Justin Taylor's Blog, page 280

Who Needs Classical Music?

Mars Hill Audio's Ken Myers writes about Julian Johnson's book Who Needs Classic Music: Cultural Choice and Musical Value (Oxford University Press, 2002):

It is a slender but powerful examination of this huge cultural change; in its 130 pages, Johnson explores how various aesthetic, social, philosophical, commercial, and technological changes have pushed the most artful forms of music to the margins of American cultural life.

Central to his study is the question of objective aesthetic value; in the opening pages, he challenges the dominant democratic belief in the "equal validity of all cultural products," noting that it is generally assumed in modern cultures that, "in matters of musical judgment, the individual can be the only authority." Johnson puts this assumption in some historical perspective:

This is in sharp contrast to the relatively minor status of individual "taste" in Western musical practice and aesthetics from the ancient Greeks until the late eighteenth century. To an earlier age, our contemporary idea of a complete relativism in musical judgment would have seemed nonsensical. One could no more make valid individual judgments about music than about science. Music was no more "a matter of taste" than was the orbit of the planets or the physiology of the human body. From Plato to Helmholtz, music was understood to be based on natural laws, and its value was derived from its capacity to frame and elaborate these laws in musical form. Its success was no more a matter of subjective judgment than the laws themselves.

Johnson's survey of the cultural status quo vis-à-vis music goes beyond the question of cosmic order and objective aesthetic value to discuss the nature of aesthetic experience, the effects of recording and playback technologies on our emotional expectations, the role of markets and democracy in shaping our assumptions about music, and the complex interaction between thought, emotion, and embodiment made uniquely possible in music. I can think of no better introduction to the significance of the changes in American musical culture (and in the life of churches) over the past 40 years

If you haven't already seen it, the following winsome and infectious presentation by Benjamin Zander—who has no doubts that he can convince you to love and understand classical music—is well worth your time:

Steve Jobs (1955-2011)

"No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don't want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it."

"Remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important tool I've ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life."

"Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose."

"Death . . . is Life's change agent."

—Steve Jobs, Commencement Address at Stanford University (June 12, 2005)

Much will be said tonight and in the days ahead about this entrepreneurial genius. From a spiritual perspective, this much can be said with certainty: Steve Jobs, created in the image of God, was a remarkable example of God's common grace in his aesthetics and creativity and productivity.

And we can all hope that in his final days, this recipient of so much common grace found rest in God's sovereign saving grace.

The Role of Suffering in Sanctification

Pastor Eric Mason of Epiphany Fellowship in Philadelphia at the 2010 DG Pastor's Conference:

You can get the audio and some notes here.

The Gospel Is for Seniors, Too

Joe Thorn:

As a pastor I am constantly thinking about how to better communicate God's word, and the gospel in particular, to the people at our church and in our community. We are a multi-generational church comprised of people from every walk of life. This means we have young professionals and retirees; successful and unemployed, young men with new tattoos and older men with faded Navy tats. You get the idea. We are not a mono-cultural church built on the "homogeneous principle." All of these people need the gospel. And while the life, death, and resurrection of the Son of God is every man's only hope before God, there are a variety of reasons the gospel is our "only comfort in life and in death." In other words, the gospel and all of its implications need to be clearly and carefully expounded and applied to people of all ages and stages of life. One group that often gets overlooked is the elderly. Those seasoned saints who have retired, or even moved into their twilight years, need the gospel as much as any man. But, do we know how to preach to them where they are?

To that end Joe highly recommends—and I second the suggestion—by Professor David Murray. He looks at how the gospel speaks to five common temptations among seniors: (1) loneliness; (2) regret; (3) bitterness; (4) pain; and (5) fear. And then he offers some suggestions for how younger generations can serve the older generations.

A couple of other recommends: John Piper's talk "Getting Old for the Glory of God" and Dr. John Dunlop's Finishing Well to the Glory of God: Strategies from a Christian Physician (Crossway, 2011).

You can read an excerpt as a PDF or below:

Finally, I thought it was worth highlighting this portion of Tabletalk's interview with Joni Eareckson Tada, who shares the secret of her joy and contentment in the midst of relentless pain:

Tabletalk: Which passages of Scripture have given you encouragement during your struggles with disability and cancer?

Joni: Psalm 79:8 says, "May your mercy come quickly to meet us, for we are in desperate need" (NIV).

Basically, I wake up almost every morning in desperate need of Jesus—from those early days when I first got out of the hospital, to over four decades in a wheelchair, it's still the same. The morning dawns and I realize: "Lord, I don't have the strength to go on. I have no resources. I can't 'do' another day of quadriplegia, but I can do all things through You who strengthen me. So please give me Your smile for the day; I need You urgently."

This, I have found, is the secret to my joy and contentment. Every morning, my disability —and, most recently, my battle with cancer—forces me to come to the Lord Jesus in empty-handed spiritual poverty. But that's a good place to be because Jesus says, "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven" (Matt. 5:3, NIV).

The entire Tabletalk issue is devoted to death and disease from a biblical perspective.

Together for the Gospel

Here are a few short interviews connected to T4G. They are posting a new clip at the site each day. Early-bird registration closes at the end of this month (October 31, 2011) for this April 2012 conference.

