Lyrical Theology

Introducing Sage Owen Linne

2012-01-22T17:13:00.003-05:00

On January 5, 2012 at 8:42 p.m. EST, Sage Owen Linne entered the world, to the astonishment and joy of his grateful parents. He weighed in at a sleek 6 lbs. 4oz. From the moment he got here, he has lived up to his name, as far as having a low-key, seemingly thoughtful demeanor. He's been a very chill and relaxed baby- (except when he's hungry!) As you can see from the pic, I will teach him well what his proper sports allegiances should be. In other words, I'm teaching him how to endure suffering! But seriously, Blair, Sage and I are all doing well. It's already been quite an adjustment. I'm fighting to trust God's wisdom, goodness and provision in this season. Your continued prayers are greatly appreciated.

grace and peace,
shai

Sooo...We're Expecting

2011-12-02T22:56:00.005-05:00

I don't normally post a lot of personal stuff on the web, but I did want to share with y'all that my wife Blair and I are expecting our first child in a few weeks. Those who are close to us knew this (as well as those who watched the "Perfection of Beauty" video closely lol). But to this point, we haven't really broadcasted it publicly. Btw, it's a boy and his name is Sage. We want him to walk in wisdom and to know Christ, who is the source of all wisdom. I share it with you now because I'm grateful for your partnership in the gospel. God only knows how this will impact my music moving forward! I also would like to request your prayers. I have three specific requests:

1. Please pray that God would give me the grace to honor Him as a faithful husband and father who regularly points my wife and son to Christ and the gospel.

2. Please pray that, as a family, God would meet all of our needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus.

3. Please pray that God would save Sage at an early age and that he would only know of a warm, loving home with two godly parents who love Christ deeply and who model the grace of God as we serve one another and raise him in the fear and knowledge of the Lord.

I have to say that as I anticipate Sage's birth in a few weeks, I feel a mixture of excitement and nervousness. Excitement because I've wanted to be a dad for a long time and I'm so grateful to have an amazing woman of God to share this experience with. Nervous because, like many African-American males in the urban context, I grew up without my father in my life and had very few models of godly manhood and fatherhood growing up. That, along with an awareness of my own sinfulness causes me to deeply feel my insufficiency. At the same time, I know that God is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think according to the power at work in us and that He can more than make up for what I lack. It's a daily fight for me to believe this, so I covet your prayers.

It's good to be able to share this with y'all. Thank you for supporting my ministry through music and for the many ways that you have encouraged Blair and I over the years.

grace and peace,
shai

Attributes Sermon Snippets

2011-11-28T17:00:00.002-05:00

One of my favorite parts about putting out albums is exposing people to the resources that have helped to shape my thinking about the content of the songs. One way to do this is by putting snippets from particularly helpful sermons in the songs themselves. A good number of people have asked me about the original sources of the sermon snippets heard on Attributes. Here's a list of the snippets, along with links to the original sermons.

D.A. Carson on Perfection of Beauty

This is from a sermon called "God" that D.A. Carson preached at the 2010 Next Conference. You can find that sermon here. Scroll down to the 2010 Conference.

John Piper on All-Consuming Fire

This is from a sermon called "The Greatest Thing in The World- An Overview of Romans 1-7" that John Piper preached as a part of his series in Romans. It's one of my all-time favorite Piper sermons. You can find it here

Sinclair Ferguson on Self-Sufficiency

This is from a sermon called "The Lord our God, The Lord is One: The Simplicity of God" that Sinclair Ferguson preached at the 2004 Ligonier National Conference on the Attributes of God. It can be found here.

Thanks again for all the feedback that y'all have given me about the album.

grace and peace,
shai

The Challenge of Christian Music Videos

2011-11-09T00:00:00.007-05:00

As we've considered which song from The Attributes of God to push as a radio single, the idea of doing a music video has come up. Those who are familiar with my music know that I've never done a music video up to this point. It hasn't been for lack of opportunity, but because of an internal wrestle I've had about the idea. Now, some people might think, "What are you talking about? How could there possibly be anything wrong with doing a music video"? Well, I know it's often assumed that music videos are something we should do because they're popular in our culture and it's standard protocol for the (secular) music industry. However, I don't want to take my cues for the rightness or wrongness of something from our culture or the music industry, but from God's Word. So let me share two challenges I see with music videos done by artists with explicit Christian content. One challenge is artistic, the other is biblical.

1. The Artistic Challenge

Simply put, I never want to do a music video if I can't do it skillfully and creatively. I go into some reasons for this in a recent post that you can find here. I have a background in professional acting and theater production, which has given me a sense of how some things work behind the scenes. Video can be a very challenging medium. It takes a lot of time, skill and resources to do it well. This is why the music videos of popular secular artists can cost tens and even hundreds of thousands of dollars to produce. It makes sense if you think about it. If you're going to do a video that doesn't look like it was shot on a camera phone by your cousin in your backyard, you're going to need at least the following things:

1. An excellent camera (Ideally a number of excellent cameras to do multiple angles)
2. A skilled director
3. A skilled writer to storyboard the shoot
3. Quality lighting
4 A skilled editor(s)
5. Skilled actors
6. Extras
7. Skilled make-up artists
8. Skilled wardrobe artists
9. Skilled set designers
10. A skilled crew to do all the necessary handiwork the day of the shoot

These are just the first ten things that come to mind. There are many more things that I could have mentioned. It can get really expensive when you start putting dollar figures on each of those things. One high quality camera alone can cost thousands of dollars! Even if you can get a bunch of volunteers to do as many things as possible, it can still be costly and you run the risk of producing a video that looks like it was shot and edited by a bunch of volunteers, rather than paid professionals. Over the years, it has become a lot easier to produce quality music videos for cheaper than what they used to cost, but it's still a challenge.

Also, from a creative standpoint, I was never interested in doing a video with me simply looking into the camera and rapping one of my songs. In my opinion, 1) That's not very creative and 2) Most of my songs are about infinitely big ideas (God, the gospel, eternal destinies, etc.) that I'm afraid will immediately become diminished if dwindled down to a guy rapping into a camera. I always wanted the medium to do justice to whatever is being communicated in the song, and if that wasn't happening, I didn't want to do it at all.

With all that said, the artistic challenge hasn't been my main concern with music videos. My main concern is a biblical one.

2. The Biblical Challenge

The biblical challenge with music videos is that it is a visual medium; that is, a medium of images. The Scriptures have a lot to say about the dangers of images. The second commandment says:

"You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the LORD your God am a jealous God..." Exodus 20:4-5

I know that this verse was written during a time when pagan idolatry was prevalent and people actually worshiped statues. However, I don't think that bowing down to a statue is the only way to break this commandment. What this commandment is forbidding is elevating any created thing to the place that should only be reserved for God. For some reason, images make it easier for us to do this. I suppose that it's because images enter our hearts through our eyes. As it says in Proverbs 27:20,

"Death and Destruction are never satisfied, and neither are the eyes of man."

There is a very real biblical category called "the desires of the eyes" (1 John 2:16). The very first sin committed in the Garden of Eden was connected to the "delight of the eyes" (Gen. 3:6) and the millions of clicks onto pornographic sites each day is just one proof that the connection between the eyes, images and idolatry is alive and well today. Check out the following verses, which make this connection explicit.

Numbers 15:39, Ezekiel 6:9 and 20:24

Just to be clear, I'm not saying that music videos are inherently sinful. Not at all. I believe that like every medium (and everything else in the world), video exists to bring glory to God and show off His creative genius at work in His creation. What I am saying is that music videos are an image-based medium and that any image-based medium should at least make Christians cautious in light of the many warnings in the Bible about images. While images themselves aren't necessarily sinful, images can (and often do) tempt the human heart to idolatry in a way that other things don't.

The secular music industry is very much aware of this and is very intentional in using music videos to make idols out of the artists they promote. What we see in music videos is not real. It's actors playing a role. It's 4 minutes of scenes slickly edited and crafted to make us see what they want us to see (and only what they want us to see). It is an idealized (usually either hyper-sexualized or hyper-dramatized), airbrushed, strategically postured, surgically enhanced image designed to capture our hearts through our eyes. Stadiums filled with thousands of people screaming, hyper-ventilating and fainting during secular concerts that are nothing less than worship events demonstrate powerfully that the idol-crafting, superstar-making formula employed by secular record companies is working.

When record labels do this, they are simply capitalizing off of a truth that was communicated in Scripture thousands of years ago: Within each fallen human heart, there is an idolatrous tendency to make idols out of images. We're being naive at best and negligent at worst if we don't acknowledge this tendency. When we fail to see this, what we'll inevitably see (and are seeing now) is the rise of the "Christian Superstar", which should be an oxymoron. There shouldn't be any room for a "superstar" in a universe that also has Jesus in it. However, we shouldn't be surprised if we use an image-based medium in the same way that "superstar-makers" use it and we end up with a Christianized version of the same thing, no matter how pure our intentions.

In addition to the idolatry factor, we have to consider that both words and images speak. An argument can be made that images speak more loudly. A picture is worth a thousand words, right? Music videos for Christian artists become challenging when what we see on the screen is at odds with whatever the song is about. So, for example, I may be saying in my song "Glory to God alone!" while the image on the video has me jumping out of a limousine, flashing money at the camera and looking like a rock star. It's an extreme example, but the problem here is that there is a disconnect between the words and the image. This is an easy error to make and I see it happen a lot (to varying degrees) with music videos by Christian artists. I don't want to make that error.

Well, this post is longer than I intended, so I should end it here. I haven't ruled out doing a music video, but if I do, those are some of the things that I would want to address with the director to make sure we're on the same page. And if I never do a music video, I'm OK with that as well. I'm still working through some of these things, so if you have any wisdom or resources to point me to, I'm open to that. I look forward to hearing your thoughts.

grace and peace,
shai

Attributes Lyrics Now Posted

2011-11-03T14:41:00.003-05:00

For those who didn't get the physical cd with the booklet and lyrics, the lyrics for The Attributes of God are now posted on this site on the right.

grace and peace,
shai

It's Here

2011-10-31T22:33:00.003-05:00

My new album, The Attributes of God, has just been released. You can get it at the following places:

iTunes

Amazon

Order CD Online

I pray that it's a blessing to you and that it encourages you towards a high view of our great God. All lyrics will be posted on this site. Feel free to leave comments/ questions here.

grace and peace,
shai

Do You Know Him?

2011-10-18T19:46:00.001-05:00

As I considered a phrase that would summarize the theme of my new album, The Attributes of God, I kept coming back to John 17:3, where the Lord Jesus Christ, in His prayer to the Father on the night before His death, makes a profound statement:

"And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent." John 17:3

In light of this verse, the statement I wanted to make became obvious. Actually, not a statement, but a question:

Do You Know Him?

Why this question? Because, according to the Lord Jesus in John 17:3, each person's eternal destiny depends on what the answer is. There is only one true God. To know this one true God is eternal life, which means that to not know Him is eternal death and destruction. There is no knowing this one true God apart from also knowing Jesus Christ, whom He has sent.

Looking at the same truth from a different angle, it can be said that all sin is a failure to know God properly (Ex. 5:2, Jn. 16:3). In the days of the Judges, Israel was spoken of like this:

"And all that generation also were gathered to their fathers. And there arose another generation after them who did not know the LORD or the work that he had done for Israel." (Judges 2:10)

We see the fruit of that lack of the knowledge of God in the very next verse:

"And the people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the LORD and served the Baals." (Judges 2:11)

There is a direct correlation between sin/ idolatry and not knowing the Lord. Idolatry is giving other things the place that properly belongs to God alone. This will inevitably happen when a person does not know God. To know God is to know Him as He has revealed Himself, not as we would like Him to be. When Moses asked God to see His glory, God responded in this way:

"I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name 'The LORD.' And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy. But," he said, "you cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live." (Exodus 33:19-20)

Later on in the passage, it says

"The LORD passed before him and proclaimed, "The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children, to the third and the fourth generation." (Ex. 34:6-7)

Verse 7 presents a mystery that is only resolved through the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. How can the same God simultaneously abound in steadfast love and yet remain perfectly just in His dealings with rebellious sinners like us? God said that He will by no means clear the guilty. The problem is we ARE guilty. How can we be cleared without God contradicting Himself? The cross, that's how. To know God is to agree with Him about the holiness of His character, the offensiveness of our sin and the righteous wrath of God that our guilt deserves. To know God is to embrace the cross and what Christ accomplished there.

To know God is to rest in the sufficiency of the life, death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. To know God is to turn away from sin and to run towards the Lord, who stands with open arms filled with love, mercy, grace, kindness and compassion for those who trust in Him. To deny His character as revealed in Scripture is evidence of not knowing Him. The blessing of the new covenant is that all who trust in Jesus shall know God (Heb. 8:11). For all eternity, our supreme joy and delight will be in knowing and worshiping the God who created and redeemed us. There is no greater news possible.

The Attributes of God project is an attempt to use music as a means of communicating truth about the character of God. Our prayer at Lamp Mode has been that God would use it to point people to the Scriptures and what God says about Himself there. We're also praying that through the gospel presented on the album, God would be pleased to use something as "foolish" as a hip-hop record to draw people to Himself and to help build up those who are already in Christ.

So that's why we chose the question, "Do You Know Him?" as the phrase to go with the album. We hope that you'll download the avatar and that it will spark curiosity and that when people respond, "Know who?", you would tell them about Jesus.

grace and peace,
shai

Attributes of God Now Available for Pre-Order

2011-10-17T22:15:00.005-05:00

Here

Release Date: 11.1.11

grace and peace,
shai

Perfection of Beauty

2011-10-14T14:46:00.002-05:00

Here's the trailer for my new album, The Attributes of God, which will be released on...well, just watch the video lol. The beautiful lady doing spoken word is my bride Blair Linne. Pay close attention as she contrasts the world's idea of beauty with the haunting beauty of a Holy God. Enjoy!

Skills or Message?

2011-10-10T17:35:00.004-05:00

On Twitter recently, I made a comment about Christian films and the poor acting that is often associated with them. Someone responded by asking,

"Are you going for the acting or the message? The truth is what is needed!"

The person went on to ask, "Shouldn't God's glory be the first thing?"

This is a question that often comes up when dealing with works of art that have a Christian message connected to them. So what's more important? Skills or message?

I think the problem here is with the question itself, as it pits two things against each other that should actually be walking hand-in-hand. When it comes to Christians doing art, it's not either convey a true message or do it skillfully. It's both/ and. Consider a few Scriptures:

Psalm 33:3

"Sing to him a new song; play skillfully on the strings, with loud shouts."

The Psalmist goes on to speak on God's nature and His works as incentives to praise Him in this way. But did you notice the word "skillfully" in verse 3? Why doesn't it simply say "play on the strings"? I believe it's because God is particularly glorified when knowledge, wisdom and craftsmanship are applied by the artist in His service. This glorifies God as the generous Giver of talent, creative capacity and artistic expertise. It wasn't enough for the Psalmist to merely say true things about God. That truth was meant to be joined by skillful accompaniment.

Or consider these verses concerning the building of the tabernacle:

Exodus 35:10

Let every skillful craftsman among you come and make all that the LORD has commanded:

Exodus 35:25-26

And every skillful woman spun with her hands, and they all brought what they had spun in blue and purple and scarlet yarns and fine twined linen. All the women whose hearts stirred them to use their skill spun the goats’ hair.

Exodus 36:1-2

Bezalel and Oholiab and every craftsman in whom the LORD has put skill and intelligence to know how to do any work in the construction of the sanctuary shall work in accordance with all that the LORD has commanded." And Moses called Bezalel and Oholiab and every craftsman in whose mind the LORD had put skill, everyone whose heart stirred him up to come to do the work.

I'm sure at that time, there were many with the desire to work on the tabernacle. But it wasn’t enough to have the desire without the skill to best glorify God with those desires. This was such a priority to God that He actually put skill into the minds of Bezalel and Oholiab (Ex.36:2). The tabernacle would have looked really shabby if just anybody who knew how to pick up a carving instrument was allowed to work on it! Does this mean that God won’t accept the praise of someone who jumps on the piano and pounds away mindlessly to the glory of God? Not necessarily. A sincere heart is of great worth in God’s eyes (1 Sam. 16:7). Also, being the most skilled virtuoso in the world is meaningless if her heart is controlled by pride or self-exaltation (Proverbs 8:13).

With that said, I believe that art done by Christians should be held to high aesthetic standards and that the phrase, "It was pretty good for a Christian movie/song/book, etc." should NEVER be the preface for a statement about Christian works of art. If I have to choose between quality art and a truthful message, I'll simply pass on the work altogether. Why should I have to look at a bad painting in order to see the text of Romans 6:23 scribbled into the furniture? Just give me a Bible, please. There are plenty of places to get truth without subjecting yourself to bad art in the process.

So here's my answer to the question, "Shouldn't God's glory be the first thing?"

If an Isrealite asked Moses that same question, I think he might have said, "Yes. God's glory is the first thing. That's why they must be skilled."

grace and peace,
shai

On Christianity and the Arts

2011-09-27T14:10:00.004-05:00

Here's a brief part of an interview I did with Christianity.com that deals with Christianity and the arts.

New Audio- The Glory of God

2011-07-27T14:01:00.003-05:00

The 1st single off The Attributes of God album is called The Glory of God- download free on 7/29 bit.ly/oSNLtF More info- including release date- coming soon!

grace and peace,
shai

Why Do An Album on God's Attributes?

