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To the reader..
Before you read the article below, we would like to
clarify a few points.
This tract was written in response to Carman's first
visit to Northern Ireland in 1992, and served to
highlight some aspects of this man's ministry
which we felt were not in accordance with the Word of
God.
In addition to this we wrote to Carman himself, met
with his manager Jake Jones and the promotion team who
were orgainising the visit, and also expressed our
concerns to other Church leaders in the area where the
concert was to take place.
We feel that it was both right and proper to bring
these matters to light, and that the episode was handled
in a loving and discrete manner.
We certainly have nothing "personal" against
Carman and his ministry, and are in no way casting doubt
upon his Salvation or the the service he does for the
Lord (2 Timothy 2:19).
We would therefore ask you to read the tract in the
light of these facts, and prayerfully consider its
content.
As Christians we are to "..try the
spirits.." (1 John 4:1) and are exhorted to
"Prove all things; hold fast that which is
good." (1 Thessalonians 5:21).
For more on the subject of Biblical discernment and
judgement, please see the article "Is
it Right: To Judge, To Expose Error and To Call
Names?"
Thank you.
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Carman- Making Light of Jesus Christ
Today there are many who break the third Commandment:
"Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in
vain.... "(Deuteronomy 5:11). One may be excused for
thinking that those who would do such a thing would be unsaved,
and know nothing of the saving and keeping power of the Lord
Jesus Christ. This however is not always the case. One has only
to look at CARMAN'S video "Live. . . Radically
Saved" to see that he too not only makes fun of the Lord
Jesus Christ, but also belittles some of the greatest saints
whoever lived, and makes light of the great events which led to
the redemption of the Children of God.
In a sketch before the song "Are You the One?"
Carman portrays the Lord Jesus Christ and John the Baptist as two
dim-witted cousins, scratching their heads and pondering their
respective "ministries." Although the Scriptures tell
us very little about the childhood days of either Jesus or John,
Carman sets out on a make-believe journey to show how they may
have acted.
Jesus is portrayed as a proud young man with His
"Messiah-type walk" which Carman demonstrates to his
delighted, cheering audience. Carman then goes on to describe the
beginning of John's ministry;
" ... They grow up and go their separate ways, and
one day John comes back on the scene dressed in camel hair,
eating bugs. You know, little locusts, grasshoppers, y'know,
cockroaches ..." (Carman does a little dance step here,
snickering, 'La Cucarocha, La Cucarocha...")
Carman continues this tasteless mockery of a man the Lord had
great respect for (Matthew 11:11) by portraying John as a
power hungry fool who wanted to build a big church and name it
after himself -- Baptist Church!
According to Carman, when John's disciples were seeking
confirmation that Jesus is indeed the Christ, they said, "
... You know. your CRAZY COUSIN, John the jailbird, you know that
eats bugs and stuff".
No matter how sincere Carman is in his lyrics and in what he
says he wants to do for the Lord, no excuse can be given for the
above-mentioned sketch. Laughing at ourselves and enjoying one
another's fellowship is one thing, but to poke fun at the very
God of Glory and John the Baptist to get your laughs is nothing
short of BLASPHEMY!!
Carman ends the video by reducing the wonderful act of
redemption of all the saints of God to the level of a boxing
match. With "Rocky" type music playing in the
background and God the Father as referee, Jesus and Satan battle
it out to see who will be the "Champion". Such a
charade only serves to belittle the sufferings of the Lord Jesus
on the Cross to save His people from their sins.
Carman takes this belittlement of Christ's wonderful plan of
Salvation one stage further in the video "Revival in the
Land". In the song "Resurrection Rap" Jesus
is portrayed as a gang leader who is "crucified" on a
pole and then stabbed with a knife. His lifeless body is then
thrown into a rubbish skip which blazes with light as Jesus is
resurrected three days later!
It to sad that someone who writes the lyrics to such songs as
"Oh The Blood of Jesus" or "No Way, We Are
Not Ashamed" would put his Lord and Saviour to an open
shame by portraying Him in such an irreverent manner, Though he
has been challenged about these matters, Carman has remained
unrepentant of his actions and has decided to continue on his
perilous way (II Tim 3:1,2 & 9).
Webster's Dictionary defines BLASPHEMY as:
1. the act of insulting or showing contempt or lack of
reverence for God.
3. irreverence toward something considered sacred.
If Carman's mocking and poking fun at the Lord Jesus Christ
is not "lack of reverence for God" --- NOTHING IS!
Christian, you must now decide whether the Lord Jesus Christ
who died for you on Calvary, or Carman who mocks and pokes fun at
that very One is more important to you. In the words of Joshua
24:15 " ... choose you this day whom ye will
serve..."
The Lord Jesus Christ and His Name should not be taken in vain
by anyone, especially those in the Christian Ministry
(Philippians 2:9- 11). Instead, "... let us have grace,
whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence, and godly
fear; For our God is a consuming fire."(Hebrews
12:28,29)
This leaflet is also available in printed form and free of
charge, from Freedom Ministries
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