Everybody Loves Mammon!

We are now a good clip into the 21rst century. We have come so far technologically, have expanded our knowledge exponentially so much that the 19th century looks like the Stone Age. But we have not extinguished the need to worship. We never will. We need to worship, we want to worship. it's part of who we are.
And in the 21rst century, we have chosen our god:

MONEY.

Referred to as "mammon" in the New Testament, money was almost personified as a deity. Jesus said you cannot serve both God and mammon. There is but one God, and that isn't money. But we in the West, particularly America, have syncretized our worship of both God and riches, with money being a little higher on the totem pole.
Sometimes a lot higher.

What is on everyone's mind? Money. What do we talk about most? Money. What do we complain most about? Money. What do we wish for? Money.

The stocks are reported Monday-Friday. The "economy" is in the news every day, every hour. The Economy is the driving force in the world. It's all-important! "The Economy" now has deity status, with millions of believers.

The national debt is big news, too, as is personal debt. Lotto is our modern genie. BOGO makes everybody's day. Black Friday deserves no comment. Everyone wants a deal. Why? To save some MONEY.

We fantasize about hitting it big. It's a good fantasy! And lots of money does make life easier. But as a whole, we worship at the altar of mammon. And behind every altar is a demon, and behind every demon is an idolatrous heart that gives the demon permission to act in the world.

"For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil."

So do we get rid of money? No. We relegate it to the place it should be: a tool. To be used to alleviate suffering, to give to good causes, to take care of ourselves and our neighbor. Not to fill an ache in our hearts!

The love of money destroys nations. The Roman Empire fractured because of its addiction to luxury. Wealth becomes pride. Ask Sodom. Money, pride, and perversion all go hand in hand. Ask the politicians and actors who visited Jeffery Epstein's island.

As a nation, it's time to put away false gods and worship the true God. Fake gods provide temporary benefits, but not an eternal one. On our death beds the useless idols will dry up, and what will we have left?
God or nothing?

 

Christian Metal!

Yes, Christians make metal. And it's good, too. Way beyond Stryper now! Whether or not you think Christians should play metal isn't the point here today. The point is, can they rock?
Yes, they can!
Let's look at a few Christian metal bands, in all the sub-genres, and see if they "measure up".

But hold on! Let me clarify something. Christian metal has come a long way. No longer is it a clone factory, putting out sanitized versions of Ride The Lightning. No, not anymore. They are doing their own thing in the genres of their choice, sometimes blurring the lines between them. You know, innovating.
Let's go.

DEMON HUNTER

Perhaps the most well-known Christian metal act right now. They began as nu-metal but morphed into. . .whatever they are now. Metalcore-thrash-death, I guess. Well, Extremist was quite mainstream. Sorry boys! Get heavy again. But hey, if you listen to everything up to that point, you'll be all right. World is a Thorn is a great album, as is this song, The World is a Thorn.
And supposedly their music was used to interrogate terrorists.
Can't get anymore metal than that.

AS I LAY DYING

Metalcore that's super heavy. "Nothing Left" is an awesome song, man. They freakin' deliver on this album and the one after- oh wait. We can't talk about them anymore.

Next.

CRIMSON MOONLIGHT

Good ol' European black metal. Or unblack, seeing as how they are Christian. This form of metal brings out the weirdos, let me tell you. They like to play dress-up, like right here:

I'm pretty sure he has corpse-paint on under that hood. What, you don't what corpse paint is? Keep reading. But first, listen to this song, Eternal Emperor. Keyboards and everything. Why am I not mentioning Antestor? Because that's too obvious. But here, have a look at one of their covers:

There you go, you Antestor fans. Next up, right between black and death metal, there is:

A HILL TO DIE UPON

There's the corpse-paint I was talking about! These guys are considered "blackened death metal". Which means it's good. Really heavy stuff. They have three albums so far, but check this one out. Go ahead, look:

Awesome art! Infinite Titanic Immortal is one monstrous album. It will blow you away.

BROKEN FLESH

Death metal, the guttural kind. Unintelligible. I was tempted to put Impending Doom or Pantakrator, but this art was way too cool not to put it up. Besides, you need some grunting today anyway. Broken Flesh is loud, obnoxious, brutal noise, like an acid bomb at midnight on an open lake. (Hi Joe!)

