Learning To Play The Wrong Note
The other day while listening to my son practice the piano I heard him playing through the old Scottish ballad Scarborough Fair. Maybe some of you recognize this song which was made famous by Simon & Garfunkel. As my son played along, I noticed something just didn’t sound right but he insisted that everything was fine. Finally, after hearing the song through several times, I decided to check. I wasn’t too terribly surprised to find him playing with no music in front of him so I asked him to get the music out. His response was “but Dad, I’ve already learned to play it from memory.” As we sat there and carefully played through each individual note as it was written we made an important discovery… for nearly every G note that was to be played in the right hand, he was playing an E. With E being just two steps down on the keyboard from G you wouldn’t think this would make a big difference to the whole song – after all, there are many other notes in this song that he was playing correctly. But substituting this one note did indeed change the sound of the entire piece.
The real difficulty came next when I asked him to play the song as it was written. Easier said than done. Not only did he have to now carefully play the music much more slowly but he had to re-train his ear to hear the notes differently. He commented how the correct notes didn’t sound right and in a flash I realized what had happened – in learning to play the wrong notes for so many times, the wrong way eventually sounded right to him. In fact, the wrong way sounded so right that when the correct notes were eventually played they sounded wrong.
I’ll never forget several years ago when teaching a group of people on the believer’s victory in Christ, I presented the truth that Christ has completely forgiven us as beleivers. He has forgiven us of all of our sins… past, present and future (Ephesians.1:7;Colossians 1:14; Acts 10:43). In fact His forgiveness is so complete that we never have to ask for forgiveness again… ever, even when we do occasionally sin. We just simply thank Him for having already forgiven us, agree with Him that our sinful actions are not what He desires for us and respond to His direction for our lives. I no sooner finished presenting this truth when several in the audience loudly protested. After hearing them through, I was not too terribly surprised to find they did not have their Bibles opened to the passages we were discussing. As we sat there and carefully read through each individual verse, we discovered that they had substituted what they incorrectly learned in the place of the correct Biblical Truth. Having learned to embrace an incorrect understanding of forgiveness for so long, they discovered that the correct Biblical Truth sounded all wrong.
In this walk of faith amidst a world that has so terribly complicated Christianity… now is a wonderful time to once again put God’s Truth in plain view. Take your time to carefully consider all that Christ has promised to us who have received His free gift of Life that is abundantly rich. As you read and meditate on His Truth, prepare yourself for the Accuser who attempt to convince you that the abundant Life in Christ is all wrong. Trust God in spite of how you feel and He will set you free.
Believe it or not, several times over the past few years I have actually used the illustration of playing wrong notes as sin in our lives.
Enjoying “Authentic Chrsitianity” – just read through his remarks on people first, not things. AMEN!!!!
“Sin in our lives” is an area that I have grown to be very careful. It is often misunderstood and mistaught (which I have unintentionally done at various times). Separating the concept of sin versus sins in the Christian’s life is very important. Sin, the noun, is always present a Christian’s life even when he/she walks in the Spirit. It resides in the earthly body of the believer and will be eradicated once we separate from the physical body either upon our physical death or when Christ returns for those still alive. As believers however, we have been freed from the power and effects of sin. That power and those effects are the transgressions, the trespasses, the iniquities that God said had once separated us from Him (Isaiah 59:2). This is what Christ did on the cross. He shed His blood as payment for sins: trespasses (Eph.1:7). Understanding the distinction of sin versus sins greatly helps us receive Paul’s words in Romans 5:10. As Christians we have been saved from the wages of sin; an eternity in Hell. But as we live in Christ, He desires that we also be daily saved from the effects of the sin presence still in us. The only way to do that is to stop trying to fix our problems and behaviors and start allowing Christ to live His life through us. There are so many wonderful, well-intentioned Christians who simply don’t know these truths or have been mistaught these truths so they end up “playing the wrong notes” in their Christian walk thinking that everything is just fine. Wow – then read Hebrews 9:26-28. The passages start to come alive!!!