Open
arms is not for open dispute. You can hold any opinion
you wish as a personal opinion but this translation does
not give you the authority to create sectarianism by adding musical instruments as
devices to
"move into the presence of God." Nor does it give you
permission to impose a weak, beggarly element of "like the
nations" worship upon the strong in the faith.
If you construct a new denominational
sect aimed specificially at imposing denominational false
doctrine then you are the sectarian, legalist and dividing the church
over that which you believe is optional but Bible
students know is not.
This passage in
Romans prohibits adding non-essentials which divides
the church just to attract another band of people.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: I think that's a powerful
translation. Because of these appeals from the word
of God, there are three Biblical actions that I believe men
and women of good will within our two groups are obligated to take.
That doesn't
sound optional to me!
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: These three Biblical actions are
deeds of acceptance, reconciliation and unity.
Sounds like an
intellectual and ethical problem. We believe that Paul
clearly defines strong and weak people.
The weak people
might enjoy meal fellowship or attend church but they
were not permitted to teach their views about optional matters and thereby
divide the church. Click
Here
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: First, I believe we must accept one another as
brothers beloved of God. "Accept one another, then,"
pleaded Paul. And now I'm reading from a real Bible
(laughter), the New International Version
(laughter). "Accept one another, then, just as
Christ accepted you in order to bring praise to God" (Romans 15:7).
Paul uses the word
bear the infirmities. Bear means to endure but not
fellowship.
That it might be
fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet,
saying, Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses. Mt.8:17
Infirmities means:
Astheneo (g770) as-then-eh'-o;
from 772; to be feeble (in any sense): - be diseased, impotent folk (man), (be) sick, (be,
be made) weak.
It is quite different to bear the infirmities than to fellowship one who believes that he
hasn't worshiped until he has slaughtered an animal and
drank his blood before it dies as the drums and flutes
make an insane noise. There were many of these people in
Corinth and Rome.
However, it will not
bring praise to God if we participate with them in the
universally-musical worship.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: We have believed on the same Christ
...........
and
confessed that faith
...........
In the same
symbolic act of baptism.
This sounds like
BELIEVER'S BAPTISM. Zwingli INVENTED the Baptist
(symbolic) baptism as late as 1525. He also repudiated
all of the other versions and scholars and claimed that
He invented the heresy of FAITH ONLY. Everyone before
Zwingli believed that Jesus Christ had the power to
forgive sins and give A holy spirit or clear conscience
only to those who REQUEST it at the time and place of
Water Baptism. Believer's baptism is also a form of
ancient PAGAN BAPTISM just as MUSICAL WORSHIP is
repudiatign Paul's warning about perverted singing of
secular tunes to a Spirit God.
Jesus, Peter and Paul
didn't consider baptism a symbolic act any more than a
check for a million dollars left unsigned makes you
rich. The fact that one is a baptized believer does not
automatically cure one of drinking wine or participating
in pagan festivals. We might believe that Christ has
received them without believing that they have matured.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: We've been put into his one body, the
church in that process. Like it or not, we're
brothers and sisters in Christ. That brothers differ
on the millennium, the work of the Holy Spirit, church organization,
instrumental
music,
having
a
glass of wine, the role of women in church leadership, and a dozen, dozen (that is 144
tolerable differences) other issues does not
change the fact that they're all children of God.
Where in the world
does a preacher get the supernatural knowledge to know
what is in the Mind of God? Only from hearing the
Mind of Christ. Preaching the "now but not yet
kingdom" is a premillennial view. This view holds that
Christ tried to establish His
kingdom, got defeated by Satan, high tailed it back to
the safety of heaven, and will -- now but not yet --
give it another try. This is neither liberal nor
conservative but just dumb heresy.
Paul made the role of women in church leadership pretty clear. To claim that Paul just
picked the "wrong creation account" is to claim that
Paul was not inspired. These
excathedra pronouncements are clearly out of the head
and therefore liberal. Click Here
If you want to hold
and practice that false view then it is ok with me.
However, if you lay down the law that I must affirm you
by agreeing and meeting in your congregation then you are sectarian and divisive. And if you spend the
Lord's money trying to impose that view on others then you do not
hold it as an opinion and violate Romans 14.
Paul defined for the
leadership a term which means: "No, never under any
circumstances be near consumers of wine." And he outlawed women in
a "non-sedantary" role even as he
outlawed most men in a "preachery" role unless they
were inspired.
Paul did it as
feminist theology admits because he knew that "female
authority" by the definition of the word means "sexual
authority." You cannot use the sister singers as stand
over, non-sedentary, ruling with a tune role without
using and abusing them to exercise sexual authority in
order to satisfy lust which cannot be prevented and is
undoubtedly intended to "bring 'em back again, dead or
alive."
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: Second, I believe we must not only acknowledge one another to be
brothers in Christ, but be reconciled to one
another. Without abandoning or compromising
the first
order truths of the gospel, that is, issues that
relate directly to the meaning of Christ and his
atoning death,
Again, get it this
time, Paul preached this first order truth in Corinth because
they were
still carnal. To the "perfected" he taught the meaty
doctrine consisting of whatever Jesus taught and
inspired the Apostles to teach.
We have no authority to define
who is
or is not a brother in the spiritual sense. And Paul
insists that we can have meal fellowship with those who
are weak but Paul didn't include "external melody" which
he knew was anxiety-creating and would violate the will
of Christ who came to relieve the world of
anxiety-creators.
The estrangement Rubel Shelly
is discussing is the Sectarianizing the Restoration
Movement
to compete with the growing post-civil, affluent city
churches to gather in all of the loose change. It had no
spiritual or doctrinal imperative but it was purely
mercenary. Not until about 1878 did anyone dare to use
Psallo or the Bible in any way to defend instrumental
music.
Those who refused to
be coerced into instruments and a "one world government"
of "Christendom" did not change one jot or tittle from
the consistent denominational repudiation of
instruments.
Now, Rubel Shelly
insists that those who didn't sectarianize finally affirm, approve
and fellowship those who divided and divide the church. This can be nothing less
than joining with the Christian Church movement after
"assimilation" by meeting in a Christian Church Building
and being "affirmed" by them and "facilitated" into an
instrumental view. That is, these people have been
converted by the Christian Church which has eternally
been "evangelistic" in trying to take over
non-instrumental property. And it works.
This would be
equivalent to a Catholic affirming Catholicism. Therefore, he would not
be an honest broker to pretend to be a church of Christer and use the "platform" in
violation of Romans 14 to try to impose the Catholic Eucharist
(Walk to Emmaus) on the "paying audience" masquerading
as a church of Christer. This would be especially
damning when he knew before hand that he would sow
discord, divide brethren and offend many of these
little ones.
The only solution, if
one is insisted on, would be for the instrumental
churches to dispose of what created the musical sect,
and for the pseudo-instrumental groups to disband their
musical teams exercising sexual authority over the
flock.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: we must stop labeling as apostate and
withholding or
withdrawing fellowship over second and third order truths.
For me, a second order
truth in the New Testament includes
those discipleship issues such as drinking
wine versus teetotal.
And third order
truths would be group distinctives
such as instrumental versus a cappella music.
One assuredly has to
be unaware of the entire Old Testament, New Testament,
the church Fathers, the denominational founders, most
of church history for over 1800 years to make
instrumental music a third order truth.
The Bible abounds
with implicating wine and instrumental music with
starving the people for the Word and telling God to
get lost.
Sounds like problems
deeper than I can grasp. How in the name of holy
conservatism can a for-hire preacher be so
underemployed that he has the time to be so aggressive in trying to force things like the denial
of baptism (Max Lucado, Jubilee 97), using psychological
force (violence) to make people practice lifting holy
hands,
laying on
of holy hands, viewing the ladies around the Asherah Poles with
instrumental music (Jubilee 98), and a host of other
things?
I find that the
activities of one small congregation gives me more
fellowship than I can tolerate and more needs for
ministry (the old term for preacher who is not located
evangelist) than any single person can begin to serve.
Do I really have to go to the Baptist church, confess
that I am wrong about baptism and instrumental music,
fellowship and worship with them? Aren't we just too
expansive? That will have to be a rubber wineskin.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: First, second, third order truths,
and then I might even acknowledge a fourth order of truth. A fourth order of
truth is those mere matters of opinion.
Wine, women and song is a first order truth
to me and the Bible. I don't care what others do but to insist that I am
divisive and guilty for teaching the clear words of
Christ is dogmatic and sectarian. The entire batch of
gurus posting themselves at the peak of the hill (har
meggido) pretend that they know nothing about the
Bible and instrumental music. But Jubal was the father of those who handle
(without authority) instruments to deceive people and
undoubtedly his sons still abound.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: And of course, the truth on each of
those is each of those as I see them. But to stay
with first, second, third order, that's not to say
that some things in the Bible are true and some are
false. It's to say that everything in the Bible is
true, but some of those truths are more
important than other truths.
When Jesus said,
"Don't get involved with the body or flesh: My Words
are Spirit and Life" (John 6:63) He seems to have
failed to outline acts like a Thesis of first order,
second order and third order and then opinion."
