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

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We serve a loving God. He helps us in our weakness, He causes everything to work together for our good, He gives us right standing before Him by taking away the sin nature we could never conquer on our own, and so much more. Riley Clemmons sings about this in her song "For The Good," but it all came from Paul's letter to the Romans.

Let's read this letter together. Grab a Reader's Bible, and I'll meet you in the letter to the Romans.

In this episode, I discuss:

• 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
• Setting our hope on WHO God is over what He can do for us
• How the Intitute for Bible Reading is changing the way people read the Bible - InstituteForBibleReading.org
• Immersing ourselves in the text of the Bible with fewer distractions - Immerse: The Reading Bible
• My recommended resource - Immerse: Messiah (the complete New Testament in one reading volume) - Amazon Paid Link
• Reading Romans from the beginning, through our focus area of Scripture, and stopping at a natural point
• How Paul uses a pattern of ancient rhetoric known as a diatribe - EnterTheBible.org definition
• Identifying the natural divisions in Paul's long letter to the Romans - "How to Read the Bible Book by Book" by Fee and Stuart Amazon Paid Link
• Seeing the law of sin, the law of Moses, and the law of the Spirit in Romans 5-8
• Three things the Holy Spirit gives us
  • a sense of new life
  • a new mind-set
  • a new identity
• How our suffering doesn't mean God doesn't love us or can't redeem it for our good and His glory

More Than a Song Playlist

Additional Resources

• "For The Good" by Riley Clemmons - Behind the song with Kevin Davis - New Release Today Article
• "For The Good" Lyrics - New Release Today

Weekly Challenge

Grab a reader's Bible, start in Romans 1, and read through c

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If the gospel message were a song, it would be "Thank You Jesus For The Blood" by Charity Gayle. The good news is that Christ's sacrifice covers our sins offering us eternal salvation.

Join me as we explore the Day of Atonement in the Old Testament and how it foreshadowed the "once and for all" sacrifice of Jesus.

In this episode, I discuss:

• Taking a B.I.T.E. out of Scripture - this week's Bible Interaction Tool Exercises include:
  • Consult an overview of the book
  • Read larger chunks of Scripture
  • Read and keep on reading by setting a timer rather than focusing on chapters read
• A resource for breaking apart this song lyric by lyric and pointing to Scripture - TheBereanTest.com
• Leviticus - The Most Exciting Book You've (N)ever Read - David Schrock Article
• The chiastic structure of Leviticus (so fascinating) - Meeting God in the Margin Article
• Consulting an overview of Leviticus before reading - BibleProject.com Video
• The Day of Atonement as the pinnacle of Leviticus - Leviticus 16
• The old system as a shadow and preview of what was to come in Christ - Hebrews 10:1-2
• Our redemption secured forever - Hebrews 9:11-12
• Our purification that leads to holy worship - Hebrews 9:13-15
• The purification of the tabernacle and Christ's fulfillment - Hebrews 9:24-26
• The "once and for all" nature of Christ's payment - Hebrews 10:10-11
• The scapegoat - Leviticus 16:20-22
• How the mercy seat was a picture of God concealing the people from the ever-condemning judgment of the law - GotQuestions.org Article

 

More Than a Song Playlist

Additional Resources

• Lyrics for Charity Gayle's song "Thank You Jesus For The Blood" - NewReleaseToday.com
• What is the meaning of the scapegoat? - GotQuestions.org Ar

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Have you ever put your trust in something or someone you thought would never change, only to have them change? With our God, there is no chance of change. God's immutability is one of His attributes that brings me comfort and joy every time I meditate on it. This week I use Sanctus Real's song "My God Is Still The Same" to ponder our unchanging Lord.

Join me as we explore various Scripture references that remind us "our God is still the same." Get inspired to read a larger section of Scripture in the book of Numbers where God makes his unchanging nature known.

In this episode, I discuss:

• Taking a B.I.T.E. out of Scripture - this week's Bible Interaction Tool Exercises include:
  • Use your imagination
  • Compare and contrast
  • Read learger chunks of Scripture
  • NEW BITE! Apples, Bananas, Coconuts
  • Ask questions
  • Meditate on Scripture
  • Storying
• God's immutability - the attribute of God that means He does not change
• The Immutability of God - Tabletalk Article
• How God cannot get better and better because He is unchanging
• References to God's unchanging nature
  • Malachi 3:6
  • Hebrews 13:8
  • James 1:17
• How God's unchanging nature should be a source of great joy for us
• An account in the Old Testament where God declares His immutability - Numbers 22-25
• How God declares His unchanging nature to Balak through Balaam - Numbers 23:19
• Balak "fighting fire with fire" by calling on the supernatural to fight the supernatural forces of heaven
• An episode of the Bible Reset where I learned a new BITE - Apples, Bananas, Coconut - The Bible Reset Podcast (from 23:40 if you only want to hear the new BITE...but I highly recommend the entire episode)
• One of my questions and how I discovered the answer
• Following the cross-references to understand the significance of this Old Testament account and how it is used to teach in the New Testament
  • Revelation 2:14
  • 2 Peter 2:15
  • Jude 1:11
• How Balak didn't need a supernatural curse to defeat the Israelites, he merely needed a temptation that cause the Israelites to invite a curse upon themselves - Revelation 2:14

