs to the accompaniment of cymbals, harps, and lyres. ---Then I had the leaders of Judah come up on top of the wall, and I appointed two great choirs, ...


A Choir leading Israel into battle:

(2 Chron. 20:21-22)(NASB) And when he had consulted with the people, he appointed those who sang to the Lord and those who praised Him in holy attire, as they went out before the army and said, "Give thanks to the Lord, for His lovingkindness is everlasting." And when they began singing and praising, the Lord set ambushes against the sons of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah; so they were routed.

In the book of Revelation we have a scene from heaven, and amidst all the glorious sights, what do we find but mention of a musical instrument! (Rev. 15:2)(NASB) And I saw, as it were, a sea of glass mixed with fire, and those who had come off victorious from the beast and from his image and from the number of his name, standing on the sea of glass, holding harps of God. So it would appear that instruments are used for worship in heaven.


So to sum it all up, to put it in a nutshell as my pastor likes to say; I don't believe there is any evidence in the Bible to support the idea that if you play a musical instrument or sing in the choir in church, that you're committing some kind of unpardonable sin. In fact, I believe that God created music and musical instruments, and that He smiles down on His children who sing and play music for His glory and in worship of Him. I think it's a shame that many fine instrumentalists that I've known and grown up with belong to a denomination that won't allow them to use those musical gifts for God's glory! And I don't know about you, but I would rather be a "man after God's own heart" than someone who thinks you're going to hell for playing your trumpet or saxophone or whatever for God in church! If musical instruments were OK with King David, and they're OK with God, then they're OK with me! How about you?


Joey C.