Re: Jesus Just Wants to Give You a Hug?
| Posted On: 11/27/07 05:48:02 PM |
Age 21, MO |
The point of all the theology though is to say, "Oh my beloved!" I agree that we need theology in songs Todd, but if we completely forget about the love part we become a brood of vipers. If we don't have love for the savior because of what he has done and if we don't have love for the Father because of his righteous and just judgments and if we don't have love for the Holy Spirit for renewing our minds and giving us groans that we can't express then we are worthless. Don't completely leave love out. I am a 21 year old man deeply in love with MY, yes my, Jesus. I am unashamed to say it. I worship the Jesus that has robes stained in blood and will come back to slaughter all the ones who are unrighteous. It is manly to love the Jesus I worship. I am unashamed to say I am part of the bride of Christ and if I get taken away in love at times, that is great. There are also those times where I am not in the honeymoon though and I choose to love him. It isn't always easy but I will always choose to love him. Besides, this is what I am going to be doing for the rest of eternity giving him worship as his bride anyway so... Why not start now?
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Re: Jesus Just Wants to Give You a Hug?
| Posted On: 11/27/07 05:34:30 PM |
Age 31, NY |
I really liked this article, which is a first for me and Worldview Weekend, which I generally only read for amusement or alarm at what the extremists are up to lately. I'm a liberal Mainline Protestant and not interested in going to hebbin if you guys (right-wingers) are the only ones there. But I liked it, I really did, not in the least because I disdain Air Supply. One woman I know of a more evangelical background called a lot of the contemporary Christian dreck "Jesus is My boyfriend" music. I agree. Except for Bill Gaither there's hardly a religious song written after 1910 worth listening to IMO. Thanks for a good one.
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Re: Jesus Just Wants to Give You a Hug?
| Posted On: 11/27/07 05:09:49 PM |
Age 38, AL |
I completely agree. As a man I often hear lyrics in a song and think "I can't say that stuff". Women can say how "in love" they are with Jesus and it seems more natural...man-woman kind of thing.BUT, Jesus is "King of Kings and Lord of lords" and this romantic view that some express of Jesus makes a lot of men uncomfortable and unable to participate in worship b/c they can't relate to the Jesus that these lyrics attempt to glorify. It also causes some of us to struggle with our own salvation b/c Satan will attack and tell you "see, none of the other men in the worship service had a problem calling Jesus 'lover of my soul', so you probably don't have the real thing". Maybe that's just a personal issue of mine. Do these lyrics cause men to have confusion about Jesus? Even further, do these lyrics lead women to think of Jesus as a lover? Shouldn't a man and woman's concept of a relationship with Jesus be somewhat parallel? Thanks for the article; it's good to know I am not alone.
Chase M. Black
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Re: Jesus Just Wants to Give You a Hug?
| Posted On: 11/27/07 05:03:39 PM |
Age 41, CANADA |
Whether you agree or disagree with Todd, you gotta love his directness. In this case, I do agree. I have to say amen and 2 thumbs up to this article.
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Re: Jesus Just Wants to Give You a Hug?
| Posted On: 11/27/07 04:55:35 PM |
Age 46, VT |
Todd, You really need to be more clear and to the point with your opinions. [cough] Seriously, I could not agree with you more, sir. Thank you for this. My teenage daughter and I have been volleying on this topic recently. One afternoon, buoyed by your talk on this on [WOTM] radio, I passed along your remarks about a girl (Christian) singer. You would think that I had just renamed the color pink. Don't worry, Todd, I not only passed the opinion along, I [ducking] owned them first. Keep up the good work, and God bless you, brother. Thanks for serving our King.
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Re: Jesus Just Wants to Give You a Hug?
| Posted On: 11/27/07 04:52:34 PM |
Age 59, CANADA |
I very much agree with you, Todd. I once heard a "worship" song sung by a young woman who swayed and sang, "Jesus, I long to kiss your lips..." Yuck! The other thing that annoys me is when the instruments are so loud that you can't hear one word--they could just as easily be singing praises to the evil one as to our King Jesus. I especially like Messianic Jewish (Christian) praise music--it is lively without being mushy or repetitive.
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Re: Jesus Just Wants to Give You a Hug?
| Posted On: 11/27/07 04:49:55 PM |
Age 27, OK |
I cannot tell you how many times I've turned on the radio to hear love-sick Christian singing, "As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you..." or worse, "Your love is better than life..."