Doesn't this new definition deny Christ and His power
to preach more than the "first principles"?
I suppose to the
curse of a pyramidal ministry team imposed upon Israel
for demanding a king so that they could "worship like
the nations" we are going to have to have some new
books, some new training classes at the Universities,
some new seminars and then some new ministers to sort
out just which "order" of truth we will be
legalistically bound to observe:
Minister of
First Order Truth: Pulpit Minister
Minister of
Second order truth: Hire a Holy Bartender from
Vineyard.
Minister of
Third order Truth: Hire theatrical performers (actor
means hypocrites)
Minister of
Fourth order Truth: This can be contracted out to Gallup
Then, of course, we
need an Order
Police.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: Paul, in Romans 14 and 15, said,
"Look, there's an absolute bottom line, fact of the matter
about the right and wrong of each of these. But," he
says, "back off and leave each other alone to draw
some conclusions that aren't the same. Draw your
conclusion in good conscience. Live with it
consistently. Don't try to coerce your brother.
Don't condescend to your brother."
No. He said, "Don't
bring your old practices into the SYNAGOGUE of Christ
because in the next chapter I am going to discuss a
CHRIST-MODELLED way of "glorifying God WITH ONE MOUTH"
using ONLY "that which is written." Elders are
commanded to "teach that which has been taught and refute those who oppose it." Paul was
repudiating all old WORSHIP CENTERS and the Lord's Day
was to keep them away from the worship of the S.U.N.
god when they should be LISTENING to the S.O.N. God.
Churches of Christ
remained faithful to the Restoration Movement which
was somewhat faithful to the church of Christ which
began on Pentecost.
The musical group
"backed off" in order to organize a musical sect where
they could confiscate the property.
Now, why is it that
the new thought police cannot be happy with people
doing what they are conformable with?
Why make a new sect our of denying sectarianism? Why make it a first order principle that I have to
worship with people with whom I disagree? Is this the
guilt
clause
to try, as they did with McGarvey, to keep him from
being "divisive" by refusing to worship with
instruments?
It was the musical
group which forced its opinions upon the others. And
when the churches which had never been musical from
their Biblical and historical foundation, it was a
musical organization which attempted to "evangelize"
and force music. This was what broke the fellowship
between the musical and non-musical churches.
Churches of Christ
have not moved from the entire Biblical and historical
foundation. Billy Goat of the hill will not push us
off.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: First
order
truth, that's truth that's critical truth.
...........
That's core truth about how one comes to
know
Christ.
The second and third order truths,
...........
one need
never come to a view on in order to be a Christian.
On Pentecost,
those people understood enough first order truth to
accept Christ. They didn't have a position that day
on whether to support Herald of Truth out of the
treasury.
Paul said NOTHING
about PREACHING only Christ and Him Crucified. To the
literate he said that he would "KNOW only Christ and
Him crucified." That means that the preacher should
model Christ and GO OUT and preach rather than SOW
DISCORD all over the world with a PAGANISTIC view of
"worship" as the ONLY WORK of the church. Again, in
the next section we will prove that both Christ and
Paul repudiated ANYTHING manipulated which would RAISE
THE EXCITEMENT LEVEL. Nimrod and modern science knows
that MUSIC creates a DRUG HIGH. This in turn AROUSES
the impulses of FIGHT, FLIGHT and SEXUALITY.
Sounds like a
somewhat violent put down of those who knew that the
ship of state was sinking when their feet got wet and
didn't have to wait until it got blown off course and
they were in water up to their neck under the
Navigators now Navigating the Winds they were blowing
up in the first place. Sounds like my wife's
experience with a recent auto mechanic: "I busted your
heater but I will fix it for 300 dollars."
Many of these people
were devout Jews who traveled long journeys and
endured hardships to be at Pentecost in Jerusalem.
They had been taught from their youth by what we
confuse with singing. That is, they chanted the words
of God in order to memorize them.
They were probably
more literate than many preachers who apparently have
never read the Old Testament--even to get that Phd.
They had one
problem, they asked one question, they got one answer,
and they obeyed Christ by being baptized. Their
education continued.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: They hadn't had time yet to debate
whether or not now that we are Christians we can
ever have a glass of wine with dinner.
They didn't discover
levels of truth through debate, did they? They had
been Jews all of their lives and therefore they
understood about those who "would prophesy to you about
beer and wine" for a price or just for the beer and
wine. They knew enough that Peter said "this is that" and they understood.
They knew that if
they saw a priest drinking wine he would be disqualified. That is why the clergy
lied about Jesus by accusing him of being a
winebibber. If they could convict Him of drinking
wine--any wine--He could not be prince, king or
priest.
Jesus said that
"wisdom is justified by their children." That means
that Jesus said: "You are a bunch of liars."
The "new wine in new
wineskins" gets clearer and clearer. How else could the
kingdom and gospel be compared to fermenting wine
which was the universal symbol of evil when Jesus spoke about
the "water of the Word" and Paul spoke about "milk."
When we accept evil for ourselves we suddenly become
non-sectarian and want freedom for everyone.
They knew that wine
or any leaven was taboo for Passover and they probably knew
that only the "preachers" believed and taught
that one should get so drunk at Passover they couldn't
tell the difference between Joe Blow Preacher and
Jesus. They know that Kings and Princes did not drink wine and that a woe was pronounced on anyone who would feed
it to others -- usually to see their nakedness, real
or emotional.
Many have known
about the "wine, women and instrumental music"
condemned by Amos as taking away the key to knowledge.
They may have caught Isaiah's chapter five song of God
connecting wine and instrumental music.
Well, we just don't
know, do we? We know that the Jews understood that
street preachers or musical street performers on the
day of Pentecost were normally drunks looking for a
handout.
That is why they accused the Apostles for being out
there.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: Wouldn't
have occurred to them to bring up the matter of what kind of music we're going to have
when we go to church Sunday.
That is a fact.
There was no "music as worship" in the culture of the
Jews. The only "music" in the culture of the Gentiles
was of the
pagan
priestesses or effeminate males singing, playing and
trying to arouse the "worshipers into the presence of
the god" who would meet them in the back room and look
just like the priestess.
These literate people already knew that music was
always for the civil temple state and never for congregational
worship. They knew what Josephus knew: that musical
Levites were bringing the temple down once again.
If hey knew any
Greek they knew that "music" was a secular term and
was never used in a religious sense except by pagans.
The Jews "made a loud crashing sound" which was not
music to our ears.
They may have know
what Josephus knew when he attributed, like Ezekiel,
the destruction of the nation to the musical Levites
and promised that their reinstatement to wear linen
garments and perform as musical worship teams would
again destroy the nation. See Josephus condemn the
self-appointed priests, Agrippa's Seeker Center
and the musical levites all at one place.
Music was Never
used
on the Sabbath for "congregational singing with
instrumental accompaniment." Sabbath was for rest, not
for worship.
Knew that music was for animal sacrifices for dedicatory or purification rituals.
Knew that they were not "not in church" but inside the gates
which kept
the
people out.
Knew that sacrificial worship
was performed by the civil leaders and the clergy.
Knew that when they heard a
great, crashing
sound
they had better
fall
on their faces.
Knew that the Levites were added as Israel's burden and were to keep the
"congregation" out of God's symbolic presence in the
reassigned Tabernacle.
Knew that the Feast of Tabernacles had become a pagan fertility ritual and that Jesus didn't go
up because He knew that the jubilators would try to
murder Him during the opening, musical festivities.
Knew that the temple was the
"church" of the civil or other bigshots and Sadducees.
Knew that the "congregation"
went to the synagogue.
Knew that there was no form of our
singing. There was no praise service in the synagogue.
Knew that there was no instrumental music in
the synagogues
Knew that the "preacher" read the Word and had the
decency to sit down as patterned by Jesus and dialog
it.
Knew that they didn't sing
sentimental, effeminate poetry.
Knew that if they saw a musical team with uncovered women it was probably, as
Solomon warned, prostitutes trying to "lead the
customer into the presence of the pagan gods."
Knew that if they saw male musicians in
public
they were always gender-confused. They tried to seduce
Jesus by "piping" to get Him to sing and dance. Hoped
that John wore "soft" clothing: the clothing of a
catamite.
Knew that you cannot listen
to instruments and think or learn at the same time and
that synagogue was school and not worship center like the pagans.
Knew that only Levites and Priests were
permitted to play music.
Knew, many did, that Jesus
"cast out the musical mourning team 'more or less
violently' before he healed the young girl.
Knew their own synagogue
background (only about 10 to 12 thousand manned the
temple as money machine taking widow's mites) that
music had no role to play.
Therefore, we see no
hint that they wanted, needed or used music in any
sense. Hymning psalms is not a musical term.
So, I would say
that they knew more than our good doctor's audience.
Rubel Shelly, ACU: This means that people
on both sides of these issues who have judged and condemned each other, whether from a
legalistic or superiority posture
must repent of our past behaviors and
be willing to admit that we've both been wrong.
