Our Promo Video:
FIRST..........
Praise the Lord, our debut album "Afloat" is finished. We are very excited about it and hope you feel the same way. This has been a long time coming. We hope you that you all enjoy the music. Thanks to everyone who supported us all the way through this process.
The CD is available for sale through iTunes or our store.
ALSO........
We'd like to know what your favorite song is from our new album "Afloat"?
(please post all answers as a comment).
LASTLY......
Today marks the first weekly blog we will post in hopes of interacting more with our fans. We hope to have as many responses as possible, and would love to hear what your favorite song is from the new album.
Thanks and God Bless,
Caleb and Sol
www.calebandsol.com
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Friday, December 19, 2008
Barabbas
There was once an evil man. He was an insurrectionist, a rebel, a murderer, and a notorious prisoner. This day, however, he would face justice. He had committed crimes worthy of death, and now he was going to be a victim of crucifixion—one of the most vicious forms of capital punishment known to mankind. Death on a cross was only for the worst of criminals.
Partly due to the cold night, yet mostly due to inexpressible fear, Barabbas shivered uncontrollably as he lay face down in his prison cell. He was in utter despair. No hope. No defense. No answers.
In the distance he could hear people shouting; chanting, even. He thought he heard his own name mixed in with the barrage of yells and screams. But there was one name he heard without mistake: “Jesus”.
Barabbas had heard of this man, although some even called Him the Son of God. Supposedly, this Jesus was a worker of miracles, and He even claimed to be God in the flesh. One of Barabbas’ old followers had joined this “Christ” group a couple years back.
But he had known Jesus and His followers to be rather peaceful. Why would there be such violent shouting now? As a painful reminder of his own impending doom, he could vaguely hear the crowd shouting, “Crucify Him! Crucify Him!”
Still gripped with trepidation and terror, Barabbas heard something that made his stomach twist and his heart stop: shaking keys – the sound of justice. The very next moment, his cell door was swung open and the soldier yelled at him to leave immediately.
But Barabbas couldn’t move.
“Come on, you criminal, get out of here. You’re free.” But his own guilt wouldn’t allow him to believe it. “They’re going to kill Jesus of Nazareth in your place.”
With a thousand questions racing through his mind, Barabbas quickly lifted himself to his feet and hastily walked out of the prison and into the streets of Jerusalem.
A guilty man set free on account of another. Is that justice?
---------------------------------------------------------------
The Gospel of Jesus Christ is a scandalous message.
It’s a shocking revelation.
It’s a prophetic declaration.
It’s a transforming proclamation.
It’s a soul-saving truth and it is the power of God for all who believe.
The Gospel is a message about God:
The Creator and Sustainer of the universe. He is perfect in all His attributes, blameless in all His ways, righteous in all His judgments. He is all powerful and all knowing. He is strong, mighty, holy, just, wrathful, vengeful, and jealous. He is caring, patient, compassionate, merciful, gracious, loving, and forgiving. God is good.
The Gospel is a message about Man:
Created in God’s image—created good: yet fallen, disobedient, rebellious, corrupt, proud, wicked, evil, sinful, unholy, unrighteous, ungodly, guilty, helpless, hopeless, lost, condemned, separate from God and destined for eternal punishment in the torments of hell.
The Gospel is a message about Jesus Christ:
The Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. The anointed one of God who saves. Born of a virgin; killed on a cross; resurrected on the third day. Beloved by the Father, yet smitten by Him for our transgressions. Perfectly innocent, yet punished by God for our wickedness.
Jesus Christ is the only way to forgiveness. The only way to reconciliation, restoration, and redemption. The only way to eternal hope and true meaning and real purpose. The only way to lasting joy and enduring happiness and endless pleasure. The only way to salvation. The only way to heaven. The only way to God’s grace.
The Gospel is a message about you:
§ What will you do? What will you do?
§ Will you examine your wicked heart? or will you persist in blissful ignorance?
§ Will you open your mind to the truth of God? or will you disregard your guilty conscience?
§ Will you surrender your life and your plans and your future and your hopes and your dreams and your desires and your thoughts and your actions and your words – all to the Lordship of Christ? Or will you continue to deny His total call/claim upon your life?