2011-05-09T19:42:00.010-05:00

"Christianity today is man-centered, not God-centered. God is made to wait patiently, even respectfully, on the whims of men. The image of God currently popular is that of a distracted Father, struggling in heartbroken desperation to get people to accept a Saviour of whom they feel no need and in whom they have very little interest. To persuade these self-sufficient souls to respond to His generous offers God will do almost anything, even using salesmanship methods and talking down to them in the chummiest way imaginable. This view of things is, of course, a kind of religious romanticism which, while it often uses flattering and sometimes embarrassing terms in praise of God, manages nevertheless to make man the star of the show." (A.W. Tozer Man: The Dwelling Place of God)

As the time approaches for my new album The Attributes of God to be released, I wanted to share with you about why I did it. This idea has actually been in the works for years. Those of you who have been following my music for a while know that on Grassroots Vol. 1, there was a song with myself and Timothy Brindle entitled The Holiness of God. That song was supposed to be included on the Attributes album that Tim and I were working on. The song Humility of Christ, which appeared on Tim's classic 2005 release Killing Sin, was also supposed to be on the project. When Tim stepped away from public ministry in 2006, the project was shelved. As time went on, it wasn't clear whether or not Tim would be returning. In the same way that I was burdened to do an album on The Atonement in 2007, I began to feel burdened in 2010 to do an album on God's character. Since Tim wasn't back yet, I moved forward with it as a solo project. Thankfully, Tim has returned, and we were able to include him on a few of the songs as we got near completion of the project.

So why was I so heavily burdened to do this project? The answer may be surprising to some, but here's why I did it:

Because A Lot of Christian Music Is Not Actually About God

I don't mean for this to sound harsh or overly critical, but have any of you noticed that the vast majority of music that would fall into the category of "Christian" is not actually about God Himself? I think this is particularly the case with Christian Hip-hop, but it can be seen in other genres as well. How can I say this? Well, most of the music I hear is more about US and our response to God, but not God Himself. Don't get me wrong. There's a place for music that deals with our response to God, but when that is the overwhelming majority of the music, we slowly begin to distort the truth about who the God is that we're supposedly responding to. The Tozer quote above was written over 50 years ago, but could have been written yesterday. Our culture is extremely narcissistic and man-centered, and it seems that much of Christian music has followed suit. The Bible, however, is radically God-centered, and I believe that a radically God-centered worldview should be reflected in the songs we write. Because of our man-centered tendencies, the songs we sing about God usually deal with the things we like about Him (which are usually the things that directly benefit us the most), such as His love, mercy and forgiveness, etc. These things are glorious and we should write songs about them. However, if that's all we talk about, we create an incomplete and deficient view of God, which is not in line with His self-revelation.

So, for instance, when was the last time you heard a contemporary song that echoed the ancient songs of David about the righteousness and justice of God (Ps. 11:7)? Which Christian hit on Billboard sings along with Nahum that God is "jealous, avenging and wrathful" (Nahum 1:2-3)? Who is producing songs that speak to God's sovereign rule over His creation (Ps. 2, 115)? Can you direct me to a popular song that celebrates God's omniscience along with Hannah (1 Sam. 2:3)? God's eternality along with Moses (Psalm 90:2)? God's judgments along with Miriam (Ex. 15:21)? These things are often spoken of in Scripture, particularly in the context of Biblical songs, yet they tend to be largely missing from our songs today. That's not to say that no one is doing it. God has raised up an increasing number of songwriters who are expounding on His character. But when something so foundational and essential has been so under-done, it becomes important for others to step to the plate and contribute. The Attributes of God album is simply my attempt at one such contribution.

grace and peace,
shai

Engaging the Urban Context With the Gospel

2011-05-06T18:19:00.003-05:00

I recently gave a talk at a break out session for the Plant Conference, hosted by Sovereign Grace Ministries. In the talk, I addressed some of the challenges that may come with planting a church cross culturally from a suburban to an urban setting. I also deal with issues regarding ethnicity, majority-minority culture tension and contextualization. Here's the link. If you listen, feel free to comment.

grace and peace,
shai

New Album Coming Soon

2011-04-19T13:13:00.003-05:00

For those of you who have been waiting, I have a new album coming out soon. Today, we released the title and artwork for it. The title is The Attributes of God. You can see the write up on the Lamp Mode Website here. More info to come.

grace and peace,
shai

Bring on the Frogs!

2011-03-31T10:00:00.003-05:00

I gave a talk on Christianity and the Arts a few months ago. For many (especially the children who were there), the highlight was the slides of the frogs, which were used to highlight God's creative genius in a humorous way. There is now a link online that includes the slides that were used that night. Enjoy! Link

How Would You Respond To This?

2011-03-29T14:23:00.003-05:00

A while back, I posted an exchange I had with a brother who disagreed with my use of a particular phrase in one of my songs. I get all kinds of emails and messages from people who disagree with what I do. And some of you might be surprised to see how angry and cruel some of these people can be. For some reason, though, I actually find these messages refreshing because, if nothing else, they're honest. And it also reminds me that there are many out there who are opposed to what we do and that those who take the time to send angry messages are boldly, and at times, sinfully expressing what is on the hearts of many.

With that said, I want to post a message that I got from someone with the screen name of "Michelk". In response to my post on Christianity and the Arts. I'm curious- how would you respond to a message like this? And do any of you think this person makes any valid points? What do you think?

From "Michelk":

Quite a new low for the reformed world. I would like to know how anyone thinking they are "reformed" could support this obvious compromise with the lowest element of American entertainment culture. As a parent I teach my children that rapp, rock and pop are not for the child of God. Rapp's origins are from the pit of the black gangster, druggy, welfare culture! What are you people thinking?!! Just before you call me a racist, rock music comes also from the 60's white, hippie, sex and drugs culture (though they say rock actually has its roots in black music and was popularized by men like Elvis). I want pure kids not "christianized" versions of the worldly heathen/hedonistic culture. What reformer would endorse such a thing? none. You know, the Reformers left the Roman Catholic church because they realized that it was shot through with paganism/heathenism. Looks like its time for a new Reformation! You should all be ashamed of yourselves!

Let's Discuss...

Quick Update

2011-03-29T12:42:00.002-05:00

I haven't blogged in a while because my time has been consumed with being a husband to the best wife a man could hope to have, serving at my church & traveling for concerts and speaking engagements, etc. Also, I've been working on my new album, which I'm glad to say, is almost finished! It's been a long and at times, difficult, process. I'm excited to be getting close to completion. More info, including the title, release date and audio clips- coming soon.

grace and peace,
shai

Christianity and the Arts

2011-01-15T17:44:00.002-05:00

I recently gave a talk on Christianity and the Arts at Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington, D.C.. You can find the link to listen or download here

grace and peace,

shai

Oct. 22-24 in the L.A. and Tampa, FL Areas

2010-10-19T13:49:00.005-05:00

For all who might be interested, I'll be appearing this upcoming weekend in the L.A. and Tampa, FL areas. In SoCal, I'll be in concert on Friday and speaking at a men's conference on Saturday. I'll also be in concert in St. Petersburg, FL on Sunday evening. Please pray that the Lord would strengthen Blair and I to serve His people this weekend, that the gospel would be clear and that God would draw people to Himself! Here are some details:

Friday, Oct. 22

What: Glorifying God Through Music/ Spoken Word

Who: Shai and Blair Linne

Where: The Master's College in Santa Clarita, CA

When: 7pm

For More Info: Click Here

Saturday, Oct. 23

What: A Call to Arms Men's Conference

Who: Ray Comfort, Shai Linne and others

Where: Corona, CA

When: 8am- 1pm

For More Info: Click Here

Sunday, Oct. 24

What: Glorifying God through lyrical theology

Who: Shai Linne, Young Bois, G-86

Where: St. Petersburg, FL

When: 7pm

For More Info: Click Here

Hope to see some of you there!

grace and peace,

shai

Was God Blasphemed on Atonement Q & A?

2010-08-25T21:32:00.004-05:00

{WARNING: LONG BLOG POST AHEAD}

That is one person's assessment. I was all set to blog about In Adam All Die when I came across a blog that took exception with a lyric from "Atonement Q & A". The line in question is on verse 2 when I say,

"Adoption means God is now my Father/ I got the hottest Poppa and by the Spirit holler 'Abba'

The objection this brother (named Joel) had is with the phrase "hottest Poppa". You can find his blog post here. On Twitter, Joel referred to the phrase as "irreverent blasphemy". After reading the comments on the blog, I decided to respond, which you can read below. He responded to me here. After a few exchanges, it became clear that he was no longer interested in having the discussion. I asked some questions that he never answered. Finally, I made another comment that he refused to post, citing his comment policy and saying it was too long. When I offered to edit the comment, Joel never responded.

One good thing about the technological age we live in is that discussions don't have to end when one blogger decides he no longer wants to try to back up his claims of blasphemy. Since I have a blog also, I decided to copy and paste our exchange, while including the response that I made to him that he refused to post on his blog.

The reason I decided to post it here is because I thought this would be a good opportunity for the readers of this blog to see the kinds of arguments that some people make about Christian hip-hop. I commend this brother for his zeal for the name of God, but I do believe that it is a zeal not according to knowledge. A few things struck me about our exchange. First, it seems that our age of Twitter/ Facebook-status-updates-in-140-characters-or-less has negatively affected our ability to reason and to follow arguments to their logical conclusions. In our era, a person can simply make assertions and then refuse to substantiate them because the blog format simply won't allow for in-depth reasoning and critical analysis. Second, I'm convinced that his issues with the lyric are rooted in shallow thinking as it relates to cultural distinctions and a failure to properly and Biblically think through some of the implications of linguistic diversity. But that's my opinion. You can decide for yourself.

Here's the exchange:

Hello Brothers,

This is Shai Linne. I’m the guy who wrote the lyric in question. I’m sorry to join the discussion so late, but I just learned of it today. First I want to say that I appreciate the concern of the original post. God’s commands are to be taken seriously and if a violation of the third commandment has occurred, I believe it should be addressed. Also, I actually don’t have a problem with people publicly responding to things that have been released publicly. So I commend the writer of the original post for taking a stand for the truth of God and desiring that His named be regarded as holy.

With that said, I believe some assumptions have been made, as evidenced throughout the comments.

Joel said:

“It is a blessed thing Manfred [a commenter on the original post], for God’s children to call Him Abba, Father. However, the phrase “I got the hottest poppa” is overwhelmingly a non-reverent way to appeal to listeners”

My response:

Just so you know, my purpose in using the phrase was not to appeal to listeners because I think it sounds “cool”. Nor was my purpose to whet the world’s sinful, fleshly appetites. In fact, this song was written for Christians as a way to impart gospel truth in a memorable fashion for the purpose of catechesis. With that said, if you are going to take such issue with my use of the phrase “hottest Poppa”, we should probably make sure we’re on the same page and that nothing has been lost in translation, so to speak. Language is funny like that sometimes. As we all know, two people can use the same exact word and mean two completely different things. Therefore, I would be remiss if I didn’t ask you to tell me what you think I actually meant by “hottest Poppa”. What’s your understanding of that particular colloquialism? I look forward to hearing your answer.

Here is Joel's response to my post:

Shai,

I don’t know you, but you claim, profess to be a Christian. Ok, this is what you need to know about the name of God. I believe the colloquialism ’hottest poppa” should not be used in reference to God. He reveals His Names in Scripture, but we do not get to assign names to Him, and His name is not to be made common. Ever. In any way. Period. When God revealed His name to Moses on Mt. Sinai, we read:

God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’” Exodus 3:14

He said that, brother, because there is nothing else in the entire universe to compare Himself to. He is unique, one of a kind, holy – and that is what the term means. “I AM WHO I AM” precludes any comparison to other gods. The term ‘hottest’ implies one (or more) of many does it not? Is our God just one of many god similar to Him, and He is ‘the hottest’ of them all? Or, is He thrice holy because there is none other like Him?

When you refer to our God as something that can be compared to another, say, for example, a man like Hugh Jackman, Hollywood actor, who has also been called ‘the hottest poppa’ you, perhaps mistakenly, malign the name of our great God, creator of heaven and earth, by referring to Him as the world refers to others. The Spirit of Christ in us cries out ‘Abba, Father! (Gal 4:6), but never do we find the Spirit of Christ in Scripture crying out “Hot Poppa!” Get it?

There is no other to compare Him to! When you refer to God with terms used of another, you declare Him to be not unique and holy, but just another of many. That is my thought on the matter. God bless you and yours Whom He has given you. I pray your skills as a musician, artistry and witness will be a blessing upon many in the time God has given you to live upon this earth.

And this is how I followed up with my next post:

Joel,

Thank you for your response. I am in whole-hearted agreement with you about the uniqueness of God and His incomparable majesty. In fact, I heartily “Amen” the majority of your post. However, with all the true things that you said, you never actually addressed my original question: In my original post, I said:

“Therefore, I would be remiss if I didn’t ask you to tell me what you think I actually meant by “hottest Poppa”. What’s your understanding of that particular colloquialism? I look forward to hearing your answer.”

You never addressed this in your response. Words are useful only inasmuch as they convey meaning, or meaning is ascribed to them. Perhaps an example might be helpful. Is it ever appropriate to refer to God as “Gospodin”? What about “Domnul”? What do you think? Well, our Croatian and Romanian brothers and sisters would say it’s very appropriate, since those are the words translated “Lord” in their respective languages.

My point is that we can’t answer the question of the propriety or impropriety of the terms until we actually know the meaning of the terms.

As a sidenote:

Joel, you used the following argument in your last post:

“When you refer to God with terms used of another, you declare Him to be not unique and holy, but just another of many.”

This is not a sound argument, brother. For instance, the term “king” has often been used of others, including Elvis Presley. Will the fact that it’s been used of Elvis keep you from using it in reference to God? The Bible itself uses the same word in reference to both earthly kings and God Himself. A simple comparison of Psalm 21:7 and Psalm 24:8 will show one of many Biblical examples of this. This does not at all take away from God’s uniqueness or holiness.

But that is not my main point right now. Right now, I’m just asking you to answer a simple question. Please tell me what you think I meant by the use of the phrase “hottest Poppa”. Thanks brother.

grace and peace,
shai

And Joel's response:

Shai,

You’re quite welcome. As for what you meant or your motive, I will leave that to the Lord. I can only imagine your intentions were that of praise. In other words, what you meant or your motives is not really my concern because neither will influence the minds of those who hear what has been recorded. People will not be influenced by intent, but they may be by what they hear and see brother. That is why behavior reflects our true belief. That is why the issue is not your intentions, but rather addressing our God in ways that I believe are irreverent.

If you had recorded ‘hot’ or ‘great’, that would be one thing. Yet ‘hottest’ implies, again, among many. How many Creator’s of heaven and earth are there brother? Again, ‘hottest’ appears to be an attempt to make the God of Scripture ‘hip’ and acceptable to the hearers of your music. I am not saying that was your intent. It is simply the way it sounds. Aside from our God, the Sovereign Creator and Sustainer of all things, there is no other god.

“‘See now that I, even I, am he, and there is no god beside me; I kill and I make alive; I wound and I heal; and there is none that can deliver out of my hand.” – Deut. 32:39

SDG,

Joel

This was Joel's last response to me. My response below was never published due to his comment policy. Here's what the readers of his blog would have seen had he decided to post it.

Joel,

Thank you for being willing to dialogue on this issue. I want to address some of the things you said in your last response to me.

You said:

"As for what you meant or your motive, I will leave that to the Lord. I can only imagine your intentions were that of praise. In other words, what you meant or your motives is not really my concern... People will not be influenced by intent... the issue is not your intentions, but rather addressing our God in ways that I believe are irreverent."

My response:

Just to be clear, I never asked you to tell me what my intentions or motives were in writing the lyric. I asked you to simply define the words I used. Huge difference. I asked you to tell me WHAT I said, not WHY I said it. (I use capitals for emphasis here, not to convey emotion. No anger at all towards you, brother)

In hermeneutics, it would be similar to asking an exegete to distinguish between the correct interpretation of a Hebrew or Greek word and the authorial intent of the biblical writers. For example, I'm sure you know that the Apostle John often used the word "kosmos", which is translated "world" in our English translations. I trust that you also know that the context determines whether John's intent was to speak of:

1) Planet earth, as in John 8:23

2) Many people, as in John 12:19

3) All nations, as in John 4:42

4) The world system in opposition to God and under Satanic, godless influence, as in 1 John 2:15

That's not to mention the many other ways that that particular word can be interpreted. It would be irresponsible exegesis for an expositor to say "John used the word 'world'! It doesn't matter what he meant!" We could not properly interpret Scripture if we were to use the reasoning you're using with me here. In fact, if the actual meaning of words was not important, we couldn't comprehend literature at all. Dictionaries would no longer be necessary in that case.

This is my main problem with your original post. You have declared my use of a phrase to be a violation of the 3rd commandment. And you have yet to tell me the actual meaning of the phrase.

Interestingly, in your first post, you said this of God:

"...He is unique..."

My response:

Using the same reasoning you're using with me, I could say, "Brother Joel, the Bible never uses the word 'unique' in reference to God. You are being irreverent. 'Unique' has been used to describe Michael Jackson's singing style. It is irreverent to use the same word used of a worldly pop-star to describe our awesome, majestic God. And by the way, Joel, it doesn't matter what you actually meant when you used the word 'unique'".

