Greeting in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
My name is Bobby Stevenson, I am the Youth Pastor at the Grace Church of All Nations, where the Bishop A. Livingston Foxworth is my Pastor. First I give honor to God through His Son Jesus Christ, who is the head of my life. I’d like to dedicate this article to the Holy Spirit, that He will bring clarity to the forefront.
I am presently a 3rd Degree Black Belt in the art of Korean Karate, called Tae Kwon Do. I am also the founder and chief instructor of the New Vision Tae Kwon Do Institute which is held presently at our church. I’ve been studying Tae Kwon Do for over 18 years in the sport arena and demonstration. Let’s take a 1ook at what Martial Arts really is.
Martial Arts is based upon three things: 1. Understanding - 2. Hard work and 3. Total comprehension of the skill
For many years there has been a misconception about the Martial Arts, especially to Christians. Many of us fed that martia1 arts is bad, when in fact the at itself is not at al1. Martial Arts is basically hand and foot techniques combined and condensed into movements. Originally the art was created for “self defense”. Webster defines self defense as: 1. a defending against attack 2. something that defends means of de6ase, 3. self protection. I don’t think this is the concern, what I believe the real problem or ignorance is the subject of “meditation”. When a person knows that you are studying a form of martial Arts, the first thing they ask is, “Do you participate in that meditation stuff” Then they say, “It’s of the devil” !
Now let’s take a closer look at the word meditation as defined by Webster. 1. solemn reflection on sacred matters as a devotional act. 2. to think, to plan, instead, or to think deeply and continuously reflect. The King James Bible defines meditation as a quiet contemplation of spiritua1 truths. So we can see that both are closely related, however the Bible instructs us to “meditate day and night on the word.” Simply that means to think upon the word deeply, quietly and continuously, this is a form of meditation.
Now David meditated upon the law day and night according to Psalm 1:2 and 119:97. The more David thought or meditated the real truth was revealed unto him, which was the Word of the Lord. Now people who are non-Christian meditate on what they consider as the truth, which is of their reality. But we as Christians must remain faithful and meditate on the Word of God which is through Jesus Christ. The Value of Meditation is three fold. 1. Understanding (PS. 49:3) - 2. Spiritual Satisfaction (PS. 63:5,6) -3. Superior Knowledge (Ps. 119:99) Therefore, a responsible and mature Christian that indulges in any type of sports must keep in mind that all has a positive and a negative, known in the Martial Arts as the “Ying and Yang”. To us it is known as Good and Evil or God and the Devil. [Ed: The concept of Yin and Yang supposes that everything is in harmony, that good and evil are equal and opposite. This contradicts the absoluteness of God. Satan is not equal and is not in harmony with God. Evil will one day be swept away]. The question is, who are meditating upon or worshipping? What do you consider as the truth? Who are you surrendering your will to when you meditate in your mind?
So to sum it up, a responsible Christian understands, that with the gift of free will, come a responsibly, and all will be judged for the decisions that you make. I pray that you have received an in depth understanding of the material presented to you. but if not, pray that the Holy Spirit will reveal even this thing unto you.
Amen
God Bless All