And consciously
undertake a more Christlike treatment of one
another. We're free to hold and practice our
points of view but we are not free to judge one
another any longer.
Jesus didn't treat
any of the "musical" episodes in His life with undue
kindness.
Again, musical worship was
legalistic in paganism. It was used to "move the worshipers
into the presence of the gods."
It was legalistic under the Monarchy because
it was associated with Jerusalem, the temple and
animal sacrifices.
When the temple
ceased twice, the music ceased because any Jewish boy would understand that
it had no rationale outside of animal sacrifices and
then it was noise and not music.
I don't plan to
repent about seeing baptism as operative as a way to
"accept the will of God for my life."
I don't plan to
repent about not attending where instruments are
played. Don't even plan to repent for turning off my hearing
aids
when the spit flies during congregational shouting.
Don't plan to repent
for refusing to participate with wine drinkers. Paul commanded of the
elders "don't go near the drinking bouts where the
wine might not even be intoxicating."
Don't plan to
apologize for gagging when I see the world lost and
preachers in a bonded-buddy fellowship all over the
world (almost 40,000 at PK Atlanta, 1996).
Where is all of that
brotherly love for legalists?
Legalism adds body rituals in order to move the
worshipers into an ascending ceremony to make exhilarating contact with God.
Those who don't do
that assuredly should repent but of being so
ignorant of the musical worship issue that we allow
musical proponents to "rule over us" as friends of
error.
Legalism is to use psychology and human potential to try to fix people's medical or mental problems while ignoring the Words
of Christ. Superiority means "I have the fix
for your problems in Nashville."
Sectarianism was always behind the
addition of music in the belief that they could
worship God -- they baptized instruments, you
know.
Those who judged and
condemned, created sectarianism by adding instruments
and trying to evangelize churches to join the
Missionary Society and add instruments. I have never
heard this "legalistic superiority posture" recently
unless it was by a "parrot" having listened to a
sermon, say 20 or thirty years ago when people got so
enlightened that they gave up on the Bible and began
to sell human opinion. Note by Clicking Here and by Clicking Here.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: Third, I believe we must
begin to practice unity within our long-fractured fellowship. My appeal
here is not for organizational unity but for mutual
respect and understanding. We can converse, worship, pray, and minister
together.
Rubel should grasp
that only people ON THE DOLE have time and "motive" to
seek WARMTH from activities outside of their own time
and place.
I have never known a
non-musical person who did not respect a musical
person. It is truly possible to forcefully argue and
even condemn as ignorant the flat-earth people while
holding them in respect as persons.
Jesus Christ and
Paul fractured the church into local
assemblies within the community. Jubilee is a defacto
proposal for
organizational unity where you come to Nashville to
learn how to "worship" with music and drama or
theatrical performance, how to import a Community
Church form and sell books and Sunday School stuff.
Because there is no
organization among churches of Christ
with which
to unite it is fairly liberal of Dr. Shelly
not to try it.
Otherwise, to
affirm, to worship, pray and minister together is
about as united as one can get. Who gives way? It will
never be the instrumentalists saying, "We will toss
out our multi-horsepower instrument just to gain Dr.
Shelly's affirmation." Based on my knowledge, I don't
suspect that they have as much free time as Dr.
Shelly. Nor do they agree with the move into secular
bands to supply their music.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: We can encourage one another. We can
be each
other's confidants and counselors. (Is that male
bonding?) We can practice hospitality. Why, within
our common commitment to congregational autonomy, no
one could even propose a meaningful form of
organizational unity for us to adopt. For people
who've watched these Restoration Forums with the
fear that we're trying to create such an
organizational unity, let those fears forever cease.
What people watch
these forums for is for self-appointed leaders to abandon the non-instrumental
position for everyone else, to court confidants by
affirming the musical position and passing harsh
judgment upon the non-musical group.
This way, without
any organic unity, each can go back and spill the
leaven into their own churches and slowly move toward
the instrumental position. It is not a sign of courage
to abandon
and ridicule one's old position just to get friends. One
suspects that they don't really need any confidants
who so readily turn coats.
People who pay the
bills are too busy for belly-button contemplation.
Why, if I need counseling, I could probably find
someone close to home. If I need a confidant -- pretty
much outgrew that one -- I still have Jesus. Annie,
the beagle, and Tiger the cat give me about as much
counseling as I can tolerate: I am well trained.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: I'm pleading for nothing more than
the sort
of unity one Church of Christ (non-instrumental) has
with another Church of Christ (non-instrumental).
Nothing more than what one independent Christian
Church has with another independent Christian
Church.
Frankly, the
Woodmont Hills Church of Christ has more in common
with the Donnelson Church of Christ in Nashville
than with, say, the Jackson Park Church of Christ
in the same city.
I mean no more
disrespect by telling you that than by telling you
that the Highland Church of Christ in Abilene has
more in common with the Preston Road church in
Dallas than with the First Christian Church in
Nashville. I'm just talking about, what in business, we call "networking."
I told you about
the motives. Don't comprende "networking." Jesus
might suggest, "Go, preach, baptize, teach" and you
will suddenly run out of networking time.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: Yet in terms of actual shared experience and networking, the Woodmont Hills
Church of Christ has more in common with First Christian
Church in Nashville than with the Jackson
Park Church of Christ in Nashville.
That is not because
the First Christian Church agreed to any "church of Christ"
views. It is because, as in all ecumenical movements,
the Word based systems always get sucked into the
performance worship based systems. I just have to
laugh when educated people believe that they are
meeting on equal terms when they, as in the story of Genun (Jubal) have just been
defeated and can never, because of pride, return to
the old paths of non-exhilarating worship.
So, just confess,
that one is now a defacto Christian Church and stop
passing judgment on old enemies.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: Just as congregations within the framework of our two brotherhoods (that sounds like two
denominations) have greater or lesser fellowship
with each other at a purely practical level, so many
congregations may, across those boundaries, have
greater or lesser fellowship with each other. We
need not reject God-given opportunities for
fellowship out of the fear that
some schismatic brother or paper might attack us for accepting
them.
Is that an oxymoron?
That is what we all knew! How can one be a schismatic in these terms and still
be a brother?
Is that "despising"
one who has a differing "doctrine" in violent
repudiation of Romans 14?
Why isn't the schismatic brother one of those weaker brethren whom you should see as a
teachable mission point?
It is purely
because the "schismatic" will not join the
SECTARIANS who added the "non-essential"
instrumental music and theatrical performance guilds
knowing beforehand that he was dividing the church,
splitting of a new sect and doing it "spite of
hell."
Where do people get
time for all of those buddy meetings? Why does the
"leaven spore" of my church not grow and satisfy and
do the will of Christ without feeling the God-like
urge to judge that some other church is more unschismatic Christian? Is that a first order
schismatic or a second order schismatic?
To claim that
rejecting musical worship is schismatic is to use the guilt
clause. The Zealots or Sicarri (as in Judas Sicarri) stabbed with a dagger and then cried: "Foul,
most foul, some schismatic has stabbed this here
good brethren."
Schismatic is
adding musical worship knowing that it will sow discord,
that there is no Biblical command and doing so for
purely mercenary reasons to collect the crowds to keep
from "going out in the cold."
If you add the music
and I remain exactly where the Bible-based belief has
rested for two thousand years, then by what twist of
illogic can I be schismatic. Might as well, in keeping
with The
Second Incarnation, blame those being invaded for
attacking you on the beaches.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: Now, lest those three issues of acceptance, reconciliation and unity be left too vague to
be helpful, I'll dare to define some specific behaviors, projects and interactions that are possible
within such a framework.
First, many of us pray, both
individually and with one another for God to show us
a way out of division into unity. We believe it
can't possibly be wrong for us to pray for the same
thing Jesus prayed for in John 17:20, 21.
Sounds like a
preacher problem or a Jesus problem: Why do you suppose Jesus
wasted three years training the Apostles if all they
needed was a CORE? Why do you suppose He patterned no
instrumental music and repudiated the Jewish clergy as
"pipe playing children" if it wasn't important. Why
didn't He go up to the opening ceremonies of the Feast
of Tabernacles as a giant fertility ritual or Jubilee
if He had no opinion. His unity is based on His Word
and His word will not give you any clue to unity by
violating that word.
You have to "come
out of her" to be united.
For I have given
unto them the words which thou gavest me; and they have received them, and have known
surely that I came out from thee, and they have
believed that thou didst send me. John 17:8
I have given
them thy
word; and the world hath hated them, because they
are not of the world, even
as I am not of the world. John 17:14
Isn't it a deeply
psychological problem to feel the need to be affirmed by everyone so you can
go "dunkin donuts" or wine drinking with them? The
full gospel has always been divisive and if it produces "peace,
peace when there is no peace" it is another gospel.
Sanctify them through thy
truth: thy
word
is truth. John 17:17
As thou hast sent me into the
world, even so have I also sent them into the world. John 17:18
And for their
sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be
sanctified through the truth. John 17:19
Because the apostles
were to go into all the world, Christ was not
concerned about establishing nation-wide unity
forums
where all of the for-hires have time to leave their
flock.
