The Who: "Too Much of Anything"

This is one song which wasn't originally on the Who's Next album. It's about sensory overload. Unlike machinery, we need variety to help us stay sane. Listen to this previously-unreleased track here.

Agur, the son of Jakeh, certainly knew about the danger of having abundance or lack. Proverbs 30:8 and 9 (Bible in Basic English) says, "Put far from me all false and foolish things: do not give me great wealth or let me be in need, but give me only enough food: For fear that if I am full, I may be false to you and say, 'Who is the Lord?' or if I am poor, I may become a thief, using the name of my God wrongly."

The Apostle Paul warned his prodigy, Timothy, about the dangers of greed in 1 Timothy 6:9 (BBE). "But those who have a desire for wealth are falling into danger, and are taken as in a net by a number of foolish and damaging desires, through which men are overtaken by death and destruction."

Likewise, too much food and slumber, rather than labour, impoverishes people. Proverbs 23:21 (BBE) warns us, "For those who take delight in drink and feasting will come to be in need; and through love of sleep a man will be poorly clothed."

Punishing somebody too much, even if that person deserved it, is also wrong. As Paul penned in 2 Corinthians 2:6 and 7 (BBE) about a certain church member, "Let it be enough for such a man to have undergone the punishment which the church put on him; So that now, on the other hand, it is right for him to have forgiveness and comfort from you, for fear that his sorrow may be over-great."

And as Hannah prayed in 2 Samuel 2:3 (BBE), talking proudly is foolish. "Say no more words of pride; let not uncontrolled sayings come out of your mouths: for the Lord is a God of knowledge, by him acts are judged."

Fortunately for us who believe in Christ, the happiness we'll feel when God lives with us will never be too much. Revelation 21:3 and 4 (BBE) is so encouraging to us in this age. "And there came to my ears a great voice out of the high seat, saying, 'See, the Tent of God is with men, and he will make his living-place with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them, and be their God. And he will put an end to all their weeping; and there will be no more death, or sorrow, or crying, or pain; for the first things have come to an end.'"

If that ecstatic time hasn't arrived by Saturday, I hope I can post about a song inspired by a dystopian novel.

The Who: "I'm a Boy"

Here's another song that's way ahead of its time. It's about a boy whose mother keeps dressing him up as a girl. She can't accept that he's not like his three sisters. Listen to it here:

The Word of God makes it abundantly clear that there are only two sexes, male and female. Genesis 1:27 (Bible in Basic English) plainly says, "And God made man in his image, in the image of God he made him: male and female he made them."

Furthermore, God gave Adam only one wife for life. As Genesis 2:24 (BBE) states, "For this cause will a man go away from his father and his mother and be joined to his wife; and they will be one flesh." That means they'll reproduce in a family setting.

The Who: "I'm a Boy"The Bible is clear too regarding "same-sex" relations. Look at how bluntly Leviticus 18:22 (BBE) puts it. "You may not have sex relations with men, as you do with women: it is a disgusting thing."

Even cross-dressing is considered an abomination. Deuteronomy 22:5 (BBE) reads, "It is not right for a woman to be dressed in man's clothing, or for a man to put on a woman's robe: whoever does such things is disgusting to the Lord your God."

If the boy in the song were a Christian, his mom would be in violation of leading him into sin. Jesus said in Matthew 18:5 and 6 (BBE), "And whoever gives honour to one such little child in my name, gives honour to me: But whoever is a cause of trouble to one of these little ones who have faith in me, it would be better for him to have a great stone fixed to his neck, and to come to his end in the deep sea."

It really is true that, "boys will be boys." But this society we're stuck in has adopted reprobate standards. Romans 1:26 and 27 (BBE) is true of our citizens today. "For this reason God gave them up to evil passions, and their women were changing the natural use into one which is unnatural: And in the same way the men gave up the natural use of the woman and were burning in their desire for one another, men doing shame with men, and getting in their bodies the right reward of their evil-doing."

So if Christ hasn't come to punish the wicked by Saturday, I hope to post about the king of trees and one tree which comforted me.

Saturday Song: The Who, "Won't Get Fooled Again"

I'm sure I can safely say that nobody likes to be fooled. Even so, it happens to us all. I'm sure too that we can identify with the title of this 1971 hit by The Who. 

Ignore the ad. Listen to the song here:

There's a huge difference between doing something foolish and being a fool. Wise people learn but fools don't.

The Bible has much to say about fools. First off, such people have no respect or regard for the Lord. Psalms 14:1 (BBE) reads, " The foolish man has said in his heart, God will not do anything. They are unclean, they have done evil works; there is not one who does good."

Likewise, Solomon's proverbs are filled with admonitions about those who won't learn from common sense and experience. Proverbs 14:16 (BBE)reads, "The wise man, fearing, keeps himself from evil; but the foolish man goes on in his pride, with no thought of danger."

We also read that fools are self-destructive folks. Ecclesiastes 4:5 (BBE) bluntly states, "The foolish man, folding his hands, takes the flesh of his body for food."

Neither are fools able to avoid punishment for their habitual stupidity. Proverbs 10:13 (BBE) declares, "In the lips of him who has knowledge wisdom is seen; but a rod is ready for the back of him who is without sense."

And in an apparent reference to Joseph, we read what Solomon wrote in Ecclesiastes 4:13 and 14 (BBE). "A young man who is poor and wise is better than a king who is old and foolish and will not be guided by the wisdom of others. Because out of a prison the young man comes to be king, though by birth he was only a poor man in the kingdom."

Fools never learn either. Proverbs 26:11 (BBE) reminds us, "Like a dog going back to the food which he has not been able to keep down, is the foolish man doing his foolish acts over again."

I agree with Albert Einstein's assertion that doing the same thing over and over while expecting a different result is the definition of insanity.

On Monday, Assuming Christ doesn't come back first, I hope to publish a post about why we must love our enemies.