Joy – BT10
God wants musicians to FEEL His overwhelming unconditional-love as joy
Please follow the BLOG Etiquette to stay on topic and pass the moderator’s check. Bold, underlined text below = future links to the BLOG pages.
In fact, God has told me several times that the joy that artists and musicians often feel when they are ‘in the zone’ is actually Himself sharing the feelings He has when He creates art and plays, which He has done for eons of time and still enjoys doing. He shares this with others so that they will wonder where these intense feelings come from, and by this observation they will become more aware of Him. This is revelation knowledge of Him. By closely observing His beauty, which we’ve seen is closely related to joy, He hopes will desire to actually experientially ginosko know Him, which is zoe genuine-life.
After critically analyzing every bible verse about music, I see absolutely NO emphasis on skill and professionalism, but I do see great emphasis on adoring and praising, boasting and honoring, singing and shouting loudly, playing and dancing, even by spinning around with exuberant, clamorous, uninhibited, glorious, celebratory, child-like joy (a), just as all of nature does (b). But again, we are to seek “the joy of/belonging-to the Lord” (c) and not try to manufacture it from our flesh’s “might and power” out of some religious duty FOR God or to somehow manipulate God or others. <Notes> a) 1 Samuel 18:16; 1 Chronicles 15:16; Psalms 5:11, 27:6, 63:7, 67:4, 71:23, 81:1, 84:2, 92:4, 95:1, 98:1, 4, 105:43, 149:5; Isaiah 24:14; 35:2, 6, 35:10, 42:11, 51:1, 52:8, 55:12; Zephaniah 3:14; 1 Kings 1:40, b) 1 Chronicles 16:33; Psalms 64:13, 98:12, 98:8; Isaiah 49:13; Jeremiah 51:48, c) Nehemiah 8:10.
In fact, all of creation was made so wonderfully beautiful and intriguing so that we would desire to know its creator! He told me that by just closely observing a beautiful sunset instead of hurrying past it, we could share in His feelings of creating it, and if we do this long enough we will make a connection to Him. He told me that listening carefully to the beautiful music would result in the same discovery and a deepening fellowship. Paul said: “For what can be experientially, relationally known (a) about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For God’s invisible attributes, namely, His eternal dunamis dynamite-like enabling-power and/coupled divine nature, have been clearly noeo perceived-by-the-mind, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made, so they are without excuse. For although they did experientially, relationally ginosko know God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks to Him” (b). David said: “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims His handiwork. Day after day pours-out/bubbles-up omer speech or Greek: directly-spoken/heard-rhema-words, and night after night reveals gnosis info-knowledge” (c). “Great are the works of Yahweh, darash/exzeteo searched-out by all who delight in them” (d). It comes down to what we delight in! <Notes> a) gnostos, adjective of ginosko, b) Romans 1:19-21, c) Psalms 19:1-2, d) Psalms 111:2.
Again, the emphasis of these music passages above have NOTHING to do with using human “might and power” or skill to pre-compose a song with or without instrumental accompaniment to honor or glorify God. But it has everything to do about being spontaneously exuberant, even out of control with great emotion, even looking foolish to others, jumping up inside or on the outside with incredible joy, such the joy of/belonging-to the Lord’s Spirit within us overflows so that we can’t help but give thanks, honor, praise, and glory to God for all that He has done for us and is doing NOW in us! This certainly may occur when a person first composes a song or plays an instrument under the move of the Spirit because it is “freshly” happening, but after that happens, it is no longer a “NEW Song.” What makes it kainos/chadash NEW at the present moment is that is “fresh” right then and there! This is the very definition of spontaneous music.
Reflection:
The “NEW Praise Song” happens right in the moment God hits you with His Spirit! It can’t be faked ‘in the flesh’ to impress God or anybody else. It has to come from the heart, not the head! And because it spontaneously comes from God’s Spirit within you, it is anointed and prophetic by nature! What is kainos/chadash “NEW” in the song also by definition makes it “superior” to what is palaios “old, dated, ancient, antiquated, worn-out, weak, worthless, and useless” – see New Covenant Ways. Therefore prophetic things are what we should strive for foremost over all other grace-gifts of the Spirit, as Paul said in 1 Corinthians 14:1 “I strongly urge you to ongoingly pursue unconditional-love and moreover to ongoingly burn with zeal for the Spirit–kind [grace-gifts], but especially that you may prophesy.” The Christian musician must keep this goal foremost in mind. Anything else simply is not anointed, prophetic, even spontaneous music or a “New Praise Song” and will be second in quality and effect.
Prayer:
Lord, thank You so much for not asking us to try and make better some palaios “old, dated, ancient, antiquated, worn-out, weak, worthless, and useless” thing of the flesh, even if we NOW could do it FOR You. Thank You for nailing religion to the cross with all of it “might and power” dutiful works. Thank You for calling us to totally surrender all of this skill and effort to take ‘the same old same old’ and somehow make it different or better, and instead call us to “let go and let God” by “being routinely being filled with Your abundant-fullness by the means of the Holy Spirit” and then let joyful, exuberant, celebratory music just happen “by My Spirit” for this completely-different-in-kind, superior “NEW Praise Song” that is anointed, prophetic, and spontaneous.