How would you respond to that, brother?

You threw me for a loop with one other thing you said:

You said:

"If you had recorded ‘hot’ or ‘great’, that would be one thing. Yet ‘hottest’ implies, again, among many. How many Creator’s of heaven and earth are there brother?"

My response:

I wasn't expecting this. "Hot" would be ok, but "Hottest" is the problem? Interesting...So then, your issue is that I described God using a superlative, therefore implying that that He's one among many? I don't think I've ever heard that particular argument before.

The first thing that comes to my mind is that the Scriptures often refer to God as the "Most High", which is another way of saying the "highest". In other words, many are highly exalted but none are exalted higher than God. In no way does the description "Most High" take away from God's uniqueness. On the contrary, superlatives (by definition) distinguish the one spoken of from all others who either claim to be or are thought to be in their category. This can be demonstrated with a few simple questions: Who is the humblest person who has ever lived? Who is the wisest teacher this world has ever known? Who is the greatest king to ever walk the earth? We both know the answer is the same to each question. Is God dishonored in any way by it? Of course not.

Finally, I noticed that you never addressed 2 things from my last post:

1. Is it ever appropriate to refer to God as “Gospodin”? What about “Domnul”?

What do you think?

2. Joel, you used the following argument in your last post:

“When you refer to God with terms used of another, you declare Him to be not unique and holy, but just another of many.”

This is not a sound argument, brother. For instance, the term “king” has often been used of others, including Elvis Presley. Will the fact that it’s been used of Elvis keep you from using it in reference to God?The Bible itself uses the same word in reference to both earthly kings and God Himself. A simple comparison of Psalm 21:7 and Psalm 24:8 will show one of many Biblical examples of this. This does not at all take away from God’s uniqueness or holiness.

Question: Are you still holding to the following line of reasoning?

“When you refer to God with terms used of another, you declare Him to be not unique and holy, but just another of many.”

If so, why?

To All Who Have Commented

Please know that I am not at all offended by Joel's comments. In fact, I find it refreshing that there is someone willing to stand up for the honor of God's name. That is all too rare these days. I join Joel in his desire that our Father's name be hallowed. I believe he is in error in this particular application of the principle, which is why I responded. However, I rejoice & praise God for the high regard that Joel has for God's name.

grace and peace,

shai

So, there you have it. Do you have any thoughts about this discussion?

The Atonement & Storiez Revisited

2010-08-12T11:22:00.005-05:00

Thanks to all who responded to my last post. As I said, I'm working on a new project, which will be my fourth CD. More details to come about that in future posts. I'm not sure how other artists work, but a big part of moving forward for me is going back to past projects and thinking through what I did, what was going on in my mind at the time, considering feedback people have given me and then incorporating what I've gathered into future works. In one sense, it's a way of gaining closure on the past. I hope that doesn't sound too "artsy" lol.

In the theater world, there's an idea called "through-line". The though-line of a play is that which threads the story or a character together. I've tried to incorporate this idea into all of my work. I like for there to be a clear thread that knits together individual verses on songs, songs on albums and from album to album as well. Continuity would be another word I could use. So, to give a some of examples:

Through-line Within a Song

On "As The Hour Draws Near", from Storiez, each verse and chorus was structured the same exact way, with slight modifications to make it particular to each character in the song. If you remember, there were three main characters in that song: The first verse was a Christian who was struggling with assurance of salvation, played by Evangel of Christcentric. The second verse was a Christian who was confident in the Lord and eager to enter into His heavenly reward, played by Ant. The third verse was an atheist, played by me. Each character begins with a chorus:

Evangel:

As the hour draws near to take my last breath

I’m not quite sure how much time I have left

I’m walking the path of all the strugglers who died

And I’m in fear of what awaits me on the other side

Ant:

As the hour draws near to take my last breath

I’m not quite sure how much time I have left

I’m walking the path of all my brothers who died

And I’m prepared for what awaits me on the other side

Me:

As the hour draws near to take my last breath

I’m not quite sure how much time I have left

I’m walking the path of all the others who died

And I don’t care what awaits me on the other side

Towards the end of each verse is a refrain that each character says:

Evangel:

Sin was strong and my deadliest foe

Steady wrong- am I ready to go?

I pray to God because it’s hard to accept- my heart’s heavy, you know

I’m not sure if I’m ready to go

Ant:

My life was long and I’m ready to go

I stood strong and I’m ready to go

I can’t wait to sing along with the throng up in heaven, you know

It’s where I belong- I’m ready to go

Me:

Because he’s wrong and I’m ready to go

Son, I’m strong, yo I’m ready to go

If it’s on then it’s on- bring it on

I’m ready to go, let’s get it on son, I’m ready to go

Structuring the song this way was an attempt to maintain the continuity, or through-line of the song, while leaving room for the individual characters to express the differences in their outlooks. This would be an example of though-line within a song. If you listen for it in other songs ("Were You There", "Alone", "Memoirs" are a few examples), you'll see it's something that I often do.

Through-Line Between Songs on an Album

In the modern world of digital downloads, itunes and ringtones, many people no longer by entire Cds, but a song here and there. That's unfortunate to me. I'm from the old-school when people made albums with a clear theme in such a way that you needed to hear all the songs to put any one song in its proper thematic context. That's part of my artistic DNA, so I try to incorporate it into my music. A few examples of this from each project:

The Solus Christus Project

1. Intro and Outro

2. The last line of "Dark Night of the Soul" going into "My Portion"

3. The reoccurring flutes throughout the album (This is a musical through-line as opposed to a lyrical though-line. The intentionality is the same though. With each album, there has been one instrument that is prominent throughout, though subtle at times. You really have to be listening for it)

The Atonement

1. The sermon and conversational interludes

2. The theme of the cross (each song representing the necessity of the Atonement, the Atonement itself, or the implications of the Atonement)

3. The subdued, dark tone of each song from both a delivery standpoint and a musical standpoint

Storiez

1. The Narrator

2. "Wake Up, You're Alive" towards the beginning and "Wake Up Revealed" towards the end

3. "Alone Foreshadowed" coming 5 songs before "Alone"

Through-Line Between Albums

This is something that I've always enjoyed about some of my favorite artists. I love hearing lines on new projects that take me back to a line that was said in a previous work. It's another way of connecting the past with the present. I also see it as a reward for those who have been listening longer. I've tried to do this in a few ways. Some would be referencing my previous works. Others would be referencing other Lamp Mode projects or things I've been involved with. A couple of examples:

1. The wording of the last words of the outros on TSCP and The Atonement

2. The last words of the Storiez intro is the same exact sample from the beginning of "Angelz" on TSCP

3. The ladies on "Work It Out" from Storiez saying lines from songs on "TSCP".

4. Often incorporating Timothy Brindle quotes in my work.

5. Each person on "Testify" from Storiez saying a line from a previous testimonial song (Verse 1- Ambassador's "Thug Joint" off "Christology"; Verse 2- My verse from ""My Life Cypha", off Cross Movement's "Higher Definition"; Verse 3- Da Truth's "My Story" off "Moment of Truth")

Where We Go From Here

Anyway, I'm getting a bit ahead of myself here. The reason I'm writing this post is to let you know that as a way of getting closure on the past for me and giving you insight into the thought process behind each song, I'll be blogging through each song from The Atonement and Storiez, answering questions along the way about particular songs. This is what I did for The Listener's Guide that I made for TSCP. I'll look at each song from a musical, lyrical and theological standpoint, along with things you might not have caught without listening closely. Hopefully, it will enhance your enjoyment of the projects. I'll be blogging about other things along the way, but this is one series you can expect in the upcoming weeks.

First up will be an overview of The Atonement and a look at "In Adam All Die"

grace and peace,

shai

Is Anyone Still Here?

2010-08-11T12:49:00.006-05:00

It's been a while since my last post. The past 7 months have been really crazy, with so many transitions. I began a pastoral internship, came down with a rare form of vertigo that literally had my world spinning for a week, got engaged, finished the internship, did concerts and conferences in Hawaii and California, left the country a few times, got married, moved to Washington D.C., took a cross-country trip, got married, moved into a new apartment, got married, bought a car and, by the way, did I mention that I got married?

My beautiful bride's name is Blair and we were married on July 10., so it's been about a month. All I can say about that is that the Lord's mercy is more profound than I could possibly imagine. He has already blessed me in more ways than I can count through her. I clearly got the "better end of the deal"! I can't wait to see how the Lord will use marriage to shape both of us for His glory. I'm also excited about being able to serve the Lord as a husband and Lord willing, as a father someday.

So anyway, I have a lot going on, including working on new music and other projects. There's a lot on my heart and mind that has built up over the last 7 months. I wrestled with whether or not to start something new, but then I thought that maybe there are people who still check in on this blog from time to time. So before I post and get the response of crickets in cyberspace, I thought I'd ask...

Is anyone still here?

If you are, leave a comment and let me know if you think it's worthwhile for me to continue this blog. Thanks!

grace and peace,

shai

Transitions

2010-01-08T23:34:00.004-05:00

As of today, 1/8/10, I have moved from my beloved hometown of Philadelphia, Pa to Washington D.C., where I am privileged to be an intern at Capitol Hill Baptist Church, where Mark Dever is the senior pastor. It is a pastoral internship, where I will receive practical and theological training in the context of a healthy local church. My hope is, by God's grace, to someday be an elder. I can't even begin to articulate how excited I am about this opportunity. During the internship, I will have the opportunity to sit in on all the elders' meetings, accompany pastors on home and hospital visits, weddings and funerals- as well as interact with great theological works while fleshing out the implications of those works real-time amongst a congregation of saints who take Christ and His church very seriously.

For those who want to know what this means for my music, well... it means that music ministry is on hold for the duration of the internship, which lasts until the end of May. Between now and then, I won't be travelling or taking engagements. I had hoped to have my new album finished before I began the internship, but it wasn't to be. It could be that the Lord may be pleased to use this experience to inform my writing. We'll see. At any rate, my plan is to continue writing songs while I'm here and to record them in June, which would mean a fall release. I'm also working on writing hymns and worship songs suited to congregational singing. Your prayers for my writing would be appreciated. I would also appreciate it if you could pray that the Lord would shape and sanctify me through this internship, that I might be able to serve the Lord more fruitfully and faithfully. Soli Deo Gloria!

grace and peace,

shai

Truth and Culture

2009-12-10T00:30:00.003-05:00

When it comes to truth and culture, I've found it helpful to use the analogy of the lyrics and melody of a song. Here's what I mean:

Truth= Lyrics
Cultural Expression = Melody

In this analogy, the content of the gospel is the "lyrics" of the song and cultural expression is the "melody" of the song. The "lyrics" (gospel content) should never change. Truth transcends language, ethnicity and cultural expression. The gospel is the same whether it's proclaimed in China, the Sudan or the Bronx.

"Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you— unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve."- 1 Corinthians 15:1-5

The objective facts concerning Jesus Christ's atoning death for sinners and glorious resurrection have always been a part of the gospel message and always will be. When these things are missing, the gospel is not being proclaimed. In addition to this, we would add the truth that salvation is by grace alone through faith alone in the finished work of Christ alone. This content would be the "lyrics" of the song in our analogy. If we are to faithfully proclaim the gospel, the lyrics must not change, regardless of the context.

At the same time, cultural expression varies. Cultural expression is the "melody". The sound of the "song" will be as varied as the amount of languages that are spoken. I should not expect the melodies of a Japanese gospel song to necessarily sound the same as the melodies of a gospel song in Trinidad.

"After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, "Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!"-Revelation 7:9-10

The beauty of God's design is that He is drawing a people to Himself that represent a staggering amount of diversity (vs. 9). And yet, the "lyrics" to the song are the same-"Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne and unto the Lamb!" (vs. 10)

Of course, we have a tendency to prefer our own "melodies"- the cultural expressions which are familiar to us. In turn, we look down on unfamiliar "melodies" and even attempt to make our "melodies" seem righteous compared to others. Some even try to make a case that certain "melodies" are inherently sinful- even without Scriptural support. But at the end of the day, the key question is if the "lyrics" match up with what the lyrics have always said. If so, Christians should at least be able to rejoice in that, even if the "melody" is strange or unfamiliar to us.

grace and peace,
shai

Getting Back in the Swing of Things

2009-08-29T22:56:00.002-05:00

It's good to be finally settled back in Philly for the time being. It's been a busy summer filled with opportunities to spread the fame of Christ. Apart from a couple of days at home, I was on the road for about a month. The highlights were the missions trip to Ireland and London, the Legacy Conference in Chicago and the Worship God 09 Conference in Gaithersburg, Md. I'm working on a report for the overseas trip and should have it up in the next couple of days.

grace and peace,
shai

Off to Ireland & London

2009-07-15T18:18:00.000-05:00

Hello friends. I know it's been a while since I've blogged. The time goes by so quickly! I pray that you are all enjoying the Lord this summer. I'm on my way to the airport right now. deejay essence and I are off to spread the fame of Jesus in Ireland & the U.K. for the next two weeks. Hopefully, we'll see some of you there! see www.lampmode.com for details on specific cities & dates.

grace and peace,
shai

The Nature of Beauty

2009-05-29T03:05:00.004-05:00

God is beautiful. This fact is plainly taught in the Scriptures. But we shouldn't think He is beautiful in the same exact way a painting, a flower or a melody is beautiful. This would belittle Him. God does not conform to some standard of beauty outside of Himself. In His very nature, God is the superlative of everything good. He is the standard by which all other beauty is to be measured and understood. God's beauty is prototypical, inherent and intrinsic. All other beauty is derived, contingent and dependent. All other beauties are streams that spring forth from God, the eternal ocean of beauty. His dwelling place is called the perfection of beauty (Psalm 50:2). The hope of the believer is to forever gaze upon His beauty (Psalm 27:4, Isaiah 33:17). The reality of the beauty of God is truly astounding, especially when considered in conjunction with another fact that is also plainly taught in the Scriptures:

God is invisible.

God cannot be seen. 1 Timothy 6:16 says that "no one has seen or can see" Him. He has no physical form. He is hidden from our eyes. And yet He is perfectly beautiful. What does that say about the nature of beauty?

grace and peace,
shai

Aaaand...back to Cali Again :)

2009-04-24T19:02:00.002-05:00

It's been an interesting week in Hawaii. Here are a few of the highlights:

4/16- Arrived in Honolulu and immediately flew to the "Big Island", where we were scheduled for a concert the next day.

4/17- Performed a concert at a church in Kona. It was interesting, because I felt a sense of opposition to our message that went beyond the response of the crowd, which was mostly favorable. I couldn't quite put my finger on it. I was later reminded that Hawaii has a long history of paganism and false religion and that the true gospel has not penetrated deeply here. There are many churches there and even fewer that preach the gospel. Through different experiences, it became clear that the kingdom of darkness was aware of our presence there. It was a bit unnerving, but it caused each of us to depend more on the Lord and to remember that we aren't on vacation. This place is deceptive because the beauty of creation is so in your face that you can be easily tempted to think that this is paradise. The irony is that, without question, this is one of the most spiritually dark places I've visited. Praise God that nothing can stop the advancement of His kingdom through the preaching of the gospel!

4/19- Worshiped at a church in Kona. It was a blessing to sing familiar songs with the people of God such a long way from home. It was very diverse ethnically and we also got to witness a baptism in the ocean.

4/21- We left Kona and flew to Maui.

4/22- We went to a Bible study at a local church, where we shared some music and took turns teaching on the gospel and its implications.

4/23- We shared more music in a youth service at one of the bigger churches in Maui.

4/24- We had an opportunity to do music at the biggest public school in Maui (1,700 students). It was on their lunch break in the main courtyard area of the school. It was pretty tense as we proclaimed the supremacy of Christ over beats. They told us we couldn't "preach", but I don't think they realized that our music does nothing but "preach"! At one point, I thought they were going to shut us down. When I did "Jesus is Alive", you could hear a pin drop! The Lord provided an open door through the gospel and gave us the grace to walk through it. The highlight of the trip for me so far.

4/24- this evening- We'll be performing our main concert tonight before heading to Honolulu in the morning. We have two more shows this weekend, and then it's back to Southern California on Monday.

Here's our schedule of events for next week:

When: Thursday- April 30 7:30pm - 9:30pm
Where: The Master’s College
Swixon Lawn (The Master’s College)
21726 Placerita Cyn. Rd Santa Clarita, CA
Cost: Free

When: Friday- May 1 7:00pm
Where: Inland Church
1101 Glen Avenue
Pomona, California
Cost: Free

We're working on doing something on Skid Row on Saturday, but it's not firm yet. I'll give more details when I find out more.

