Presuppositionalism in music

[Me Died Blue]

I was just listening to the record "Stories & Songs" by Mark Schultz for the umpteenth time, and while listening to the song "Everywhere," I suddenly realized the song is a great picture of the presuppositional understanding of our knowledge of God. Lyrics:

"Everywhere"

I was thinking of placing an ad
Inside a magazine so I could find You

I was picking up book after book
Taking a look
At trying to define You

I was lookin´ for proof of Your life
Wondering why
I couldn´t verify You

Then You came and You spoke to my heart
Now I see
Where You are"¦

chorus:
You´re every
Time I turn around
In every sound
You´re in the very air I breathe
You´re up above
And now I know
You´re in my soul
You´re in the very depths of me
And every step I take
I take by faith
Oh and now I see

I believe
I believe
I believe
Yes, I believe
I believe
I believe
That You´re everywhere

I was checking the best seller list
For something I missed
To spiritualize me

I was following step after step
Trying my best
To reinvent a new me
I was looking for truth in my life
I even tried
To psychoanalyze me

Now I´m seeing right from the start
You were there
In my heart

chorus

I believe in the power of the Holy Ghost
I believe in the One who has made me whole
I believe with my heart
I believe with my soul
I believe that You laid down Your life for me
I believe that You rose up and set me free
I believe what I know
Oh and I know I believe
You´re everywhere

chorus

Schultz is saying that he was trying every way of logic and philosophical musings and science to try and "figure out" or prove God, and could not seem to make any progress whatsoever. When God came and spoke to his heart, however, the truths about God were so self-evident everywhere he turned, and made perfect, rational sense. While he may not have even done it intentionally, that's an excellent picture of the presuppositionalist understanding of the totally clear, objective, logical, rational and absolute proof of God that is everywhere, but that is suppressed by sin and revealed by regeneration and repentence.

If no one has bought any of Mark Schultz's albums, I highly recommend them. He is one of the few Christian artists out of whose music I can still really get something.

[Edited on 12-11-2004 by Me Died Blue]

 

[JohnV]

Chris:

It also sounds a lot like Augustine's road to conversion. Have you read his Confessions?

 

[Me Died Blue]

Not yet - I definitely plan to read that and City of God eventually, though. Which would you recommend starting with?

Have you heard much or any of Schultz's music? I don't hear him mentioned much.

 

[JohnV]

Chris:

I recommend Confessions first, so that you have an idea of his character. But I would also recommend City of God first because its just full of really good stuff. I read the latter first, because I had a hold of it before the other one. I don't think it matters which you read first, because you have probably heard enough about him on the PB already.

I don't listen to much of anything but the old stuff. Anything from Big Band to John Denver. And I listen mostly to have an ear for guitar pieces to try. Lately I've been working on an instrumental of The Tennessee Waltz I don't get much into comtemporary music lately. But I know there is some really good music being done. I've incorporated some Michael W. Smith music in my attempts at the guitar. S.C. Chapman has some things I want to try sometime too. But right now, I like the slower 3/4 time stuff that I can pick following the CAGED system of chords up the fretboard.

 

[openairboy]

Originally posted by Paul manata
here's some presuppositionalism in Music



I strike back like the empire
and we'll televise the revolution.
What will save you
From divine retribution?
Do our part, try to make a contribution
Playin' at 11, givin' OC noise pollution.
Think long and hard
about our world today...
what needs to be said,
and what I need to say.
We're a tower of Babel
built on anti-philosophy,
Neitzche in the west
and Krishna in the east.

War rages on through generations.
All of these Christians
abandoned their stations.
A whole world around us,
and we've ceased to reach.
An army of soldiers,
we've neglected to teach.
But, it's dim and not pitch black.
The truth will prevail.
If our God is for us, how can we fail?
No surer hope has ever been rested.
But for our adversary's worthy,
prepare to be tested.


Hoo, Hah.
How will you stand
if you don't understand?

Hoo, Hah.
Fight like a man, scriptures in hand.

And here we stand
naked, barehanded futily prepared
for the blows to be landed.
Presuppositions is all you can stand on.
Can you twist their wrist
when they lay a hand on?
Learn how to fight
from words on a paper.
learn from the shoguns,
Bahnsen and Schaeffer.
Invincible army,
Holy Spirit our general.
Weapons are formed
form most precious of minerals.

Kids in universities,
drowning in an ocean
of apostate philosophy.
We need apologetic instruction...
mental reconstruction.
Ignorance reduction,
to halt the mass abduction.
Evangelical mind
has been scandalized.
Wisdom and truth
have been vandalized,
by the unevangelized.
No truth in a world
that is randomized.
Expose the lies
no matter how they're disguised.

Your work, Paul? If so, well done.

 

[Bryan]

No band can beat the Supertones for lyrical content, and they're ska so that just makes it better

Bryan
SDG