§ Will you trust Jesus or will you reject His love?
§ Will you repent of sin? or will you proceed in vain self-righteousness?
§ Will you be set free or will you live in the bondage of evil?
§ Will you receive grace or will you face justice?
§ What will you do?
§ What will you do?
----------------------------------------------------------------
A guilty man set free on account of another. Is that justice?
No. That’s grace.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=toEdT0VEHKI
Awkward Prayer
Here is a story of how prayer ought not to be…
The Bible study you are attending is wrapping up, and the leader asks the group to hold hands for the closing prayer. After you wipe off the sweat from your hand on your pant leg, you reach for your neighbor’s hand. After grabbing her hand, you realize you have actually only grabbed two of her fingers, but now it is already a few seconds in, and it would be awkward to change your grip. So, you decide let it go (the issue, not the fingers).
It’s one of those group popcorn-prayers where people randomly interject their personal prayer—you know, the kind that is full of outrageously long pauses in-between prayers while people wait to make sure everyone who wanted to say something gets a chance to muster up the courage to do so. This head-cold you’ve been fighting is not helping the situation as a temporary lapse in judgment has you wiping your nose with your neighbor’s hand. This will need an explanation later.
The Bible study was at your house, so the leader asked you to close—and it better be good. Therefore, you are not listening to anyone else’s prayer. Instead, you spend the whole time thinking of something meaningful to say. But because everyone else is doing the same thing (not listening), you wonder whether it is even worth the effort. You feel defeated.
It would appear that God has a short attention span, because everyone opens up each sentence of prayer with a long string of “God, Father, Lord, Jesus”—or some variation of those words. Part way through the prayer, you open your eyes and look at everybody. You kind of feel guilty about it; almost like a “peeping Tom.” You make eye contact with someone across the way before immediately closing your eyes again. At least you don’t have to feel bad about opening your eyes—you weren’t the only curious one.
You then realize your right deltoid (shoulder muscle) is on fire because you had to make an awkward reach to grab the guy’s hand next to you. It has been flexed for over five minutes now, and you honestly don’t know if you’ll be able to make it. You also realize that his hand is shaking uncontrollably from either anxiety or fatigue or, most likely, a combination of both. The sweat is starting to bead on your forehead. Holding hands sure keeps the heat in.
Finally, you think it is time for you to get your heartfelt words of wisdom in, more for the good of the order than anything else. At the next break, you begin to pray but are instantly cut off by your neighbor who started a tenth of a second before you. You mutter for him to go first, and once he has finished, you finally get your shot. For some reason, you have a natural tendency to employ your high-pitched, breathy, “spiritual” voice when praying in front of others. Today is no exception, and you end up saying something completely heartless and clichéd; you would have been better off just reciting the “Lord’s prayer.”
Prayer doesn’t have to be like that. Instead, it should be an edifying time of crying out to God in confession, adoration, thanksgiving, and petition. Join me in making 2009 a year of prayer—that the glory and majesty of Jesus Christ would be revealed in our lives and in our nation. Amen?
The Bible study you are attending is wrapping up, and the leader asks the group to hold hands for the closing prayer. After you wipe off the sweat from your hand on your pant leg, you reach for your neighbor’s hand. After grabbing her hand, you realize you have actually only grabbed two of her fingers, but now it is already a few seconds in, and it would be awkward to change your grip. So, you decide let it go (the issue, not the fingers).
It’s one of those group popcorn-prayers where people randomly interject their personal prayer—you know, the kind that is full of outrageously long pauses in-between prayers while people wait to make sure everyone who wanted to say something gets a chance to muster up the courage to do so. This head-cold you’ve been fighting is not helping the situation as a temporary lapse in judgment has you wiping your nose with your neighbor’s hand. This will need an explanation later.
The Bible study was at your house, so the leader asked you to close—and it better be good. Therefore, you are not listening to anyone else’s prayer. Instead, you spend the whole time thinking of something meaningful to say. But because everyone else is doing the same thing (not listening), you wonder whether it is even worth the effort. You feel defeated.
