She Must & Shall Go Free Part X: Beloved Part II

Here are the lyrics to Derek Webb's song Beloved

Beloved these are dangerous times
Because you are weightless like a leaf from the vine
and the wind has blown you all over town
Because there is nothing holding you to the ground

So now you would rather be
A slave again than free from the law

Beloved listen to me
Don't believe all that you see
and don't you ever let anyone tell you
That there's anything that you need
But me

Beloved these are perilous days
When your culture is so set in it's ways
That you will listen to salesmen and thieves
Preaching other than the truth you’ve received

Because they are telling lies
For they cannot circumcise your hearts

Beloved there is nothing more
No more blessings and no more rewards
Than the treasure of my body and blood
Given freely to all daughters and sons

I see this song as a warning to the church of what can happen when we remove scripture from it's proper place in our lives. We talked last week about the 3 ways we can deal with scripture: ignore it, remove it from situations in our lives that don't conform to scripture, or keep it as the centerpoint of our lives removing the parts of our lives that don't conform to scripture. What happens when we ignore scripture altogether or just when it's convenient for us?

1. Source Separation (John 15:4-5)-Jesus, the vine, is the true source of Truth and Life revealed in and through Scripture. If our lives are removed from the Word of God, they are removed from the source of Truth and Life.

2. Living Foundationless (Hebrews 2:1)-Pay closer attention to what you have heard/learned so you do not drift away from it. If you are not anchored in the word you are susceptible to every current of this world.

3. “Re-slavery” (Galatians 5:1) It is for freedom Christ has set us free
-Freedom in Christ when tied to the vine or anchored to Truth
-removing yourself from the vine or pulling up the anchor leave you completely at the mercy of unstable and incalculable currents and winds which have no rhyme, no reason, and no hope to bring you back to a place of safety and security.
-leads to death-how many leaves remain alive when they fall from the branch? NONE
-Ship is destined to smash against the rocks if it is adrift
-a life removed from THE vine, Jesus, is removed from its source of life
-a life that is not anchored in Truth is destined to smash against the rocks of false teaching/
lies/deception

4. Culture Dominance (2 Timothy 4:3)-We listen to this because we like to have our “ears tickled”. Those teachings are not consistent...culture is constantly changing...so it leaves us in a race to “keep up” and “stay cool and relevant” but it does nothing to move us toward holiness (“cannot circumcise our hearts"...cut away the parts of our heart that is not pleasing to God).

5. Syncretism (Galatians 1:6-10; Colossians 2:8-10)

6. Importance Reordering (2 Peter 1:3-7) We forget what matters most. Jesus is all we need so instead of working so hard toward the desires/passions of this world, work toward those desires/passions of God-faith, virtue, knowledge, self-control, steadfastness, godliness, brotherly affection, love. The greatest need everyone has is Jesus...yes, they may be hungry, but a biscuit will not get them to heaven. Our actions in the name of Jesus to feed them will lead them to Truth.


What can result in your life from these 6 things?

No Witness, no joy, no real success, no direction, no hope for the future, no freedom from sin, no uniqueness,

Check your life and see if any of these characteristics we’ve studied tonight are present. If they are then you need to rethink the way you are dealing with scripture in your life and hear the warning and challenge of this song:

Beloved listen to me
Don't believe all that you see
and don't you ever let anyone tell you
That there's anything that you need
But me