All in all, it's been an amazing trip. Difficult, but good. I'm missing my home church. When I get back, I will have been gone for about a month. I've definitely felt my need for the Lord here in the face of some blatant opposition and spiritual warfare. He has shown Himself to be faithful. It's been very encouraging to fellowship with His people. It seems that the Lord may be planting the seeds for revival in these islands. What a privilege we have to proclaim the excellencies of Christ!

grace and peace,
shai

Off to Hawaii

2009-04-15T21:57:00.003-05:00

In the morning, I'll be flying out to Hawaii with deejay essence and Json for a stretch of concerts and speaking engagements. We'll be there from April 16-26 (and returning to Southern California for the week of April 27th)We have concerts/ events on the Big Island on April 17, Maui from April 22-24 and Honolulu on April 25-26. I look forward to connecting with the Lampmates in Hawaii again. Shoots!

grace and peace,

shai

Southern California Concert

2009-04-06T21:22:00.005-05:00

To all those in the L.A. area: I have a few events coming up. I'll be performing in concert at the end of April and also this upcoming weekend. I'll let you know more about the event at the end of April in another post. Here are the details about this weekend:

Date: Friday, April 10th

Place: The Way Out Student Center

Address: 22427 Norwalk Blvd. Hawaiian Gardens, CA 90716

Time: Doors open at 7:30pm

Cost: Free

Feel free to bring unsaved friends/ family members. I hope to see you there!

grace and peace,

shai

Family Life Today Interview

2009-04-01T16:14:00.004-05:00

It's been a while since my last post. Thanks to all who have encouraged me to continue with the blog. My computer issues have been resolved, so I hope to get back to blogging regularly. I want to let you know about an interview I did with Family Life Today that aired recently for a new podcast that they have. The podcast is called Ear Reverent and is hosted by Bob Lepine, the co-host of Family Life Today. Having listened to their show on Christian radio since I got saved, I never would have imagined that I would be on it! I had an opportunity to share concerning the history of Hip-hop culture, my personal testimony and lyrical theology. I think this may be good to play for people who are either skeptical about Christ-centered hip-hop or unfamiliar with the genre. You can find a link to download the interview here. Feel free to leave comments about the interview.

grace and peace,

shai

Off to Missouri

2009-01-29T15:08:00.000-05:00

I haven't been able to post recently because my laptop is out of commission. It'll probably be a couple of weeks before I'm able to post like I want to. In the meantime, I can make brief posts using my phone. I'm writing from the Philly airport. I'm on my way to Rolla, Missouri where I have the privilege of lecturing about Christianity at a secular university on Friday evening. Your prayers would be greatly appreciated.

grace and peace,
shai

Scary Delights

2009-01-09T13:59:00.003-05:00

"Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling." - Psalm 2:11

As I was reading the Scriptures recently, I came across a very interesting command tucked away in Psalm 2. We're commanded in verse 11 to "serve the LORD with fear". No surprise there. But then we're told to rejoice...with trembling. Isn't that strange? These two ideas- rejoicing and trembling- seem opposed to one another. But here we find them together. My natural tendency is to say, "Wait! I'm confused! Which one. Lord? Do you want me to rejoice? Or tremble?" And of course, the answer is simply "Yes." Both truths have implications for our worship of God.

"Rejoicing" preserves the reality that Jesus Christ, through His life, death and resurrection has purchased eternal pleasures at God's right hand for all who repent and believe in Him. He did this in order that our joy might be complete. Christ calls His redeemed children to enter into the joy of our Master. God is passionate about our everlasting, soul-satisfying happiness- in Him. Therefore He commands us to rejoice!

"..with trembling" preserves the reality of God's holiness. God dwells in unapproachable light. He is a consuming fire whom fallen man may not look upon and live. He is utterly other. His wrath and fury against sin is unfathomable. In other words, He is not to be messed with. Without the protection of propitiation (a wrath-absorbing substitute), it is simply not safe to approach God. I like how the classic hymn "Holy, Holy, Holy" put it:

Holy, Holy, Holy
Though the darkness hide Thee
Though the eye of sinful man Thy glory may not see

Only Thou art Holy
There is none beside Thee
Perfect in pow'r, in love and purity

"Rejoice...with trembling"

"Rejoice" protects us from worshipping God with dead formalism. "...with trembling" protects us from worshipping God too casually. "Rejoice" demands our love and affection. "...with trembling" demands our utmost reverence. "Rejoice" encourages vibrant passion. "...with trembling" encourages solemn reflection.

These truths beg the question: What God is like the Triune God of Scripture? "Rejoice...with trembling"? What other God talks like that? A trembling rejoicing. A scary delight. A terrified celebration. How strange! Yet, how appropriate considering who He is. In verse 12, we then receive permission to "Kiss the Son", -with a warning attached concerning the Son's wrath before we get too cuddly with Him. When we consider these things, we're forced to say with Job:

"Behold, God is great, and we know Him not; the number of His years is unsearchable." Job 36:26

May the Lord give us grace for our Sunday gatherings and our lives to be characterized by a posture of awestruck delight towards God.

grace and peace,
shai

Gifts

2008-12-19T12:49:00.004-05:00

C.J. Mahaney is one of my modern day heroes in the faith. If you haven't heard his preaching apart from clips on The Atonement, you're missing out! A good place to start is his classic message on the ten lepers, where he used a phrase that has stuck with me ever since I heard it.

"All gifts from God are intended to direct our attention to God and create fresh affections for God" - C.J. Mahaney, More Desirable Than Gifts

According to James 1:17, every good and perfect gift comes from God. Those gifts are not ends in themselves, but meant to point beyond themselves to God. When we don't allow gifts to do this, we are easily susceptible to idolatry and ingratitude. Both of these things anger God. In fact, Romans 1:18-25 shows how God's righteous wrath is poured out on people in large part for not allowing His gifts to point beyond themselves to Him. It is to our shame that, even as Christians, we often see the Lord's gifts as ends rather than means.

In the gospel, God graciously gives us Jesus Christ as the all-sufficient object of our affections. Jesus indicated that all-sufficiency when He prayed for believers in John 17:24:

"Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world."

As we embrace and rejoice in the Savior's matchless character seen in His sinless life, substitutionary death and glorious resurrection, believers behold the glory of Christ by faith now (2 Cor. 3:18, 5:7). According to this text from John, beholding and enjoying the glory of Christ by sight in heaven will be enough to eternally satisfy our glorified souls. All other gospel gifts (forgiveness, eternal life, sanctification, etc.) are means to this great end.

Getting back to Mahaney's statement:

"All gifts from God are intended to direct our attention to God and create fresh affection for God."

In light of this, do you see how the triune God is glorified in our salvation? The electing love of God the Father is the source of the Gift (Eph. 1:4-5). The work of God the Son is the means through which we receive the Gift (1 Peter 3:18). The power of God the Holy Spirit works affections in us for the Giver of the Gift (Romans 5:5). And God Himself is the Gift (Psalm 73:25)!

We should labor to see God's lesser gifts perform the same function. For instance, we're used to the idea of people who have gifts from God, but I've been struck recently by the reality that people are gifts from God. Ephesians 4:8-11 shows how Christ's gifts to His church are actually people themselves (vs. 11). With this in mind, we should 1) Thank God for those who direct our attention to Him and help create fresh affections for Him. 2) Encourage them by making them aware that God is using them in our lives that way. And 3) Seek, by God's grace, to be people who do the same for others. I can't think of any greater way to be used.

What would be the implications if we evaluated all gifts in this way? (Is it from God? Does it direct my attention to Him? Does it help create fresh affections for Him?) How would that affect how we saw music, for instance? The exercise of spiritual gifts? Our entertainment choices? The things we purchase? The people in our lives? Just a few things to ponder in this season known for gift-giving.

grace and peace,

shai

Q & A Fridays #4- Would Spurgeon Approve of Rap?

2008-12-12T08:33:00.006-05:00

This week, I have 2 questions related to one of my heroes in the faith, Charles Spurgeon. Those of you who have Storiez know that one of the songs is a biographical sketch of his life. I did that song because I wanted to point people who listen to our music to the saints that God has used to help sharpen and shape the lyrics in the songs. Spurgeon has definitely done this for me. What draws me to Spurgeon's writing is the rare combination of graces that were at work in his life. What I mean by that is the combination of theological depth, bold proclamation of truth, warm- hearted, pastoral concern for souls and a poetic flair in his writing. Each one of those things resonates with me. (The lyricist in me is convinced that Spurgeon would have been a great emcee!) It's rare to find all of those things at work in one person. On top of that, he had a great sense of humor! The God who sovereignly disperses gifts according to His good pleasure saw fit to pour gifts into Spurgeon and the Church is still reaping the benefits to this day. With that said, here are the questions:

Berry said:

"Saw that you like Spurgeon...What's your favorite writing of his and why?"

Hmmm...My answer may change, but at this point I would have to say Lectures To My Students. I love Lectures because it's like sitting in the room with one of the greatest preachers in Church history and gleaning wisdom from him. It's different from his other writings in that it's a little more informal and he deals with practical things related to ministry. His sense of humor really comes through also. The chapters on The Minister's Self-Watch and The Preacher's Private Prayer are worth the price of the book in my opinion. Another favorite of mine is called The Practice of Praise, published by Whitaker House. It looks to be a collection of Spurgeon's sermons that deal with worship and prayer. Excellent stuff. Btw, thanks for the recommendations! The one on Gethsemene was amazing.

For Spurgeon question #2, Anonymous asked:

"Did you know he preached to 10,000 plus members for over 20 yrs without the use of musical instruments in his church? My question is: Do you think he would approve of this "holy" hip-hop thing you're doing?"

Yes, my friend, I have heard about Spurgeon's views on instrumentation. Your second question is interesting. Bear with me as I attempt to answer it. If I could travel back to 1856 and have a conversation with Spurgeon:

Before talking about the "holy hip-hop thing" I do, I would first talk to him about the Lord Jesus Christ, who made me the "holy hip-hopper" that I am. This, my friend, is because the music I do is simply an extension of who I am. And so, before letting Spurgeon hear my music, I would first talk to him about the greatness of the thrice holy triune Jehovah who sits in the heavens and does all that pleases Him for the glory of His great name. I would speak concerning the preciousness, inerrancy, sufficiency and sweetness of the Scriptures, which have made me wise unto salvation.

Then I would speak about that great salvation and how I was once dead in my sins- a blasphemous, prideful hater of God and His people who was comfortable in my rebellion against God and gloried in my shame. I would mention that I wanted nothing to do with God and would have willingly and justly perished eternally in hell under God's righteous wrath had He not intervened. Then, assuming I was able to keep from weeping, I would speak concerning the mysterious, haunting beauty of sovereign electing grace. I would talk about the new birth that the Holy Spirit miraculously worked in me. I wouldn't leave out the wonder of my Savior's redeeming love. I would make explicit references to Calvary and my Lord's bleeding, dying, sacrificial love for a wretch like me. It would be difficult for me to resist speaking of the brilliance and unparalled wisdom and justice of God seen in the reality of Christ's perfect righteousness imputed to sinners by faith alone.

I would talk about the change that God has made in my life and how the glorious resurrection of our Lord corresponds to my being raised to newness of life and the new affections that come along with it. I would talk about my longings for God, cravings for holiness and my Spirit-given love for His person and works. At that point, I would have to confess that I have not progressed in Christ-likeness nearly as much as I would like to and that there is still more idols to smash, sin to kill and self to die to in my life. But then I would quickly mention the confidence I have that the risen Lord through the Holy Spirit will complete what He started in me and safely bring me home to glory where I will worship Christ for eternity, which is the deepest longing of my soul.

Only then might I mention that I am attempting to use the gifts that the Lord has graciously given me for His glory as I communicate the above truths in a context much different than 19th century London. At that point, I would tell him that the Africans who were enslaved in America in his day had children and grandchildren and great-great grandchildren. By the surprising grace of God, some of those great-great grandchildren were redeemed by the blood of Jesus Christ, in mighty fulfilment of Psalm 145:4.

I would tell him that the musical form he would have associated with "Negro spirituals" had birthed a number of genres of popular music and that one of its descendants- called hip-hop- is a genre that is in many ways ideal for memorably communicating large amounts of truth in a small amount of time. I would talk about a group of theologically minded, Christ-exalting artists that the Lord has raised up within this culture and that, in addition to being students of the Word, many of them regularly read the works of the same puritans that Spurgeon himself read.

I would then mention that they have leveraged this new form of music for the sake of the gospel and that there was as much- if not more- theological depth in one verse of some of these songs than some of the hymns that even he and his congregation were singing (I would tell him I only knew this because I own [and love] his hymnal :) I wouldn't neglect to mention that this same form of music is used by the world to communicate godlessness and filth and that many dear brothers and sisters in the church are concerned with whether or not Christians who were raised in that culture could (or should) use it for God's glory. Then I would shut up, concerned that sin wasn't absent from my many words.

Would Spurgeon approve? Because Spurgeon is merely a man, his approval wouldn't my main concern. It means nothing if Spurgeon applauds while the Lord Jesus boos. Similarly, Spurgeon (and anyone else) can frown all they want as long as my Lord is smiling. Nevertheless, my sneaking suspicion about Spurgeon is that He might answer me in the words of a sermon he preached on Psalm 71:14:

"The world sings. The millions have their songs. Many of them are so absurd and meaningless as to be unworthy of an idiot. Yet these things will be heard from men, and places will be thronged to listen to the stuff. Now, why should we- with the grand psalms we have of David, with the noble hymns of Cowper, Milton and Watts- why should we not sing as well as they? Let us sing the songs of Zion. They are as cheerful as Sodom's songs. Let us drown out the howling nonsense of Gomorrah with the melodies of the New Jerusalem" Charles Spurgeon- The Practice of Praise

Then I would play "Were You There" and "Triune Praise" :)

grace and peace,

shai

Q & A Fridays #3- Where To Minister?

2008-12-05T08:47:00.007-05:00

Purple Soapbox Admin asked,

"Should a Christian artist go to the church of a heretic to minister?"

Interesting question. By "heretic", I'm assuming you mean a false teacher who denies essential Christian doctrine. I don't think it is a simple yes or no answer, but rather something that would need to be handled on a case-by-case basis. This is a discussion I've had with other Christian emcees and here are some of the pros and cons:

Pros:

1. Churches that are led by false teachers often have at least a few genuine believers there. They may be new to the faith or immature in their knowledge of the Lord. For their sake, it could make sense to go and minister to them and possibly be the means that God uses to bring them into sound teaching.

2. Churches led by false teachers often have unbelievers there who have been deceived into thinking they're saved when they aren't. The false teacher is tickling their itching ears. The sound Christian artist may be the only exposure to the Biblical gospel that they ever get.

3. Some "heretics" may be deceived themselves and unintentionally leading others astray. The sound Christian artist may be the instrument that God uses to bring him to repentance. I know of specific instances where Christian artists have been invited to the churches of unsound pastors/ leaders and used the opportunity to have discussions about the Scriptures with the pastor behind the scenes. Some pastors/leaders have come into sound teaching as a result.

Cons:

1. Ministering at the church of a false teacher- particularly if they are well known- could be seen as an endorsement of the false teacher and lead the undiscerning astray.

2. At churches led by false teachers, it is often the case that the leader from that church who speaks after the Christian artist effectively dismantles what the emcee just did because they are so steeped in falsehood.

3. If a Christian artist takes strong stands against false teachers, ministering at one of their churches/ events can be seen as confusing at best and hypocritical at worst, serving to alienate those who have supported the artist over the years.

Those are some things to consider. In some cases, I think it's right to not "cast your pearls before swine". In other cases, "feeding the sheep" takes precedence over everything else. Either way, it's something that should be weighed prayerfully with the help of godly counsel. Pray that God would grant wisdom to the Christian artists who face these kinds of difficult decisions regularly.

grace and peace,

shai

Storiez Lyrics Posted

2008-11-28T01:45:00.005-05:00

I've posted all the lyrics for Storiez. I'm working on a listener's guide for the project as well. Thank you for all the feedback I've received thus far.

grace and peace,

shai

Storiez Released Today

2008-11-18T16:41:00.003-05:00

Today is the release date for my third cd, Storiez. It can be purchased at most Christian bookstores and online at itunes. I hope to post the lyrics here sometime this week. Feel free to post comments/ questions about the project here.

grace and peace,

shai

Storiez Available For Pre-Order

2008-10-16T18:01:00.003-05:00

Storiez is now available for pre-order. It will be released on November 18th. You can order it here.

grace and peace,

shai

Goin Back To Cali

2008-10-11T13:01:00.004-05:00

I'll be spending the next 2 weeks travelling (first Southern California, then St. Louis) for various ministry events. I'm not sure how often I'll be able to blog during that time. In the meantime, I've put up 2 new songs on my myspace page from my new CD Storiez, which comes out on November 18th. One is called "Testify", the other is called "High Priest". I hope you enjoy them.

grace and peace,

shai

Q & A Fridays #2- The Inevitability of Culture

2008-10-03T10:00:00.001-05:00

This week's question comes from Howie and happens to be related to something I was already working on. Howie asked:

"My question is related to culture. To what extent is ‘culture’ allowed within Church?"

My answer to that depends on how one defines "culture". Properly defined, culture must be allowed in the Church because culture is inevitable in the Church. I'll explain that as I answer another related question that often comes up:

Question: Is rap a legitimate vehicle of expression for Christian music? Does it glorify God?

My answers are an emphatic yes and yes. Before I unpack why, I need to address some of the underlying assumptions inherent in the questions themselves. I'll do so by stating the same question another way.

"I believe that there are legitimate vehicles of expression for Christian music. The vehicle of expression I use, for instance, would be one obvious example. And clearly, my expression brings glory to God. However, as I observe this other vehicle of expression, questions come to my mind. I see nothing but filth coming through the popular secular version of this vehicle of expression. How can someone use something that is usually used to to communicate vulgarity and sin to communicate the glorious truths of a Holy God? "

To properly address this question we must first define culture. This is because any questions regarding vehicles of expression are actually cultural questions. A simple definition would be:

Culture = A set of behavior patterns that are socially rather than biologically transmitted

The American Heritage Science Dictionary expands on this simple definition by referring to "the totality of socially transmitted behavior patterns, arts, beliefs, institutions, and all other products of human work and thought."

