“Lord I need you”, by Matt Maher
What a positive and uplifting song right? Let’s sing it together…
“I need you, Lord I need you. Every hour I need you. My one Defence, my righteousness …’
Hold the phone, what did he just say? MY righteousness?
Should Christian songs be Biblical or should they just make you feel good?
When you turn on a Christian radio station you expect to hear Christian music. but I find it’s not always the case. Quite often what you hear is music that tickles itching ears, those that just want to hear how good we are, or just want to hear something to assuage our consciences with happy-slappy feel-good clap-trap.
I’m sure Matt didn’t intend to say that our righteousness is our defense, but that The Lord’s righteousness is our defense, but that’s not clear in his song. And too many preachers have made the message of Job about anything else but our pride as well.
Are you good enough to go to Heaven?
Job struggled with this very thing; Job considered himself to be good enough for God, and got angry when he appeared to get evil instead. The very reason, stated in the Scriptures, as to why God opposed Job was for Job’s self-righteousness: Job thought his righteousness was for his own good works, that his goodness came from himself. And this is why God spoke SO harshly to Job, calling on Job to gird himself like a man, and answer God’s HARD questions! God Himself demanded answers from Job, speaking against his pride; asking Job what he knows about the Creation God made. And, in the end, Job repented for his prideful words.
Job_40:4 KJV Behold, I am vile; what shall I answer thee? I will lay mine hand upon my mouth.
God commended Job for saying he trusted in God, whether he died or lived, but Job was called on the carpet by God Himself for his pride, and that is the reason that whole story is in the Bible.
And so also, do we have to be careful to what we listen to, to what we sing along with, and to what we say/repeat; We might have to take it back too, one day, to Jesus, when we answer for every word, and deed. We might have to answer to God for our pride, like Job had to.
Pride goeth before the fall…
Take it back?
Oh, that’s a phrase you don’t hear much anymore; I used to hear that allot, growing up, whenever someone said something wrong. “Take it back or I’m gonna …”, or “I’m sorry, I take it back.” When we said something we shouldn’t have said we should take it back, repent of what we said, and ask God for forgiveness. Why? Because words are VERY powerful. God SPOKE everything into existence, and He takes the changing of what He said VERY seriously, so you should be careful about the words you use.
Who is a wise man and endued with knowledge among you? Let him shew out of a good conversation his works with meekness of wisdom. -Spoken by the Apostle James
The heart of man is desperately wicked*, That’s What God Says. We need the righteousness of Jesus making us clean, every day; We need what Jesus did on The Cross to make us pure. Hopefully, that’s what Matt meant. But, I’m not singing that, and neither should you.
Don’t be so prideful God has to ask you hard questions too.
Psa_19:14 KJV Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.
Pro_12:25 KJV Heaviness in the heart of man maketh it stoop: but a good word maketh it glad.
Patrick Burwell, OnlyJesusSaves.org Ministries
*Jer 17:9 KJV The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?