It would appear that God has a short attention span, because everyone opens up each sentence of prayer with a long string of “God, Father, Lord, Jesus”—or some variation of those words. Part way through the prayer, you open your eyes and look at everybody. You kind of feel guilty about it; almost like a “peeping Tom.” You make eye contact with someone across the way before immediately closing your eyes again. At least you don’t have to feel bad about opening your eyes—you weren’t the only curious one.
You then realize your right deltoid (shoulder muscle) is on fire because you had to make an awkward reach to grab the guy’s hand next to you. It has been flexed for over five minutes now, and you honestly don’t know if you’ll be able to make it. You also realize that his hand is shaking uncontrollably from either anxiety or fatigue or, most likely, a combination of both. The sweat is starting to bead on your forehead. Holding hands sure keeps the heat in.
Finally, you think it is time for you to get your heartfelt words of wisdom in, more for the good of the order than anything else. At the next break, you begin to pray but are instantly cut off by your neighbor who started a tenth of a second before you. You mutter for him to go first, and once he has finished, you finally get your shot. For some reason, you have a natural tendency to employ your high-pitched, breathy, “spiritual” voice when praying in front of others. Today is no exception, and you end up saying something completely heartless and clichéd; you would have been better off just reciting the “Lord’s prayer.”
Prayer doesn’t have to be like that. Instead, it should be an edifying time of crying out to God in confession, adoration, thanksgiving, and petition. Join me in making 2009 a year of prayer—that the glory and majesty of Jesus Christ would be revealed in our lives and in our nation. Amen?
Our Core Beliefs
GOD
We believe there is only one true God who is the Creator and Sustainer of the Universe. He has eternally existed in three distinct persons (the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit). These three are co-equal and are one God. We believe God created everything for His glory. (Mt. 28:19; Gen. 1:1; Heb. 1:1-13; Acts 5:3-4; Jn. 10:30)
JESUS CHRIST
We believe the Lord Jesus Christ was born of the virgin Mary and that He is the Son of God, co-equal with the Father. He is eternally sinless and He died on the cross in order to suffer God’s just punishment against sin and sinners. We believe He physically rose from the dead in order to conquer sin and prove His divinity. He alone is the mediator between God and people, and the only way to reconciliation with God. (Isa. 7:14; Matt:1:18-25; Jn. 1:14; I Tim 2:5; Phil 2:5-8)
THE HOLY SPIRIT
We believe the Holy Spirit is co-equal with the Father and the Son. He is active today convicting men of sin, drawing unbelievers to God, bestowing spiritual gifts upon believers, and indwelling and filling the believer for the purpose of enabling him for power, godliness, boldness, and ministry. (Jn. 14:16-17; 16:7-12; 1 Cor 12; Rom 12; Eph 5:18; Eph. 1:13-14)
HUMAN BEINGS
We believe people are a special creation of God and are uniquely different from all of God’s creation, for humans alone are created in the “image of God.” Humans were created to glorify God and fellowship with Him, but because of sin, this fellowship was broken. As a result, all of us are sinners by nature and choice. Without Christ’s forgiveness, unrepentant sinners will suffer for all of life and eternity apart from God. (Gen. 1:26-27; Rm. 3:10; 5:12; Eph 2:1-3; Mat 25:46)
SALVATION
We believe salvation is a miraculous work of God and is a free gift of His grace. It cannot be earned through self improvement or good works. It is only by repenting of sin and trusting in Jesus Christ that anyone can be saved from the penalty of sin and the wrath of God. When we turn from sin and believe in Christ, embracing what He did on the cross for us, we are saved. (Mark 1:15; Eph 2:8-9; Rom 5:9; Jn. 1:11-13; I Cor. 12:13; Col. 1:18)
SCRIPTURE
We believe that “all Scripture is given by inspiration of God,” by which we understand the 66 books of the Bible were inspired in the sense that holy men of God were moved by the Holy Spirit to write the very words of Scripture. We believe that the whole Bible, in the original manuscripts, is therefore without error, and that all the Scriptures were designed for our practical instruction and theological doctrine. (Mark 12:26, 36; 13:11; Luke 24:27, 44; John 5:39; Acts 1:16; 26:22–23; 28:23; Rom. 15:4; 1 Cor. 2:13; 10:11; 2 Tim. 3:16; 2 Pet. 1:21).