Oh wait. Those were biblical examples of worship songs. Psalm 42 and 63, respectively. Nevermind then.
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Re: Jesus Just Wants to Give You a Hug?
| Posted On: 11/27/07 04:36:31 PM |
Age 55, TN |
The comparison of sacred and profane love goes back all the way to the Bible. Please see the Song of Solomon. Also, the Apostle Paul calls the church the Bride of Christ. He calls it a great mystery. I'm content to let it be that.
The tradition continued with such carols as "Tomorrow Shall Be My Dancing Day."
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Re: Jesus Just Wants to Give You a Hug?
| Posted On: 11/27/07 03:34:35 PM |
Age 20, MS |
The word limit prevents me from posting my full critique; however, here are a few thoughts.
Firstly, my critique has little to do with my own opinion on the matter. There are a number of praise and worship songs I object to being sung by a congregation, though for different reasons. My objection to this article is that the argument was presented poorly. Here are a few examples.
- “[W]e use “love” in romantic ways to sing about God.”
The implication of this statement is that this is a bad thing. However, your article provides no reasoning for -why- there is something wrong with this. Since the Bible makes frequent analogies of romantic love to describe God’s love for His people (cf. Ezekiel 16, Jeremiah 3, the entire book of Hosea, arguably the Song of Solomon, Isaiah 62:5, Revelation 19, Ephesians 5:22ff, etc.), the burden of proof is on you to illustrate why writing romantic love songs to God is objectionable; that is, what is the difference between what the Bible states and what songwriters illustrate with their lyrics?
- “[W]e have added other romantic phrases to our Christian music repertoire: hold me, embrace me, feel you, need you. This criticism is not new, in fact, it has existed since Godly men began endeavoring to sing anything but the Psalms.”
You did a little better with this one by providing the opinion of one other person who disagreed with romantic phrasing. However, just because John Wesley said something doesn’t make it true. Why should the reader agree with John Wesley’s opinion?
- “Christian men sing with such romantic longing and neediness it makes me want to scream, ‘Man up!’”
That interjection implies a rather stereotypical view of what manhood is. Is “romantic longing” not a manly emotion? I hope all married men romantically long for their wives, and (this part -is- my opinion on the subject) if marriage is an analogy for Christ and the Church, I hope all Christians do long for God in a very similar way.
- “Needy, emotional women continue to need more counseling, self help books and conferences where they can spread their wings and soar.”
- “Men simply are not showing up for church.”
It’s a bold move to present claims without attempting to corroborate them. I haven’t researched this matter, but perhaps you have. Could you provide examples of churches which use the type of songs you’re critiquing, perhaps some numbers of throaty-breathy-voiced women who purchase self-help books or frequent counselors, or statistics of male attendance over several years at such churches? Or a comparison of counseling/book purchases and church attendance at contemporary churches as compared to traditional churches? Otherwise, how is the reader to believe that these are in fact the consequences you suggest? How do I know that these phenomena have any connection to such songs?
Finally, I found this article through a discussion forum I frequent. If you would like to see the discussion pertaining to your writing or even participate, go to http://www.teddekker.com/index.php?&content=community&sub=board&com=board&brd=topic_224137__0#p6669506 I have some comments in that thread as well, but I think I said it all here.
In His hands,
~Zoe <><
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Re: Jesus Just Wants to Give You a Hug?
| Posted On: 11/27/07 03:31:26 PM |
Age 56, WI |
this is so true. only what do we as God fearing people do? we sit back and do nothing to change things. things are getting worse by the day and most of us go with the flow careful not to make waves
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Re: Jesus Just Wants to Give You a Hug?
| Posted On: 11/27/07 03:17:57 PM |
Age 48, IL |
Thank you so much for writing this! As a past church organist and union musician, I've been struggling to find a common ground for this soppy kind of music and the kind I was raised and educated in, and I needed someone who would actually write what I've been suspecting: There is no common ground! Thank you --Thank YOU!
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Re: Jesus Just Wants to Give You a Hug?
| Posted On: 11/27/07 12:04:38 PM |
Age 47, MO |
What is worse than silly love songs are the silly love songs that elevate the worshipper above Christ. For instance, the phrase ". . . and thought of me, above all." This particular song and much other so-called Christian music is tantamount to self-worship because of whom it glorifies "above all."
