How Will Ted Know if He is Not Told?

This happened in Iraq.

I was in the small chapel for music practice. I played piano for the contemporary service and organ for the liturgical (See? I can play nice with other people when I want to. :P) As the praise band finished their practice, I started picking the hymns for the litrugical service. The drummer for the praise band (we'll call him "Sergeant Ted") walked by and glanced over my selections. As I continued to go through my binder, he scanned the lyrics.

"I have a question," Sergeant Ted said. He then asked me, "Why are all these hymns so macabre? I mean why does there have to be so much blood in them?"

I responded, "Because, Ted, the Bible says that 'without the shedding of blood there is no forgivness of sins.' Christ's bloody death on the cross for the forgiveness of your sins is the only thing that can save you from hell. It is what Christianity is all about."

He stood up as if I had just said something very odd and remarked, "That's wierd."

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This is what Christless Christianity does to people. You can have regularly attending church members who help run the services as your worship leaders or musicians in the music program week after week for years and those people might still not even know why topics like blood and death would show up in a Christian song. This is more common than anyone wants to admit. Lord have mercy! If you want an evangelism opportunity, go find out where the Ted's in your church are hanging out and love them enough to share the gospel with them.