Billboard Hits and The Gospel: Part 1

Un-Thinkable (I'm Ready) was number one on the US Billboard R&B chart for twelve consecutive weeks. The song was co-written by Alicia Keys and rapper Drake. Mariel Concepcion from Billboard magazine said of Keys: "the singer/pianist goes from entertaining puppy love to confessing deeper emotions… She finally builds up the courage to share a serious desire with her lover ... atop a building, thumping beat. For an artist who has built her career on songs about love, lust and heartache, Keys has never sounded quite as vulnerable and exposed as she does here." As we’ll see in a minute, the realistic sounding emotions that played a part in the track’s success could be attributed to the fact that Keys is singing to a real person.

The music video for Un-Thinkable was awarded Outstanding Music Video at the 42nd NAACP Awards. The concept is a noble one. It tackles the issues of interracial dating. Keys told Rap Up magazine before the video came out, "The [video] will highlight the past and present stigmas surrounding the subject." The gospel affirms the video’s concept of rejecting racism. Genesis 1:26-27 says that all human beings are created in the image and likeness of God. One of the bible’s central figures, Moses, was married to an Ethiopian woman (Num. 12:1-6). The parable of the Good Samaritan teaches that people of different ethnicities and cultures are to be considered our “neighbor.” And we are to love our neighbors as ourselves (James 2:8).

I appreciate that the music video intends to promote cultural unity and an awareness that racism still exists. But, only the gospel has the power to get our society over the wall of racism. We see the solution as we look at what God has done to remove the barriers between us and him and us and others. The Apostle Paul says in Romans 5 that we were once God’s enemies and that there was a separating wall between him and us. But, through the death of Jesus we were reconciled to God. There is now nothing that can separate us from his unconditional love (Rom. 8:38-39). In addition, Paul addresses in Ephesians 2 the relational tension between the Jews and Gentiles. For thousands of years these two groups had kept their distance. But, through the death of Jesus, the dividing wall of hostility was destroyed (Eph. 2:14). All who trust in Christ are adopted into one family and become brothers and sisters with the same Father God. The gospel offers hope for our broken relationship with God and broken relationships with others.

While the music video promotes unity, as we pull back the curtain, we see that the song itself was not originally written with this message in mind. MTV reports that in a BET.com interview Drake revealed that the song was written with his lover and Keys’ lover in mind. "[Un-thinkable] is [about Minaj], I'm not gonna lie," Drake said. "The concept came from a conversation that we had, or conversations we have. I wrote it based off two things: Number one, based off that, and then two, based off Alicia and Swizz [Beatz] and their situation, and it just seemed fitting. It was like the perfect concept." We see here that the song wasn’t written to combat racism but illustrate Drake’s desires for a girl as well as parallel Keys’ desires for her new crush. So far, this is a pretty normal as far as song writing goes.

Where the gospel would confront Keys is in the fact that she is longing for a married man. Another MTV.com article, which traced the history of their relationship, reported that in 2008 rumors spread that Swizz and Keys were forming a relationship while Swizz was married to a popular nightclub singer Mashonda. Later that year, Keys threw a surprise birthday party for Swizz after him and his wife had separated (but still weren’t divorced). In 2009, he confirmed his relationship with Keys (through the lyrics of a remixed song) while he was engaged in a messy divorce with his wife.

Keys sings in Un-Thinkable “I know you said to me ‘This is exactly how it should feel when it’s meant to be.’” The warning that Keys needs to hear is that love is much more than a feeling. Love is a choice that is binding and covenantal. Who is to say that Swizz in a few years won’t go on to say “this is exactly how it should feel when it’s meant to be” to another lover? Divorce plagues America but especially those in the movie and music industries.

The gospel confronts this shifting from one marriage to the next. It is sin and it dishonors God because a) it rejects his design for how we are to live and b) it distorts the picture of how we are to live in relationship to God. He has provided us all with the gift of marriage so that we can experience a strong, pleasurable, and secure love with another person that will withstand hard times and keep us safe from our disordered emotions. For those who are united with Christ, he goes further and gives the gift of the Holy Spirit to empower us with agape love.

