September 9, 2019
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If you offer a candy bar to my sister-in-law she just might shake her head in disgust and say, "Nuts!" Now, she's not being rude. No, she's telling you why she doesn't dare accept your offer - nuts. You see it all started one Saturday morning. She was doing computer work in our office and she was munching on some hazelnuts. Eventually she noticed this rash breaking out. Within a few hours she could hardly breathe, and my wife was rushing her to the doctor. Her throat was literally swelling shut! Well, the doctor pulled her through that scare and then he took a battery of allergy tests. Well sure enough the tests showed that she has a serious allergy to all nuts and eggs and anything that has peanut oil in it. Those ingredients, of course, are in a lot of things that she loves to eat, but she doesn't. No! It could be fatal. Nothing tastes that good!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Delicious Poison."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Psalm 40. It's David's beautiful account of how the Lord rescued him and changed his life forever, including one area where we don't always let the Lord change us. Verses 1-3, "I waited patiently for the Lord; He turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and the mire; He set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God." David says, "I finally got security, I finally got peace." David's relationship with God has changed everything including his music. He said he's got a new song; he's got a hymn of praise.
Well, have you let Him change your music? Does the music you listen to really matter anyway? Well it does matter what my sister-in-law eats. Yes! If she lets certain things and lets them enter her system it can poison her system, it can have a deadly effect. There are a lot of things she really enjoys that she just can't afford to partake of and that's how it is with your music. If you listen to music, no matter how much it appeals to your taste. and it carries immoral or unchristian ideas, it's eventually going to sink into your soul. It poisons your soul.
The Bible is very clear about watching what gets into your mind and heart. It says, "Guard your heart because out of it are the issues of life" (Proverbs 4:23). Few things have the power to drive an idea into your heart like music does. Advertisers know that, that's why they write all those jingles you can't forget. And Satan knows it. He knows our minds have their guard down when we're in relaxation mode, entertainment mode. That's his best opportunity to infiltrate our system with images and ideas that we would never allow in any other way. It's not just music. Its novels, TV, websites, videos, and humor - all these media that are pumping into our heart and mind hours a week. But music is a hammer that pounds messages into your soul. Messages that later soften us up morally, and harden us spiritually.
You say, "Well I like the beat," or, "I love this artist." Well, that's not good enough to measure what you let into your system. Here's the measure for a follower of the Savior who died because of our sin. Ephesians 5:11 - "Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness. It's shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret." Let alone sing about it, or watch it portrayed, or listen to music about it over and over again. You see, David knew that with a new life comes a new song; music that pumps into our soul God's praise, God's ideas.
My sister-in-law knows that there are things that are delicious, that have deadly ingredients in them. You need to know there are many things you may love to listen to or watch that contain spiritual poison. Nothing tastes so good that it's worth poisoning your soul.