More Than a Song - Discovering the Truth of Scripture Hidden in Today's Popular Christian Music

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In his song "Good Lord," David Leonard sings about looking back to see all that God has done, which provides the foundation for his declaration about the goodness of God. This is a celebrated practice throughout Scripture.

This week we soak in a Psalm of Remembrance and learn the value of remembering and rehearsing the goodness of God.

In this episode, I discuss the following:

• Taking a B.I.T.E. out of Scripture – this week's Bible Interaction Tool Exercises include:
  • Read in context
  • Listen to an audio version of the text
  • Read aloud
  • Repetition
  • Make a list
  • Start with God
  • Follow the cross-references
• Looking for the songwriter's purpose - Psalm 78:1-4
• The types of Psalms found in Scripture
• Psalm 78 as a didactic psalm - intended to instruct
• Reasons to teach our children/others the truths of Scripture - Psalm 78:5-8
• Following the cross-references to the historical narrative summarized in Psalm 78
• Three times the psalmist highlights the people testing God - Psalm 78:18, Psalm 78:41, Psalm 78:56)
• How when we test God in our hearts, it often comes from a false narrative
• The root of the testing was unbelief and a lack of trust in His saving power - Psalm 78:21-22
• Another reason the people tested God -- they did not remember His power or the day when He redeemed them - Psalm 78:40-42
• A warning to remind us that remembering what God has done is not enough - Psalm 78:35-37

Why did they test God? Because they did not remember His power or the day when He redeemed them.

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There is comfort and conviction in the idea that we are perfectly loved by God. We can learn about God's perfect love in Scripture and then use Rachael Lampa's song "Perfectly Loved" to remind us of what we've studied.

Let's contemplate this area of Scripture together using a meditative practice.

In this episode, I discuss the following:

• Taking a B.I.T.E. out of Scripture – this week's Bible Interaction Tool Exercises include:
  • Pray
  • Repetition
  • Read the text aloud
  • Listen to contemplative music as you meditate
  • Slow down
  • One word
  • Meditate on God's Word
  • Consider the opposite
  • Follow the cross-references
  • Pray Scripture
• Following the Lectio Devina workflow in Logos Bible Software
• Stretching yourself by trying something new but giving yourself grace in the process
• Start by asking God to guide your time in His Word
• The next step is the "lectio" part of Lectio Devina (which means Divine Reading) - lectio means "reading" in Latin - 1 John 4:15-19
• Write down words or phrases that jump out at you - I wrote:
  • ??because as he is, so also are we in this world??
  • fear has to do with punishment
  • love gives us confidence
  • love perfected WITH us...interesting word choice...WITH
  • we love because he first loved us - my blog post I promised to link to
• Take the next step of meditating on the passage and the words and phrases that jumped out at you - my thoughts included:
  • It's all about abiding - 1 John 4:15-16
  • My love is perfected for what purpose? - 1 John 4:17
  • Chasing cross-references - 1 John 3:1, 2 Peter 2
  • God's perfect love provides relationship and rescue
  • What does "perfect" really mean? -

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One of the main reasons listeners give for not reading the Bible for themselves is distraction. I'm right there with you. I can't tell you the number of times I pick up my phone to do something, and my notifications send me off on the trail of distraction that leads to forgetting what I wanted to do on my phone in the first place. Sean Curran's song "All Praise" reminds us to fix our eyes on God. This is to turn our attention to Him and His ways.

Let's explore three Scripture areas that tell us what to fix our eyes on.

In this episode, I discuss the following:

• Taking a B.I.T.E. out of Scripture – this week's Bible Interaction Tool Exercises include:
  • Read in context
  • Make a list
  • Meditate on Scripture
• Passion Conferences and the longevity of them - Isaiah 26:8
• A response to the public recitation of God's Word
• A previous episode on fixing our eyes - Episode 331
• Fixing our eyes on Jesus - Hebrews 12:2
  • Noting the amount of unseen and unknown things people of faith persisted in - Hebrews 11
  • Seeing with Spiritual eyes - Hebrews 11:3
  • Making a list of things to do - Hebrews 12
  • The results of Jesus as our example
• Fixing our eyes on the commandments of God - Psalm 119:6-7
  • Making a list of reactions to God's Word - Psalm 119:1-8
  • The results of walking in, keeping, and seeking God's Word in your life
• Fixing our eyes on eternal, unseen things - 2 Corinthians 4:18
  • The veil of the Old Testament - Exodus 34
  • The veil of the New Testament - 2 Corinthians 3
  • The light of Christ causing us to see - 2 Corinthians 4:6
• Jesus' teaching on how we gain sight - John 3

Your marching orders are to fix your eyes on the example of Christ, fix your eyes on the life giving Word of God, and don’t get distracted by the things we can see, but rather fix our eyes o

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It's a new year, and God longs for you to sit with Him in His Word. He wants to reveal Himself to you. He wants to unveil the mystery of His plan for His chosen people. God wants you to desire Him above all else. And He wants you to look like Him. This week we'll fill your toolbox with Bible Interaction Tool Exercises you can put into practice this year. Rather than being inspired by a song to study, I found one that reflected my study.