 

More Than a Song Playlist

Additional Resources

• Lyrics for Sanctus Real's Song "My God Is Still The Same" -

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We often forget the people described in the Bible were real. Can I add, especially Jesus? We read of Jesus' triumphant victory over death and the grave in each gospel and His instructions to His disciples before He ascends to the Father. CAIN's song "The Commission" beautifully portrays this transition reminding us how precious His disciples are to Him.

May we explore the "end" of each gospel with a renewed sense of Christ's humanity, never taking our eyes off of His authority and divinity.

In this episode, I discuss:

• Taking a B.I.T.E. out of Scripture - this week's Bible Interaction Tool Exercises include:
  • Read in context
  • Share with friend
• How the "helps" in our Bible might actually distract us more than help us
• Glenn Paauw quote, "We have made it hard for people to just flat out read the Bible..." - DesiringGod.org Interview
• "Saving the Bible from Ourselves: Learning to Read and Live the Bible Well" by Glenn Paauw - Paid Amazon Link
• Immerse Bible Resources - ImmerseBible.com
• Elevating God's Word over words about God's Word
• "The Great Commission" - Matthew 28:16-20
• Examining "The Great Commission" in light of the definition of "commission"
• Sowing the seeds that have been planted in you
• Locating areas of Scripture to study mentioned in "The Commission" by CAIN (even better to read all of these chapters by backing up and reading the chapters leading into them)
  • Matthew 28
  • Mark 16
  • John 20
  • Luke 24
  • Acts 1
  • John 14
  • Revelation 1:18

 

More Than a Song Playlist

Additional Resources

• Lyrics for "The Commission" by C.A.I.N. - New Release Today
• The story behind the song "The Commission" by C.A.I.N. - YouTube Video
• "The Commission" thoughts on the song by CAIN (all three members of CAIN on this video) - YouTube Video
• "What is deconstruction? What does it mean when people say they are deconstructing their faith?" -

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We are the workmanship of a creative God. Our new lives in Christ are supposed to mean something. We are called to walk in a manner worthy of the calling on our lives, and God planned out the good works for us to walk in. Taylor Leonhardt's song "Poetry" led me to ponder this, and more, in Paul's letter to the Ephesians.

Join me in spending time in this letter, with a deep look at the profound transformation we experience in Christ and what it's all for.

In this episode, I discuss:

• Taking a B.I.T.E. out of Scripture - this week's Bible Interaction Tool Exercises include:
  • Read in context
  • Consider historical context
  • Consult an overview
  • Follow the cross-references
  • Mark up the text
  • Make a list
  • Meditate on Scripture
• Differentiating the art from the inspiration for the art
• Seeking to know more about Scripture to better appreciate the art created inspired by it
• The focus verse - Ephesians 2:10
• Reading the entire letter to the Ephesians
• Consulting overviews for historical context - Ephesians Bible Book Overview Video by the Bible Project | ESV Study Bible Amazon Paid Link
• Identifying the similarities in the culture at Ephesus and our culture today
• Following the cross-reference to the book of Acts to see Paul's experiences in Ephesus - Acts 19-20
• Studying our focus text - Ephesians 2:1-10
  • Marking up the text
  • Making a list of observations of our lives before Christ
  • Making a list of observations of what God did for us in Christ
  • Making a list of observations of our new lives in Christ
• Seeing that we are God's workmanship, His poema, for a purpose - Ephesians 2:10
• Getting inspired to go back to the whole letter to see more about how we are to "walk" now that we've been saved by grace through faith

More Than a Song Playlist

Additional Resources

• Lyrics for Taylor Leonhardt's song "Poetry" - TaylorLeonhardt.com
• "Are We God's Poem?" - Bill Mounce Article
• Introduction to Ephesians - Reformation Study Bible Amazon Paid Link
• "Free from Bondage God's Way: Galatians/Ephesians" by Kay Arthur - Amazon Paid Link

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We like choices, but God is an exclusive God. He demands our exclusive worship. More than that, he ALONE is our refuge -- all others are lacking. Both Scripture and Skillet's song "Refuge" remind us of this fact. Let's link our song to a psalm to meditate on God's Word.