SLAYER

With such Christian classics as "Jesus Saves" and "Disciple" these guys are really on fire for the Lord. Singer Tom Araya is a good Catholic guy who-wait a minute.

I think I've got the wrong thrash band. . .

DELIVERANCE

Imagine Joey Belladonna singing for Metallica in 1985. That's what these guys sounded like. Throw in a little Death Angel, too. I think they were called "Metalliclones", but a cool riff is a cool riff. Wait about 50 seconds, then it really kicks in.
Faster for the Master!

Lastly,

THEOCRACY

The glory of power metal! My new favorite kind of metal. The rousing guitars and choruses, the high notes, man. . . I used to hate power metal, but I dig it now. Maybe 'cause I'm getting old. But this stuff really pumps you up. Formed by Matt Smith, they used to a one-man band, but he hired some dudes and formed a real band. Here's a song for you: Nailed. This guy can sing. Reminds me of old Queensryche, but a lot better. No filler, more rock. Just a great band. Maybe more like Fates Warning or Dream Theatre than Queensryche. You be the judge.

This is just a small smattering of Christian metal. There are a lot more good bands out there, so go look for 'em. In the meantime, hit some links here and give a listen. Good music is good music.

So turn it up!

 

 

Nebuchadnezzar: The King With The Claws

Nebuchadnezzar was a powerful king over a vast nation. He ruled over Babylon in its prime. His armies were unstoppable. He was also proud. So much so that he was insane. To prove that point, he once demanded that his magicians not only tell him the interpretation of his dream, but what it was as well! They couldn't possibly know what his dream was since he hadn't told anyone. Because they couldn't answer him, he ordered every single wise man in Babylon executed.
Psycho!

Daniel put a stop to it before anyone was killed, because he had the answer Big Boy was looking for. God had told Daniel the dream and its meaning. So Nebuchadnezzar was pacified.

That is, until he ordered everyone in Babylon to worship his idol. Ant time the music played, everyone had to bow to the giant gold statue. If not, into the furnace with you!

Daniel's three friends would not bow to the idol, that being idolatry and all. They were given a chance to bow down again, but they did not.
Neb got so angry he commanded that the furnace be heated seven times hotter than normal, I guess to absolutely incinerate them. Yes, overkill. Instead, his own men got cooked.
Duh.
Shadrach, Meshech, and Abednego were indeed tossed in, but were protected by an angelic being who stood with them in the fire and saw to it that they were unharmed.

When an astonished Nebs saw this, he gave props to the Most High.
Wouldn't you?
Some time later, Nebuchadnezzar had another fearful dream that he couldn't understand. Daniel once again told him the interpretation. But this time, it was not in the king's favor.
His kingdom would be taken from him for a time while he went into the wilderness and given the mind of an animal.
Yes, the mind of an animal.
Why?
PRIDE.

He was given a year to repent, to help the poor and treat his people better, but he decided to revel in his power instead.
Folks, eventually all proud men are chopped down.

When he finished announcing how he had built great Babylon by his mighty power for his great majesty, God spoke from Heaven and adjusted his attitude.
And his lifestyle.
He was "driven away from people and ate grass like cattle. His body was drenched with the dew of Heaven until his hair grew like the feathers of an eagle and his nails like the claws of a bird."

At least it wasn't the hair of a peacock. That would've looked stupid.

At the end of  "seven periods of time" Nebuchadnezzar got his mind back. He gave praise and honor to God Most High, and then he was restored to his kingdom. That's the last we see of him, and I'm hoping he is with God now in Heaven.

Pride is like a fist in God's face. Would you ever put your fist in Andre the Giant's face?

Or how about these guys?

No? Why not? Because you fear the outcome! But we have no problem opposing God. Maybe it's because we can't see him, or because he doesn't act quickly to strike us down, that we feel we can do what we want.
How foolish.

The One who dreamed up and made the entire universe as well as every angel is somehow ignorant? The One who keeps track of every atom in the human body cannot tell his right hand from his left?
Come on, people.
Pride is the thought that we know better than God. Nebuchadnezzar's pride manifested itself as a disregard for how he got his position. It was God who put him there, and God who removed him. Neb learned this lesson from his bout in the grass.
What will it take for us to know that God is God, and we are not?


 

Is "Jesus" a Magic Word?