Listen closely. I’m not writing about Alicia Keys to say that people like her is what is wrong with the world. Sin is the problem and everyone has it by nature. All of us are tempted break our covenant with God and one another. Thankfully, the good news is that Jesus died to forgive our constant straying from God and put us in a secure relationship with him forever. Each week, when we as Christians attend church, we practice covenant renewal, which includes asking God to forgive us for being “staying sheep” (Isa. 53:6) who continually break our marriage covenant with the One who will never break his commitment to us.

The Gospel and Success

The Gospel confronts the way we pursue the praise and admiration of others through our accomplishments. Pastor Tim Keller explains the futility of such a pursuit: “Many people pursue success as a way to overcome the sense that they are somehow ‘outsiders.’ If they attain it, they believe, it will open the doors into the clubs, into the social sets, into relationships with the connected and influential. Finally, they think, they will be accepted by all the people who really matter. Success promises to do that, but in the end in cannot deliver.”

Both the irreligious and the religious are guilty of selfishly pursuing worthiness through our accomplishments. The irreligious use their success, which was made possible by the gifts given to them by God, not to bring him praise but themselves praise. And the religious do the same thing in a different way. They use their good deeds not to bring praise to God but rather to receive selfish praise from him and the Christian friends around them. The bad news is that in the end God will turn away those who either use their success to rob God of praise or use it to earn God’s praise. This includes even good religious people (Matt. 7:21-23), for “all our righteous acts are like filthy rags” (Isa. 64:6) when we try to make ourselves worthy enough for God with them.

But, the good news is that when we admit our failures, God offers forgiveness (1 John 1:9). In the Parable of the Prodigal Son, the son returns home and says, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.” Then the father clothed him with his robe and threw a huge feast (Luke 15). This is an illustration of what happens when we admit our sinful failures to God and are covered by the success of Jesus. The greatest accomplishment we could ever receive was not earned by us, but was purchased through the blood, sweat, and tears of Jesus. Keller says, “...the salvation of the world came not through climbing the success ladder, but through surrender, service, sacrifice, and death.”

Jesus’ death on the cross is where our success begins. It was there that our failures were placed on him and his righteousness was imputed to us (2 Cor. 5:21). The power that success has over us is broken when we realize that we have been made worthy by Jesus and have nothing left to prove. When we have nothing left to prove, we can live sacrificial lives that look “unsuccessful” to the world around us and climb down the ladder to help those below us.

Heaven will not be filled with people who have the most impressive resumes. Rather, it will be filled with people who cast the crown of their successes at the feet of Jesus crying out "Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power” (Rev. 4:11).

This content was taken from a gospel-centered bible study series that I'm working on called Gifts of God. To download the Success study and others go to: http://t-zach.com/giftsofgod/

Lady Gaga and the Gospel

by Tyler Zach

Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, or Lady Gaga, is a Grammy-winning singer who has sold more than 15 million albums and 40 million singles worldwide. She is a highly talented songwriter who writes almost all of her music and even writes for other singers as well.

Larry King describes her as a musical and social phenomenon. She was on the cover of TIME magazine earlier this year - which included the 100 Most Influential People In The World. Gaga is one of them because she is not just an average entertainer. She speaks at rallies, writes letters to her US senators, and recently wrote a repeal to fight against the abolishment of the Don’t Ask Don’t Tell law.

The Fans

After Gaga went on tour recently, she said that her fans were “salivating at the mouth” and that they “behaved like monsters.” Thus, she now calls them her “little monsters.” She even got a “Little Monsters” tattoo on her microphone-holding arm this year.

Perhaps the reason for the intimate relationship with her fans is because they are the first group of people to approve of her. Gaga said on Larry King Live “Since my childhood in school, and for a very long time, I used to always feel like such a freak. I didn't have very many friends in school. I had a few close friends. And I -- I wasn't a popular girl. And got made fun of every day and couldn't really relate to anyone and didn't want do dress like anyone else and liked different things… And I felt like a freak, and I had nowhere to go.” Lady Gaga now has the friends she never had. Millions of them. One of her fans recently tweeted, “I love my life because my life is you, Lady Gaga.”

Gaga has become somewhat of a savior for the unpopular misfits of society. Later on in the interview with Larry King she says, “…And I guess, through the music and the performances we've done -- the clothing that I've worn, and as the fan base has begun to grow, I've sort of watched this massive group of misfits join together to liberate themselves. They love the music and they love what the House of Gaga is creating, because it has a sense of individuality, a sense of freedom, a sense of non-conform -- conformity. And I -- and I celebrate that.” She admits that her fans are “really, really, really troubled” and that “I still am fairly troubled.”