The AHSD goes on to say:

"Culture is learned and shared within social groups and is transmitted by non genetic means."

Defining culture properly is crucial when it comes to understanding how we express various aspects of the Christian faith. If we accept this definition of culture, what we realize is that culture is inevitable for anyone participating in human society. For instance: right now you are reading this blog. You are reading a particular language- English. By reading English, you are participating in a cultural activity, since language is included among the things that are socially rather than biologically transmitted. When you got dressed this morning, you put on a particular outfit. In doing so, you made a cultural decision. The same can be said about the way you cooked your food, how you wore your hair, what you bought at the supermarket, the way you arranged your living room and yes- even the music that you listened to in your car. All of these things are learned behaviors. You did not come out of the womb singing a particular style of music or dressing a certain way. It was taught to you.

How does this apply to Christianity? One of the challenges for the Church in every age has been how to properly relate to the surrounding culture and how culture should inform Christian expression. Our authoritative guide on these things is the Bible, of course. When it comes to music, the Scriptures are interestingly (and perhaps surprisingly) silent about style, but very loud about content. We don't know what it would have sounded like to hear King David singing one of his Psalms, but we do know what he said. If we were able to go back in time to listen to what it sounded like, we can be sure that it would not have resembled anything we hear in our western churches today. We also shouldn't be surprised if it had the same sound stylistically as the culture that David lived in. If we were able to go back and see him dance, we wouldn't expect to see him doing the "Holy Ghost two-step" popular in many Black Pentecostal churches, nor would we expect to see him break dancing or doing ballet. Yet, it shouldn't surprise us if his form of dancing resembled whatever dancing looked like in his culture.

Back to our questions:

Is rap a legitimate form of expression for Christian Music? Does it glorify God?

Yes. Rap is a form of rhythmic poetry associated with hip-hop culture. It is a medium through which messages are conveyed. The content of the message is what determines its legitimacy for Christian expression. The medium itself is no more inherently sinful (or righteous) than any other artistic medium. The extent to which a rap's content conforms to what the Bible teaches about appropriate standards of expression is what determines whether or not it glorifies God. The Bible has a lot to say about the content of Christian music. Here are a few passages:

"Praise the LORD! For it is good to sing praises to our God; for it is pleasant, and a song of praise is fitting." (Psalm 147:1)

Here we see the psalmist exhorting God's people to make songs that praise God. He refers to songs that exalt the Lord as "good", "pleasant" and "fitting". It is the content which is in view here. If a rap, country or classical song "Praises the LORD" then it is "good", "pleasant" and "fitting".

"1Oh sing to the LORD a new song; sing to the LORD, all the earth! 2Sing to the LORD, bless His name; tell of His salvation from day to day. 3Declare His glory among the nations, His marvelous works among all the peoples! 4For great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; He is to be feared above all gods." (Psalm 96:1-4)

In this passage, we see specific instructions concerning the songs we should sing:

The type of songs- New ones (vs. 1)

The object of our songs- God Himself vertically (vs. 1) and the gentile nations horizontally (vs. 3)

The subject of our songs- God and His salvation (vs. 2)

The purpose of our songs- The glory of God (vs. 3)

The foundation of our songs- The greatness of the true God over against the false gods of the pagan nations (vs. 4)

Perhaps the clearest New Testament instructions regarding Christian music are found in Colossians 3:16-17:

16Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. 17And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. (Col. 3:16-17)

I know that there is an in-house debate among Christians concerning the words translated "psalms, hymns and spiritual songs"- but regardless of how you understand those words, there is almost universal agreement on what this passage is teaching concerning content and the heart behind our musical expressions. Our songs should be Biblically informed (vs. 16), edifying to the saints (vs. 16) and done from a heart of gratitude that seeks to direct glory and attention to the Lord Jesus (vs. 16b-17).

With that said, I'm aware that some people are not able to enjoy Christian Hip-hop because they were entrenched in the sinful aspects of the culture before conversion and it's a stumbling block for them. Others have a hard time seeing the artistic value in it. In cases like this, the principle of Christian love should prevail. Out of love for Jesus and that person, I'm called to lay down my cultural preferences for the sake of their conscience. Of course, I have to recognize it as a preference before I can lay it down. I'll gladly rejoice in the finished work of Christ while singing another style of music with such a person- provided the content fits Colossians 3:16-17.

A word for those who say that a medium used to transmit vulgarity shouldn't or can't be leveraged for the glory of God- don't forget that the God of the Bible has always done just that! Words on a page or language from the mouth can communicate filth- God used both to transmit the Holy Scriptures. What's more vulgar than the cross as a form of execution? God leveraged the cross for His glory and it stands as the indispensable centerpiece of our faith. What's more vulgar than an unregenerate, sinful human being such as me or you before conversion? Yet, God chooses to indwell sinners via the Holy Spirit and then leverage us for His glory! Be careful that you don't cling so closely to cultural preference that you inadvertently argue against God's glorious design in redemption.

We all have a tendency to assume our culture is the standard for Christian expression and to correspondingly view other cultures as inferior at best or sinful at worst. This is partly because our culture is so closely tied to our very identity. And no one wants to see their identity as a mere preference. In subtle and not-so-subtle ways, we try to find righteousness in the fig leaves of our culture. Biblically, however, believers are called to find our identity in Jesus Christ alone. As tempting as it is, we should not allow our language, artistic taste, style of dress or musical preferences to define us. If we are Christians, our primary identity is as children of God who, by the grace of God, have been united by faith to Jesus Christ and therefore recipients of all the benefits that Christ purchased for us through His sinless life, atoning death and glorious resurrection. We are called to use language, the arts and music to spread His fame among the nations so that His great name might be exalted in all cultural contexts, whether we like them or not.

Much more could be said, but I'll stop for now. I welcome your comments.

grace and peace,

shai

Q & A Fridays #1- Rap vs. Hymns

2008-09-26T13:12:00.012-05:00

For all who asked questions, I decided to post them in the comments section of the original post because I realized that some of the questions could be answered there rather than writing a separate blog for them. I'll be interacting with some of the questions there, so be sure to refer back to that section. Now, for our question this week, Derek asked:

"In the potential Christian Rap has to convey large amounts of teaching within smaller context than your average song (because of the word count)...do you think Christian Rap will ever have as rich a heritage as the hymnody of the past? Essentially I'm asking for you to make a forecast of Christian Rap based on where it is presently and where it seems to be going."

My Answer:

Good question Derek. I tried to unpack the premise of your question (Christian rap as an ideal medium for conveying large amounts of teaching) in a lecture I did at Westminster Seminary a while back. You can find a link to that lecture here. To answer your question, no I don't think Christian rap will have as rich a heritage as past hymnody. There are a couple of reasons for this, in my opinion.

1. Hymns lend themselves to congregational singing in a way that rap doesn't. Because of the structure of the typical rap song, the vast majority of the listeners will only be able to join in at the hook or chorus. With hymns, everyone is usually singing the whole song together. In the context of Sunday worship, I see Christ-centered rap as special music more so than congregational worship. This doesn't mean that rap can't be worshipful. To "worship" God simply means "to ascribe worth or value" to Him. This can be done in a number of ways. I absolutely believe that you can obey Colossians 3:16 with a rap, provided the lyrics are gospel-centered and magnify the worth of God through Jesus Christ. I also appreciate it when Christian emcees write good songs that are vertical (addressing God rather than addressing people) in nature. However, even when this is done, it's still more difficult than a hymn for a large group of people to sing along word-for-word.

2. In my opinion, rap is more restricted to its original musical context than hymns. One of the brilliant things about western hymnody is that it is structured and metered in a way that makes the hymns transferable to different tunes. This is because most of the older hymns were already established as metered poetry before the tune was added later. Therefore, one can take a tune that fits the structure of a hymn and fit the words to the tune in a way that allows someone to sing the same exact words with a completely different melody. This is one of the reasons why I love the Trinity Hymnal. Using the index in the back, I can find a hymn that I don't know the melody to and sing the same words over a tune I'm already familiar with and fits the poetic meter. This flexibility is extremely helpful, especially as the years (and generations) go by and cultural shifts occur. You can adapt the tune to the cultural shift while still preserving the ancient truths contained in the words of good hymns. The ministry of Indelible Grace is a good example of this, in my opinion. The closest equivalent in rap is the idea of the "remix", where the same lyrics are placed over a different beat. But even with that, you would still have the same problem from #1 because of the nature of the genre.

3. As I look at how Hip-hop has developed over the years, most rap in my opinion has very short musical staying power. Songs that were made just 5 years ago already sound dated, not to mention things that came out in the 80's. Hip-hop culture has a microwave, hot today/ not tomorrow tendency about it. Some of the great hymns we sing (The Gloria Patri comes to mind) were written over a millennium ago. Think about that. That's amazing! Rap has only been around a little over 30 years. I don't see rap having that same kind of staying power. This doesn't mean that Christ-centered rap can't be helpful or edifying. It has and can continue to be leveraged for the glory of God in this generation. This is just an acknowledgement of its inherent limitations.

This is something I've reflected on a lot over the years, which is why I generally try to stay away from making pop cultural references in my songs that won't have any meaning to audiences a few years from now. I'm also writing more modern day hymns and songs of worship that can be sung by congregations rather than just a solo artist. By God's grace, I want to write songs and other things that will outlive me!

Thanks for the question and feel free to follow up in the comments section.

grace and peace,

shai

Hittin' The Block

2008-09-22T20:12:00.007-05:00

{Quick side note: Thanks to all who submitted questions for Q & A Fridays. Edit: I posted the questions in the comments section I will try to give answers to as many as I can starting this Friday. I will answer some in the comments section, so make sure you refer to that.}

On Saturday, September 13th 2008, Epiphany Fellowship- the North Philly church I have the pleasure of serving at- held our annual Concert, Classroom, Corner outreach. It was held outside and featured an afternoon of free food (fried fish and water ice, a Philly specialty), games for the neighborhood children and a basketball tournament, all set to the backdrop of Christ-centered Hip-hop. You had to be there to truly appreciate it. Thousands showed up throughout the day. Imagine people sitting up in their window or on their front step as they hear Jesus Christ and His glorious gospel being clearly and continuously celebrated all day. Imagine someone hearing the music from 5 blocks away and riding their bike to check out what's going on, only to see a crowd of people who look just like them outwardly but are radically different in their attitudes and dispositions. Imagine being from a neighborhood where it is rare to see a two-parent home and walk down the block to see young Latino fathers playing with their sons and kissing their daughters and other young African-American husbands grabbing microphones and openly expressing love for their Savior and the wives that the Savior blessed them with.

On September 13, 2008 I saw the power of the gospel in North Philly as the Scriptures were lived out in front of me.

"As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace: whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen." (1 Peter 4:10-11)

I saw saints eager to serve. I saw Christians with evangelistic gifts sharing their faith with people in the neighborhood as they had opportunity. I saw ministers with artistic and teaching gifts boldly proclaiming a crucified, risen and returning King for all to hear. I saw Spirit-filled believers with administrative gifts put in months of work leading up to the event. I saw brothers and sisters with gifts of mercy giving of their time and resources for the good of the community and the glory of the Savior. I saw the neighborhood stand in awe as a Hip-hop concert was held for 8 hours, and while there were plenty of smiles and hugs, not one fight broke out, not one blunt was lit up and not one word of profanity came from the mouths of those who rapped. I saw a local church love and serve each other in ways that made those watching curious about the God they kept hearing about from the stage. And the following day as we gathered to worship the King, I saw many of the same people from the neighborhood walking through the doors of a church, some for the first time ever.

grace and peace,

shai

Q & A Fridays

2008-09-10T17:50:00.002-05:00

In working out my new schedule recently, one of the things I've committed to is posting a blog at least once a week. If I can do more, great. But one is definitely reasonable. In addition to that, I want to provide the opportunity for questions. If any of you have questions that relate to Christian hip-hop, culture, music, theology or any combination of the above, post them in the comments section here. I'll choose from the questions submitted. On Fridays, I'll post the question and attempt to answer.

grace and peace,

shai

Storiez

2008-09-03T18:08:00.004-05:00

These past few weeks, I've been hard at work putting the finishing touches on my new cd called Storiez. I'm posting this as I sit in the Lamp Lounge studio with deejay essence. He is heavily involved with the mixing/ mastering of the project. For those who don't know, mixing and mastering is the post-production work which occurs after the initial recording work is finished. It's basically the adjustment of sound levels for the purpose of achieving a more polished, professional sound. It is extremely time consuming and you find yourself listening to the same songs so many times that it can almost drive you crazy. On top of that, we had some last minute changes with a few of the beats. Because of these things, we had to push back our release date from October 14th to November 18th. Our distributor has been very patient with us. It's a blessing to have both the platform and the artistic freedom to make music from the heart without external pressure concerning lyrical content.

I want to talk a little about the cd cover and how it relates to the music. The cover is meant to capture some of the major themes of the album:

1. A story within a story- Every human life is a story which plays a small part in a bigger story- the story of God's dealings in human history. On the cover, the children are watching a story- unaware that they themselves are being watched. The layers on the wall are also meant to convey this idea.

2. Old and new- The CD uses new methods to communicate old truths. The words on the page in the upper left corner of the cd cover is a song from the CD typed in an old font. The children on the cover are caught up in and mesmerized by the new, but really need the old. This is an accurate depiction of our technologically-entranced society, as well as the Church, which seems to be increasingly allured by what's "hot" right now.

3. Children- Children play a prominent role on the CD- as main characters in some of the narratives as well as performing on certain songs. In some ways, the children symbolize fallen humanity's general naivete when it comes to spiritual realities.

As we get closer to the release date, I'll be posting more specifics about the project. Your prayers for the Lord's help in finishing it and His being glorified in its release would be greatly appreciated.

grace and peace,

shai

Solus Christus In Retrospect

2008-08-20T21:51:00.004-05:00

As requested, I just added the lyrics from my first cd, The Solus Christus Project (released in 2005) It's been interesting to notice how the passage of time has split my listeners into two camps: 1) Those who heard TSCP first and 2) those who heard The Atonement first. Interestingly, based on the feedback I've received, most people like the cd they heard first more than the other one. I guess that makes sense. You can never replace the feeling you get when something (or someone) strikes you for the first time. Also, the two projects have completely different feels, so I can understand being drawn more to one or the other. Sometimes, in order to understand a work, it's important to know the artist's intent. That may not necessarily mean that you will enjoy the work more, but it will at least give you some insight into the artistic choices that were made.

For many, TSCP was the first introduction to my ministry. At that point, I had done a few features and a song here and there on compilations. Lampmode was still new to alot of people. My dear brother timothy brindle had released The Great Awakening and we had also put out the Grassroots EP. I had some specific goals with TSCP.

1. I wanted to affirm and rejoice in the essential truths of the Christian faith, while continuing to establish and run in a unique lane for Christian Hip-hop at the time. What I mean by that is the combination of complex lyricism, explicit doctrinal teaching and production that had a jazzy, raw, underground feel reminiscent of my favorite era of hip-hop, the mid-nineties. I wanted to continue what dj essence, tim and I had begun with TGA.

2. I wanted to introduce people to the idea of lyrical theology. When I use that term, I'm speaking about lyrics that are either expositional or didactic (serving a teaching function) in nature. The goal of lyrical theology is to glorify God by communicating the truth of Scripture in a song, primarily for the building up of God's people. This is what we see happening in the Psalms. I did not (and do not) want to waste the potential that rap has as a medium to communicate large amounts of information in a relatively short amount of space. It's not that others hadn't already been doing that, but I wanted people to be able to easily identify it when they heard it, as well as distinguish it from other kinds of lyrics.

3. I wanted to glorify the Lord by expressing a wide range of emotions- joy (Solus Christus), intimacy in worship (My Portion), anguish over sin (Dark Night of the Soul), deep reflection (Heart First), etc. The album is intentionally broad in that sense. I didn't want to do a whole cd full of one type of song my first time around.

4. I wanted to expose our audience to the great truths of reformed theology- particularly what the Bible teaches about God's role and man's role in salvation.

Some have commented that TSCP is a more "fun" album and I agree. There are definitely "brighter colors" on TSCP than The Atonement. Part of this has to do with where I was in my walk at the time. Some of TSCP was written when I was still a relatively new believer, basking in the new found joy of my salvation. I think I was more care-free back then, in the sense that I hadn't walked with the Lord long enough to experience deep heart break, severe trials, and extreme brokenness over my sin- all of which transpired in profound ways between TSCP and The Atonement. The Cross became increasingly glorious to me as the Lord showed me more of His Holiness and my filthiness in light of His perfections. And I wanted more people to see these truths without being distracted by the production style or vocal delivery- which is why The Atonement has a darker, more sober sound to it musically and vocally.

