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

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How could I miss that? The answer is usually because I'm not paying attention. Dennis Jernigan's song, "Thank You, Lord," might not be a new worship anthem, but it gives us a great structure to linger in some areas of Scripture we've covered previously on the podcast. It will do our hearts good to go back over some ground we've covered to see if there might be something we missed that we can turn into thanksgiving to our God.

Try a new technique to tarry in God's Word with new purpose.

On this week's episode I discuss:

• Taking a B.I.T.E. out of Scripture - this week's Bible Interaction Tool Exercises include:
  • The color method
  • Annotate
  • Define words
  • Pray Scripture
• Where I first heard this song (hint: it was a while back)
• Learning to linger by going back to sections of Scripture we've covered in previous episodes
  • Psalm 148 - Episode 244
  • Daniel 6 - Episode 245
  • Jonah 2 - Episode 246
  • Isaiah 26 - Episode 247
• Using this week's song as the structure for our study and the color method to interact with God's Word
  • for all that You've done
  • for all that You're going to do
  • for all that You've promised
  • for all that You are
• How God is splendorous - Psalm 148:13
• Using this week's BITE to help you pray better
• The law of God as a promise - Joshua 1:7-9
• Daniel with a heart of gratitude in every circumstance - 1 Thessalonians 5:17-18
• How what God has done, and what He will do, and what He promises, and Who He is are so tightly woven together it's difficult to separate the strands
• Summarizing what we're learning into a prayer back to God
• Recognizing that it doesn't seem to bother Scripture to declare God as One who both hurls Jonah into the deep and brings his life up from the pit
• Being thankful for God as
  • the Rock Eternal
  • the Upright One
  • Majestic
  • and the Establisher of peace - Isaiah 26

Additional Resources

• Lyrics and chords - Higher Praise

This Week's Challenge

Try these BITEs (Bible Interaction Tool Exercises) for yourself! Take four colors and print out Scripture with wide margins. (On this episode we used Psalm 148, Daniel 6, Jonah 2, and Isaiah 26 to coincide with four previous podcast episodes.) Underline what God has done in one color, what He is going to do in another, what He has pr

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As a culture we are not good at reality. We are good at hiding it, faking it, denying and escaping it, but good ole' reality...we're not so good at. This week's song, "Come As You Are" by Crowder, forced me to evaluate my own reality and reminded me of a lesson I learned recently.

Of course, it also sent me searching through Scripture where we meet a hopeless fellow often referred to as "The Prodigal Son".

In this episode, I discuss the following:

• A story about an artist and a beggar
• It's okay NOT to be okay
• "Necessary Endings" by Dr. Henry Cloud
• Awareness of hopelessness is what finally causes people to wake up, realize that an ending must occur and finally feel energized to do it
• The Lost Son and how he had to get to the place of hopelessness in order to make a change and return to his father - Luke 15:11-32

Additional Resources

• Lyrics

This Week's Challenge

Spend some time in Luke 15 and 16 this week. At the beginning of the section Scripture I read on this week's podcast is the phrase, "To illustrate the point further." Your next question should be, "What point?" We focused on the hopelessness of the Lost Son in this passage, but the purpose of the story is to talk about why He chose to eat with "notorious sinners!" He even told several parables to make His point and threw in a couple more to make some fresh point to key members of His audience -- the Pharisees...the religious elite. Read the parable we read on this week's podcast in context of all these others and it will really come to life for you.

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CLICK HERE for the episode guide to help you connect with Scripture through this song.
Can I give you some good news? God does not restrain His faithfulness. He doesn't hold back. TobyMac sings about it in his song "Faithfully," and David sings about it in Psalm 40.

Tag along with me as we explore God's faithfulness together.

