"You've got to fight for your right to paartayyyy!" This was a Beastie Boys song that was popular at the University I attended in my early graduate education.
Adam Yauch (MCA) was one of the founding three members of the hugely famous hip-hop group, the Beastie Boys. The Beastie Boys enjoyed great success, winning three Emmys and several MTV video music awards. They were #77 on Rolling Stone's top 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. They have sold over 40 million albums and were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame just last month. By almost all standards, they were very successful.
They were known for their off color lyrics and raunchy antics that encouraged a lascivious lifestyle. Their concert in Columbus, Georgia resulted in the passage of a lewdness ordinance. In spite of their huge success, I think one can safely state that the Beastie Boys were not known for chastity, virtue and holiness.
Adam Yauch died on May 4, 2012 after almost a three year battle with cancer. He was 47-years-old. He was the most sedate of the original three. He engaged in humanitarian efforts for the Tibetan people and practiced Buddhism.
Unfortunately, I have heard smug Christians state his cancer was a punishment for his sinfulness. "God gleefully cast him into hell" was a statement that I recently read. As a Christian man, I am embarrassed by such statements, especially when they are made by fellow Christians. I am angered at such statements because it slanders God's impeccable character. God would never "gleefully" put someone in hell. Hell is only inhabited by people who made the choice not to accept Jesus' offer of salvation. I'm confident that God was grieved that Adam never turned to Jesus for salvation. Further, God did not need to kill Adam at a ripe young age to make His point about the consequences of a godless lifestyle. Cancer killed Adam. It is debatable whether his lifestyle contributed to him getting cancer or if it was simply genetic or a combination of two. God can certainly choose to take someone out for their sinful behavior but He doesn't really have to. Sin and this sinful world are naturally punishing.
Also, God doesn't take out people just because they are sinful. If God did that, then there would be no one alive because no one can match God's holiness. That line of thinking doesn't explain why he lets Castro live to a ripe old age, when Castro has openly defied God and has lead others to do the same. It also doesn't explain why God allows some very precious, godly people to die early. God has His reasons and He doesn't have to explain Himself.
Adam did many wonderful things and helped many people. He also wrote some terrific songs that will be remembered for a long time. The sad fact is, that it appears that Adam did not know Jesus as his Savior. If that is true, then the world just lost another soul to Satan. God, being just and holy, offered Adam opportunities to accept Jesus. So Adam made his choices. What's left is for his family to pick up the pieces and for Christians to pray that his wife Dechen Wangdu and his 14-year-old daughter Tenzin Losel find peace thru a personal relationship with Jesus.
Oh, there is something else that Christians can do. They can stop the hating, blaming and slandering God's character by saying that God gleefully sends people to hell. I imagine the only thing that grieves God more than slandering Him is when someone refuses His grace.
So, stop being a Beastie Boy hater and start being a man who cares about what God cares about.
"That's a rap" - Adam Yauch
BE HOLY.
BE A MAN.
Adam Yauch (MCA) was one of the founding three members of the hugely famous hip-hop group, the Beastie Boys. The Beastie Boys enjoyed great success, winning three Emmys and several MTV video music awards. They were #77 on Rolling Stone's top 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. They have sold over 40 million albums and were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame just last month. By almost all standards, they were very successful.
They were known for their off color lyrics and raunchy antics that encouraged a lascivious lifestyle. Their concert in Columbus, Georgia resulted in the passage of a lewdness ordinance. In spite of their huge success, I think one can safely state that the Beastie Boys were not known for chastity, virtue and holiness.
Adam Yauch died on May 4, 2012 after almost a three year battle with cancer. He was 47-years-old. He was the most sedate of the original three. He engaged in humanitarian efforts for the Tibetan people and practiced Buddhism.
Unfortunately, I have heard smug Christians state his cancer was a punishment for his sinfulness. "God gleefully cast him into hell" was a statement that I recently read. As a Christian man, I am embarrassed by such statements, especially when they are made by fellow Christians. I am angered at such statements because it slanders God's impeccable character. God would never "gleefully" put someone in hell. Hell is only inhabited by people who made the choice not to accept Jesus' offer of salvation. I'm confident that God was grieved that Adam never turned to Jesus for salvation. Further, God did not need to kill Adam at a ripe young age to make His point about the consequences of a godless lifestyle. Cancer killed Adam. It is debatable whether his lifestyle contributed to him getting cancer or if it was simply genetic or a combination of two. God can certainly choose to take someone out for their sinful behavior but He doesn't really have to. Sin and this sinful world are naturally punishing.
Also, God doesn't take out people just because they are sinful. If God did that, then there would be no one alive because no one can match God's holiness. That line of thinking doesn't explain why he lets Castro live to a ripe old age, when Castro has openly defied God and has lead others to do the same. It also doesn't explain why God allows some very precious, godly people to die early. God has His reasons and He doesn't have to explain Himself.
Adam did many wonderful things and helped many people. He also wrote some terrific songs that will be remembered for a long time. The sad fact is, that it appears that Adam did not know Jesus as his Savior. If that is true, then the world just lost another soul to Satan. God, being just and holy, offered Adam opportunities to accept Jesus. So Adam made his choices. What's left is for his family to pick up the pieces and for Christians to pray that his wife Dechen Wangdu and his 14-year-old daughter Tenzin Losel find peace thru a personal relationship with Jesus.
Oh, there is something else that Christians can do. They can stop the hating, blaming and slandering God's character by saying that God gleefully sends people to hell. I imagine the only thing that grieves God more than slandering Him is when someone refuses His grace.
So, stop being a Beastie Boy hater and start being a man who cares about what God cares about.
"That's a rap" - Adam Yauch
BE HOLY.
BE A MAN.
RSS Feed