Neither pray I for
these alone, but for them also which shall believe
on me through their word; John 17:20
That they all may be one; as thou, Father,
art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be
one in us: that the world may believe that thou
hast sent me. John 17:21
Now, nobody is gonna
get mad if you just preach the CORE so that everyone who was
ever swept through the Restoration Movement (Mormons?
Wesley Pentecostals?) can fit into a new wineskin so
that we can all drink wine and preach a wineskin
gospel and kingdom without offending one of these
little ones.
Offenses come when
you faithfully preach the APPLE which consists of
everything the Invisible God of the Universe revealed
through the ONCE Incarnated God of the Universe! What
caused the Jews to be offended? Baptism, of course. And
assemblies not in the doomed temple, of course. And
failure to keep condemned feast days, of course. And failure
to worship
in
the New Moon festivals, of course. Failure to pay
the temple
tax or
tithe, of course. They really
got mad when they played their fertility music and
Jesus refused to sing and dance. He was not very
non-sectarian, was He.
How can preaching
the CORE bring the sanctifying Spirit Christ put into
all of His Words (John 6:63)?
Unity is based on
the Word which not even Jesus altered.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: Second, we can have
conversations with each other. Some of these
conversations may deal with points of concern and
disagreement. Many more of them, though, need to
deal with the even larger points of agreement and joint affirmation. Although our history
contains many more of the former than the latter,
(history of conversations about our disagreements, getting together to
debate instrumental music, for example,
There is nothing to
debate: we can collect all of the literature from the
ANE, the Bible and church history and it ALL
repudiates the idea of MUSIC as worship. It is pagan
and PIPES DOWN the Word of Christ.
Shelly etal can
not find a jot or tittle of information about MUSIC
being used in congregational worship.
Debate over unless
they can produce evidence which overcomes the COMMON
SENSE TESTIMONY that you cannot worship or GIVE HEED
to Christ and the musicians at the same time. Let a
sixth grader be the judge.
Isn't this paper
showing Dr. Shelly still debating instrumental music?
Hasn't he already come down on the affirmative side of
music as a non-essential? Of course, debate among
those who already agree will be consistent with unity
forums.
Why would we debate
second and
third order truths such as drinking wine and
instrumental music? If one can introduce the
legalistic work of a pseudo-pipe organ with women
overseers moving the audience into the presence of God
as mediators how could we even worry about instrument?
If it is a debatable issue then why would we condemn
churches of Christ as rotten and destructive (decadent
and deleterious for you city people).
Why don't we just
leave everyone alone and do our work in our "field
white unto harvest." If the world more than doubles in
the next half-century, won't Nashville do more than
double? What are you doing to preach the Word to them
without worrying about where they get baptized or join
your group and subscribe to your collection plate so
that you can build a new temple symbol of civic-pride?
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: rather than getting together to talk
about some things we might do on the mission field, or to better
communicate the Restoration ideal in this culture),
I think that's a mistake that needs to be corrected.
As in marriage counseling, a pair'll have better
success in dealing with its points of tension if
there's first a deep and unifying appreciation of
its commonalities. If a couple comes into my office
warring, I don't start in by saying, "Give me the
list and let's duke it out." I say, "Can you tell me
how you met? Can you tell me why you fell in love?
Can you tell me about your wedding day? Tell me
about the birth of your children." It seems to me
there's a great deal of common sense in that, that
we've not applied in our family discussions.
Third, we can
engage in joint ministry with each other. We've
been speaking at each other's conferences and lectureships on a limited scale and
that practice seems not only to have been generally
well received but to be growing.
Many of the groups
already do that and probably no one ever suggests
silencing the organ and the clanky-clank piano in the
interest of unity. When churches of Christ speak of
being ecumenical they always have to abandon their principles to unify with
the others.
This doesn't sound
like cooperation but "a hostile takeover" and a very
dumb sell out.
We know of churches
of Christ which have added organs or their
human-synthesized equivalent, the musical praise team, but can't really find a
Christian church which has put the organ out. Get the picture? This
is not unity: it is a person who has converted to a
new religion and is urgently trying to take other (legalistic) churches
with him. Why not just get off the dole and find a
church which uses instruments rather than being sectarian and judgmental against
all of those old legalists and trying to take over
their property?
To do joint missions
those who do not hold the Biblical view of baptism
would fit in nicely with many of the instrumental
group who already agree. But, then, this would not be
a joint mission effort but a mission team united on
the principles of the instrumentalists.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: Frankly, more of us have been invited out of the a
cappella churches to be a part of lectureships and
teaching settings at Christian Church schools and
congregations than the reverse.
Don't they invite
those who will agree with them and also attract crowds?
Doubt that they would ever invite anyone who would
present the Biblical and historical view. So, isn't
this like me inviting those who already affirm me?
Don't the Christian
churches get a lot of good psychological mileage out
of inviting one who still claims to be a church of
Christer? I know that Baptists love to drag Dr. Shelly
out as a sign that the "Church of Christ cult" finally
has some new winds blowing in its sails.
So. Perhaps, Dr.
Shelly is just being used?
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: You have to understand where the two
groups are, I suppose, even politically, to
understand why that's so, but that's beginning
to change.
We're teaching at each
other's schools now, we're doing guest lecturing
and offering courses.
But, try to post
information on the Restoration Movement from the
non-instrumental view and you will find the host of
powers in heavenly places come down on you. The musical
web pages will link some of the wildest material but
will not link any information from a non-instrumental
view. And they do take some time to limit your
influence. So, those who teach in musical colleges are
defacto-musical disciples or they would not be hired and
certainly not permitted to teach the non-instrumental
viewpoint.
So,
pro-instrumentalists will continue to be invited to
pro-instrumentalist lectures. And, in fact,
pro-instrumentalists exclusively will be invoked to
church of Christ "Christian" colleges to present their
views. Why? Well, one supposes that the quicker the
non-instrumental institutions move into the musical
realm the broader their appeal for obscene charges for
depth-evacuated lectures and seminars.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: That's good. We've written for each
other's publications.
Whom has written for
who? Well, pro-instrumentalist and church of Christ
mortal enemies will always be welcomed in musical
publications. Will they publish anything from people who
disagree with them? They will not. So, again, we know
that people love to use people to bash other people.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: Several of us in this room have
written for, say, "One Body," or "The Christian
Standard." And some of you have written for "Image"
or for "Wineskins."
Waall, why not, Bubba?
Isn't Image and Wineskins on the attack against
non-musical legalists? Sure, they would welcome articles
from those with whom they agree. But, surprise!
Surprise! Surprise! or even Shazam. Why not? Will
Wineskins publish anything deeper than the dry skin of
an onion on the non-musical view? Of course not. So, Dr.
Shelly is among friends and I would guess that he got
some more invitations out of bashing the
non-instrumental group.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: We're writing a New
Testament commentary series together. Under the
leadership that Don DeWelt gave to that project
in a generous financial endowment that was provided
to it, we're doing the New Testament commentary
series together now, with about fifty-fifty
authorship. The books are already being produced.
They're coming out and that has to be good for both of us.
Truly want to read
those musical passages. I'll bet you can guess who it
will be good for.
Heard about one rare church going instrumental after going musical
worship team and learning how to lift holy hands at Jubilee and the
Zoe movement. Held a course on the Restoration
Movement. A black student heard that to be against
instrumental music is to be racist! That was because
the division over instrumental music was a
racist-non-racist fight. That, of course, is a
falsehood. Came out of Pepperdine But those ecumenical
professors will play the race card because they don't
need to be Biblically or historically literate to hold
down a "chair."
So, why not join up
with the instrumental group. As bonus, you also get an
entree into other musical denominations.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: The Woodmont Hills Church of Christ,
the church were I preach in Nashville, and First
Christian Church of Nashville are sharing a worship facility.
You see, it rubs
off, doesn't it?
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: Some of you already know that.
Others of you, perhaps, would be shocked to learn
that about three and a half months ago, the a cappella Woodmont Hills Church
of Christ sold its building. And we had to give
possession of it about 45 days later. And we were
not just the church of the homeless, we were the
homeless church. And we started looking around for
possible places to have assemblies for 18 to 24
months, the length of time we suspect it's going to
take us to draw plans that are only now being
started, to build on a property that we're not even
due to close on until 12 days from today. This is
not going to be just a two or three week deal. We
looked at about 37 different options. As it turned
out, the most practical option that was received
warmly by both churches was a shared use of the
facility of an independent Christian Church on
Franklin Road. They'd accommodated us by moving
their Sunday evening service a bit later and we have
use of that building on Sunday from 1 to 6 and we
have a 1:30 and 4:15 repeat of the same worship hour
and Sunday school in between at 3. We do our
mid-week assemblies in there on Thursday. But not
only that, we're sharing and exchanging the uses of
personnel.
We co-hosted a
seminar by Lyle Shower
(spell ?