Demon possession was common in Jesus' time. He and His disciples encountered it wherever they went. When Christ ascended, Peter and Paul ran into evil spirits frequently.
The demons didn't stand a chance.
There were a group of men, however, who witnessed Paul casting out demons in the name of Jesus. Paul could do this since Jesus had given him authority to do so. These men had no such authority, having never been born again and sealed with the Holy Spirit. In other words, they had no power in the spirit world.

These seven men, sons of chief priest Sceva, would try to drive out evil spirits in Jesus' name. They were "exorcists". I don't know how successful they were, but one day they met a man who would have none of it.
See, they would say "In the name of Jesus, whom Paul preaches, I command you to come out!" Notice they do not really know Christ, they just heard about Him. His name isn't a magic word to be used by just anyone, as evidenced by the demon-possessed man's response:

"Jesus I know, and Paul I know, but who are you?"



Who?

 

I think the demon was having a little fun! Then it had a lot of fun when it beat those men senseless and- well, read it for yourself:

"The man who had the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered them all. He gave them such a beating that they ran out of the house naked and bleeding."

Yow! Do not use the Lord's name in vain!

What is the lesson here? Using Jesus' name for selfish gain is foolhardy. All the preachers who fleece money from their flocks to make themselves rich are in for a terrible surprise. And all those who partake of occult practices are also in for a terrible surprise. They have no protection from the unclean spirits who want their souls.

 You can become the demon-possessed man, or one of the seven sons who ran away naked and bloody.
Or. . .you can follow Christ and watch as the demons flee from you. He imparts His followers with authority over the spirit realm. See how God used Paul in this instance:

"God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and their illnesses were cured and the evil spirits left them."

I remember being visited by demons once. I was terrified by their presence. I could see shadows moving around, but it wasn't caused by shifting light or my imagination. I called my mom, we confessed our sins, and then I felt a certain boldness, a power that I hadn't felt before.

Then I cast those things out! I claimed my kids, my house, my property as belonging to Jesus. Then I opened the front door and commanded them to leave! And you know what? They did. They could not stand before the power of Christ, as used by one of His followers. After that, the place felt "clean".
Con artists can't do this. Christ's name is not to be used lightly, not to be misused. It is to be respected.
There is power in the Name of Jesus.

 

Creation According to Tolkien

No one knows how the world was created. Sure, we have the Big Bang idea, that all mass exploded from a singularity and eventually formed stars and planets and life. There is also the idea that God made everything in six days, as well as other theories. But no one really knows how, since none of us were there. Did God shape things with His giant hands? Or assemble them with His thoughts? Did He have angels arrange matter into recognizable things? Or did He imbue creation with the ability to mold itself according to a predesigned plan?

Or, maybe He just sang.
God and the angels singing, creating all that is. Hey, why not? I like this idea. But it's not my own. I got it from J.R.R. Tolkien, in his posthumous book The Silmarillion.

I love this old cover. Tolkien drew it himself. The very first chapter details the creation of Ea, the world that is (cosmos). Iluvatar, the God figure, assembles his Ainur (angels) to sing and make music with him. This music would come from the depths of their being, each being allowed to contribute to the creation. Iluvatar was like the conductor and lead singer.

So, music they made. It filled the Void and set forth a vision Iluvatar would give life to. But one of the Ainur, Melkor (Satan), had his own ideas. he had been alone too much, staring into the Void, dreaming up his own story apart from the will of Iluvatar. When it was time for him to contribute, his music was brash and repetitive, interrupting the beautiful music the other Ainur were making.

However, Iluvatar began weaving Melkor's music into his own. Melkor got louder, like bad metalcore, until Iluvatar "stood up" and put an end to the music.

Melkor may have rebelled, but Iluvatar made use of that anyway. The creation would have weakness built into it, but would still fulfill the purpose Iluvatar had for it.

One of the Ainur creating the universe

Melkor perverted the music and lost his position. And yet, he still had a place in creation, just not the one he wanted.

Iluvatar was not surprised. Perfection would come later, when Melkor's song was played to its last note, and evil was finished.

To me, this is a satisfying explanation of how things began, and why bad things happen, and how God uses it all to His glory. The Silmarillion may be a fictional work, but the heart of it wasn't.
Perhaps Mr. Tolkien knew things the rest of us don't. After all, God said He spoke everything into existence. Spoke or sang, or even programmed, it all came from Him.
To God be the glory!