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Re: Jesus Just Wants to Give You a Hug?
| Posted On: 11/27/07 11:59:12 AM |
Age 37, NE |
When the writer says "contemporary music is void of the reason why we should not worry" he paints with an extremely large brush. Too large. I can think of numerous examples of contemporary songs that accurately portray the 'why' of our hope in Christ (e.g. In Christ Alone and Sing to the King being two that come immediately to mind). The author also seems to portray the expression of ones need of God as somehow unmanly (see, "man up"). A longing and need for God is placed in every one of us regardless of gender. How else are we drawn to Him? To express our need is to be honest.
I can't disagree more that love songs should be kept out of the Church. Whether they are 'silly' or not, God IS love, and songs about Him will naturally go there.
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Re: Jesus Just Wants to Give You a Hug?
| Posted On: 11/27/07 11:50:08 AM |
Age 42, FL |
Todd, you didn't just go criticizing popular Christian music, did you?
Say it isn't so!
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Re: Jesus Just Wants to Give You a Hug?
| Posted On: 11/27/07 11:24:24 AM |
Age 59, IL |
In many ways I understand the writer's point. However, I have worked with teens for years, and we definitely do not live in a warm, fuzzy world. It is vicious to say the least. I point them to a Saviour who loves them with an agape love and Who wants a personal an intimate relationship with them. This does not in any way detract from His Holiness. I am thoroughly convinced that He definitely would give these precious teens a hug! To hear them sing of their love for Him and His love for them is truly a blessing. They long for the kind of unconditional love only He can perfectly give.
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Re: Jesus Just Wants to Give You a Hug?
| Posted On: 11/27/07 10:27:10 AM |
Age 26, CO |
Thank you Sir!
What a great article! It's gratifying to know that I'm not the only one who thinks that emotion is extremely over-emphasized in the church to the point where one doesn't believe they've woshiped God if they don't feel something. How far from the truth!
I really liked how you compared the Big Daddy Weave and Air Supply lyrics. When that comparison is made, the Big Daddy lyrics look pretty ridiculous, especially when realizing that they're communicating with the Lord God Almighty. It's time for musicians to become leaders and quit being infatuated with the God who showed us that love means great sacrifice.
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Re: Jesus Just Wants to Give You a Hug?
| Posted On: 11/27/07 10:27:07 AM |
Age 46, NE |
Todd,
Thanks for addressing this aspect of today’s music scene among Christians. The slant toward ‘syrupy’ music has become so prevalent that it has swept over the church community (at least in the U.S.A.) like a tidal wave over a beachfront town. It makes me wonder how much of it is driven by the concept of marketing a product to the masses.
You’re accurate in pointing out that the words & style of many singers makes a listener wonder who they’re singing to or about – it’s not clear at all whether it is the Lord God. Your point about the consequences of this musical style is also a good insight – how have these types of ‘Christian songs’ (whatever the definition of that is) made many people wonder if they’ve missed something in their spiritual life as a follower of Christ? And if it is negatively affecting men more than women, then it is alienating the very ones needed to be future leaders in the home & the church. We need a definite move toward theology-based music, as you stated.
I liked your approach that highlighted current & historical facts as well as some theology related to this subject. Some people address this topic simply by condemning others who don’t listen to the music they believe is appropriate for Christ’s followers. I appreciate your challenge to think more clearly & deeply on an issue like this & to take action to move more towards a Biblical mindset & lifestyle!
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Re: Jesus Just Wants to Give You a Hug?
| Posted On: 11/27/07 09:56:10 AM |
Age 23423, AK |
AMEN
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Re: Jesus Just Wants to Give You a Hug?
| Posted On: 11/27/07 09:54:29 AM |
Age 59, MA |
I can only pray that this article will penetrate the sappy sentimentality that fills the brains of so many in the western media-cated Church who have been fed at the trough of such marginally musical pablum for generations. The Bible testifies to the truth of this article from cover to cover. Just one instance: the apostle Paul's emotional longing for Jesus was expressed as an intense spiritual passion to know Him in just two ways--the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, and he determined that the theme at the core of all his ministry would be Jesus Christ crucified. Yes, what a friend we have in Jesus, but do we stedfastly remain at His side when we, as He was, are being refined and perfected through godly suffering?
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Re: Jesus Just Wants to Give You a Hug?
| Posted On: 11/27/07 09:39:41 AM |
Age 40, CA |
I totally agree! Sometimes when I'm listening to a song on a Christian radio station, I double check the dial because it doesn't sound like a song to our Savior!
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