Marty Sampson, is one of the primary songwriters for Hillsong United. I will state upfront that I have no idea who he is and am only aware of Hillsong because I have heard that term before but that is all—and what I hear about their doctrine/theology and song lyrics is not good but I do not want to fall into the fallacy of hearsay heresy. As a result of that which follows, Hillsong United appears to be Hillsong Divided.
He recently made a cyber-splash, in some circles, by writing, “I’m genuinely losing my faith” and, by the way, “it doesn’t bother me.” Well, as it has been said: you cannot lose what you never had and did he ever had it if he is “losing” it?
Well, “They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us” (1 John 2:19)—yes, even if you have written like a thousand Christian songs, looked the part, talking the talk, etc.
Marty Sampson states, “like, what bothers me now is nothing” as in nothing bothers him or as in nihilism?
Also, “I am so happy now, so at peace with the world” and understand that within a Christian context this can mean that he is all to happy to live a sinful lifestyle while another context would just have this stating that he is just whatever he subjectively means by “happy” and whatever reason(s) he may have for being so.
The following comments make me think that part of his problem is that Marty Sampson is, and have for far too long has been, cloistered. Inevitably, we tend to end up in like-minded circles no matter who we are.
He writes:
…how many preachers fall? Many. No one talks about it.
How many miracles happen. Not many. No one talks about it.
Why is the Bible full of contradictions? No one talks about it.
How can God be love yet send 4 billion people to a place, all coz they don’t believe? No one talks about it.
No one talks about it?
All four have been talked about for two Christian millennia and 2-4 for a few more within a Jewish context.
One problem with all-encompassing assertions, without evidence, such as “No one” is that it only required one, just one, counterexample to debunk them.
Thus, “preachers fall”: “Demas, because he loved this world, has deserted me” (2 Timothy 4:10). Also, search online for the name of any fallen preacher and you will find that nothing unites Christian, Atheist and the media like a good ol' fallen preacher.
As for that not many miracles happen well, that has always been known. People who, for example, claim that the Bible is “full of miracles” do not seem to consider that such is merely a compression of the vast timespan covered by the Bible.
Also, some would say that not many miracles happening is essentially part of the very definition of miracles.
Regarding contradictions, there are two or more sides to this: if Marty Sampson is a Christian then we can perform a Bible study and see if we can work them out (which we can) and if he is not then what is his premise for condemning contradictions (even if they really are such)?
This, by the way, is the exact problem that Atheist have: since they have no premise upon which to condemn contradictions then they cannot appeal to contradictions to reject the Bible.
Ironically, over at my Facebook page an Atheist claimed “101 Bible contradictions,” by uncritically repeating what he saw online, he literally just posted a URL to which someone replied, “Would you like me to waste our time REFUTING ALL 101 contradictions?” to which I, in turn, replied, “Someone already has ;o)…” along with a link to the book Answers to Alleged 101 Contradictions in the Bible by Oriel Beltran Dumanon.
I am unsure where he concocted the “4 billion people” stat but no one is condemned “to a place, all coz they don’t believe” but because they sin and do not repent.
In any case, Marty Sampson is mistaken since all four have discussed them and continue doing so and because it appears that he has no premise upon which to complain, condemn and reject.
He also judges Christians by stating “Christians can be the most judgemental [sic.] people on the planet – they can also be some of the most beautiful and loving people.”
A few issues here: when speaking in an all-encompassing manner about “Christians,” he is referring to those who have been so for decades as well as those who just became one and everyone in between—including those who are at the forefront of neo-pop-Christian music and then walk away.
Thus yes, all of those millions of Christians display every facetted of human behavior.
Marty Sampson then notes, “it’s not for me. I am not in any more” because “I want genuine truth.” So, apparently, in his neo-worldview there is “genuine truth” and un-genuine truth or genuine truth and falsehood. Yet, his reason is “I want” but that only begs the question of “Why do you want that” and what about Christianity does not reflect “genuine truth”?
Well, Marty Sampson tells us more, “Not the ‘I just believe it’ kind of truth. Science keeps piercing the truth of every religion.”
See what I mean about being cloistered? He seems to be in a spiral of a circle of people who reply to those issues he raised above with “I just believe” and so no wonder he myopically thinks that “No one talks about it”—but stand by because there has been a development since the statement in question.
That “Science keeps piercing the truth of every religion” is another generic assertion. We might as well claim that science keeps piercing the truth of every worldview. Yet, sometimes it is not a case of science (actually, scientists) piercing the truth of every religion but piercing some claims made by some religionists about some issues which their scriptures state outright or not.
Marty Sampson then notes, “Lots of things help people change their lives, not just one version of God.” But he is jumping to the conclusion that people being helped (and changing their lives in which direction?) is right, good, beneficial, etc. but on some worldviews helping the less fit is damaging to the fittest. So he is, yet again, speaking from hidden assumptions again.
Marty Sampson states, “I [sic.] keeping it real…All I know is what’s true to me right now” which I am going to read as “what I am feeling right now” and he writes, “Christianity just seems to me like another religion at this point.” Well then, time to abscond from your cloister and also, by the way, do not let the world define “religion” but consider that James wrote, “Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world” (James 1:27). FYI: Christianity is not what the world defines as religion but is about relation.
Marty Sampson ends the statement is question by demanding that we perform specific actions but since he is jumping to conclusions, or beginning with conclusions, that are un-premised then they are merely emotive, “Love and forgive absolutely” but why?, “Be kind absolutely” but why?, “Be generous and do good to others absolutely” but why?
He prepackaged a reply to my “why?” questions by ending with “Some things are good no matter what you believe” but that is utterly false: again, there are worldviews, “what you believe” that would tell you that such is not the case.
He is also sneaking in an undefined and un-premised concept of “good.”
Also, even if “Some things are good no matter what you believe” he still has the problem of telling us what “is” (that “Some things are good no matter what you believe”) but not the “ought” (okay, so “Some things are good no matter what you believe” so what?).
He closed with “Let the rain fall, the sun will come up tomorrow” but, of course, this simply assumes induction—but, okay, I am getting a bit pedantic.
Moreover, Marty Sampson has also written “To the CHURCH of Jesus Christ, I forgive you, and I LOVE you. I've got tears running down my face because it's so true. I adore you Christians. I love you SO MUCH. That's all.”
Well, I also forgive Marty Sampson and love him but what is “so true”?
Also, “It was amazing being one of you, but I'm not any more”—see 1 John above.
Subsequently, Marty Sampson has stated that he is beginning to read Christian apologists such as William Lane Craig, John Lennox, Ravi Zacharias, Michael Licona and Frank Turek. This tells me that he is finally starting to do something he should have been doing all along: even if he is taking a decidedly evangelical approach.
He has written “I do watch them regularly [as of when?] and listen to their arguments. If you don't know who they are, perhaps you may want to find out more about them.”
For some reason, he has also appealed to Francis Collins to the effect that “The evidence supporting the idea that all living things are descended from a common ancestor is truly overwhelming”—too bad that this “common ancestor” is an un-evidenced, unproven, un-observed, crypto-zoological mythical chimera.
He followed this up with “I would not necessarily wish that to be so, as a Bible-believing Christian” wait, what? “But it is so. It does not serve faith well to try to deny that.”
So, Marty Sampson appears to be tossed to and fro, at least for now, so he needs lots of love, prayer and fellowship.
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