The Berlin Wall Came Down 20 Years Ago Today

Some arguments are better than others, and this one is just bad.

Check out the video below of Douglas Wilson and Christopher Hitchens, stars of the new documentary Collision, appearing on the Joy Behar show.

During the video, Behar asked Wilson if he really believed “that all those animals were on the ark” with Noah.  That puzzles me.  Out of all the things that happened in the Bible (like say, God becoming a Man, being killed, and rising from the dead) she wants to know about animals on a boat?  Seriously? That’s not the most miraculous and mind-boggling thing you’ll read in the Bible.

Hitchens comes across as a bitter, arrogant, angry, lonely man.  As I watched, the famous C.S. Lewis quote that he ended Mere Christianity with comes to mind:

Look for yourself, and you will find in the long run only hatred, loneliness, despair, rage, ruin, and decay.  But look for Christ and you will find Him, and with Him everything else thrown in.

One day, Christopher Hitchens (and every other person) will stand before Jesus to be judged after the resurrection.  That’s sobering.

“What Matters More” by Derek Webb

Here’s the controversial song and video by Derek Webb from his new album Stockholm Syndrome. This version was released on his website, not the CD, due to the strong language.

Provocative would be an understatement.  Any thoughts?

*     *     *

Update:

Here are two excerpts from reivews of Webb’s album:

“Unfortunately, the message seems hidden in negative lyrics that often say the opposite of what you would want to get stuck in your head. Lyrics such as “Oh I have been to Heaven and I found no relief” just don’t do much for me. The album is purely negative and I doubt that much of the Christian music world (including myself) will accept Stockholm Syndrome as playable — and that’s before they get to hear the profanity” (Kevin Hoskins, JesusFreakHideout.com).

“Where this album will stand in the history of Christian music remains to be decided by the retrospective analysis of the next few years, and a number of other factors — the future of the church’s overall political lean and how it will consider its current heavyweights in hindsight, the acceptance (however reluctant) of Webb’s daring, and the industry’s artistic response to this experience: its advertising campaign, controversial content, and sonic textures. Even so, a few things can be said outright: Webb has crafted a near-perfect album that rivals anything avid listeners have ever come across, one that deserves comparisons to Ok Computer and Kid A and challenges preconceptions about the depth of art reflecting the Christian experience.  Stockholm Syndrome is a dangerous, volatile, stunning masterwork of prophetic brilliance and insight — one of the most important albums of the last 10 years” (John Wofford, The Christian Manifesto).

Acts29 in Africa

Here’s a short video from Mars Hill about church planting in Africa.

A Message to You, ‘Jesus Follower’

Do you know anyone who believes in Jesus, has received him as Lord and Savior, and has true Christian fruit in their lives, yet refuses to call themselves “Christian” because they don’t like the label?  Instead of being “Christian,” they will say, “I’m a Christ follower” or “I’m a Jesus follower.”  Know anyone like that?  Are you like that?

Remember that Jesus said in John 10:16, “So there will be one flock, one shepherd.” There are only two kinds of people in the world: those who have been born again of the Spirit and those who have not.  Whether you like it or not, Jesus Follower, Christians are your family and you can’t disown them.  God doesn’t.

Update: To clarify, I don’t think calling yourself a “Christ follower” (or “Jesus follower”) is wrong.  Those are true of me.  Further, I don’t believe we only have to label ourselves as “Christian.”  However, when we avoid labels that the Bible uses (such as “Christian” or “born again” or others) in order to distance ourselves from others who believe in Jesus, then I think we have a problem.

If you don’t know what I’m referring to, this might clear things up:

Thinking About Truth and Love

I don’t have time right now to really write down my thoughts, but maybe I will sometime.  I’m not just “not perfect” at the truth and love combo.  I’m not close, and nobody can really say they are.  Anyway, in the meantime, I did want to pass along a few resources that have helped shaped my thinking.

First, here is a short article by John Piper, in which he says the Bible teaches that truth is the foundation for love.

And here is a 3-minute video from Desiring God where Mark Driscoll tells us about the art of speaking the truth in love:

The Ruin of the Beast

In my previous post, I wrote a bit about Burlap to Cashmere’s only album.  I just found this music video by Steven Delopoulos, Burlap’s frontman and primary creative.  He has done a few solo projects in the last few years and here is “The Ruin of the Beast.”  The artwork in this video is amazing.  And the meaning of the song?  Well, I’m still working on that one.

Re-Cut Movie Trailers

A very big thank you to my sister Amy for these videos.  If you haven’t seen the movies, you might not think they are funny, but hopefully you’ll catch the humor.

As I watched, I couldn’t help but think about how these re-cut trailers show the serious power that music has on our mental perception of images.  How else can Jack Torrance turn into Clark Griswold so easily?

Happy viewing!

. . .

The Ring becomes tear-jerker of the year:

Sleepless in Seattle is now a psychological drama (much like Fatal Attraction):

Mary Poppins turns into the horror film Scary Mary:

The Shining turns into family-friendly Shining:

Don’t Waste Your Life Music Video

Desiring God and Lecrae have teamed up to produce the “Don’t Waste Your Life” music video.  The song is featured on Lecrae’s album Rebel.  Unfortunately, the video does not contain Dwayne Tryumf’s (British hip-hop artist) verse that is on the album.  Still, it’s a solid video.

Enjoy.

Jesus Wants the Rose

Here’s a good example of how and why one pastor should “rail” another.