In this episode, I discuss:

• Taking a B.I.T.E. out of Scripture - this week's Bible Interaction Tool Exercises include:
  • Consider the historical background
  • Start with God
  • Ask questions
  • Make a list
• The 30 Day Music Challenge - ACCEPT THE CHALLENGE HERE
• Behind the song "Refuge" by Skillet - Behind the Song With Kevin Davis
• Behind the track "Refuge" by Skillet - a message from Jon Cooper - YouTube Video
• Exploring Psalm 46 on a previous episode - Episode 233
• How ten psalms talk about God being our refuge, but we chose to focus on Psalm 62
• Looking up the word "refuge" in the dictionary and thesaurus
• God ALONE is our refuge - Psalm 62:1-2
• Making observations about David's enemies - Psalm 62:3-4
• Recognizing we have an enemy, too - 1 Peter 5:8
• Comparing and contrasting verses 1 & 2 with 5 & 6 - Psalm 62:1-2, 5-6
• Declaring truth AND praying for it at the same time
• How a city AND a life with broken-down walls is a disgrace - Proverbs 25:28
• David's exhortation - Psalm 62:9-10
• A final reminder - Psalm 62:11

Check out the official lyric video of this week's song below!

https://youtu.be/UAgc24Ae4HM More Than a Song Playlist

Additional Resources

• Lyrics for Skillet's song "Refuge" - NewReleaseToday.com
• "The Treasury of David: Charles Spurgeon Commentary on Psalms" - Amazon Paid Link

Weekly Challenge

Wait quietly before the Lord in prayer and meditation on His Word. Sit in Psalm 62 this week, making observations, comparing and contrasting verses, and pondering the fine points of this psalm. Pour your heart out to God in honest prayer. Confess where you have placed your trust in people or money (or anything else) and declare today that God ALONE is your refuge.

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We spend so much time trying to make things happen in our lives. The pandemic has shown us how little control we have on a global level. Elevation Worship's song "Graves Into Gardens" reminds us that God does transformational things -- and He's the only One Who can.

Let's use this song to send us to the words of a prophet and a king to learn more about our transformational God.

In this episode, I discuss:

• Taking a B.I.T.E. out of Scripture - this week's Bible Interaction Tool Exercises include:
  • Consider the historical background
  • Start with God
  • Ask questions
  • Make a list
• The 30 Day Music Challenge - ACCEPT THE CHALLENGE HERE
• My prayer for my listeners -- that God will give you an unreasonable desire for His Word that leads to an unsurpassable relationship with Him
• God, Himself is our goal, and our priority must be our Father and His kingdom
• Spending time in Isaiah 61 in Episode 282
• Our starting-point verse that uses the phrase "mourning to dancing" - Psalm 30:11
• Gaining historical perspective by consulting my study Bible - ESV Study Bible {Amazon Paid Link}
• Observing concrete details in the life of David, empathizing with those details, and translating that into worshiping God from the same place
• Starting with God by asking questions of the text that lead us to Him
• A trusted resource to teach us how to ask questions of the text - "Asking the Right Questions" by Matthew Harmon {Amazon Paid Link}
• Making lists of God's character, conduct, and concerns revealed in Psalm 30
• Discovering more transformations in Isaiah 61

We are righteous trees planted by the Lord to glorify Him and to be an example to the nations. God does that. And He's the only one who can.

Check out the official live performance video of this week's song below!

https://youtu.be/KwX1f2gYKZ4

More Than a Song Playlist

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There's a shortage of truth in the world today. Of course, the definition of truth seems to be up for grabs for some, but today we're talking about sincerity in action without pretense. Matthew West sings about this in his song "Truth Be Told." Jesus teaches about it in the Gospel of Matthew.

Spend some time this week examining the words of Jesus with an open heart.

In this episode I discuss:

• Taking a B.I.T.E. out of Scripture - this week's Bible Interaction Tool Exercises include:
  • Consider the historical background
  • Follow the cross-references
  • Utilize a trusted outside resource (like a commentary or Study Bible)
  • Read in context
  • Summarize the text in your own words
  • Ask questions of the text
  • Remember, the people in the Bible were real
• The 30 Day Music Challenge - ACCEPT THE CHALLENGE HERE
• Matthew West's story behind the song - YouTube Video
• The book Matthew West wrote that he mentioned in the video - "Hello My Name Is" by Matthew West
• The verse in Isaiah Matthew West refers to in the video - Isaiah 29:13
• How Jesus uses two metaphors to talk about what He thinks of being clean, put together, and FINE only on the outside - Matthew 23:27-28
• The historical context of why touching tombs would have been a big deal to Christ's audience - Numbers 19:16
• Why it was their practice to whitewash tombs - Douglas Sean O'Donnell "Preaching The Word" Commentary on Matthew
• Really considering the root of what Jesus is teaching and how it may apply to our own "clean on the outside and a hot mess on the inside" moments
• Zooming out all the way to Matthew 21 to see the context of our focus teaching
• Summarizing Matthew 23:1-11 in our own words
• Recognizing the seven "woe"s in Matthew 23
• Checking out another "woe" from the Old Testament - Hosea 7:13
• Hearing the "rolling thunder of Christ's wrath" in the text
• Recognizing the hypocrisy in our own lives and treating it with the weight Christ demands

Make no mistake. I don't think Jesus is going to give us a pass on what He is distinctly declaring as worthy of woe and judgment just because we're not a Scribe or a Pharisee.

