From Saved To Serve/written by
"Many are still in sadness and disbelief at the news of iconic rock star, Prince’s untimely death at the age of 57. For those even vaguely familiar with Prince, his lifestyle and music, it would come as equally shocking news that Prince considered himself and was considered by others to be a conservative Christian.
.....Prince’s upbringing and the subsequent influence that it had upon his life and career. “Raised a Seventh Day Adventist, Prince later became a Jehovah’s Witness,..."
God’s Word that men claim to live by states in John 2:15 and 16 “Love not the world, neither the things [that are] in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that [is] in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.”
“Many professed Christians are in a fair way to lose both worlds. To be half a Christian and half a worldly man makes you about one-hundredth part a Christian and all the rest worldly.”
White, Ellen. Testimonies for the Church, Volume 2 (1868-1871), page 264
Prince’s fluctuation between Christianity with the base elements of the flesh, often trying to merge what he calls Christianity with nudity, sex, drugs, profanity and the like, neither brought him closer to the Lord, nor will it bring others close to the Lord, which can only be accomplished by uplifting the mind to what is true, honest just, pure, lovely—the character of Christ, as outlined in His Word. .... A tree is known by its fruits. The Washington Post article even brings out that Prince attempted through his music to link his bold and lewd sexual expressions with the worship of God. What blasphemy!
“Our standing before God depends, not upon the amount of light we have received, but upon the use we make of what we have. Thus
even the heathen who choose the right as far as they can distinguish it, are in a more favorable condition than are those who have had great light, and profess to serve God, but who disregard the light, and by their daily life contradict their profession.” White, Ellen. Christian Service (1925), page 96
Did Prince have a death-bed repentance experience? Only the Lord knows. One thing is certain, Prince’s life has now ended and there are no more opportunities for him to surrender his heart to Christ and live wholly in accordance with God’s Word, if he did not do so previously.
There is yet opportunity for you, dear reader, while probation still lingers. God would have us introspectively consider how the moments of our days are spent, what the mind dwells upon, what images are placed before our eyes, what our practices in secret are when no human eyes are looking upon us, what our motives for our actions are. Let us keep ever before our minds that “every man’s work passes in review before God and is registered for faithfulness or unfaithfulness. Opposite each name in the books of heaven is entered with terrible exactness every wrong word, every selfish act, every unfulfilled duty, and every secret sin, with every artful dissembling. Heaven-sent warnings or reproofs neglected, wasted moments, unimproved opportunities, the influence exerted for good or for evil, with its far-reaching results, all are chronicled by the recording angel” White, Ellen. White, Ellen. The Great Controversy (1911), page 482"
"Many are still in sadness and disbelief at the news of iconic rock star, Prince’s untimely death at the age of 57. For those even vaguely familiar with Prince, his lifestyle and music, it would come as equally shocking news that Prince considered himself and was considered by others to be a conservative Christian.
God’s Word that men claim to live by states in John 2:15 and 16 “Love not the world, neither the things [that are] in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that [is] in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.”
“Many professed Christians are in a fair way to lose both worlds. To be half a Christian and half a worldly man makes you about one-hundredth part a Christian and all the rest worldly.”
White, Ellen. Testimonies for the Church, Volume 2 (1868-1871), page 264
Prince’s fluctuation between Christianity with the base elements of the flesh, often trying to merge what he calls Christianity with nudity, sex, drugs, profanity and the like, neither brought him closer to the Lord, nor will it bring others close to the Lord, which can only be accomplished by uplifting the mind to what is true, honest just, pure, lovely—the character of Christ, as outlined in His Word. .... A tree is known by its fruits. The Washington Post article even brings out that Prince attempted through his music to link his bold and lewd sexual expressions with the worship of God. What blasphemy!
“Our standing before God depends, not upon the amount of light we have received, but upon the use we make of what we have. Thus
Did Prince have a death-bed repentance experience? Only the Lord knows. One thing is certain, Prince’s life has now ended and there are no more opportunities for him to surrender his heart to Christ and live wholly in accordance with God’s Word, if he did not do so previously.
There is yet opportunity for you, dear reader, while probation still lingers. God would have us introspectively consider how the moments of our days are spent, what the mind dwells upon, what images are placed before our eyes, what our practices in secret are when no human eyes are looking upon us, what our motives for our actions are. Let us keep ever before our minds that “every man’s work passes in review before God and is registered for faithfulness or unfaithfulness. Opposite each name in the books of heaven is entered with terrible exactness every wrong word, every selfish act, every unfulfilled duty, and every secret sin, with every artful dissembling. Heaven-sent warnings or reproofs neglected, wasted moments, unimproved opportunities, the influence exerted for good or for evil, with its far-reaching results, all are chronicled by the recording angel” White, Ellen. White, Ellen. The Great Controversy (1911), page 482"