Join me in the lyrics of Psalm 73 (both by Asaph and ForeverBeSure), and let's put these BITEs into practice this week.

In this episode, I discuss the following:

• Taking a B.I.T.E. out of Scripture – this week's Bible Interaction Tool Exercises include: 
  • Read in context
  • Repetition
  • Meditation
  • Follow the cross-references
  • Read in various translations
  • Make a list
  • Start with God
  • Historical context
  • Define words
  • Share with a friend
  • Listen to an audio version
  • Pray
  • Pray Scripture
  • Read the text aloud
  • Remember, the people described in the Bible were REAL
• "Hinds' Feet on High Places" by Hannah Hurnard - Amazon Paid Link
• Hannah Hurnard's struggle with reading God's Word and how she overcame it
• Using each BITE to study Psalm 73
• Using "Psalm 73" by ForeverBeSure to reflect on what you've studied 

Additional Resources

• Lyrics and sheet music for "Psalm 73" by ForeverBeSure - ForeverBeSure.com
• My new favorite Bible Study Software - Logos Bible Software Affiliate Link

This Week's Challenge

Download the list of 15 Bible Interaction Tool Exercises and pull out Psalm 73 and apply these BITEs. Give yourself permission to do this over time, or pick and choose the BITEs you haven't tried before.

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Purchase your copy of A Seat at the Table today!

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Reading familiar Scriptures from a fresh perspective helps God's Word come alive for me. Katy Nichole's Christmas song "O What A King" is sung from Mary's perspective and caused me to revisit the details of Christ's birth with her in mind.

Let's read these familiar passages together again with a new emphasis.

In this episode, I discuss the following:

• Taking a B.I.T.E. out of Scripture – this week's Bible Interaction Tool Exercises include:
  • Remembering people described in the Bible were real
  • Start with God
  • Make a list
  • Compare and contrast
  • Consult an overview
• Recognizing while we are focusing on Mary's story this week, the GRAND story is always about Jesus
• Rereading the Christmas account with an emphasis on Mary's perspective
• A question every believer can ask is, "Who am I that you would choose me?" - Psalm 8:4
• Identifying a very human response to an angel speaking Mary's name
• Making a list of Mary's responses
• Meditating on Mary's song - Luke 1:46-55
• Consulting an overview of Luke 1-2 - BibleProject.com
• Comparing and contrasting Mary's song in Luke to Hannah's song in 1 Samuel 2
• The idea that while Mary wasn't quoting the Old Testament, she was so steeped in Scripture that it was a natural overflow
• Allowing this song to be a poetic rendering, but also recognizing that Mary may have known what a gift Jesus was, but was also human enough to forget from time to time

May we be so steeped in Scripture that our thoughts and words overflow with the very words and thoughts of God.

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During the Christmas season, it's easy to think the story of Christ begins at His birth. The truth is that Jesus is eternal, and His role in humanity and creation is worth meditating on. Michael W. Smith's song "God With God" provides a perfect roadmap to interact with God's Word this week.

Let's consider what Scripture teaches us about Christ's role leading up to that holy night.

In this episode, I discuss the following:

• Taking a B.I.T.E. out of Scripture – this week's Bible Interaction Tool Exercises include:
  • Exploring a theme
  • Meditate on Scripture
  • Consider an outside resource
• Jesus is "God With God" as in our lyrics - John 1:1-2
• Jesus existed before the foundation of the world - Ephesians 1:304
• Jesus is a member of the Trinity
• Defining the Trinity - Wayne Grudem's Systematic Theology - Amazon Paid Link
• Jesus is pure and perfect - Hebrews 5:9
• Jesus is satisfied and with no need - Acts 17:24-25
• Jesus is not dependent upon anything for existence but has eternally existed without any external or prior cause (Aseity) - "Pocket Dictionary of Theological Terms" - Amazon Paid Link
• Jesus is an uncreated deity - Colossians 1:15-17
• God with God now God with us - Matthew 1:18-23
• The night of Jesus' birth was planned - Galatians 4:4-5
• Jesus is a gift of grace and love - John 1:14, Titus 2:11

The reason I am so moved by this song is that it encourages us to take a step back from the Christmas account and realize Jesus’ story doesn’t start in the manger.

