  I love Christian
music. Or perhaps I
should have said I love
most Christian music.
Music is a language all its
own, and adjustments are
often considered necessary
to keep the message
within the constraints that
musical expression
requires. Those adjustments
are referred to as
"poetic license,” and
sometimes they can be
problematic.
Poetic license
purportedly grants the
artist extensive freedom
to change things in order
to present the original
version in a different context.
For instance, comparing
a novel to
Hollywood’s version of
the story might cause you
to wonder if the producers
read the same book.
Characters you thought
you knew from the book
might emerge on the big
screen totally differently.
Scenes you enjoyed in the
book may be missing
entirely, and by the time a
Hollywood producer gets
done with your iconic
male hero, he might be a
seductive blonde female.
Some changes can be
inconsequential, but others
are not. Unfortunately,
only those who read the
original are likely to
notice--or care.
Our cultural proclivity
for applying poetic
license has made us complacent
with it, and that
can be hazardous when
the original is uniquely
authoritative. Poetic
license can result in
changes that damage,
obscure, or totally sabotage
the original author’s
intent. The Christian
music I referred to earlier
has more than a few examples, and we’ll get to
one in particular, but first
let’s consider a vitally significant
statement that the
Bible makes of itself.
All Scripture is given by
inspiration of God, and is
profitable for doctrine, for
reproof, for correction, for
instruction in righteousness,
that the man of God may be
complete, thoroughly
equipped for every good
work. 2 Timothy 3:16-17
(NKJV)
The term "inspiration”
literally means
that the Scriptures were
"God breathed,” i.e., that
the words themselves
proceeded from the
mouth of God. The
authority and trustworthiness
of the inspired
words rested upon the
fact that they came from
God and were thus
immutable and eternal
and not subject to alteration.
No latitude or
"license” to change them,
poetic or otherwise, was
ever allowed. Peter
described it this way:
...knowing this first, that no
prophecy of Scripture is of
any private interpretation,
for prophecy never came by
the will of man, but holy
men of God spoke as they
were moved by the Holy
Spirit. 2 Peter 1:20-21
(NKJV)
But what about
those who would hear
those inspired words and
then decide to proclaim
them to others? While
God offers incredible
blessings for dispensing
them, there are also serious
responsibilities.
Would-be proclaimers of
God’s truth were warned
that their work would be
judged according to a
higher standard because
of the influence their
words could have on others.
My brethren, let not many of
you become teachers, knowing
that we shall receive a
stricter judgment. James 3:1
(NKJV)
Given the devil’s
tendency to use deception
and subterfuge, it isn’t
surprising that the most
dangerous threat confronted
by the early
Church didn’t come from
the outside. The worst
problems were created by
those who claimed to be
followers of Jesus, but
who presented perverted
interpretations and pagan
philosophies in place of
the Word of God. Most
false teaching was intentional,
but sometimes
even well-meaning
believers inadvertently
misrepresent God’s truth,
and we must be vigilant.
For example,
there’s an idea that I’ve
heard in Christian praise
songs lately where the
singer is praising Jesus for
having taken all our
wrongs and made them
right. That may sound
good, but it’s inaccurate
and reveals a troubling tendency
to do what God will
never do. Many of us easily
reclassify things that are
unacceptable, sometimes
illegal, from wrong into
right. The premeditated
murder of innocent unborn
babies, for instance, has
now been proclaimed as
not just "right,” but a Constitutionally
protected
"human right.” And prostitution
has been deemed
"wrong” in America since
before our founding, but
now some states have declared
that it’s a "victimless”
act and sex-for-pay is
now an approved "industry.”
Apparently the fact
that this "industry” enslaves
untold thousands,
destroys relationships, and
helps to condemn souls to
an eternity without hope
doesn’t matter. Misguided
and foolish legislators decided
that what is wrong
and criminal on so many
levels is now considered
neither.
Things that God
has judged to be wrong are
forever wrong and cannot
be made right. Jesus didn’t
endure the cross to make
wrong things right. He did
it to take our history of
wrongs away from us and
accept them, along with
their awful penalty, as His
own. Jesus didn’t reclassify
my wrong things into
right. In His great love for
each of us, He did something
far better. He took
them upon Himself and
away from me forever. In
their place, He gave me a
new birth, a new identity, a
clean and brand new
record, and secured a forever
future where wrongs
don’t exist anymore because
they’ve been
cleansed and removed by
His precious blood and
will never be found again.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
In addition to being
an active writer, speaker,
teacher, and blogger, Ron
Gallagher serves in a variety
of roles as a ministry consultant
for local churches.
His Biblical insights are
coupled with down-to-earth
humor, satire, and relevant
stories aimed at promoting "Right Side Up Thinking ~
in an Upside Down World.” Ron strives to apply God’s
truth in a way that stimulates
the mind, encourages
the heart, and challenges the
cultural norm. Check out his
blog, "Gallagher’s Pen” at
www.gallagherspen.com
NEW BOOK . . .Ron’s new book, Right
Side Up Thinking in an
Upside Down World ~ Looking at the
World through the Lens
of Biblical Truth, is now
available on Amazon and
through Lighthouse Bible
Studies. Learn more at http://bit.ly/2IDsNpB |