Perhaps, Lyle Shaller, a commercial change
group much like Willow Creek). We will do some
things together in the immediate future with regard to
hosting other events of spiritual significance for our two churches
that will allow
us to affirm our relationship to be a positive
one.
We intend for
these 18 to 24 months not simply to be a time of
landlord and tenant relationship, but a time of healing between these
two congregations, so that we can henceforth work
together in productive ways and not be obstacles to
each other. We believe that's against the will of
God.
You probably noticed
that none of the A Capella
philosophy rubbed off on the musical church. That is
the way it is and why we are warned about "walking,
standing and then sitting" with others. The
flesh-appeal always rubs off on the spirit.
I would let a
Catholic group use "my" building if I thought that I
could, through experience, accustom them to not having an organ in the
"sanctuary."
It is no credit to say that we
haven't added instruments when you have added musical
worship teams! Restoration Forums will not restore the
church in all of the communities outside of the
Nashville, Dallas and Abilene circles.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: Fourth, we can link arms (hand in hand) to stand against the
real enemy of the body of Christ
(schismatic or decadent churches
of Christ by changing their name). To my brothers and
sisters who use instrumental music, let me tell you to
your faces that I don't regard you as my enemy.
Everyone knows
that the NEW STYLE MUSICAL WORSHIP has its origins
in the hippies and The Family of God concept.
Wow! I am sure
that this is some relief! I also love those whom I
defeat!!
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: Satan
is
our common enemy. He's the bad guy. And I refuse any
longer to allow him (incarnated as schismatic
brothers) to divert me from confronting
him by fighting
with
you.
It's been a great diversionary tactic that he's
used. I'm looking for ways to affirm and fellowship
and glorify God in company with his children
wherever they are found. And I know where a big block of
you are.
Is this Fraudian or what? Pop scholars
have read just enough about the Monarchy period to
believe that God demanded musical instruments to glorify Him. However, one
"pastor" claims that all musical instruments are "the
Devils' instruments. However, God saw how wonderful
they were at calling in the "seekers" and took them
over for His own worship!?
Well, it is a fact
that God tolerated instruments during animal
sacrifices because Israel rejected Him and
worshipped like the nations. They were past redemption
and the Law was to keep them from polluting God's name
and getting by with it.
What will this
"Satan" look like? Won't he look like an angel of
light? Why would h flaunt himself as a judgmental legalist? Won't he promote
fellowship with anyone and everyone? Is there a
dissociation here somewhere?
On the other hand,
all traditions and the Bible attribute musical worship
to Satan:
"But as to this Genun (Jubal), Satan came into him in his
childhood; and he made sundry trumpets and horns, and string instruments, cymbals and psalteries,
and lyres and harps, and flutes; and he played on them
at all times and at ever hour. -- Second Adam and Eve
20:2
In time, Satan's led
mixed-sex choirs and instrumental music brought the
people down into the dark valley of the Cainites where
wine, women and song so crippled them that even when
they repented they could never be redeemed.
This is quite
identical to the less-detailed Book of Enoch in which
"God will come with ten thousand saints" and the key
offenders were those who introduced instrumental music
and worship teams to take the eye off God. Musical
worship and abortion are grouped together by Enoch.
There is a host of pre and post New Testament
testimony to this universal belief that Satan used
instrumental music to try to defeat God and His Word.
Ole Jubal (rhymes
with?) went out and organized mixed choirs to seduce the
Sethites who were faithful to the Word off the Holy
mountain:
"In pagan traditions, musical instruments are
invented by gods or demi-gods, such as titans. In the
Bible, credit is assigned to antediluvian patriarchs,
for example, the descendants of Cain in Genesis 4:21.
There is no
other biblical tradition about the invention of
musical instruments Freedman, David Noel, Bible
Review, Summer 1985, p. 51)
"Where kithara playing and dancing and hand clapping find place, there is the
beguiling of men, the corruption of women, the sorrow
of angels and a feast for the devil... Today, to all
appearances, they sing psalms as God ordained, and
tomorrow they will eagerly dance as taught by Satan. Today they contradict
Satan and tomorrow they follow him... Let it be far
from you that today, as one loving Christ, you listen
attentively to the reading of the divine Scripture,
and tomorrow as a criminal and a hater of Christ you
listen to lyre playing." (St. Ephraim, quoted by
Green, p. 37-38).
Lucifer (Latin)
seduced the angels even of Heaven. She came into the
garden of Eden with wind, string and percussion
instruments. She wholly seduced Eve (she was
bisexual). Paul treats this as a SEXUAL SEDUCTION of a
bride to be.
They lie about Clement of
Alexandria but you can read his story here.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: Fifth, we can model non-denominational
Christianity as a witness to the larger religious world. In
this post-denominational era, the
implementation of our rhetoric about unity in the
gospel, liberty in matters of interpretation, and charity in all
things should get a sympathetic, even an excited
hearing.
This truly works
out well if you are already agreed in opposition to
non-instrumental groups.
The watching
denominational world is also upset because of the take-over by feminine and effeminate control. How can you seduce
spiritual people out of a Baptist church when you
probably cannot compete with commercial religious
pageants. I read more than a few web sites who are
just embarrassed about the whole end-time effort to
join commerce (more attenders, books, cds) with
religion. The Nashville papers have their own
"jubilee" about division in churches of Christ created
each year by Jubilee.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: The reason it's not is simply that
our rhetoric is not matched by the way we actually
treat each other.
Neither of us is
willing to,,
...........
affirm as
brothers and sisters in Christ people
...........
who've not been born anew of the
water and the Spirit.
Jubilee 97 denounced the value of
the water part!
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: Neither of us is willing to consider
some sort of open fellowship policy toward the larger religious world. And
neither of us is willing to pursue a merely pragmatic
unity
that owes no allegiance to the absolutes of the Christian
faith. We both have rock solid convictions about the
gospel and we are united in the intellectual and
existential affirmation of that gospel. It's time
for us to proclaim that gospel boldly while
simultaneously living a unity in Christ that honors
and preserves our historical distinctives, minus the judgments and condemnations. I need the experience
of living in healthy tension with people around me
whose points of view challenge my own, whose
thinking is not a carbon copy of my own, but whose
love for God and scripture is equally as emphatic as
my own.
I need brothers
and sisters who challenge me on my views about divorce and
remarriage, instrumental music, the role of women,
and the value of programs such as Christian Jubilee
or the North
American Christian Convention.
As iron sharpens
iron, our vigorous and respectful challenges of one
another's points of view will keep us intellectually
honest and spiritually sensitive.
As groups of
people gravitate
to leaders in churches that have particular
emphases about one or more of these subjects, they
will be known, at least in part, not only for their
faith in Christ,
but also for
their free or restricted use of females in church life,
or for their use
or non-use of instrumental music, or for their
primary or non-primary emphasis on compassion
ministries.
The
distinctiveness of the resulting congregations
need not make them ineffective as witnesses to
Christ. Our congregations no more have to look
alike and act alike than individual Christians
have to look alike and act alike. Neither do they
have to alienate themselves from each other.
Then why spend 1/4
of a million dollars on Jubilee 98 trying?
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: As surely as the latter happens,
though, that alienation, our witness to Christ both
separately as congregations and collectively as a fellowship
seeking unity,
it is diminished
significantly, because, people,
we are as sectarian as anybody dared to be
if we let something like instrumental
music make us into what we have
been, a totally fractured fellowship.
That is true: so it is
time that those who founded the MUSICAL SECTARIAN GROUP
which divided and deliberately sowed discord to just
quit doing music. However, only preachers seem to have
the time to fellowship EVERYONE. Most of us are
stretched by our family and local group and do not need
to affirm the musical sectarians.
This is like the old
shell game: is the pea under the MUSICAL WORSHIP TEAMS
or the INSTRUMENTAL WORSHIPPERS. Well, the trick is that
it isn' under either. By keeping up the confilct only
Satan wins by pretending that HIS musical instruments
are just a matter of opinion.
The fact is that the
Israelites worshipped with music and lost the Covenant
of Grace at Mount Sinai. There is no good attributed to
MUSIC in the entire Bible and it is often used to MARK
those who will not listen to the Words of God.
The DEBATE word is
PSALLO. However, Paul defined the Dionysian Wine
DRINKERS and EATERS who received their TRUTH while
driven mad with eine and music. They were piped down
where DRUNKENESS could be drunken with passion. This is
the meaning of EXTERNAL psallo or melody:
Psall� [psa�]
I. to touch sharply, to pluck, pull, twitch, Aesch.; toxou neuran
ps.
to twang the bow-string, Eur.; belos ek keraos ps.
to send
a
shaft twanging from the bow, Anth.; so, schoinos
miltophur�s psallomen� a
carpenter's
red
line, which is twitched and then suddenly let go, so as to leave a mark, id=Anth.
Look again to
see whether this is charismatic celebration of
one's own carnal senses in MAKING MUSIC.
Apalgeo (g524) ap-alg-eh'-o;
from 575 and algeo (to smart); to grieve out, i.e. become apathetic: - be past feeling
Only in a
secondary sense does the word mean to PLUCK with the
FINGERS. The defined act is PLUCKING and not the
resulting MUSIC.