The new album, Storiez, is a combination of the two cds, imo. If I had to say, I think it sounds closer to TSCP than The Atonement. It definitely has brighter colors and is probably more emotional than both of the former projects. The idea for Storiez came from the response to Angelz on TSCP. I got more comments from that song than any other. To this day, people still ask me about that song. Ironically, Angelz is probably the heaviest song doctrinally on TSCP. Yet it was received well, I think, because of the digestibility of the format- narrative. So I thought, "Why not do a whole cd of nothing but narratives?" 3 years later, voila! Storiez (spelled with a "z" to pay homage to the song that sparked the idea)

Ok. I've gone on long enough. Two blogs in one week? What in the world is going on?

grace and peace,

shai

Update

2008-08-18T19:19:00.000-05:00

Things have been pretty hectic since The Atonement came out in February. Just before the release I had the privilege of ministering at Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, home to one of my modern heroes in the faith, John Piper. It was a pretty surreal experience. Those of you who are familiar with Lampmode's music know that we incorporate excerpts from his sermons in a lot of our stuff. His emphasis on the supremacy of Christ in all things and the enjoyment of God as humanity's chief purpose has greatly influenced my theology and practice over the years.

As I was on the plane to go there, I was humbled by the thought that I would have an opportunity to co-labor with someone used so greatly by God in our generation. When deejay essence and I arrived, we were warmly greeted by the saints there, who seem to have the glory of God in their DNA. One of the families from Bethlehem Baptist hosted us and they were extremely hospitable. I was scheduled to minister at the Saturday service before communion (They asked me to do "Were You There") A concert directly following the service was also on the agenda.

One of the highlights of my time there was walking into a room to pray with the elders before the service. As I approached the door, I heard the sweet sound of the worship team and elders praising the Lord while singing an a cappella version of my favorite hymn, "And Can It Be". It was quite a joy to join them in worshipping the Saviour. It was quite an experience.

I've been doing a good amount of travelling recently. I've had opportunities to serve in places like Louisville, Chicago, California, Knoxville and even Hawaii (I know- don't pity me for suffering for the Kingdom in Hawaii :-) All in all, it's been an amazing year. Another recent development is that the Lord has opened the doors for me to do music full time, which is an answer to prayers from years ago that I had all but forgotten about. All in His timing. Right now, I have my sights set on starting seminary in January, if the Lord opens that door. I also have a new cd coming out on October 14th, entitled Storiez. I'll give more details about that in future blog posts.

As far as The Atonement is concerned, I have been absolutely blown away by the response. I wasn't expecting it. One of the more encouraging (and somewhat suprising) things about it is how many people who aren't into Hip-hop who have appreciated the album. It serves to demonstrate how God's truth can transcend musical style or genre. I praise God for giving me a platform to communicate His glorious truths! I certainly don't deserve it. For those who have been edified by the album, I am still working on a listener's guide, which basically breaks down each song from a musical, lyrical and theological standpoint. Also, we are going to be recording a live version of the album (on September 25th in Denton, Texas) with a full jazz band and original new musical arrangements. In providing a different musical backdrop for the lyrics, we're hoping to bring out different aspects of the truths being communicated. If all goes well with the live recording, we'll release it sometime next year, Lord willing.

Thank you to everyone who has supported my ministry. Please forgive me for not being faithful in my blog posts. Quite honestly, it hasn't been a priority for me. I've received messages recently that indicate that there are a few of you out there who are interested in what I have to say and disappointed that I haven't written more. I hope to post more now that I have some more time.

grace and peace,
shai

It's Been A Long Time

2008-05-14T17:40:00.002-05:00

It's been a while since my last post. Since The Atonement came out in February, I've been very busy. Alot has been going on. I do intend to get back on track with blogging regularly, for those who are still paying attention. This is just to let you know that I'm still here. In my next blog, I'll fill you in on some of what's been going on the past few months, as well as pick up where I left off on some of the other topics. Thank you all for your support and encouragement.

grace and peace,
shai

My New CD- The Atonement

2008-02-01T15:23:00.000-05:00

Most of you who are familiar with this blog probably know that I've had two new albums in the works for some time. One of them is about to be released. It's called The Atonement and it comes out on Feb. 12th. You can pre-order it now if you'd like to receive it before the 12th. For more info, see http://www.lampmode.com/

I've also posted links for the lyrics to the songs from The Atonement on this blog. I'm working on posting the lyrics to my first album, The Solus Christus Project, as well. Feel free to post any comments or questions about the album or lyrics here.

grace and peace,
shai

Understanding and Delight Part 1

2007-12-27T11:21:00.000-05:00

un·der·stand·ing n.

insight into or knowledge of a particular thing; enlightened intelligence.

de·light n.

a high degree of pleasure or enjoyment; joy; rapture

One thing that has intrigued me for some time is the connection between understanding and delight. What I mean is that our potential for enjoying something is increased or decreased depending on our understanding of the thing. This has far-reaching implications, but I want to zero in on the realms of the arts and theology.

Understanding and Delight in the Arts

This principle of the relationship between understanding and delight has been brought home to me in many ways over the years, but it shows up most often when it comes to the arts. Let me give a few examples. As a Christian Hip-hop artist, I work closely with musicians for recording projects as well as live concerts. I don't consider myself a musician in the sense of being skilled with an instrument. My area of gifting is primarily in lyricism and writing. The band members that I've worked with over the years are fine musicians, but have little exposure to Hip-hop, so at times it's like two worlds colliding. I recall numerous occasions when we all would be listening to the same piece of jazz or gospel music. The band members would be going crazy during different parts of the song. They expressed their appreciation by rewinding it over and over, praising the skill of the instrumentalist, nodding their heads in approval, etc. To me, it sounded nice, but the fuss they were making about it seemed over the top. I just couldn't get into it like they did. This is because we were listening to the same thing, but with different ears. They were listening with the ears of professionally trained musicians. They heard nuances and subtleties that I could not appreciate. Unorthodox chord progressions, interplay between the drums and bass, skillful employment of technique and improvisation, etc. were lost on my untrained ears, but they picked those things up. And it was a source of enjoyment for them.

The same thing has happened when the emcees and the musicians have listened to the same Hip-hop song together. Many times, the emcees would be going crazy over what the lyricist is doing as the musicians sat with bored looks on their faces. Again, we were listening with different ears. The musicians hadn't been trained to hear and appreciate the complex multisyllabic rhyme patterns, interior rhyme schemes, vocal cadences and thematic continuity of the lyricist on the recording. All their ears could hear was what was or wasn't happening musically. This lack of understanding hindered their delight.

This principle can be demonstrated across the board. I'm reminded of a story that CJ Mahaney told in a message of his that I heard recently. He spoke of an experiment conducted by the Washington Post in which a world class violinist went into a subway in Washington D.C. during rush hour, pulled his violin (valued at over 3 million dollars!!!) out of the case and began playing classical songs. The night before, he had played the same exact songs at a sold-out Carnegie Hall in New York City with tickets starting at $100 each. The next day in the subway? Most people walked by, oblivious to the expert level of craftsmanship on display before them. A few of the violinist's fans were stopped in their tracks and received a delightful treat- once they got over their confusion. Again, the subway commuters did not have ears to hear the brilliance that was on display before them, and therefore could not appreciate or fully enjoy what they were hearing.

Earlier, I said that our potential for enjoying something is increased or decreased depending on our understanding of the thing. I qualified it by using the word "potential" for a reason. I don't believe that understanding equals delight in every case. One can have understanding of something without necessarily delighting in that thing at all. For instance, if I'm upset that my favorite sports team is losing the game, it's not my lack of understanding that is keeping me from enjoying it. (In fact, it could be that my understanding of the game is actually contributing to my lack of enjoyment at that point) Also, one could have an enjoyment level that doesn't measure up to their level of understanding, such as when someone becomes bored with something that they've heard (and understood) over and over. It's not a lack of understanding that's preventing enjoyment in that case, but over familiarity. However, our delight will never go beyond our level of understanding. Obviously, I can't enjoy what I don't know or understand.

With those qualifications out of the way, I'll close here. In part 2, I'll look at how this idea relates to God and our relationship with Him.

grace and peace,
shai

How Is This Possible?

2007-11-23T16:47:00.000-05:00

Recently, I was reflecting on the work of Christ when a number of successive (and perplexing ) thoughts occurred to me. As best I can recall, the train of thought went something like this: Outside of Jesus, I have absolutely no hope whatsoever. Apart from His life, death, resurrection and intercession on my behalf, I would die in my sins and be justly and eternally condemned. He is the all-sufficient object of my faith. My present comfort and future blessedness are completely dependent upon Him. But that doesn't only apply to me, it applies to everyone who ever has or ever will trust in Him. According to the heavenly scene described in Revelation 7:9-10, I am just one out of an absolutely staggering amount of people who are also depending on Christ alone for salvation.

"After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, "Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!" (Revelation 7:9-10)

This is what perplexed me: How is it that one man's death could count for so many people? I can (somewhat) understand the death of one in the place of another one. But one death in the place of a countless multitude from every nation and generation that has ever lived on the face of the planet? The math just doesn't seem to add up! The problem became more perplexing when I considered that Christ not only died in our place, but He lived in our place as well. Romans 5:19 puts it this way:

"For as by the one man’s (Adam) disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s (Jesus) obedience the many will be made righteous."

In some mysterious way that I can't fully comprehend, this verse is teaching that Jesus Christ's 33 years of perfect obedience to God's law counts for believers in such a way that all who trust in Him are righteous in God's sight. Again, I had the same dilemma: How could one man's perfect law-keeping count for so many people? As well as His death? The more I prayerfully considered it, the clearer it became. I believe the key to understanding this is found in the supreme value and worth of His Person.

Only the glorious mystery of the two natures of Jesus Christ (divine and human) united in one person can solve the problem. Because the man Christ Jesus is 100% human, He is able to stand in the place as the substitute for another human being. But because He is also the Divine Son of God, He is able to stand in the place as the substitute for a number of human beings that can't be counted. Because Jesus is 100 % God, His value and worth are incalculable. There's no scale big enough to put God on it. He is off the charts. He can't be measured. Isaiah 40:25 captures this idea in a straight-forward and powerful way:

"To whom then will you compare me, that I should be like him? says the Holy One." (compare with John 6:68-69)

Amen. The Lord Jesus is incomparable. Who can fathom the anomaly of the God-man? The more I consider the truths of the Christian faith, the more I become convinced of the heavenliness of it all. No man could come up with these things. Praise be to God, who has hidden these things from the wise, but revealed them to little children (Luke 10:21-22)! Praise be to Jesus, the God-man, who is strong enough and valuable enough to live for, die for, resurrect for, intercede for and return for a countless multitude who are all looking to Him as our all-sufficient Savior. How can we not lift our voices to loudly and joyfully bless His name? After all, that's what the saints will be doing eternally in heaven (See Revelation 5:11-13)!

How is this possible? Well, "With man this is impossible, but with God, all things are possible" (Matthew 19:26)

grace and peace,
shai

The Best Use of the Platform

2007-11-16T12:27:00.000-05:00

There's been an ongoing debate in the Christian Hip-hop community about the role and content of the Christian emcee. Are we ministers? Are we entertainers with a spiritual emphasis? Or are we simply Christians who happen to enjoy Hip-hop? It has been a sometimes emotional debate that has caused many of those on either side to draw lines in the sand and take firm stances. I was reminded of this recently as I came across an old email correspondence between myself and another Christian emcee about this topic.

The context of my email below is that Lampmode had an opportunity to share the stage with an artist who had a different view of the purpose of the platform. On the night in question, there was a large crowd primarily made up of professing Christians and their unsaved friends. The emcee gave a great show, but a clear presentation of the gospel was absent from his set. The following excerpt is part of my response when he asked for honest feedback about the evening. I'm reproducing it here- with some slight changes to protect identities- because I think it is a good summary of the Biblical rationale for my views on this issue.

"First, I just want to say thank you for inviting us. You were very gracious in extending us the open arm of fellowship. Thanx for the warm welcome and hospitality. We appreciate the love. I thought your set was pretty good. You definitely had the crowd participation thing going. You clearly have a gift in that area. Overall, it was a good time.

With that said, although it was fun and enjoyable, I have some questions concerning the overall goal of your set. I know you wanted the saints to have a good time, and that's cool. However, I thought some of what you did wasn't as edifying as it could have been. I thought the focus at times wasn't on the Lord, but rather on your gifts. I know that that wasn't your desire. I don't think you were sinning, but I do think you could have used your time and platform more wisely. Consider the following passage from Ephesians 5:15-20:

"Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with all your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ"

Consider the platform we have as emcees: we have a microphone and a sound system. At your concert, we had lights and a huge projection screen behind us. And we had a captive audience of hundreds of people who were ready to hear what we had to say. It's not often that this situation arises. In the audience that night, we can be fairly certain that there were a few different kinds of people:

1. There were people who were/are dead in their sins, not reconciled to God, under His just condemnation and on the broad road to destruction. These people could be divided into sub-categories, but that won't be necessary right now.

2. There were people who are saved, but struggling. They are struggling with sin, with depression, with doubt, with fear, with tough decisions they need to make, with hearts that are being hardened by sin's deceitfulness, etc.

3. There were people who are saved, strengthened by the grace of God and walking in that strength.

The question is this: what do these people need to hear? I think you would agree that all three of those groups need to hear the gospel. They need to be confronted with, reminded of, or comforted by a crucified, risen, exalted and returning Christ. This is especially true in light of the days being evil and our struggle not being "against flesh and blood, but against rulers, authorities, spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places and the cosmic powers over this present darkness".

So I guess my challenge to you, my dear brother, is that you would consider structuring your set in such a way that all the individual elements point to Christ and His gospel- including your exhortations between songs. I know that everyone is not called to minister in the same way. At Lampmode, our goal with every ministry event we do is to highlight the character and works of God in such a way that those who God enables will repent and believe the gospel. Therefore the means we use ( the proclamation of the gospel) is consistent with the end we hope to attain (repentance and faith). I understand that not every Christian emcee has that end in mind when they grab a mic. We all have different gifts and callings. And we're talking about hip-hop, not the pulpit.

However, the question I'm asking is what is "making the best use of the time" in this context? Knowing that we will be held accountable for every idle word that comes from our mouths and also knowing that the judgment seat of Christ will be a place where our works are tried and either pass the examination or burn up, I'm very jealous to see cats like yourself abound in fruitfulness, not wasting any opportunities you might have to proclaim the gospel, which alone is the power of God for the salvation of all who believe..."

grace and peace,
shai

Everybody's a Model

2007-10-22T17:01:00.000-05:00

It's been a while since I last blogged. I've been particularly busy in recent weeks with church commitments, work, writing, recording and speaking engagements. Something came up recently that helped me and I thought would be good to share. Before doing anything, one good question to ask is this:

"Is what I'm about to do worthy of imitation?"

In other words, is this a model I would recommend others follow? Can I, with a good conscience, enthusiastically tell someone else to copy my example? If the answer is no, then it's probably a not a good idea to do it, even if the act isn't sinful in itself. This principle is alluded to in passages like 1 Cor. 11:1, where Paul exhorted believers in Corinth, "Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ." (See also 2 Thess. 3:7-9 and Hebrews 13:7)

It seems simple, but it can be difficult to apply, given our tendency to act in sinful or unwise ways without considering either pleasing God vertically or setting an example for men and women horizontally. The sobering reality is that we are all modelling something, whether we realize it or not. The only question is whether it is a good model or a bad one. As we look to Christ, our ultimate example (and not only that, but thank God- our sin-bearing substitute as well!), may His Holy Spirit empower us to live lives that we could without hesitation encourage others to imitate.

grace and peace,
shai

Theology and Doxology

2007-09-15T14:17:00.000-05:00

the·ol·o·gy (thē-ŏl'ə-jē) n.

The study of the nature of God

dox·ol·o·gy (dŏk-sŏl'ə-jē) n.

An expression of praise to God

Theology should always lead to doxology. And doxology should always be informed by good theology. Theology that doesn't lead to doxology is dead orthodoxy. Doxology that doesn't spring from good theology is idolatry. Both extremes dishonor God. The greatest commandment in the law as laid out by the Lord Jesus, is this:

"Jesus answered, "The most important is, 'Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' " (Mark 12:29-30)

Our sinful tendency is to either attempt to bypass the mind (as if that were possible) in our worship of God, or to be so intellectual in our approach to the things of God that we bypass the affections. The former results in us fashioning and worshipping a god who conforms to our own sinful notions of who we think God should be. The latter results in a pharisee-like coldness that finds more delight in winning an argument than joy in the God who makes the argument meaningful. The former makes one a ripe candidate for victimization by false teachers and cult leaders. The latter makes one a ripe candidate for teaching truths that have not been of saving benefit to them. Both extremes lead down the broad road to destruction.

God, in His grace, has given us gifts that address both tendencies- The Holy Spirit, the Scriptures, and prayer. Or, I should say, the Holy Spirit as He illuminates Scripture and prompts prayer. Those who fall in the "forget about theology- just give me Jesus" camp tend to emphasize prayer more than diligently studying the Scriptures. Those who fall in the "dotting every theological 'i' and crossing every theological 't'" camp tend to struggle with prayerlessness even as they dive into the deep end of the text. Those who fall into the first camp will find balance as they repent of their idolatry and prayerfully do the dificult work of studying Scripture in context, as well as systematically. Those in the second camp will find balance as they repent of their arrogance and cultivate a humble, dependent, broken spirit that can only come on your knees before the majesty of God. Neither can occur apart from the empowering of the Holy Spirit. When this happens, Jude 1:20-21 will be fulfilled in our lives:

"But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life."