We believe there is only one true God who is the Creator and Sustainer of the Universe. He has eternally existed in three distinct persons (the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit). These three are co-equal and are one God. We believe God created everything for His glory. (Mt. 28:19; Gen. 1:1; Heb. 1:1-13; Acts 5:3-4; Jn. 10:30)
JESUS CHRIST
We believe the Lord Jesus Christ was born of the virgin Mary and that He is the Son of God, co-equal with the Father. He is eternally sinless and He died on the cross in order to suffer God’s just punishment against sin and sinners. We believe He physically rose from the dead in order to conquer sin and prove His divinity. He alone is the mediator between God and people, and the only way to reconciliation with God. (Isa. 7:14; Matt:1:18-25; Jn. 1:14; I Tim 2:5; Phil 2:5-8)
THE HOLY SPIRIT
We believe the Holy Spirit is co-equal with the Father and the Son. He is active today convicting men of sin, drawing unbelievers to God, bestowing spiritual gifts upon believers, and indwelling and filling the believer for the purpose of enabling him for power, godliness, boldness, and ministry. (Jn. 14:16-17; 16:7-12; 1 Cor 12; Rom 12; Eph 5:18; Eph. 1:13-14)
HUMAN BEINGS
We believe people are a special creation of God and are uniquely different from all of God’s creation, for humans alone are created in the “image of God.” Humans were created to glorify God and fellowship with Him, but because of sin, this fellowship was broken. As a result, all of us are sinners by nature and choice. Without Christ’s forgiveness, unrepentant sinners will suffer for all of life and eternity apart from God. (Gen. 1:26-27; Rm. 3:10; 5:12; Eph 2:1-3; Mat 25:46)
SALVATION
We believe salvation is a miraculous work of God and is a free gift of His grace. It cannot be earned through self improvement or good works. It is only by repenting of sin and trusting in Jesus Christ that anyone can be saved from the penalty of sin and the wrath of God. When we turn from sin and believe in Christ, embracing what He did on the cross for us, we are saved. (Mark 1:15; Eph 2:8-9; Rom 5:9; Jn. 1:11-13; I Cor. 12:13; Col. 1:18)
SCRIPTURE
We believe that “all Scripture is given by inspiration of God,” by which we understand the 66 books of the Bible were inspired in the sense that holy men of God were moved by the Holy Spirit to write the very words of Scripture. We believe that the whole Bible, in the original manuscripts, is therefore without error, and that all the Scriptures were designed for our practical instruction and theological doctrine. (Mark 12:26, 36; 13:11; Luke 24:27, 44; John 5:39; Acts 1:16; 26:22–23; 28:23; Rom. 15:4; 1 Cor. 2:13; 10:11; 2 Tim. 3:16; 2 Pet. 1:21).
Caleb & Sol Music
Who?
Caleb and I are twin brothers and musicians from Eugene, Oregon. We are just finishing up our first album together, titled "Afloat." We've been working on it for about 8 months. Check out our myspace, facebook, or website for sound clips and purchase options.
Why?
We are setting up this blog to reach more people; bloggers like you, specifically. More than entertainment, we view our music as a ministry. We want to proclaim the glory, majesty, power, and authority of the Lord Jesus Christ through our music, lyrics, and conduct.
What?
We'll mostly be posting articles about Christian theology and conduct, as well as journal entries about our concerts, recordings, and writing songs. We'd love to hear your feedback (good and bad--we can take it).
Where?
Check us out at:
www.calebandsol.com
www.myspace.com/calebandsol
Caleb and I are twin brothers and musicians from Eugene, Oregon. We are just finishing up our first album together, titled "Afloat." We've been working on it for about 8 months. Check out our myspace, facebook, or website for sound clips and purchase options.
Why?
We are setting up this blog to reach more people; bloggers like you, specifically. More than entertainment, we view our music as a ministry. We want to proclaim the glory, majesty, power, and authority of the Lord Jesus Christ through our music, lyrics, and conduct.
What?
We'll mostly be posting articles about Christian theology and conduct, as well as journal entries about our concerts, recordings, and writing songs. We'd love to hear your feedback (good and bad--we can take it).
Where?
Check us out at:
www.calebandsol.com
www.myspace.com/calebandsol
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