One of the unique things about Lady Gaga is that she aims not to monopolize her new fame, but to invite her misfit fans to be a part of that fame. The bio section of her web site includes “The Fame [music] is about how anyone can feel famous… But, it’s a sharable fame. I want to invite you all to the party. I want people to feel a part of this lifestyle.”

The Music and Performances

The overarching theme of Lady Gaga’s music and performances is tolerance and acceptance. Gaga told Larry King, “I’m more interested in helping my fans to love who they are and helping them to reject prejudice and reject those things that they're taught from society to not like themselves.” She called her latest tour, Monster Ball, a “celebration of shame,” a “rejection of insecurity” and “in essence an exorcism for my fans and for myself where we sort of put everything out on the table and reject it.” Fans are invited to come, lay all of their shame at the foot of the stage, reject it, and find acceptance through each other.

She particularly appeals to the insecurities felt by women and gays. The costumes Gaga wears on stage and on camera (many of which are not flattering) are “meant to be a rejection what people view about women.” Her new song “Alejandro” is a celebration of her love and appreciation for the gay community. Since the gay community has been heavily persecuted, the “House of Gaga” has been a refuge for this crowd. She has led the way for her fans to be open and honest about their insecurities. In a recent twitter post, Gaga said, “I'd wear any of my private attire for the world to see. But I would rather have an open flesh wound than ever wear a band aid in public.”

While Gaga’s “The Fame” CD focused on fame, the follow-up album “The Fame Monster” focused on the darker side of fame, as experienced by Gaga while traveling around the world in 2008-2009. She said, “While traveling the world for two years, I've encountered several monsters, each represented by a different song on the new record.”

Here are the monsters she encountered (all tracks on The Fame Monster):

1. Monster (Fear of Death Monster)
2. Bad Romance (Fear of Love Monster)
3. Don't Call My Name (Fear of Men Monster)
4. Speechless (Fear of Loneliness Monster)
5. New York (Fear of Heights Monster)
6. Bloody Mary (Fear of Alcohol Monster)
7. Take It Slow (Fear of Sex Monster)
8. Kiss & Run (Fear of Commitment Monster)

What has Lady Gaga done with these fears?

The Monster

Lady Gaga claims to be a very spiritual person. She admitted to Larry King, “I'm very religious. I was raised Catholic. I believe in Jesus. I believe in God. I'm very spiritual. I pray very much.” However, since every religion to her seems to be prejudiced against some other racial, religious, or social group she added, “I’m quite a religious woman that is very confused about religion.”

Where does Lady Gaga go then for spiritual clarity? Deepak Chopra - who began his career in the 1980’s publishing books self-help books on New Age spirituality. Chopra recently debated Pastor Mark Driscoll in a Nightline Face-Off: Does Satan exist? Chopra’s answer was no. Evil is just an illusion to him. That is why, when Lady Gaga came to him for help with her reoccurring morbid dreams, Chopra said “Don’t worry so much [about the dreams]. You’re just very creative.” Since Gaga was a little girl, she has had nightmares of an Anglo fish. Chopra said that in order to get rid of this childhood monster Gaga needed to put it in her show. She told Larry King in her interview that she took Chopra’s advice and created a gigantic Anglo fish for her to fight and kill right before the big finale. Will that be enough to get rid of her monster?

The Gospel

I appreciate Lady Gaga’s authenticity. She admits that she is troubled and that those who follow her are troubled. That is more than most Christians would like to admit about themselves. Also, her dream for the world is a noble one: “I dream and envision a future where we have a more peaceful religion or a more peaceful world, a more peaceful state of mind for the younger generation. And that's what I dream for.” In order to fulfill this dream Gaga has been using the tools of tolerance and acceptance. But, will these two things produce the kind of peace Gaga is longing for?

The idols of tolerance and acceptance may draw people in but it doesn’t a) provide the wisdom needed for what should and shouldn’t be tolerated, b) offer any spiritual resources for defeating our insecurities, and c) offer any resources for forgiving our enemies – which is part of the peace-making strategy. Gaga’s concerts may help people to feel accepted for a night, but what about when they go home? Will simply putting our insecurities on stage before the idols of tolerance and acceptance do any good?

