Dan_10:13 But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty days: but, lo, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me; and I remained there with the kings of Persia.
2Co_4:4 In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.
Eph_6:12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
In this article I have chosen to bring a gentle reminder to the bretheren, to those that have accepted Christ, a reminder that there is truly a world which is invisible to the naked eye. In this world where there are so many voices crying out to be heard, and so much media to carry them, we are not best served by spiritual blindness and deafness. Indeed the "perilous" last days are upon us and the enemy is moving his agenda with greater zest. It is with this in mind that I bring to remembrance the passages of scripture above. Fights were taking place in the realm of the spirit, fights for territory and fights against Godly agendas.
I was speaking to a young man who is very dear to me about the subject of "worldly" or secular music. I then realized as I spoke to him that we seem to be slowly growing oblivious to the general direction that this world is taking. As Peter put it, "sobriety" is slowly being lost as we fill ourselves drunk on the world's delicacies (1 Pet 5v8). Of course, like the studious person he was, he had been gathering opinions from other bretheren about the same topic, and he now wanted to get a wholistic view to inform his own. It came as no surprise that he had been told by others that there was no problem with taking in this worldly music. The biggest challenge I have seen with our generation of Christians is that the "want" to be entertained has replaced the "need" to be informed and the need to grow to maturity. This is why systematic doctrine is not a favored stance by many.
Now because the belief system is sponsored by the enemy, it is a spiritual and not just a mental fight that you enter into when dealing with these systems. Of all the voices being propagated, the Humanistic voice is the loudest and that is my main focus in this article...this is the self-centered world view. It's about me, my belief, my opinion, my benefits, my sexuality, my preferences, even my destiny. Now back to the music...lol. I find it interesting that a man would want to hold on to something that he "can" live without, which does not glorify God, and in some cases utterly goes against the very character of God, and after that say that "God doesn't mind" or "His grace is sufficient so I don't need to change". I would ask like Paul and say 'shall we continue in unrighteousness because grace hath abounded?' God forbid!
To ask a person what his soteriology is, and what their eschatological views are is very often a futile task. "As long as I am saved" seems to be the general attitude. Unfortunately this is one of the reasons why 8 out of 10 encounters between a Muslim teenager and a Christian teenager will result in a confused Christian teenager. It is simply that the Muslim is taught systematically through their belief structures and beyond that they are taught how to apologetically break down other belief systems, including and especially Christianity and Judaism. This is a very alarming trend if we are to think generationally into what will be of Christianity after we leave. Allow me to state categorically that any belief system that does not espouse the Gospel message of Christ alone, by grace alone, through faith alone, is not of God and hence is sponsored and propagated by the enemy himself.
2Co_11:4 For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.
I will ask some questions in conclusion; What is the message of this song? How does it help me in my walk with God? If not, what is the spirit behind the message? Who is sponsoring it? Can I live without this? If not, why not? Can I find a godly substitute? A transformed life is something that we work on as Christians, God saved us in order for us to live with Him daily and for Him daily. There are standards and patterns embedded and peddled by this music that will militate against God's plan for your life.
Rom 12:2 Do not conform yourselves to the standards of this world, but let God transform you inwardly by a complete change of your mind. Then you will be able to know the will of God---what is good and is pleasing to him and is perfect.
Let us not forget that the "pleasures" of this world come at a price. I will reiterate that there is a spiritual world to deal with as a Christian. Paul calls it a wrestling match and some of us have been pinned down and we don't understand why we can't move in worship like we would like, why we can't pray as we would like, why we can't break out of fear like we want, why we keep falling into sexual sin, or why we are constantly depressed. It is time that we as Christians awoke to the times we are living in, like Issachar's sons we need to be aware of what to do, and what not to do (1 Chron 12 v 32).
Let us disentangle ourselves from the enemy's reigns, from the songs that tie us down and weigh us down, we have a Jesus to live for and a world to show Him to. We cannot be the same as that world in this endeavor.
Yours in His Royal Service
George Mwamlowe
