Wednesday, February 9, 2011

A Kingdom that Cannot Be Shaken

"See that you do not refuse the one who is speaking; for if they did not escape when they refused the one who warned them on earth, how much less will we escape if we reject the one who warns from heaven! At that time his voice shook the earth; but now he has promised, 'Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heaven.' This phrase, 'Yet once more,' indicates the removal of what is shaken--that is, created things--so that what cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us give thanks, by which we offer to God an acceptable worship with reverence and awe; for indeed our God is a consuming fire."
Hebrews 12:25-29

We who know the salvation of Jesus Christ have inherited His Kingdom. This Kingdom is in clear contrast, and often in direct opposition to, the "kingdoms" of this world. We have received this inheritance now, but still await its full coming. It dwells among and within us now, but it is coming as an unshakable force that will shake up all the things of this earth and reveal their weaknesses, and revealing the uncompromising truth that "the old has gone, and the new has come." In this, we find the truth that God is making all things new. This Kingdom is near, it is here, and it is coming soon.

And as those who await the coming of the Kingdom, we have the choice every day to live within it. To choose to live in the Kingdom that is unshakable, rather than in the kingdoms of this world that are so easily shaken, daily passing away. We must choose to live firmly rooted and founded in this Kingdom, which is a more solid foundation than anything else we will find, rather than trying to set our foundations on the things of this world which are passing away.

Are you rooted in the things of this world? Are you investing yourself in the things of this world? Or are you investing in the Kingdom of God?

Saturday, February 5, 2011

Songwriting and Blessings

One real blessing that I've been able to experience this year has been in songwriting. I made it one of my (many) goals at the beginning of the year that I wanted to start trying to write songs. So far I've written five this year. Each time the process seems to be a bit different. Sometimes it takes about 45 minutes before a full song is produced. Other times I get a solid beginning and then wait a few days to come back to it. Mostly I've just been experimenting with different ways to write and worship through song. It's been a great blessing to my prayer life to worship through the creativity that the Lord has blessed me with.

One example is a song I wrote a couple months ago called Psalm 85. With this one, it began mostly as simply an experiment in songwriting for me. I found a riff that I really liked, and decided to make it into a song. So I just opened up to the Psalms and found number 85 and started working with it. So lyrically, it wasn't so much inspired, but I figured that since it's Scripture, it's already inspired, so...there you go. But it's turned out to be one of my favorites of what I've written so far. Sorry the quality is pretty crappy, but check it out:

 Psalm 85 (Restore Us Again) by benwulpi

Feel free to check out my other works at my SoundCloud page. I'd love to hear people's thoughts on them. Hopefully some of them will get used in corporate worship someday soon.

For the praise of His glory,

ben

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Citizens of Heaven

"For Christians are not distinguished from the rest of humanity by country, language, or custom. For nowhere do they live in cities of their own, nor do they speak some unusual dialect, nor do they practice an eccentric way of life. This teaching of theirs has not been discovered by the thought and reflection of ingenious people, nor do they promote any human doctrine, as some do. 
"But while they live in both Greek and barbarian cities, as each one's lot was cast, and follow the local customs in dress and food and other aspects of life, at the same time they demonstrate the remarkable and admittedly unusual character of their own citizenship. They live in their own countries, but only as non-residents; they participate in everything as citizens, and endure everything as foreigners. Every foreign country is their fatherland, and ever fatherland is foreign.
"They marry like everyone else, and have children, but they do not expose their offspring. They share their food but not their wives. They are in the flesh, but they do not live according to the flesh. They live on earth, but their citizenship is in heaven. They obey the established laws; indeed in their private lives they transcend the laws. They love everyone, and by everyone they are persecuted." 
Selection from The Letter of Diognetus (2nd century A.D.)