Nearing the end of the Parable of the Talents in Matthew 25, we find a man giving some pretty pitiful excuses for his slothfulness. This man really had no one but himself to blame for his failure, but he chose, instead, to try to blame the man he was supposed to serve. First, he attacked his master’s character by saying, “Lord, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you have not sown, and gathering where you have not scattered seed” (Matthew 25:24). Then, he questioned his master’s compassion when he said, “And I was afraid” (Matthew 25:25a). What did he fear; did he fear he would lose what little he had been given, and be punished for it? The master knew he could manage this “small” amount (v. 15). Perhaps, he feared looking like a failure compared to the others. It was no secret that this man had less ability than the other two (Matthew 25:15). By doing nothing he had an excuse for his failure; he didn’t even try. What if he had tried and only had gained half of a talent more (Matthew 25:27)? The final excuse, I think, is the most insulting, and really showed that he held his master in contempt. He attacked his master’s control. “Look, there you have what is yours” (Matthew 25:25b). It is as if he said, “I owe you no more than what you gave me. We’re even.” On the contrary, the master had lost one thing that was supposed

Our young Christians need to be taught the arguments for such issues as instrumental music in worship so they can “earnestly contend for the faith” (Jude 3). The new arguments are simply the old arguments. This discussion will be about some of the Greek words in Ephesians 5:19 and Colossians 3:16, especially the word, psallo, and the arguments related to it. Each of these words represent a different type of music. First, the word translated “song” is the Greek word ode, which simply means a song in its general sense. The word may be recognized in its transliterated form from Beethoven’s “Ode to Joy.” This word can mean any type of song. Many odes were sung for the welcoming home of heroes. However, if the adjective “spiritual” is added to modify the word, then the song becomes a specific type of song, namely, one that would be sung as worship. Second, the word “hymn” is translated from the Greek word humnos. In the Bible, this word only occurs in the two verses being discussed here, and while the word ode simply means a song, humnos is more specifically, a religious song. Third, note the word that is transliterated, “Psalms.” It is the Greek word psalmos. According to Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance, this word is even more specific. While ode means “a song,” and humnos means a “religious song,” psalmos means “a religious song that is sung in Hebrew.” It refers to the Psalms of the Old Testament. These “psalms,” according to Strong, could be accompanied with the voice, harp or other instruments. Those arguing for instrumental