In this episode, I discuss the following:

• Taking a B.I.T.E. out of Scripture – this week's Bible Interaction Tool Exercises include:
  • Study a topic
  • Read in context
  • Define words
  • Complete a word study
  • Share with a friend
• Episode Guide
• The story behind the song "Faithfully" by TobyMac - YouTube Video
• The variety of Greek and Hebrew words used to describe God's faithfulness all closely linked to God's truthfulness (veracity)
• Looking up the word "faithful" in the English dictionary
• Recognizing that faithfulness is an attribute that we should display (communicable attribute of God) - God is faithful, and we are to be faithful
• Faithful and True as a name of Jesus - Revelation 19:11
• God's faithfulness saves us from the despair of our own unfaithfulness
• Using the Psalms Explorer in my Logos Bible Software to choose Psalm 40 to study the theme of God's faithfulness
• Exploring the idea that God "inclined" to David - a state of engagement in a relationship - the Lord really sees us in our pain and wants to engage with us
• God is ACTIVE in His engagement with us - Psalm 40:2-3
• What makes this Psalm a Messianic Psalm - Hebrews 10:5-7
• David's response to the faithfulness of God - Psalm 40:9-11

Additional Resources

• Lyrics - NewReleaseToday.com
• The story behind the song "Faithfully" by TobyMac - YouTube Video
• Exploring Logo Bible Study Psalms Explorer - Webinar Replay on YouTube
• My favorite Bible Study Software - Logos Bible Software Affiliate Link

This Week's Challenge

Spend some time in Psalm 40. Look for God's attributes, specifically His faithfulness. Then, take a trip to Hebrews 10 to see Jesus fulfilling parts of this Psalm. Finally, follow David’s lead and share what you’ve learned with a friend. Don’t keep the glad news of God’s deliverance to yourself.

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How many times will you walk by a nativity scene this Christmas season? Are you like me? Have you become numb to the REAL story behind the figurines? This week's song, "Real" by Nichole Nordeman, reminds us of the REAL people in this familiar scene.

I hope this song will inspire you to take a closer look at Scripture and give you a tool that you can use EVERY TIME you read the stories of Biblical characters.

In this week's episode, I discuss:

• The tool of remembering that Biblical characters are REAL
• Al Andrews's short story, "Real - A Christmas Story"
• Luke 2:1-7
• What Mary may have experienced and felt
• Luke 1:28-38
• A closer look at Luke 2:7
• What we can do to ensure Biblical characters stay "real" to us
  • Read the details that are really there
  • Do a little research
  • Take time to imagine how you would feel in their situation and overlay that with historical details the character may have had to endure

Additional Resources

• Lyrics
• The story behind how the song came to be
• Article from ChristianAnswers.net on Myths About Christmas
• An article from CatholicIreland.net on the details of the journey shown in the Christmas story

This Week's Challenge

Read the Christmas story details in Luke and Matthew in various versions. Consider another "character" in the Christmas story and follow the three steps outlined in today's episode to ensure this character comes to life in your mind because, after all, they were REAL.

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Our God is a God who celebrates milestones. This week is a significant milestone for the podcast, and the song "In Christ Alone" celebrates an anniversary, too! Let's celebrate by digging into God's Word!

When was the last time you let your curiosity lead you down a path that led to greater insight? Let's explore Scripture together.

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
  • Consult an outside resource
  • Follow the cross-references
  • Define words
• The 30 Day Music Challenge
• 400 episodes - we've gone from 1 in 86,000 podcast in 2014 to 1 in 2,000,000 in 2021
• A little controversy around this song - Al Mohler's The Briefing - Part Three
• Considering the theology behind God's wrath being satisfied
• Being discerning in what we take into our lives as truth
• The various perspectives Scripture speaks about the cross of Christ
• Wrestling through the uncomfortable ideas in Scripture - John 3:36
• How we think about anger
• Following the cross-reference to John 3:16-21
• God's wrath is shown by honoring people's choices -- allowing their inevitable destruction - Romans 1:18-25
• This idea -- "God is not content to let people sit in their own self destruction in the Bible -- God is on a mission to rescue." - Bible Project Video
• How we are saved from God's wrath through Christ - Romans 5:9
• How the consequences for our sins was "satisfied" by the death of Christ - 1 John 4:10
• Propitiation and expiation - Ligonier.org Article
• An opposing view - Ian Paul Blog Post
• How God will absorb the consequences for our sin if we will stop rejecting Him

Additional Resources

• Lyrics - StuartTownend.co.uk
• Chords and links to the story behind the song (Passion's version) - WorshipTogether.com
• What is Propitiation? - GotQuestions.org Article
• In depth study on God being slow to anger - BibleProject.com
• 20 Year's Later - In Ch

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Change your music. Change your life. Join my free 30-Day Music Challenge. CLICK HERE.