II. to play a stringed instrument with the fingers, not with the plectron,
Hdt., Ar., Plat.
And only LATER
to sing to a harp:
2. later, to sing to a harp,
And in the New
Testament SING:
sing, New
Testament
This can have no
application to wind instruments or percussion
instruments.
Similar Latin:
revello, velli, vulsum or
volsum, 3, v. a., to pluck or pull away, to pull or tear out, to tear off or away (freq. and class.).
I. Lit. be
torn away, remove,
II. Trop., to
tear away, send away injurias honorificis verbis,
Signum: A
sign, signal; a watchword, password, given by a
wind-instrument.
The phrase: belos
ek keraos is made of two parts:
Belos [ball�, as Lat. jaculum
from jacio]
1. a missile, esp. an arrow, dart, bolt, Hom.; of
the rock hurled by the Cyclops, Od.; of the ox's leg
thrown at Ulysses, id=Od.; hupek bele�n out of the
reach of darts, out of shot, Il.; so ex� bel�n
Xen.
2. like enchos, used of any weapon, as a sword, Ar.: an
axe, Eur.
3. the agana belea
of Apollo and Artemis in Hom.
always denote the sudden, easy death of men and women
respectively.
4. after Hom. of
anything swift-darting, Z�nos bel� the bolts
of Zeus, thunderbolts, Aesch.; purpnoun b.
id=Aesch.; bel� pag�n the piercing frosts,
Soph.:--metaph., ommat�n belos the glance of the
eye, Aesch.; himerou belos the shaft of love,
id=Aesch.; of arguments, pan tetoxeutai belos
id=Aesch.
keras means
# 2. of musical instruments, a horn for blowing, Xen.: a flute, Luc.
# 3. a drinking-horn, Xen.
Conclusion: ALL
musical terms or names of instruments are derived from
Satan or Lucifer who is the father of all WARFARE
including over musical instruments which were NEVER
used to worship a spirit God. Why would anyone become
a MUSICAL SECTARIAN other than as a "change agent of
Satan."
The kingdom of God
is NOT about EATING and DRINKING and therefore Paul
repudiates all groups highly addicted to MUSICAL
"worship" which made the drinking of wine to
intoxication of puking possible.
In the later uses as
a musical instrument, ALL of the evidence points to
Apollo or Abaddon or Apollyon as the father of musical
harmony, twanging bowstrings to send a singing arrow
into your heart, father of thieves and liars. There is
no exception in the Greek literature or the church
Fathers but that music is SATAN'S DEVICE to PIPE DOWN
the Word of Christ.
This is the "Guilt
Clause." They even used it on John Calvin: they tried to
rule Calvin, Calvin resisted, therefore Calvin destroyed
the unity.
But, people, lets look
at the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the
truth:
> The secting out or creation of a sectarian group was the result of and
consisted totally of those who created the division by
adding the instruments.
> Those who added
instruments gave no Scriptural reasons. It was just a
fact that instruments and choirs attracted "the
largest miscellaneous crowds" away from the denominations
across the street. They paid organists and singers at
sums equivalent to a modern professional singer.
> Therefore, they rejected the view held en toto by Methodists, Baptists
and Presbyterians.
> They had some mercenary reason for doing so.
> > Therefore, by all
definitions of sectarianism, the instrumental
group were the sectarians.
> Churches of Christ did
not waver from the total non-catholic view held from
the time of Christ.
> To have wavered would have been in
their financial interest.
> > Therefore, the
non-musical churches could never be defined as the sectarians. Consistent with the
Pharisee pattern, there must be (a) a rejection of
the commandments of God in order to follow their own
laws or traditions, and (b) there is a commercial
interest in taking away the houses of widows.
I had a widowed
aunt. A musical church enticed about 60 thousand
dollars out of her for a new electronic organ.
I know of no
non-instrumental groups which have (a) changed the
laws or (b) seduced widows out of money to buy
organs.
But, Dr. Shelly is on
the instrumental side and does not know much about the
music issue from a Biblical or historical perspective.
As usual, the musical arguments are legalistic
proof-texts.
Musical churches
became a sect by adopting instruments even while
spitting in the faces of those, like J. W. McGarvey, who
helped build their church. They are free to operate as
they will. However, they are not free to remain ignorant
of the music issue.
Non-instrumental
churches are faithful for a 2,000 year practice and are
not likely, unless lied to, change.
Therefore, if
sectarianism ceases the blame will have to be placed
where it belongs and not heaped on the backs of those
who refuse to dance while Dr. Shelly pipes.
Calvin noted that if
an error
is held long enough, such as the Catholic priesthood,
then it becomes "sanctified" and those like himself
who left Catholicism was branded the heretic and the
Sectarian.
However, he knew
that this was core-based dishonesty at work.
This is the Second Incarnation "those being invaded turning around and attacking the invading army" or
the guilt clause which is a hostile, deceptive attempt
to place the secting brand on those who refused to
join the new sect. This is not honest but, lordy, it
is effective -- as slick as boiled okra but twice as
disgusting. Don't miss the guilt clause.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: In our quest to recapture the ground the American Restoration Movement originally
staked out for itself, may God help us to learn four
things. Number one:
Respect without
reorganization.,,
The original ground from
all denominations repudiated instrumental music. It was only the Voodoo
connection with the Great Awakenings such as Cane
Ridge which introduced non-Biblical songs to replace
the Psalms.
The original ground of
churches of Christ was that unity could only happen when
common worship practices were based on the commands or
examples of the Bible.
The original ground of the
Disciples or Christian Churches was the "High
Church" ground much like the Pharisees which gave them
the authority to replace the commands of the first
century for new commands and practices to fit the
culture.
Division was
inherent because the two groups had a different
foundation. Therefore, the "High Church" Disciples
simply returned to the Catholic or Church of England
(Episcopal) movement out of which the Christian
churches in the south east arose.
The modern movement
begun in 1987 to facilitate "instrumental music and a
wider role for women" now confesses that there is no
urge to restore the first century church. Rather, the
urge is to restore the charismatic effort which also
plagued and slowed the work of men like Campbell. This
is the meaning of restoring the Restoration Movement
rather than restoring the church Christ died to
purchase.
The Post-Modern or Post-Denominational
effort is not to depend upon the "assignment" of Jesus
in the first century but to get a new assignment for
our new wineskin.
Rubel's group has sected itself into the Family of God movement with "churches of
Christ" an addendum. His group uses The Willow Creek
Association to supply worship resources. The Zoe wing teaches the "female
instructing principle" for Jubilee dittos. As I write,
Seattle is undergoing the trauma of a take-over by
performing artists. Probably a blend of Jubilee, the
Zoe Group and Promise Keepers.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: Both our brotherhoods stand firmly
on the doctrines of historic orthodox Christianity
and our congregations are filled with people who
simply want to know Christ, honor him in daily
living and live with him in Heaven forever.
The historic, orthodox
Christianity in all of the ancient literature is totally
opposed to using machines to tickle the glands and
calling it worship. Instrumental worship is not
historically orthodox.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: We can affirm that much about each
other and live out the practical implications of
such an affirmation. That sort of respect says
nothing about needing to create a denominational type
organization that would represent an
organizational form of unity.
This goal is always
hindered when the goal of the post-denomination church
is worship. Worship is defined as a collective effort
facilitated by professional theatrical performance.
Jesus said that worship is in spirit (in the mind) and
according to truth (His Word). This facilitated worship
defeats the goal of listening to Jesus.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: We have histories, and we carry baggage, and we have wounds.
We are who we are and there's no reason for either
of us to try to manipulate or coerce the other to a point
of view that is not authentic to our sincerely held
convictions. So, Romans 14:13: "Let us stop passing
judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind
not to
put any stumbling block or obstacle in your
brother's way."
In Jewish law:
"Providing an
individual with a prohibited food, e.g., wine to a Nazirite (who takes a vow which
prohibits him from drinking wine, cutting hair, or
ritually contaminating himself by coming into contact
with the dead), would be a violation of this
commandment (Babylonian Talmud, Pesachim 22b).
Rabbi Ashi, who owned forests, was permitted to sell
wood to heathens who were fire-worshippers only because the
majority of purchased wood is used for kindling, not for idolatry (Babylonian
Talmud, Nedarim 62b). However, to sell the wood
directly for the purpose of allowing pagans to practice their idolatrous practices would be
prohibited."
The musical
sectarians at Mount Sinai placed a stumbling block.
The result was that they lost the Book of the
Covenant and were burdened with THE BOOK OF THE LAW.
Of the almost
violent treatment of those who will not allow THEIR
lambs to stray, Rubel is getting close to dangerous
grounds about stumbling stones:
"One should not
entrust animals to a shepherd, if there is a strong
possibility the shepherd will allow them to graze on other people's
property (Babylonian Talmud, Bava Metzia 5b).
Even purchasing milk, wool, or kids from shepherds was not permitted since
they might
have
stolen
these items from the cattle under their care (Babylonian Talmud, Bava
Kama 118b).
