Songs of Churchianity

A painfully accurate portrayal of what happens when worship is not about the glory of God.



When the "worship" service is all about one's preferences and singing of "God as my girlfriend," it certainly does portray the true nature of the heart. The modern therapeutic approach to Christianity certainly has created many false converts who view the local church as all about meeting one's felt needs.

Moral Dilemmas - Part III

Joshua 2:1-24

God sent two spies into the land of Canaan before the armies of Israel crossed as a group. The spies were necessary before the whole of Israel entered the land. For instance, the spies were necessary to gather information. Joshua was wise in seeking information prior to any action. Even though God had promised help in the conquest of Canaan, he acted prudently by gathering all facts before making a decision for action.

The king of Jericho received word that the spies had entered the house of Rahab. Believing “they have come to search out all the land” (2:3), the king summoned Rahab to deliver the spies. In the process of their military expeditions, these men were unaware that God would bring them into contact with a person who needed spiritual encouragement. According to the testimony of Rahab (2:9-11), knowledge of God was widespread even in the city of Jericho. Rahab knew that God had given the land to the Jewish people. Consequently, she acted on this knowledge and confessed faith in the “LORD your God” (1:11). It was the evidence of her faith that she was willing to hide the spies in her home, and even lie about their presence in her home in an effort to save their lives (2:4-5). God commended Rahab for her faith in hiding the spies (Heb 11:31; Jas 2:25), yet the lie was a sin of weakness. Her desire to help the spies was just, but her lie was not.

Rahab lied to the soldiers concerning the men sent as spies, while helping the latter to safety. There is a seeming moral dilemma: (1) obedience to the soldiers as representative of the city government of Jericho, and (2) recognition of the sanctity of human life by not bringing the spies to the soldiers of Jericho. It is clear that Rahab lied, and she is nowhere commended for her falsehood. The deception by which she sought to avoid all suspicion of assisting the spies was not necessary. Rahab was rightly convinced that God would give the land to the Jewish people; therefore, any opposition to God’s plans would be futile.

In the account in Josh 6 (cf. Heb 11:31), God blessed Rahab for her faith and how she treated Israel. God rewarded her in spite of the fact that she lied rather than because of her lie. God not only spared her life, but also her family. Scripture does not say anything more about the lie, but it simply records what was done. The one quality that resulted in God’s blessing was Rahab’s genuine faith in Him. The “scarlet thread” was the evidence of her trust in the promise of deliverance.

Moral Dilemmas - Part II

Exodus 1:8-22

Following the death of Joseph, “the sons of Israel were fruitful and increased greatly, and multiplied, and became exceedingly mighty, so that the land was filled with them. Now a new king arose over Egypt, who did not know Joseph” (1:7-8). The new king feared because “the sons of Israel [were] more and mightier than [the Egyptians]” (1:9). The first policy of the new king was to appoint “taskmasters over them to afflict them with hard labor” (1:11). The policy failed because “the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and the more they spread out, so that they were in dread of the sons of Israel” (1:12).

The second policy of the new king was to attack the children. Pharaoh instructed the Hebrew midwives, Shiprah and Puah, to kill all the male babies (1:15-16). It appears that the murder of the male babies was not to be necessarily obvious, but blamed on the difficulty of the birth (1:16). The female babies would not be a threat to the Egyptian dynasty, as they would likely serve the lusts of the Egyptians.

Moses told his readers that these two midwives had a fear of God, “and did not do as the king of Egypt had commanded them, but let the boys live” (1:16). Whether the midwives were Egyptian or Hebrew is not clear. The midwives, nevertheless, understood the law of God and knew it to be more important to obey God than man. Shiprah and Puah would not violate the sanctity of life. These midwives could not obey the command of the king of Egypt. The moral dilemma for them was murder of the innocent and disobedience to government.

Nowhere does the passage state that the midwives lied to Pharaoh. When questioned concerning their obedience to the king’s command, the explanation was that the Hebrew women were athletic and vigorous, and gave birth to their children before the midwife could get to them. It is true that slave women were not as delicate as the women of Egypt, but had well toned muscles to deliver their babies much faster than women who live a sedentary style of life. The midwives succeeded in answering Pharaoh with this explanation. It is possible that the midwives could have delayed their birth, which would have given sufficient opportunity for both Hebrew mothers and babies, following birth, to be taken to some safe place.
God blessed the justice of the midwives (1:20-21), and “established households for them.” The midwives opposed the unjust government, which had no moral basis to commit murder. God rewarded the midwives’ just actions of disobeying the unjust command of Pharaoh.

Moral Dilemmas - Part I

Genesis 12:10-20

Genesis 12 provides the account of Abram’s journeys to Egypt. God promised land to Abram and to his seed, but a famine resulted in Abram leaving the promised land. Abram went to Egypt to take refuge there until the famine had passed. The occurrence of the famine was to prove the faith and obedience of Abram.

The moral dilemma of journeying to Egypt is indicated by Abram’s fear that the Egyptians would be taken with the beauty of Sarai and kill him. The behavior of the Egyptians was certainly cause for a moral dilemma (Gen 19). Knowing they were a lustful people, Abram feared he would be murdered as Sarai’s husband, which would mean it would be free and lawful for one of the Egyptians to marry her. Abram’s resolution of the dilemma was for Sarai to say that she was his sister. There is a certain degree of truth in the statement since Sarai was his half-sister (11:29). However, the intent of Abram was to conceal truth and to deceive the Egyptians.

Based on the promise of 12:1-3, Abram should have trusted God to protect and care for him. One can certainly understand Abram’s fear but as a result of falling into unbelief, his actions were not just. It is probable that Abram did not understand the actual outworking and fulfillment of the promise that God had made with him. However, it was absolutely uncertain how Abram expected to keep his honor and possession of Sarai by stating that she was his sister. Being mindful of the promise of God, it would have been easier in Egypt for Abram to acknowledge Sarai as his wife.

The problem with Abram’s actions is that he should have never journeyed to Egypt. Though there was a famine in the land of promise, God could have supplied his needs (especially in light of the covenant with him). However, once in Egypt, Abram should have been mindful to not compromise his faithfulness to God. God could have protected Abram in Egypt so that Abram did not need to leave with the rebuke of Pharoah.

God had promised to raise a nation through Abram that would bring blessing to the world. Even though he acted in deception, God graciously protected the promise. The unjust actions of Abram could not deliver him from his deceptive actions. The account demonstrates that lack of justice is never a means to accomplish justice.

Even though Abram prospered from his injustice, his acquired riches from Egypt would provide continual problems with Lot, and then with Hagar. The esteem of God should be the most treasured possession of any believer. When the justice of God was not sought by Abram, the riches he acquired where a diversion from the glory of God.