Check out the official live performance video of this week's song below!

https://youtu.be/j4wYkS8Z3Io

More Than a Song Playlist

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There was a national crisis, and the king didn't know what to do. At that moment, the king had choices. He could turn to his own wisdom, the advisors of those around him, or any number of places for advice. In the Scripture inspired by Phil Wickham's song "Battle Belongs," the king chose to seek the Lord. May we follow his example...well, mostly.

Let's read the whole account of King Jehoshaphat's crisis in 2 Chronicles 20 and then read past it to see "the rest of the story."

In this episode, I discuss:

• Taking a B.I.T.E. out of Scripture - this week's Bible Interaction Tool Exercises include:
  • Reading in context
  • Storying
  • Sharing with a friend
  • Compare and contrast
  • Remembering the people described in the Bible were REAL
  • Prayer
  • Praying Scripture
• The 30 Day Music Challenge
• Heading over to 2 Chronicles 20 for the week
• How I've used this area of Scripture in previous episodes - Episode 151 and Episode 305
• Watching Phil Wickham take the BITE of "storying" this video - YouTube Video
• Not letting the "tweetable" verses in 2 Chronicles 20 distract from internalizing this Scripture
• Watching the king and his people go from a crisis to fear, to trust, to worship, to victory, to rest
• The difference between descriptive and prescriptive texts in Scripture - GotQuestions.org Article
• Using Scripture to shape the wording of our prayers
• How reading the "rest of the story" reminds us to finish well
  • 2 Chronicles 20:33
  • Matthew 24:13
  • Colossians 1:21-23

From crisis to fear, to trust, to worship, to victory, to rest. What a great account of God's might and faithfulness.

More Than a Song Playlist

Additional Resources

• Lyrics and chords - Essential Worship
• The Story Behind the Writing of the Song "The Battle Belongs" -

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What does Scripture say about the house of the Lord? That's what I set out to discover with Phil Wickham's new song, "House Of The Lord," playing in the background. The answer weaves through the Old and New Testaments.

We only scratch the surface, but let's see how much we can explore.

In this episode, I discuss:

• Taking a B.I.T.E. out of Scripture - this week's Bible Interaction Tool Exercises include:
  • Read in context
  • Explore a topic
  • Make observations
  • Slow down
  • Share with a friend
  • Follow the cross-references
• The 30 Day Music Challenge
• Phil Wickham's thoughts in the story behind the song - YouTube Video
• David's own joy at the thought of going to the house of the Lord - Psalm 122:1
• Expressing curiosity at the thought that David implies going to the temple, but it wasn't built in his lifetime
• The story of David's desire to build a house for the Lord and God's response - 2 Samuel 7:1-7
• A wonderful resource to explore the tabernacle and what all the pieces represent - "Made According to Pattern" by CW Slemming {Amazon Paid Link}
• Learning about the first dwelling place of God among His people...a tent - Exodus 25
• The presence of God filling the tent of meeting and some observations - Exodus 35:34-38
• God declaring that David's son would build him a temple - 2 Samuel 7:11-16
• Solomon beginning the building process in 2 Chronicles 3
• The angel declaring Jesus as the fulfillment of the Davidic covenant - Luke 1:31-33
• The temple as a house of prayer for all peoples - Isaiah 56:7
• Comparing Jesus and His new covenant to the copy and shadow of the old covenant - Hebrews 8:1-6
• Understanding that individually as believers in Christ we are the temple of the Holy Spirit - 1 Corinthians 6:19, 1 Corinthians 3:16-17
• Learning that collectively, as believers, we are the dwelling place of God as well - 1 Peter 2:4-5, Ephesians 2:19-22

Additional Resources

• Lyrics and chords - Essential Worship
• Behind The Song With Kevin Davis - New Release Today Article
• "Why didn't God allow David to build the temple?" - GotQuestions.org Article

This Week's Challenge

You have a lot of reading and observing to do this week! Head over to Exodus to read all about the tabernacle -- its design and purpose. Then read God's response to David's desire to build Him a "house" in 2 Samuel 7. You can read all about the building process of the temple beginning in 2 Chronicles 3. Explore the fulfillment of God's covenant in Christ in Hebrews 8. Finally, meditate on the truth sprinkled throughout the New Testament that we are the temple of the Holy Spirit -- both individually and collectively. We are the house of the Lord, and there's joy in the house of the Lord.

Purchase your copy of A Seat at the Table today!