May the Lord make it so in our lives, for the sake of His glory.

grace and peace,
shai

Vertical Encouragement

2007-08-31T08:51:00.001-05:00

Christian lyrics can generally divided into two categories. 1. Lyrics that are horizontal, or directed towards people, and 2. Lyrics that are vertical, or directed towards God. Most Holy Hip-hop music would fall into the horizontal category. At Lampmode Recordings, most of what we've done has been horizontal. Our mission statement is to "highlight the character of God while spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ and a Biblical worldview through Hip-hop culture." Making horizontal Christ-centered music with the aim of gospel proclamation and Biblical exhortation has served our mission well. However, the longer I walk with the Lord, the more I long to both hear and write lyrics that are more vertical in nature.

Part of why the Psalms deeply connect with so many believers is that they often chronicle the real life experiences of God's people as He interacts with them. The Psalms were breathed out by the Holy Spirit (2 Tim. 3:16, 2 Peter 1:21). He is the same Spirit who indwells God's church today. He causes the Psalms to resonate deeply with us because we share a common experience with God. Of course, the details may be different, but God's people in all ages have common experiences, such as joy in God's salvation, desire for God's glory, humility before God's greatness, guilt before God's holiness, gratitude for God's goodness and mercy, etc.

It's always a great encouragement for me when I hear other believers articulate the very same things that I've experienced with God. Ironically, it's often other Christians' vertical communication that gives me the most encouragement. As I peer into their prayer closet. In my heart, I'm saying "Amen. That's the aroma of Christ! We are interacting with the same God and He's producing the same effects in me. I'm not crazy!" lol. An awesome example of this, by the way, is a collection of Puritan prayers called The Valley of Vision by Arthur Bennett. I highly recommend it. This book has been a great blessing in my own prayer life.

But anyway, the following is part of a song from an upcoming project that I'm working on. The song in its entirety is a song of praise to God for His salvation in Christ. This part of the song is basically a prayer of praise and confession to God in rhyme form. I hope it encourages you.

Excerpt from "Throne of Grace"
by shai linne
produced by Vessels of Mercy

In the power of the Holy Spirit and the name of the Lord Jesus, I just wanna cry out before the throne of grace to the Father...

Heavenly Father, it's in the name of Jesus I pray
He is the way- for His sake, please receive what I say
First things first, blessed be Your Holy name
There's none like You; You stand alone and You reign
Lord, you know my frame- You remember that I'm dust
Jesus, who overcame- It's in Him I put my trust
No confidence in the flesh, it's obvious I'm a mess
No doubt- much more a mess than what I can see manifest

I confess that I daily fall short of Your glory
I've failed so many times- My sin's always before me
I take time to ponder the opportunities I've squandered
And how I'm prone to wander from here to yonder
My foolish, restless heart clings to dear idols
Which could never satisfy me- they're mere trifles
Like David said, You hem me in behind and before
You convict me of the sin that I've been trying to ignore
Lord, you see my immaturity, You see my insecurity
You see all my impurity- How long will You endure with me?
My heart's laid before You- stark naked, undressed
I pray that You would become greater and that I'd become less

Yes, when I see Jesus and His inherent loveliness
I'm reminded of my own comparative nothingness
And actually, I'm as primitive as can be
Compared to His magnificent, infinite majesty
You've shown me the glory of Christ- He's so Holy
My only hope is that You look upon the lowly
So I humble myself as I appear at Your throne
Not based on my righteousness, but Christ's merits alone
I'm crying out for mercy as I magnify Your name
You amplified the pain of the Lamb of God who was slain
So truly, I only have one request that will suit me:
Please open up my eyes to better behold His beauty
In Jesus name, Amen.

grace and peace,
shai

Legacy Conference

2007-08-15T11:05:00.000-05:00

It's been a while since my last blog. Sorry for the delay. The past few weeks have been particularly busy as I've been doing alot of recording and some travelling. This past weekend, I had the privilege of participating in the Legacy Conference in Chicago. It was a discipleship conference that featured teaching and music from Christian hip-hop artists such as Lecrae, Trip Lee, Tedashii and Flame. The main session featured an address by Paul Washer. If you are not familiar with this brother, he is probably most known for a shocking sermon that he preached at a youth rally some time back. It's one of the most powerful messages I've ever heard. Check it out when you get a chance.

As far as the conference, it was a blessing to meet and fellowship with Christians from around the country. I also appreciated the opportunity to teach a session on the doctrine of salvation. It's great to be in a room with urban youth discussing the implications of justification and redemption. However, for me, the highlight of the conference came on Friday night after the breakout session. At around 10:30 p.m., I was about to leave and join some friends for a late dinner. I walked back into the room where I had been teaching to grab some things, and who did I see sitting there but Paul Washer! He wasn't scheduled to speak until the following day. However, he had flew in a day early and had some time to kill. Needless to say, my dinner plans were cancelled! Not wanting to waste this opportunity, myself and a few other brothers sat down and fired away questions. Brother Paul shared his experiences on the foreign mission field, the story behind the "shocking youth sermon", as well as fatherly counsel on life in general. He was very generous with his time. We talked about doctrine, missions, holiness and the glory of God until 3 a. m. ! It was glorious.

It was particularly encouraging to see Brother Paul's response to what God is doing in the Christ-centered Hip-hop movement. He was taken aback to see young brothers dressed in baggy jeans with fitted caps and other hip-hop externals who were, at the same time, passionate about the glory of God, sound theology and magnifying the worth of Christ in their raps and lives. For me, it was yet another one of those "Lord, what am I doing here?" moments. I had another one of those a few weeks back when I had an opportunity to meet with John Piper at an Acts 29 Network- sponsored lunch. At both meetings, I was struck by the desperate need our generation has for spiritual fathers. Just prior to meeting with Paul Washer, me and some of my brothers had been talking and praying about the need for older men in our lives who could teach us things that we can't learn from our peers. In many ways, we are a fatherless generation. And we are suffering because of it. We rejoiced as Paul Washer, without being aware of our conversation, addressed the exact same issues that we had been crying out to God about, almost verbatim.

I'll save the issue of fatherlessness (spiritual and natural) and its impact on the Hip-hop generation for another post. But I praise God that He has raised up men who are willing to help teach, guide and direct our generation. May He be pleased to continue stirring up older men who will teach the younger how to be godly men, husbands and fathers. A quiet, impromptu, late-night meeting in inner-city Chicago this past weekend was a great step in that direction.

grace and peace,
shai

The Christian Music...Industry? (Part One)

2007-06-30T13:42:00.000-05:00

The Christian Music Industry...

This topic is something that has been on my heart for a long time. However, I've never articulated these things beyond private convos because I've never had an ideal public platform to express them. Praise God for blogs! (I'll warn you from the outset that this will be a longer-than-normal post because of the complexities of the issues involved)

In many ways, I've been in a very privileged and somewhat unique position as it relates to the music industry as a whole and the Christian music industry in particular. There are at least four reasons why I say this:

1. For whatever reason, in God's providence, I've been around a number of artists, athletes and entertainers (Christian and non-Christian) who are world-famous and richer than I'll ever be- both before and after their fame. I've always been the person who was really close to the person who knew So-and-So, lol. I could tell you a number of stories about situations where I've somehow wound up in places and around people that had me praying silently, "Uh...Lord? What in the world am I doing here? And when are they going to notice that I don't belong and tell me to leave!" Because of this exposure, I've been privy to a lot of what goes on behind the scenes in the music industry.

2. Although God has graced Lampmode Recordings with a loyal following, music and a name that have gained us access to privileged places, I'm enough of a "nobody" to retain anonymity as I've observed honest dialogue between different Christian artists and industry people. This might not be possible if people felt they had to watch what they said around me because of any "status" they think I may have.

3. By God's grace, my convictions about the authority of Scripture, the supremacy of Christ in all things and the centrality of the gospel were deeply implanted into my soul long before my exposure to the behind-the-scenes goings on in the Christian music industry. This may not seem noteworthy, but based on what I've observed, this would be the exception and not the norm among those who have had similar exposure. And this is extremely helpful, because it has helped me to sift things through a Biblical lens and allow that, rather than normal industry protocol to guide my decision-making as I've waded through the murky, fuzzy, compromise-friendly waters of the Christian music biz.

4. Finally, I have no attachment to the Christian music industry and therefore, I have nothing to lose by speaking honestly on this topic. I intentionally and gratefully work at a "regular" job and do not desire a full-time career in music. Most aspiring Christian emcees who desire a full-time career have no idea about what it takes, which is part of the reason why so few who desire it actually succeed. Because of my convictions about the importance of the local church, I refuse to do things that would constantly take me away from the church community that God has placed me in. Because most bookings for Christian Hip-hop artists take place on weekends, this results in my turning down more engagements than I accept. There are pros and cons to this, but at the end of the day, I can sleep well without the internal torment of wondering if God is truly being glorified through my music because of all the ungodly things that come along with the music industry. I know that some of what I'm about to say will open me up the charge of hypocrisy as I prepare to release a new album that will in all likelihood be nationally distributed. But that's OK. At Lampmode, we've weighed through the issues and believe that there is a way to produce, release and sell Christ-centered music in a way that brings honor and glory to God, which is what we've always attempted to do.

So, with that as an introduction (I told you it was long), let me share what prompted this blog. I recently came across the website of CCM artist Nichole Nordeman. I've only heard a little bit of her music, but in an interview she did with CCM Magazine, she raised a question that I've wrestled with for years:

"Armed with a guilty conscience and CCM’s permission, I was compelled to ask some other artists if they, too, might wrestle a bit with the irony that we are trying desperately, through our music, to point to the liberating love of Jesus while packaging that music in a way that points to…well…us."

Amen, Nichole! Finally, someone with a large profile in the Christian music industry is open about the dilemma that so many Christian artists are silent about because they either a) can't see the dilemma, b) can't afford to acknowledge the dilemma or c) they don't care about it. This issue has plagued me from the moment the idea of recording music became a reality. It has been the source of numerous discussions, debates and arguments- not to mention much prayer. If it's not clear already, let me try to lay it out as succinctly as possible.

The Scriptures are clear that God is extremely jealous for His own glory. He absolutely detests idolatry, i.e. giving anyone or anything other than Him the attention, adoration, affection, attention and love that only He rightly deserves. In many ways, the whole drama of redemption is about God subduing the hearts and wills of an idolatrous people who- as a result of the fall- have a natural, sinful tendency to turn away from the true God and create lesser gods for ourselves, which is a great evil and worthy of eternal condemnation in God's sight. A few texts make this abundantly clear:

"You shall have no other gods before me" (Exodus 20:3)

"It is the LORD your God you shall fear. Him you shall serve and by His name you shall swear. You shall not go after other gods, the gods of the peoples who are around you, for the LORD your God in your midst is a jealous God, lest the anger of the LORD your God be kindled against you, and He destroy you from off the face of the earth." (Deuteronomy 6:13-15)

"Thus says the LORD, behold, I will bring disaster upon this place and upon its inhabitants, all the words of the book that the king of Judah has read. Because they have forsaken Me and have made offerings to other gods, that they might provoke me to anger with all the work of their hands, therefore my wrath will be kindled against this place, and it will not be quenched." (2 Kings 22:16-17)

"I am the LORD; that is My name; My glory I give to no other, nor My praise to carved idols." (Isaiah 42:8)

"For My own sake, for My own sake, I do it, for how should My name be profaned? My glory I will not give to another" (Isaiah 48:11

Many more texts of this type could be cited. But to the discerning reader, it should be obvious that the worship of any god other than God Himself inevitably results in a response of divine wrath. So here is my main point and the first part of the dilemma which Nichole Nordeman referred to:

The music industry as a whole- including the Christian music industry- is fundamentally built upon a system that is designed to make idols for the ultimate purpose of monetary gain.

I'll deal with the idolatry issue in part 2, but I'll first deal with the issue of monetary gain because it's easier to demonstrate. In fact, it's inherent in the very definition of "industry"

American Heritage Dictionary defines "industry" as follows:

1. Commercial production and sale of goods.

Webster's chimes in by referring to "industry" this way:

2. a distinct group of productive or profit-making enterprises, i.e., the banking industry

Do you see the tension? By definition, any industry's primary concern is the commercial production and sale of goods and profit-making. The people who start music companies, like any other company, do so to make money. The problem is that making money should not be the primary goal of the Christian. It's not that making money or being industrious are bad things in and of themselves. However, there is a serious problem when making money dictates the decisions that are made by Christian music artists because it opens the door for truth to be compromised. When making money is the main concern, the record buying public (and not the Scriptures) inevitably begins to dictate what should and should not be released. It becomes about profit rather than imparting of truth; sales rather than glorifying God; crowd response rather than gospel proclamation.

Of course, in the mind of the record executive, if you can do the former things and make money- great. But if it doesn't sell, the approach needs to change. This is why so much of popular "Christian" music today is so watered-down. With rare exceptions, it has been determined that weighty, difficult truth does not sell records. By and large, people don't want to be told that they are wicked sinners in desperate need of a Savior and in danger of the righteous wrath of a Holy God. The record buying public simply wants to have fun and be entertained. Christianity in America is decidedly man-centered; therefore, God-centered music is a turn-off.

Thus, we have the conflict. The Scriptures are decidedly God-centered (Romans 11:36). The Scriptures emphasize the worship of God over the exaltation of man (Isaiah 2:11). The call of the Biblical gospel is jam-packed with weighty, difficult truths (Mark 8:34-35, Luke 14:26)! So what does a Christian record executive do with this conflict? Sadly, as the history of the Christian music industry indicates, the answer is usually to compromise. (By the way, it is common knowledge in the industry that the top decision-makers concerning Christian music are usually not Christians. Most gospel and contemporary Christian music record labels are simply subsidiaries of secular companies. I'm referring here to the few Christian music executives who have a certain level of power in the industry)

This is the problem in a nutshell. For the Christian music industry, spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ is a means to an end, not the ultimate goal itself. The ultimate goal is making money at any cost. If it was determined that spreading the true Biblical gospel sold, you'd better believe that's what we would hear on the radio. But since it's been determined that it doesn't sell, we rarely hear the Biblical gospel in most of the music that claims to be gospel or Christian. Interestingly enough, even the title "gospel music" is rapidly being replaced with the term "inspirational music" at many radio stations. I actually think this is a good thing, as the term "gospel music" has added more confusion than clarity to what the gospel actually is because of the lack of the Biblical gospel in music that carries the label.

Biblically, there is no other ultimate goal than the glory of God as seen in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ for sinners. Concerning our fallen state and God's remedy for it in Christ, Romans 3:23-25 says

"...all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith."

Our sin has subjected us to God's righteous wrath. In His great love, He sent His Son Jesus Christ to be a wrath-absorbing substitute (propitiation) for all who trust in the finished work of Christ's life, death and resurrection. And when we received this most precious of gifts by faith alone apart from our works, God declared us to be righteous in His sight and freed us from the penalty (justified), power (redemption) and, ultimately, the presence of sin.

The purpose of this glorious work of God is found at the end of verse 25:

"This was to show God's righteousness, because in His divine forbearance He had passed over former sins."

In other words, the work of Christ is not primarily about us, even though believers receive its glorious benefits. It's about God bringing glory and honor to His Holy name, which we saw earlier is the main point of the drama of redemption. The Bible condemns those who would peddle the gospel for monetary gain(1 Timothy 6:3-5, 2 Corinthians 2:17) and it is a great dishonor to God to treat His glorious truth as interchangeable or even replaceable with any other message that will make money.

And this is part of the dilemma that every Christian who is involved in the Christian music industry must wrestle with. In part 2, I'll deal with what Nichole Nordeman was alluding to-the issue of idolatry. I'll also give some real -life examples and seek to make some practical applications.

grace and peace,

shai

Hip-hop...for...Christ?

2007-06-25T11:48:00.000-05:00

In keeping with my last post about Christians being saved to praise, I wanted to apply that idea to the realm of Holy Hip-hop. Over the years, Holy hip-hop has received a great deal of criticism from within the church. Alot of it is deserved, as much of the Hip-hop music that claims to be Christian is neither edifying or glorifying to God. I'll speak more on that in another post. In response to the criticism, Christian hip-hop artists have usually given one or more of these defenses:

1. It's of God because God is using it and people are getting saved and discipled through the music
2. It's of God because we're reaching a group of people (the Hip hop generation) with Scriptural truth who would not receive it otherwise
3. It's of God because Hip-hop is such a global phenomenon that it would be unwise not to use it as a pipeline for the gospel

I would dismiss #2 immediately because the Word of God (and the gospel contained in it) is sufficient in and of itself and does not need music or anything else to make it more effective. This defense also fails to take into account both the deadness of humanity in sin and the sovereignty of the Holy Spirit in regeneration. #1 and #3 both have elements of truth to them, but neither is a good defense for using a form of music if it could be demonstrated biblically that Hip-hop is inherently sinful. The end does not justify the means IF the means is sinful. To argue that it does would be pragmatism. My arguments for the use of rap in evangelism and the edification of God's people are grounded, not in pragmatism, but rather what I believe to be a biblical understanding of Christ and Culture. Consider the following passage:

"Sing to the LORD a new song, His praise from the end of the earth, you who go down to the sea, and all that fills it, the coastlands and their inhabitants. Let the desert and its cities lift up their voice, the villages that Kedar inhabits; let the habitants of Sela sing for joy, let them shout from the top of the mountains. Let them give glory to the LORD, and declare his praise in the coastlands." (Isaiah 42:10-12)

From the context of this passage, we see that God's chosen servant- identified as The Lord Jesus Christ in the New Testament- came on a mission to accomplish a number of things. This included bringing forth justice in the earth (vs. 4-5), being a light to the gentiles(vs. 6), opening the eyes of the blind and setting prisoners free (vs. 7). These things were fulfilled in the life, death, resurrection and ultimately the second coming of Christ. And we see the purpose of this work in the text above. God saves people so that we might praise Him for it with new songs, tell others about Him and glorify His name. From the cities to the villages, from the desert to the seas, from the mountains to the coastlands, the name of our glorious Lord is to be praised!