"There is a Midrash
(Midrash Hagadol, Leviticus 19:14) that states that
individuals who "strengthen the hand of sinners" or assist others to
commit a misdeed have transgressed the prohibition
against "placing a stumbling block before the blind."
One might argue that remaining quiet in the face of
evil, i.e., not blowing the whistle on iniquities,
strengthens the hand of wrongdoers.
And how about
buildings with the tallest spire or asherah poles:
trying to be the biggest church in town:
"Advertising that is
intended to elicit envy or create the need for showy
luxury products on the part of the consumer may also
be problematic. In the classic medieval ethics
(mussar) work, Orchos Tzadikim (Chapter 14: Jealousy),
the author notes that jealousy comes from observing
what friends own. We become envious of a friend's
garment, food, house, and/or wealth, and envy leads to
coveting. Thus, individuals who purposely flaunt
wealth in order to arouse the envy of their fellows
are guilty of lifnei iver.
Keeping quiet when
wrongs are being committed by an organization is also
tantamount to "placing a stumbling block ..."
Musical worship,
female pastors (teams) and musical mediators are an
ancient stumbling block.
The goal of the Musical Worship
Facilitator which means "gradual manipulation to take people where you
want them to go" is one of the strongest forms of
manipulation or coercion toward a musical church.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: Number two: May God help us to learn
cooperation without compromise. Both our
brotherhoods are firmly opposed to unbelief and
compromise of the gospel. We've separated from each
other over second (wine) and third order (instruments) issues because we've
not kept the cross as our primary focus.
In that, we had
been guilty
of idolatry.
Music is almost
100% associated with idolatry in the Bible, the ANE,
the classics and church fathers. Today it is called
"the idolatry of talent."
If I cannot worship with an instrument and brother
Joe cannot worship without an instrument then how can you
compromise just in order to get me and Joe together at
one time and place? This view is the failure to "plant
and water" and takes on God's role of "giving the
increase." I meet with 300 and I don't need any more
noise.
Non Instrumental music has never been called
idolatry. Musical worship has. In fact,
everyone in the superstitious ages believed that the
gods lived inside of the instruments. The "familiar
spirit" was an old, hollow wineskin and has the same
meaning as a nebel or harp. Catholics baptized organs
and bells.
"The triumphal hymn
of Moses had unquestionably a religious character
about it; but the employment of music in religious
services, though idolatrous, is more distinctly
marked in the festivities which attended the erection
of the golden calf." (Smith's Bible Dictionary, Music,
p. 589).
The Dead Sea
Scrolls version of Psalm 41:
- DSS: They have overtaken me
in a narrow
pass (gap) without escape
- And there is no
rest for me in my trial.
- They sound my censure
upon a harp
- and their murmuring and storming upon
a zither." Ps.41:11
-
- DSS: A root bearing poisoned and bitter fruit
- is in their
designs;
- they walk in
stubbornness of heart
- and see Thee among idols,
- then they set before them
- the
stumbling-block of their sin.
-
- DSS: I cannot step forward
lightly,
- For my legs and
arms are bound by shackles
- which cause me
to stumble.
-
- The tongue is gone back which Thou
didst make
- marvelously
mighty within my mouth;
- it can no
longer give voice.
-
- I have no word for my disciples
- to revive the
spirit of those who stumble
- and to speak
words of support to the weary.
- My circumcised lips are dumb.
All pagans believed
that the carved instruments were the homes of the gods
and the god's mouthpiece. People still believe that
music can "lead you into the presence of God" and that
the "team" becomes the platform upon which God lands.
This is truly
the meaning of idolatry and one cannot endure it and still focus upon
Jesus and the cross when the theatrical performers are
standing squarely between me and God -- and demand that you look and listen!
Those who tried to
make their idols speak to them always
believed that the gods or spirits lived inside of the
musical instruments:
"Yobal (Jubal). (Note: Jubilee or "a blast of trumpets"
is from Jubal which means "to lead with triumph or pomp.") and Tobalkin (Tubal-Cain), the two
brethren, the sons of Lamech, the blind man, who
killed Cain, invented and made all kinds of
instruments (or metal weapons) of music.
"Yobal made reed instruments, and harps, and flutes, and whistles,
and the devils went and
dwelt inside them.
When
men blew into the pipes, the devils sang
inside them,
and sent out sounds from
inside them. (Note: the "familiar spirit" of the
Witch of Endor was an old "lifeless instrument"
made of an old water or wineskin).
"For non literate peoples, music often
serves purposes other than entertainment or aesthetic
enjoyment. Certain wind instruments are closely
associated with the supernatural, and their sounds
connote powerful
magic.
Australian
Aborigines, for instance, identify the sound of a
bull-roarer with the voices of supernatural beings;
for the Plains
Indians, the same sound signifies an awesome natural
phenomenon, such as thunder.
Wind instruments are often among a
group's most important ritual objects, and in some cultures
they are specially venerated. The Kamairua Indians of
the Amazon rain forest keep their giant flutes (three to four feet
long),
........... wherein spirits are
believed to dwell,
in a special shrine where they are worshiped. The flutes and drums of New Guinea are
similarly housed and worshiped. "wind instrument"
Britannica Online.
Pagans always used instruments
because the "gods" lived inside. The later Catholic
church could not use them until they were baptized. How else could they
bring you closer to god than they themselves are?
Now, if a new member
is just out of such ignorant superstition--that music
mediated between God and man--one could still "receive"
him for meal fellowship without becoming polluted. Or
the person could attend the "synagogue" and use the
TEACHING command of Romans 15, Ephesians 5 and
Colossians 3.
However, Paul would
not tolerate that terminally-ignorant person to make his
arguments that the gods really lived inside of the
instruments, or the musical performers "led you into the
presence of God" or that they musicians were "mediators
between man and God."
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: I know that's a strong charge, but I
believe it's correct.
It is nothing less than idolatry to let something other
than the cross define our relationship to one
another in Christ.
It is nothing short of
idolatry to let something other than
the cross be the basis of our passing any form
of judgment against one another.
Again, Paul preached just the cross to those who were
still carnal. This lust for just the core gospel is
what is idolatry. It repudiates the clear anti-musical
teachings of the Bible and the exampled experience of Jesus.
To claim to preach
just the cross or THE CORE GOSPEL is to be self
deluded and offering the same Paul-like insult to his
carnal audience which pays his bills.
It is Bible 101aaa
that if the musical performers getting a message from
God (out
of their own
spirit
according to Paul) are on the bamah or high place or platform
performing to specifically swamp my vision and hearing
then they are defining our relationship.
Therefore, we
agree that any form of performance is idolatry. A
"hypocrite" is an "actor."
It is not idolatry
if I turn off my blessed hearing aide or go to the
library until "this too shall pass."
Well, we just added
several things to the cross above. How about: "fraticidal, traditionalist, legalists,
superiority posture, unChristian, schismatic, Satanic,
sectarian, and idolatrous people, irrelevant, junk."
The Core Gospel is
sold as just the cross. We wonder why
you would need a Ph.d in order to preach just "Jesus died, was buried
and was resurrected"? Well, we know that everyone uses
the cross as a crutch to define their new
world order and the "law" to define others. However, this is a
denial of the cross and the gospel which we speak to here.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: Give me the freedom to follow
scripture to the best of my understanding...to the
best of my understanding...to the best of my
understanding.
Granted: return the
favor. But if you don't know the facts about the
idolatrous history of instrumental music and mixed-sex
choirs then you should not pose as an authority so high
that you can define those who disagree as "idolaters."
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: My understanding is not infallible.
The conclusions I'm going to come to are not
incorrigible. But give me the freedom to do the best
I can.
And please don't
judge me as a legalist because I prefer not to
adopt a practice that you embrace.
But one is judged as
they judge. Why is it that not adopting the practice of
instrumental music is legalism? We showed that "judging" is imposing literally
or psychologically a practice which is not Biblical or
has been abrogated.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: Give me the freedom to follow
scripture to the best of my understanding. Please
don't judge me a liberal because I can embrace
a practice that you prefer not to adopt. Romans
14:10: "You then, why do you judge your brother? Or
why do you look down on your brother? For we will
all stand before God's judgment seat."
I agree, and
wouldn't it be wonderful if we could ignore all of the
hurt and division and "offending of these little ones"
by the assumption
of supreme power to collect people from all over the
world to use praxis (practice) to condition people
into "lifting holy hands, laying on of hands, using
vocal and instrumental bands and promoting female
ministers?" It would be just fine if they went home
not knowing how to Navigate the churches into winds of
change even if you have to use dishonest brinkmanship,
deception and a denial of the power of the members.
However, these sectarians "Hit you in the nose and
kick you in the groin and label you as mumblers and
trouble-makers if you yell 'ouch' and create
disturbance in the church."
