Playing with organ sounds and harmonies.  Singing about finding Truth - about ourselves.

Find Out Something Real 12.26.2012

This is a song I put together with loops.  I am reading from many books expressing different joys of the gospel.  Some of the quotes are straight from the bible.  Some are commentaries on the bible.  

The scandalous quote I put in which says, "We have to learn, trying to do good is the worst sin of the believer" is from a Norman Grubb book called "God Unlimited."  Norman Grubb was one of the pioneers of Intervarsity.  The quote goes rather deep in explaining it.  I would say take from the quote whatever blesses you to apply it to your life.  For those wanting a theological explanation - Galatians 3:3 NLT says, "...After starting your Christian lives in the Spirit, why are you now trying to become perfect by your own human effort?"  The reason it's so bad is because of what Galatians 5:4 NLT says, "For if you are trying to make yourselves right with God by keeping the law, you have been cut off from Christ!  You have fallen away from God's grace."  

I would say this quote to me also means we shouldn't try and do good deeds from our own fanciful ideas.  There is a difference from good deeds coming from the heart and good deeds from us thinking - "I'm gonna do good stuff so I can be a good person."  I would say from much personal experience with the church, and also non-Christians who try way too hard to be nice and do good things.  There is an un-natural feeling coming from their good deeds and their 'happy' attitude.

The last thing I would say about this quote is that Jesus said, "Apart from me you can do nothing."  Many Christians are running around doing many things for the kingdom that God never told them to do or inspired them to do.  Living this way is a sure way to get confused about what God's "will" is for you or what you are called to do.  The reality we must learn to live from is Galatians 2:20 - "...it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in (and through) me."  If you think this sounds mystical and crazy - you bet it is.  I think it's time we start talking about the glory of the realities of what Christianity is - of who we actually are as new creations!

The part of the song that says, "He has taken me to the banquet hall," and talks about the house of wine is Song of Solomon 2:4.  Christians throughout church history have understood the Song of Solomon to be a metaphor between Christ and the individual believer.  When the commentary in the song says "the maiden" - that's you - the believer.  The interesting thing about this verse is that every other time the Hebrew word that the english translation of the bible translates "banquet" is used - it is the word wine.  Like when Noah was drunk in his tent on "wine."  So the question is what are you doing in a house of wine with Jesus?  I think there might be some joy.  (of course the wine is a metaphor for a spiritual reality - but then what do you think the spiritual reality is then?  Alcohol lowers your inhibitions - so you don't worry and stress so much.  It makes you happy.  Do your own interpretation of the metaphor!)

- Ben

Live Creatively Friends

Renew your mind and transform your experience of life.  Romans 12:2 (NLT) "...let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think..."  What does God actually think about you?  Is he disappointed because your not doing more for Him, or because you messed up?  What kind of experience of life do you think this kind of thinking will give a person?  I bet they are stressed, burdened and not free to be themselves.

You want a more joyful experience of life - start discovering the joys of the gospel.  And then experience it with some of your friends.  Talk about it with them, pray and talk to Jesus about it.  Like what does it mean that we are new creations who live in a whole new world of existence.  There are so many amazingly joyful things about the new covenant.

The line at the end "Your never gonna get anything accomplished on your own, so stop trying."  By this I mean many people are not living their lives in step with God.  They are pressing pressing forward to get much accomplished that they think they must.  I'm not saying that these things don't need to sometimes get done.  I'm saying that there is a place of peace and rest that we can live and get these things done.  When you press forward on our own strength and lose our peace and rest I guarentee you will be playing catch up for longer than if you chilled and took a few extra minutes to do the task you freaked out about and hurried to do.  Or if you just did a little less and could actually live in the natural rythym of life - in step with Christ within you.  you'll be playing catch up because the lack of peace, joy and rest that you feel will take you a while to figure out and change your mind and attitude and find your way back to resting in Christ...at least it always takes me a while.  Or the catch up you will play is to rest from your human energy and will that was exerted in front of Jesus.  It's kinda like Jesus takes a back seat while you run for a while.

Acts 17:28 - "'For in him we live and move and have our being...'" 

Did you know that the word gospel means simply "good news."  Like if I told you I just bought you a new car and I'm taking you on a cruise in the Caribbean - that would be good news.  I think as Christians we have some other definition of what good news is, and that justifies our lack of understanding of what is so good about the news of Jesus and him dying on the cross.  Yes going to heaven one day is going to be awesome.  But the good news is news now!  So what is it?  Honestly?  I'm not saying by giving you the example of a new car and a cruise that Jesus is going to give you any possession you want.  I am simply trying to give an obvious example of good news.  And the good news of Jesus should far outshine that example.  I'm sorry, but if you don't explain what the affect of Jesus dying on the cross for my sins is - then it is not good news.  It is a religious explanation that you learned in church to give for your belief in God.  There is so much bliss to the cross for now, not only because I have a ticket to heaven because I believe in what Jesus did.

Your belief determines your reality

So Much put Inside You

This is a practice at making an epic movie type song.  Lemme know what you think

Epic movie intro - July 4

My desire is to encourage people through music and spiritual leadership.  I hope to help people understand what great freedom there is in Jesus.  He did die on the cross for our sins, but what does this then mean for our lives.  Who are we?  What does it mean that we are new creations?  What is new about us?  I hope to be an encouragement for people to understand and experience these crazy glorious things.

Ben Bottke

Popular tracks