• Lyrics - NewReleaseToday.com

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There is such a sense of expectancy in the Christmas season. We hope our gifts for others are “just right,” we hope everyone gets along at our various gatherings, we hope to make lasting and meaningful memories, and sometimes we hope for that perfect gift. Before Jesus came the first time, all of creation hoped for God to send the One that would rescue the world. Kari Jobe’s song, “When Hope Came Down,” calls us to examine Christ, who “came down” to do the will of the Father.

You and I are included in Father God’s plan. This week we see the express purpose of Hope coming down.

In this episode, I discuss the following:

• Taking a B.I.T.E. out of Scripture – this week’s Bible Interaction Tool Exercises include:
  • Repetition
  • Reading in a variety of translations
  • Listening to an audio version of Scripture
  • Reading aloud
  • Sharing with friends
  • Asking questions
• The account of the angels lifting up their voices  – Luke 2:1-21
• The desperate plea for God to “rend the heavens and come down” – Isaiah 64:1
• Jesus declares that he “came down from heaven” – John 6:38
• Jesus gets to the heart of the motives of the people – John 6:25-27
• Matthew Henry’s commentary comments that the people weren’t seeking good doctrine, but full bellies
• Jesus’ challenge to us to focus on the eternal, not the temporal – John 6:27
• The people’s limited understanding of the purpose of manna from heaven – John 6:25-31

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There is a long-held practice in teaching biblical theology. It uses questions and answers to help the student remember the foundations of their faith. Shane & Shane sing a traditional Christmas hymn that asks and answers an important question, "What Child Is This?"

Many people in the life of Jesus asked this question (or something similar to it), and this week we set out in the book of Luke to make a list of answers we can refer back to in our own faith walk.

In this week's episode, I discuss the following:

• Taking a B.I.T.E. out of Scripture - this week's Bible Interaction Tool Exercises include:
  • Read in context
  • Read and keep on reading
  • Make a list
  • Historical context
• What child is this?
  • The angel Gabriel's answer - Luke 1:30-35
  • The angel's answer to the shepherds - Luke 2:10-12
  • Jesus' answer to his parents - Luke 2:41-52
  • Jesus' answer to his hometown synagogue - Luke 4:16-30
  • Jesus' response to the Pharisees and scribes - Luke 5:17-26; Luke 7:36-50
  • Jesus' response to his disciples - Luke 8:22-25
  • Peter's answer - Luke 9:20
  • God's answer - Luke 9:35
• An alternate question -- what is this word? - Luke 4:36
• A scene we discussed at length in Episode 446
• How Herod represents how some answer this question, "what child is this?" - Luke 9:7-9
• The historical context around Herod, the tetrarch - The Lexham Bible Dictionary - Logos Affiliate Link
• "A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher." C.S. Lewis quote from "Mere Christianity" - Amazon Paid Link

"Many people keep asking 'what child is this' and they have enough information to declare an answer that moves them to action, but rather they are like Herod who hears about Jesus and talks about Jesus, but will not follow Jesus."

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• Lyrics - NewReleaseToday.com
• "What is Advent and How is it Celebrated?" - Bible Project
• My new favorite Bible Study Software -

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Have you ever experienced deep darkness? I'm talking about the kind of darkness that envelops you so tightly it affects your breathing. That only begins to scratch the surface of the depth of darkness we are in without the light of Christ. In their song "Then Christ Came," MercyMe sings of that light and how He took our sins away.

I took on the first letter of John this week to see exactly how Christ's coming should (and should not) be reflected in our lives.

In this week's episode, I discuss the following:

• Taking a B.I.T.E. out of Scripture - this week's Bible Interaction Tool Exercises include:
  • Read in context
  • Repetition
  • Consult an overview
  • Compare and contrast
• When Christ came, He changed everything - 1 John 3:5
• A plan for reading 1 John several times over several days as a foundation for future study
• Two words that jumped out at me -- "abide" and "sinning"
• Marking up my favorite Scripture journal with my favorite Bible highlighters - ESV Illuminated Scripture Journal Amazon Paid Link - Daily Grace Co Bible Highlighters
• The struggle against jumping to study notes or a commentary too soon in the Bible interaction process
• The focus area of study - 1 John 2:28-3:10
• Comparing and contrasting the 3 "abide"s and the 7 "sinning"s found in our focus section
• Bible Sense Lexicon discussion on the word "confidence" found in 1 John 2:28 - Logos Bible Software Example
• When Christ came, He came to "take away" sin, not re-categorize it - 1 John 3:5
• Don't sin, but if you do... - 1 John 2:1
• If you live a life excusing a pattern of practicing sin, you aren't a child a God (I didn't say it...God did) - 1 John 3:6, Matthew 7:21-23

There are deceivers out there trying to water down your faith-walk. Be on guard and let the truth of Scripture guard you and guide you.

• Lyrics - NewReleaseToday.com
• The story behind the song "Then Christ Came" by MercyMe - <

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