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: Number
Three:
May
God help us to learn appreciation without
antagonism. No two persons agree on everything. Even
my wife's wrong about a few things. But all of us
tend to feel threatened when somebody disagrees with
us, and to get defensive. (In the Second
Incarnation this becomes "Those being invaded turn
hostile and mount an attack.") Those two facts, that
we don't all see everything alike and that we all
tend to feel threatened when we are disagreed with,
those two facts, set up the potential for serious
conflict.
I thought that I
might make it through my allotted time without seeing
a major effort to divide churches of Christ when
earlier we had been the fastest growing group in the
nation. The preachers learned to negotiate and
intimidate and liquidate and Jubilee will probably go
down as the worst precalculated division in the
Restoration Movement. Without Jubilee I know of no
other far-reaching effort to conform everyone to a new "paradigm" after rejecting the old
"pattern."
Having learned the
Second Incarnation lesson well, those who become
defensive turn around and attack. They will, true to
the well-taught pattern, see those who yell "OUCH" as
the trouble makers who just needs better athletic
protection.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: Spiritual immaturity will embrace conflict and see
victory as the goal. Spiritual maturity can allow
honest disagreement and see preserving the unity of
the body of Christ in love as the goal. Romans
14:14, 15: "As one who is in the Lord Jesus, I am
fully convinced that no food is unclean in itself. But if
anyone regards something as unclean, for him it is
unclean. If your brother is distressed because of
what you eat, you're no longer acting in love.
Do not by your
eating, destroy your brother for whom Christ died."
Appreciation without antagonism.
Amen. I am
waiting! But since the functional level of the
church is no larger than the local congregation why
should I embrace conflict. Here is the way to test
immaturity in the Christian assembly (synagogue):
But whereunto
shall I liken this generation? It is like unto children sitting in the
markets, and calling unto their fellows, Matt 11:16
And saying, We
have piped unto you, and ye
have not danced; we have mourned
unto you, and ye have not lamented. Matt 11:17
But then Paul did
pass judgment on keeping of days and other things
which we noted. Therefore, Paul didn't mean that we
have to give up our decision making or spirit testing
just to get along.
Do not by adding
musical worship teams exercising "sexual authority"
over me displacing the leaders and do not place a
"chist of whistles" over me because it has always been
believed to be the voice of the gods speaking, destroy
me for whom Christ died!
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: And then Number Four: May God help
us to learn fellowship without fear.
Acknowledgement, cooperation and unity must always rest on
our mutual commitment to the core doctrines of the
Bible.
A core doctrine is one
that,,
...........
relates
directly to Christ,,,
...........
his substitutionary death on the cross
and
...........
our acknowledgement of
him in obedient faith.
Like Wow! Sounds like a well-stripped CORE. How about just teaching
the APPLE and not trying to force-fit everyone into
your own wineskin which allows you to have that wine
at home?
That core repudiates
all of the listeners as "still carnal" and not able to
eat meat. And, according to Amos, as long as the
flutes toot we will all hunger and thirst for the Word
and not be able to find it.
Instrumental
music relates directly to Christ because Psalm 41 says
that Judas will attempt but fail to triumph over
Jesus. The Dead Sea Scrolls affirm that this was the
enemies of Christ "standing in the gap" with musical
instruments which were always used in war to panic the
enemy. The clergy which controlled Judas "piped" to
try to triumph over Jesus by making him sing and dance
the Dionysus choral.
Jesus did not command or
practice instrumental music. That related directly
to the spirit of Christ. He somewhat endorsed the
synagogue which repudiated any "praise ceremony" and
certainly instruments.
Jesus more or less
violently put the musical team out of the girls room
before He would heal her.
Jesus directly
communicated with and appeared to Paul to further
instruct him. He led Paul to repudiate the wine
induced singing which was always instrumental. He had
Paul prescribe a synogogue-like teaching program using
the Words of Christ or Spirit. He repudiated
mechanical instruments by defining the human voice and
heart.
He informed John
to warn us about the end-time Babylonian Whore
worship with music in Rev. 18.
Music directly
relates to Jesus Christ because it has always been
the way to take people's mind off God and His Word.
Jesus died as our
substitute and the substitute of animals which
were offered at the temple with the "musical
instruments" actually a great noise. The people were
excluded from this by the Spirit of Christ by
assigning the Levites to keep them away when the music
played.
His substitute
took away those who took away the key to knowledge.
They way they did that was with "anxiety created by
religious rituals." Therefore, Christ substituted
for institutionalized worship and died to permit me
to worship in spirit or in my mind.
We cannot
acknowledge him in faith and adopt music because
there is no command and therefore cannot be by faith.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: Although we have no basis for
spiritual fellowship with unbelievers in actions
that are distinctly Christian, such as the Lord's
supper. What in the world would it mean for me to
eat the Lord's supper with an unbeliever? That's a
distinctly Christian act of fellowship.
What about stripping
Baptism of water at Jubilee 97 and making salvation
depending on calling God: "Father." I'm gonna try that
on Bill Gates!
Speaking the Word of
Christ or Spirit is the distinctly Christian way of
teaching one another and honoring Him. What in the
world would it mean for me to try to worship with
nerves frazzled by external harmony which is not
related to melody as melody is not related to singing
the Psalms.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: Or evangelistic outreach? That's a
distinctly Christian behavior that I can only
participate in with someone else who is also part of
the body. Well, while we have no basis for spiritual
fellowship with unbelievers in actions like that, we
do have the basis for such fellowship with each
other.
Well, if you have walked to Emmaus as many groups are doing
you have fallen for the Sabbath Eucharist. This is not a
regenerating effort for local groups but like PK an
effort to infiltrate whole churches to evangelize those
who have been evangelized by seduction into pagan
"eating and drinking the gods."
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: And we can learn, not only to eat
the bread and drink the wine together as the
affirmation of our being one body, but we can put
missionaries in settings together.
"Come eat the bread,
come drink the wine" is one of those heretical songs
in the new Praise Book we call "the Jubilee Song
Book." Jesus took pains not to use the word wine because
any product of ferment was taboo at the Passover. Only
the clergy liked to substitute real wine so that they
could get drunk. Wine is the universal symbol of God's
wrath and it will be poured out upon those who entice
others into drinking intoxicants beginning at the
Lord's Supper.
When wine was
substituted for blood it was always poured out at the
altar. Christ substituted the Fruit of the Vine and
not the fruit of the vat.
Sounds good,
Jubilee! Why not do that very thing by taking along
your begging bag and preach where the gospel has never
been heard rather than try to collect a miscellaneous
group to listen to your praise team and Word-evacuated
sermon. Did you know that no needy person from Gambia
can get to Jubilee 2000? Don't think that wasting the
money on a guru exposure to the worshipers will
qualify as evangelism.
If you do it and
someone tries to stop you I will help you out.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: I have, in foreign settings, off the
soil of the United States, sat with groups where
people from a cappella, instrumental and non-Sunday
school churches work together in such unity that
unless you saw the pay checks that they got from
back in the States to support their work, you'd
never know that they were from different traditions.
I'll bet they use
instruments! Again, Dr. Shelly cannot get away with
defining instrumental music as just our tradition. That is false.
Rubel Shelly,
ACU: There is something about being in an
environment where the enemy is a little bit clearer than where
over here we have
the luxury of
parsing the nuances and fighting about some things
that are ultimately irrelevancies.
There is
something about being in that setting that
clarifies a lot of this junk. And we wept
together that day, that if we were back in Texas
or Tennessee or Arkansas,
we couldn't be
doing what we were doing there, in sharing the
gospel together with unbelievers.
Just don't believe
it! Sounds like more excuses which give you brownies
by bashing churches of Christ. In my inventing -
engineering background, the most ignorant man in the
plant could come by and tell me what was not working!
God always warned
about first
walking
then standing and then sitting with others. It is impossible to try
to be friendly with people without softening one's
opinion even on clear Biblical issues. That is why
Christ sent evangelists out to preach the gospel and
not bundle up on the mission field or at home.
However softened and
moist we become, that should never be authority to
repudiate the clear teachings of the Word. If you want
to bundle with others the do so on personal grounds
and do not use personal feelings as the foundation to
rebuild the Word. That was what the Pharisees did.
You may believe that
the non-instrumental view is irrelevant or "a lot of
junk" and weep all you wish but that does not change
one jot or tittle of God's word which universally
repudiates music as a way to soften or moisten His
Word. Music always works. Even ugly girls look pretty
good if they can "sang and chord."
In Part Three we
will see that Music is the Ultimate Stumbling Block.
Click for a more detailed picture of
Christ "singing to the Gentiles" in romans 15
Click for
Part One---Part Two---Part Three
See a more recent assault against
non-musical churches.
Post Modern Index,,
First Musical Heresy Musical Worship Teams
Musical Heresy 2: Hippolytus on
Music and Soothsaying
Hippolytus Book V
Orphic Music
Orphic Connection to Romans 14
Rhea-Saturn-Zoe Connection
Classical
Index
Musical Worship Index
Church Fathers
Home Page
Abilene Christian
University (ACU), Rubel Shelly, unity forum,
instrumental music in worship, judging others, Romans
14, romans 15, ephesians 5, colossians 3.
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