God the Father loves His Son so much that He determined to give Jesus a redeemed humanity from every tribe and language and people and nation (Rev. 5:9). The Lord Jesus Christ is so infinitely glorious that He has determined to be adored and praised in EVERY language. He determined to have a witness to His wondrous works in a multiplicity of cultural contexts. The culture of Hip-hop- of which rap is an element- is simply one of those contexts. At its best, Holy hip-hop is a Christ-centered, doctrinally sound, gospel proclaiming, artistically excellent cultural expression that magnifies the worth and greatness of the Triune God.

One of the main principles in Scripture is the idea of unity in diversity (See Ephesians 4:4-7, 1 Corinthians 12:4-26). Same Lord, different styles. Same Spirit, different gifts. Same faith, different languages. Same message, different methods. And on and on. What's sad is that we often want to convert people in order to make them look like US instead of like Jesus. But when we do this we are failing to recognize that our Lord is much too glorious to restrict Him to one cultural expression.

God the Father is so impressed with Christ that He chose to save Africans in bondage in America, who might praise Him with what has evolved into the gospel-style music we know today. The Father is so impressed with Christ that He chose to save Europeans who would praise Him with unbelievable classical sounds, like J.S. Bach. And He didn't stop there. He chose to save people from China, Indonesia, Sudan, Australia, Alaska, Poland and The Bronx- all with their unique, God-given expressions. This is because, just as a jewel is multifaceted, each of those cultures displays a unique facet of the radiance of Christ that would be missing if it weren't represented. And Hip-hop culture is no exception.

grace and peace,
shai

Saved to Praise

2007-05-18T16:18:00.000-05:00

If you are a Christian reading this, I have a question for you: Have you ever meditated on the purpose for which God has saved you? Why did He choose you before time began (2 Tim. 1:9)? Why did God go through all the trouble of sending His Son to die on the cross for your sins and then raise Him from the grave in order for you to be declared righteous in God's sight (Romans 4:25) ? Why did He send His Spirit to regenerate you, bringing you to faith in Jesus (Titus 3:5) ? Why is God presently at work in your life to ensure that you will be preserved through the trials of this life and make it all the way to resurrection ( Phil. 1:6, Jude 24) ? I ask because we often think of the purpose of our salvation only in terms of being rescued from hell. Or perhaps we focus on the positive benefits of eternal life, everlasting joy in the presence of God, and continuous fellowship with God's redeemed, glorified church throughout eternity. All of these things are true, of course. And they are all glorious realities for the believer. However, these things don't really get at the why of salvation as much as they describe the what. In other words, these things are not ends in and of themselves, as true and wonderful as they are. When we search the Scriptures, we get a compelling and surprising answer for the why of salvation. Perhaps no single verse is as clear on this point as 1 Peter 2:9:

"But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for His own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light." (1 Peter 2:9)

Here we see a beautiful, vivid description of the church of Jesus Christ. By God's grace, we were selected out of the masses of fallen humanity to receive the gift of salvation (chosen race). Though union with Christ, our great King and High Priest, we share in His reign (royal priesthood- 2 tim. 2:12). We have been set apart from the world (holy nation) as a redeemed community, purchased by the infinitely precious blood of Jesus Christ and uniquely claimed as God's very own (people for His own possession). What a high view of the church on display in this text! But notice the explicitly stated purpose of our high calling in this verse- "that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light" In other words, we were saved to praise God!

This is consistent with God's saving purposes throughout redemptive history. The theme of God saving a people to declare His praises appears repeatedly in the Scriptures. For example, God's explicitly stated purpose for telling Pharoah to release the nation of Israel from bondage to Egypt was so that His people could worship Him in the wilderness:

"Afterward Moses and Aaron went and said to Pharaoh, "Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, 'Let my people go, that they may hold a feast to me in the wilderness.'" (Exodus 5:1; see also vs.3)

God's purpose has always been to preserve a people in every generation whose hearts and affections are directed towards Him. This is what the psalmist had in mind in Psalm 79:13:

"But we your people, the sheep of your pasture, will give thanks to you forever; from generation to generation we will recount your praise."

Human beings are naturally wired to praise that which we consider praiseworthy. Professional sports arenas are packed with thousands of people who are eager to praise the home team for every good thing they do. Theaters, concert halls, museums, golf courses, national parks and auditoriums are all places that people go prepared to voice praises for what they appreciate there. The reason for this is that there is a clear connection between praise and joy. We praise what we enjoy. When we delight in something or someone, our natural response is to be vocal about it. The sad reality of the fall is that the praise which rightly belongs to God as the benevolent Creator of all things has been stolen from Him and given to the creature instead (Romans 1:25) . The question is not if we praise. We all do so by nature. The question is whom or what we will praise when we inevitably do so. One of the glorious implications of the gospel is that our praise has been rescued from inadequate, insufficient objects and redirected by God to the only One big enough to both receive our praise and satisfy us in the process- and that, of course, is God Himself.

In the Scriptures- especially the Psalms- we see a clear connection between enjoying God and praising God. There are to many passages to list here, but consider a few of them:

"Then I will go to the altar of God, to God my exceeding joy, and I will praise you with the lyre, O God, my God." (Psalm 43:4)

"Shout for joy in the LORD, O you righteous! Praise befits the upright." (Psalm 33:1)

"My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food, and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips. (Psalm 63:5)

"My lips will shout for joy, when I sing praises to you; my soul also, which you have redeemed." (Psalm 71:23)

"Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth; break forth into joyous song and sing praises!" (Psalm 98:4)

In Psalm 33:1, quoted above, it says that "praise befits the upright". As I bring this entry to a close, I want to briefly list 2 reasons why it is fitting for the redeemed to declare God's praises:

1. God should be praised simply for who He is.

Who is as Holy as the triune God? Do you know of anyone who is absolutely intrinsically perfect besides God? Is there anyone as beautiful as God? Anyone as powerful? Who is in sovereign control of all things, if not Jehovah Himself? Can anyone come close to matching His infinite wisdom, knowledge and understanding? Do you know of anyone who loves like God ? Who is more creative than God? Who else is eternal, self-existent and self-sufficient? Who can claim to be as faithful, true or righteous as the Holy One of Israel? Assuming we've tasted and seen His goodness, how can we possibly refrain from bursting forth with rowdy praise for the God of heaven and earth?

2. God should be praised for what He has done for us in the gospel of Jesus Christ

If anyone has cause to continually praise God, it is His redeemed bride, the church. We who were once dead in our transgressions and sins have been made alive in Christ. We were once God's enemies, but now, by His grace, we're His children. Christ has rescued us from sin, satan, death and hell through His death on the cross. We've been raised to newness of life through Christ's resurrection- with His power at work in us to help us overcome sin. God has freely given us eternal life by declaring undeserving sinners righteous in His sight. He will never count our sins against us. He is only merciful toward us.

We deserve His frown, but because of Christ we only receive His smile. God has secured our eternal joy in His immediate presence forever. He has given us the gift of the Holy Spirit, who leads us into all truth, helps us understand God's Word, comforts us in times of trial, testifies with our spirits that we our God's children and steadily makes us more and more like Jesus. These are just some of the innumerable blessings that God has given believers in the gospel- the greatest gift being God Himself. Surely we have ample reason to open our mouths and praise the God of our salvation!

Test yourself by this doctrine. Do you enjoy praising God? Heaven will be filled with perfected saints who delight in singing God's praises for eternity (Revelation 7:9-15). Does that thought excite you? Consider that, according to Hebrews 2:12, Jesus Christ Himself will be the worship leader in heaven! Do you long to gather with God's people to declare His praises together? Do you praise God privately? How much of your prayer time is devoted to praising God for who He is and what He's done? Are you using the gifts God has given you in a way that would either directly or indirectly point to the excellencies of Christ? Would those who know you say that they are more familiar with God's excellencies due to your proclamation?

May God work in us in such a way that His praise would be our greatest joy. May we live out the purpose for which He saved us. May we not only honor Him with our lips, but with our hearts and our lives as well. And may our short time here on earth be the dress rehearsal for heaven, as we warm up our voices in preparation for forever praising the Lamb who was slain for our sins.

grace and peace,
shai

Using Hip-Hop to Teach Doctrine

2007-05-13T19:02:00.001-05:00

Here is a link to a lecture I did at Westminster Seminary back in 2004 as a part of their student missions conference. The title of it is "Using Hip-hop to Teach Doctrine". I attempted to demonstrate why rap is in many ways an ideal medium for communicating large amounts of truth. At one point, I compare and contrast Christ-centered rap with some classic hymns of the faith. You might find the results interesting. I especially recommend this for Christians who are not familiar with the genre of Hip-hop or may be skeptical about its usefulness in the church. Enjoy! (If the link doesn't play right away, right click on the link, choose "Save Target As" and save it to your desktop. It should work then.)

grace and peace,
shai

Who Has Time to Blog?

2007-04-25T16:12:00.000-05:00

Obviously, I'm a novice at this blogging thing. Funny enough, I've started at least three posts that I needed to save and get back to- one of which was complete and took hours to write, but got deleted by mistake :( Each day, I've told myself that I would update it, only to be swamped by the work of the day. The next thing I know, a month has passed. Part of my dilemna is that I don't want to post something just to post something. I only want to speak if I actually have something to say. Admittedly, poor time management is one of my biggest weaknesses. But with a full-time job, church and ministry responsibilities and relational commitments, it makes me wonder- Who can possibly fit regular blogging into their schedule? It takes a serious time commitment! (I guess it might help if I actually owned a laptop- hint, hint to the elders at Epiphany Fellowship)

All jokes aside, I've found it helpful for my overall spiritual health to closely monitor the amount of time I spend online. With the endless links, blogs, youtube videos, myspace pages and message boards, it can be easy to spend hours online without even realizing it. Whenever I've done this, I've never felt like it was more helpful than hurtful in terms of drawing closer to God or cultivating heavenly-mindedness. Ephesians 5:16 instructs us in this regard:

"Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil."

If our time online (or anywhere else) could be better spent doing something else, we would be wise to take heed to this verse and comply. The internet- like all of the good things that God providentially gives- makes a great servant but a cruel master. As we are mindful of these things, may God be glorified through the way we spend our time. If you really want to be convicted in this matter, check out Jonathan Edwards' sermon on Ephesians 5:16 called The Preciousness of Time

grace and peace,
shai

Off to Florida

2007-03-14T11:24:00.000-05:00

After I get off work tonight, my dear brother timothy brindle is going to meet me at my job and we're going to head straight to the Philly airport and board a plane headed to Orlando, FL. We'll be attending the Contending for the Truth conference. The speakers include R.C. Sproul, John MacArthur, Ravi Zacharias, Al Mohler and John Piper. Each of these men have been greatly used by God in my life (and countless others) to help shape my understanding of God, the Scriptures, the gospel and a Christian worldview. I can't wait to be poured into by brothers whom I consider some of my heroes of the faith. It's crazy to consider this, but these are the Spurgeons, Whitfields and Edwards' of our day- men whose impact from preaching, teaching and writings will be felt long after the curtain closes on our generation. It's a privilege to be able to sit under their teaching for the next few days.

I'm also excited because I know that there's going to be a contingent from the Christian Hip-hop community present as well, and I'm looking forward to fellowshipping with them in that setting. In some ways, it will be a cultural adjustment because the demographics, music style and conservative, subdued atmosphere are not necessarily what many of us are used to on a regular basis. However, those things will become non-factors for me in light of the big realities that unite us: love for Jesus Christ, passion for His truth and the joy of lifting up praises to His name in the midst of the assembly of His redeemed saints. May our Lord use this conference to equip and encourage us to stand up for the objective truth of Biblical Christianity in a world (and church) that is increasingly characterized by postmodernism and relativism.

grace and peace,
shai

My First Blog

2007-02-16T17:26:00.000-05:00

Grace and peace! This is shai linne of Lampmode Recordings. A while ago, I was encouraged by some friends to start a blog. For a long time, I resisted. I was content to interact with those familiar with our ministry through our website, email and other message boards. However, as time has passed and God has graciously given us more listeners, I've begun to see the value in presenting ideas in one place where they can be archived and referred to at a later date, if necessary. Not that I claim to be an authority or anything. However, as 1) a born again believer in Jesus Christ who has been saved by the unfathomable mercy of God, 2) a lover of God's Word, 3) the recipient of a particular gifting to express these things through Hip-hop culture and 4) a passion for discipleship among those who are either a part of or influenced by Hip-hop culture, I am aware of the Lord's grace towards me. Therefore, I want to use the platform God has given me to spread His fame and, to whatever extent I can, help others grow in understanding of the character of God, the gospel of Jesus Christ, Hip-hop culture and how the three intersect.

Who Am I?

My name is shai linne. I'm an African-American man who was born in Philadelphia, Pa in 1974. Growing up in Philly, I was exposed to and a part of hip-hop culture from an early age. I have a heavy background in the arts. I went to college for theater and I started recording secular hip-hop songs in the early nineties. In 1999- in the midst of my hatred towards Him- Jesus Christ radically stole my heart, forgave my sins and changed my destiny and desires forever. Since 2001, I've been using my music to exalt and proclaim Jesus. I've appeared on numerous independent and national releases. I connected with deejay essence in 2002 and joined Lampmode Recordings in 2004, releasing my debut cd "The Solus Christus Project" in January 2005.

I would attribute much of my growth in grace and the knowledge of the Scriptures to God's using the preaching ministries of James Boice and Phillip Ryken as I attended Tenth Presbyterian Church in Philly from 1999-2006. Since 2005, I've been involved with a church plant in North Philly called Epiphany Fellowship. I'm single and I work full-time at a staffing agency in downtown Philly. I spend most of the rest of my time travelling for ministry engagements, writing songs/recording, serving at my local church and teaching men through one-on-one Bible studies. I hope to attend seminary at some point in the future.

Who Am I Talking To?

A wise person once said that if you're going to make a blog (or any other writings for that matter), you should know who your audience is and write specifically to them. The only problem is I'm not quite sure who my audience is! My assumption is that this blog will be visited primarily by people who are familiar with my music. In my travels and correspondence, I've seen that this group covers a wide range of ages, ethnicities and socio-economic backgrounds. The unifying factor has been love for the Lord Jesus Christ, a passion for His truth and an appreciation for holy hip-hop music. If you fit that category, I definitely have you in mind when I write.

I'm also thinking about another group of people as well. This is the group of people who love the Lord Jesus Christ and have a passion for His truth, but have no appreciation for holy hip-hop music or perhaps even have a distaste for hip-hop period. I have you in mind as well. My desire is not to get you to like rap music. However, one of the things I've noticed about Christians who speak out against hip-hop is that they often speak as those on the outside of the culture looking in. Unfortunately, this limited perspective is usually shaped more by perception and cultural biases than the Scriptures and factual information concerning Hip-hop culture.

I write to you as a fellow believer- redeemed by the grace of God and daily clinging to the cross of Christ as I eagerly anticipate worshipping the Lamb for all eternity- together with you. I would like for this blog to serve you by educating you about Hip-hop culture with the hope that, even if you can't appreciate the various artforms, you will at least be able to rejoice and praise God for what He has been doing among His precious elect ones who happen to be Hip-hoppers. With you in mind, I plan to be as clear as possible when it comes to defining terms and clearing up popular misconceptions concerning Hip-hop.

Finally, I'm thinking about a third group of people who don't necessarily fit into either of the previous two groups. If you are not a Christian but you just happen to know me and/or like my music or if you just happened to stumble upon the site, I'm thinking about you as well. Feel free to stick around and if you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask.

Why Lyrical Theology?

The lyrical aspect is simply things related to Hip-hop poetry and the art form of rhyming as well as the music in general. The theology aspect is things related to the study of God and His self-revelation through the person and work of His Son Jesus Christ. Because my main priority in life is not music, but knowing God and making Him known, the theology aspect will get much more emphasis than the lyrical aspect.

How Often Will I Blog?

I don't know. I plan to update it at least weekly to start with. As time permits, I'll try to update it as frequently as possible.

What's The Purpose Of This Blog?

I'm continually amazed at the grace of God towards me in giving me an opportunity to impact the lives of the growing number who have been exposed to our music. If that's you, please know that I feel a deep sense of responsiblity towards you. There's only so much that can be said in a song or even on a whole CD. I want to expose you to the people and things that God has used in my life. I want to go deeper with you into the Scriptures. I want to do anything I can to help you grow in the knowledge of Christ. If I never meet you in this life, I want to do what I can to help build you up in the faith, in order that we might rejoice together at the resurrection. Prayerfully, our Lord will use something as insignificant as this blog for such a glorious purpose. (He's notorious for using ordinary means to accomplish extraordinary things) I have alot on my heart and there's alot to unpack. Be patient with me as I'm new to this whole blogging thing lol. Ultimately, my desire is that the God who uses foolish things to shame the wise might be pleased to bring glory to His great name through this.

So, with that said, my first blog is complete. Let's build!

grace and peace,
shai