Righteous Rock?
One of my favorite genres of music is rock. Southern rock, alternative rock, indie rock… whatever. Because I grew in the UPCI, I will be the first to admit that this may be my little rebellion against childhood rules. But does rock have anything to offer to someone who wants to be a good Christian, or should I throw out all my CDs? I think based on the previous discussions you already know that I believe secular music can have value even for Christians. WARNING: Some of the songs named below may contain explicit lyrics.
Hot Topics
There are thousands and thousands of topics that songs may cover. These can range from worshipping God (think Matisyahu) to worshipping sex (most dance/club music) to worshipping self as a better artist than everyone else (many hip hop songs). One of the most widely expressed topics is love. Love songs can be all about sex or cheating, but more often than not they are expressing the beauty of love in a way that does not contradict the Bible. A good comparison is Your Body is a Wonderland by John Mayer (OK, so that’s soft rock) and The Song of Songs. Both of these express love in a deeply intimate and sexual manner, and both are beautiful. I see love songs as being somewhat neutral, morally speaking. Love is a beautiful thing created by God, and songs about beautiful things created by God tend to be OK. The danger comes in perverting what God has made beautiful, but most people recognize this and leave it out of the best love songs.
But what about other topics? We talked last week about topics that might sound terrible, but that the Bible deals with very frankly. Can rock music also deal with difficult topics in a way that pleases God, even when the artists aren’t Christian?
An Anti-Love Song
In the song Hate Me by Blue October we have a glimpse of love working in a very strange way. In this song we see a man who is saved from himself by a woman who loves him deeply. We also see that he now recognizes his own brokenness, and realizes that as long as he is with this woman he will only bring her more and more pain. For him, the only solution is to leave her and make her suffer temporary pain so that she will be able to get over him and find someone else. His healing and maturity progresses as he sees who he is and sacrifices his own feelings for the woman he loves. Self-sacrifice leads him into becoming a better person, and encourages the listeners to grow up and avoid making the same mistakes that this character made (I don’t want to ascribe the mistakes to the author or the performer, and I’m not as familiar with songs as I am with movies so I dub the subject of the song a “character.” Let me know if there’s a better word.).
Echoes of Redemption
One of my favorite bands is Linkin Park. I was very excited to hear that they were working on a new album. My excitement hit a peak when I heard their first single earlier this year. What I’ve Done (featured prominently in the summer blockbuster Transformers for other movie buffs out there) may be about many different things depending on who you ask. To me it is about the power of redemption, and it even uses explicitly biblical imagery. The artist describes coming to a place where alibis and lies are no longer useful. The only thing left to fall back on is mercy and forgiveness. Only by falling back on mercy am I able to erase what I’ve done. Although the author may not have meant it, this is a beautiful description of conversion. Only when we come to the end of ourselves can we truly come to God. We must acknowledge that we are completely dependent on God.
All a Matter of Perspective
The point that I am trying to make is not that rock music is always or even usually written to glorify God. Rather, I am trying to illustrate how I approach secular music, and how I attempt to see God in everything. Sometimes, I admit, I make a little bit of a stretch to see God where other people do not. But hearing other people’s thoughts and feeling their emotions often helps me to point my thoughts and emotions to God in new and fresh ways. I want to give God every area of my life. This is how I bring my music and all other entertainment under subjection to Him.
Hot Topics
There are thousands and thousands of topics that songs may cover. These can range from worshipping God (think Matisyahu) to worshipping sex (most dance/club music) to worshipping self as a better artist than everyone else (many hip hop songs). One of the most widely expressed topics is love. Love songs can be all about sex or cheating, but more often than not they are expressing the beauty of love in a way that does not contradict the Bible. A good comparison is Your Body is a Wonderland by John Mayer (OK, so that’s soft rock) and The Song of Songs. Both of these express love in a deeply intimate and sexual manner, and both are beautiful. I see love songs as being somewhat neutral, morally speaking. Love is a beautiful thing created by God, and songs about beautiful things created by God tend to be OK. The danger comes in perverting what God has made beautiful, but most people recognize this and leave it out of the best love songs.
But what about other topics? We talked last week about topics that might sound terrible, but that the Bible deals with very frankly. Can rock music also deal with difficult topics in a way that pleases God, even when the artists aren’t Christian?
An Anti-Love Song
In the song Hate Me by Blue October we have a glimpse of love working in a very strange way. In this song we see a man who is saved from himself by a woman who loves him deeply. We also see that he now recognizes his own brokenness, and realizes that as long as he is with this woman he will only bring her more and more pain. For him, the only solution is to leave her and make her suffer temporary pain so that she will be able to get over him and find someone else. His healing and maturity progresses as he sees who he is and sacrifices his own feelings for the woman he loves. Self-sacrifice leads him into becoming a better person, and encourages the listeners to grow up and avoid making the same mistakes that this character made (I don’t want to ascribe the mistakes to the author or the performer, and I’m not as familiar with songs as I am with movies so I dub the subject of the song a “character.” Let me know if there’s a better word.).
Echoes of Redemption
One of my favorite bands is Linkin Park. I was very excited to hear that they were working on a new album. My excitement hit a peak when I heard their first single earlier this year. What I’ve Done (featured prominently in the summer blockbuster Transformers for other movie buffs out there) may be about many different things depending on who you ask. To me it is about the power of redemption, and it even uses explicitly biblical imagery. The artist describes coming to a place where alibis and lies are no longer useful. The only thing left to fall back on is mercy and forgiveness. Only by falling back on mercy am I able to erase what I’ve done. Although the author may not have meant it, this is a beautiful description of conversion. Only when we come to the end of ourselves can we truly come to God. We must acknowledge that we are completely dependent on God.
All a Matter of Perspective
The point that I am trying to make is not that rock music is always or even usually written to glorify God. Rather, I am trying to illustrate how I approach secular music, and how I attempt to see God in everything. Sometimes, I admit, I make a little bit of a stretch to see God where other people do not. But hearing other people’s thoughts and feeling their emotions often helps me to point my thoughts and emotions to God in new and fresh ways. I want to give God every area of my life. This is how I bring my music and all other entertainment under subjection to Him.
posted by Josh at
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
3 Comments:
This post has been removed by the author.
I always find it odd that Christians will read books about marriage, relationships, and even sex but put those same words to music and they become off limits. I love to hear a song that expresses my emotions whether it be about love, lost love, anger, patriotism, justice, etc.
Anyone recognize these lyrics "Yes, a reward to the one who grabs your babies and smashes their heads on the rocks"
Psalm 137:9, although the KJV says nothing about "heads," but point taken anyway.
-R
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