Is the Gospel Influencing Your Daily Life?

From Tim Keller's foreword to J.D. Greear's new book Gospel: Recovering the Power that Made Christianity Revolutionary :

The angels never get tired of looking into the gospel. This means there is no end to gospel exploration. There are depths in the gospel that are always there to be discovered and applied, not only to our ministry and daily Christian life, but above all, to the worship of the God of the gospel with renewed vision and humility.

The underlying conviction in my preaching, pastoring, and writing is that the gospel—this eternally fascinating message craved by the angels—can change a heart, a community, and the world when it is recovered and applied.

It is one thing to understand the gospel but is quite another to experience the gospel in such a way that it fundamentally changes us and becomes the source of our identity and security. It is one thing to grasp the essence of the gospel but it quite another to think out its implications for all of life. We all struggle to explore the mysteries of the gospel on a regular basis, but we should strive to immerse ourselves in it and allow its message to influence our life daily.

A key part of the book is J.D.'s "gospel prayer":

In Christ, there is nothing I can do that would make You love me more, and nothing I have done that makes You love me less.
Your presence and approval are all I need for everlasting joy.
As You have been to me so I will be to others.
As I pray, I'll measure Your compassion by the cross and Your power by the resurrection.

For more on the book, see this discussion with Trevin Wax.

The Elephant Wins

The most controversial part of the Elephant Room inviting T.D. Jakes to participate is not whether or not it's permissible or advisable to have a conversation with someone who cannot affirm Trinitarian orthodoxy and who preaches a prosperity gospel.

Rather, the bigger problem (as I see it) is that James MacDonald defended the decision under the idea that the Elephant Room is all about "Getting brothers together who believe in salvation by grace alone through faith alone but normally don't interact." Further, their site explains that the motivation behind the Elephant Room is "a dual desire to challenge and unite this generation's pastors." (My emphasis in both quotes.)

For me, the most sobering and painful commentary on this controversy has been penned by Thabiti Anyabwile and Anthony Carter, who have both labored winsomely and heroically for a reformation in the black church and see this invitation as a tremendous setback for the cause of grace and truth. I'd encourage you to consider their perspective on something like this.

Born-Again Prisoners, Re-Entry into Society, and the Need for the Church

Byron Johnson, Distinguished Professor of the Social Sciences at Baylor University and author of More God, Less Crime: Why Faith Matters and How It Could Matter More, writes at Public Discourse about the recidivism rates for born-again prisoners and those who have not reported a turning to Christ:

. . . I tracked born-again prisoners and a comparable group of inmates who had not reported having a conversion experience. There was no difference in recidivism rates for these two groups following release from prison. I did not find that the conversion experience protected ex-prisoners from all manner of missteps once they were released from prison.

His solution?

If born-again prisoners are not the beneficiaries of structured instruction, mentoring, and support, they will most likely be rearrested and returned to prison in similar rates as their non-religious counterparts. These born-again ex-prisoners–new creations though they may be–are just as likely to return to prison, except that this time they will bring Jesus with them when they return.

I have interviewed hundreds of inmates over the years and many have served four or five previous prison sentences. When asked about their faith background, many have indicated they became a Christian during their first or second prison commitment. As many inmates have told me with great disappointment, they simply strayed from the truth and abandoned the commitments they made in prison. I am not trying to minimize the work of those who preach the gospel message in prisons, but unless other faith-based ministries on the outside of prisons are willing to do more intentional work with ex-prisoners, it will be difficult for new converts to transition successfully back to society.

This is one of the reason it's so important to have ministries like Koinonia House National Ministries under the direction of ex-prisoner Manny Mill. Their commitment to the gospel and to the local church makes it a ministry worth partnering with and supporting. Their vision is to work with churches to meet these Christian neighbors at the prison gate, providing them with "biblical and whole-life discipleship."

You can get a preview of Manny's life, heart, and vision here:

New Free Online Magazine: Credo

The first issue of Credo is now available online:

The October issue of Credo seeks to affirm the inspiration and inerrancy of Scripture as doctrines that are faithful to the testimony of Scripture itself. Contributors include: Gregg Allison, John Frame, Timothy George, Fred Zaspel, Michael A.G. Haykin, Tim Challies, Matthew Barrett, Thomas Schreiner, Tony Merida, Owen Strachan, J. V. Fesko, Robert Saucy, and many others.

The iPhone's Voice Recognition Software, Magic, & Technology

C.S. Lewis:

There is something which unites magic and applied science [=technology] while separating both from the "wisdom" of earlier ages.

For the wise men of old the cardinal problem had been how to conform the soul to reality, and the solution had been knowledge, self-discipline, and virtue.

For magic and applied science alike the problem is how to subdue reality to the wishes of men; the solution is a technique.

—The Abolition of Man (reprint: New York: HarperOne, 2001), p. 77; my emphasis.

Update: To clarify: I'm not critiquing such technology. It's a further example of what Lewis calls subduing reality to the wishes of man—which can be a part of subduing the earth, and it can also have unintended consequences in how it conditions our expectations.

On a different note, check out this prototype from Apple circa 1987 (thanks to Josh Sowin for finding highlighting this.)