Lady Gaga said herself that is confused and troubled. She is a sinner just like me. She has been guilty, as I have been, of tolerating sin, trying to save herself from her own fears and demons, and worshiping the approval of others. Her life and work has not been about glorifying God but about making herself famous and inviting her fans to share that glory with her. Is there still hope for her? Of course! As we look at the life of Nebuchadnezzar, we see that God is very merciful to the proud and famous when they repent. Not only can Gaga find forgiveness through the Gospel, but she can also find the resources needed to accomplish the goal of a more peaceful world.

The good news for Gaga and her fans can be found in Isaiah 9:6-7:

For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Of the greatness of his government and peace
there will be no end.
He will reign on David’s throne
and over his kingdom,
establishing and upholding it
with justice and righteousness
from that time on and forever.

Jesus has come. He is the Wonderful Counselor who shows us who God is and what he expects from us, which is better than the confusion of tolerance. He is the Prince of Peace for our troubled world. He has already, decisively, and triumphantly defeated Satan, sin, and death and reigns over all things. He is just and will punish everyone who has ever acted unjustly toward those who have been rejected in our society (including Gaga’s misfit fans).

The gospel is the answer to Lady Gaga’s fears:

· Death (Jesus has conquered death)

· Love (Jesus displayed how much he loved us by laying down his life)

· Men (Jesus died for his bride, the church, and commanded that all men protect, provide for, and lay down their lives for women)

· Loneliness (Jesus said that he will never leave or forsake us)

· Alcohol (Jesus has given us the Holy Spirit to control us instead of alcohol),

· Sex (Jesus has taken the fear out of sex by putting it within the boundaries of marriage)

· Commitment (Jesus has publically displayed his commitment to us on the cross so that we wouldn’t be afraid to commit ourselves to him)

When the fame is gone and the fans are too, Lady Gaga, Jesus’ love and approval won’t be. And in the new heavens and new earth, we will get invited not to a stage, but to the throne of God’s glory where we can enjoy him forever.

Gaining a Husband

What do Christians gain from the work of Jesus on the cross? We cannot be exhaustive here, so I will focus this blog series on four overarching blessings that come from Jesus’ work of salvation. The four things we gain are a Father, Husband, Family, and Ministry. We will split each of these up into a different blog post. We will focus on Husband today.

“Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish” (Eph. 5:25-27).

We, as the worldwide church, have Jesus as a husband. The Scriptures repeatedly say that we are the bride of Christ. Jesus, as our husband, performs the most sacrificial act that any husband could ever do when he “gave himself up.” As pastor Mark Driscoll often says, “He lived the life we should have lived and died the death we should have died.” Jesus loved his bride, the church, so much so that he took responsibility for our sin and paid the penalty for it.

Jesus not only died to pay the penalty for our sin, but to make us “holy and blameless” (Eph. 1:4). This is what is so beautiful about the storyline of Christianity. Jesus wants us as his bride but can’t have us because we aren’t worthy enough for him. So, he steps down from heaven, enters human history, takes responsibility for our sin on the cross, and purifies us so that we can be deserving of him.

Just as a husband and wife become one flesh, we become one flesh with Jesus through our union with him. To this point, Paul says, “For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church…” (Eph. 5:29-30). Jesus is our husband who chooses us, offers himself up for us, and takes care of us daily. He is strong and courageous in his sacrifice, yet also tenderly “nourishes and cherishes” us. In addition to his sacrifice and ongoing nourishment, he protects us by dressing us with the armor of God so that we are able to “stand against the schemes of the devil” (Eph. 6:11). Jesus’ work on the cross disarmed Satan and at the same time armed us with the belt of truth, breastplate of righteousness, shoes of readiness, shield of faith, helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit (Eph. 6:14-17).

Jesus is the perfect husband.

Gaining a Father

What do Christians gain from the work of Jesus on the cross? We cannot be exhaustive here, so I will focus this blog series on four overarching blessings that come from Jesus’ work of salvation. The four things we gain are a Father, Husband, Family, and Ministry. We will split each of these up into a different blog post. We will focus on Father today.

Theologian J.I. Packer said that he thinks the main theological theme of the whole bible is adoption. Paul said that we were adopted as sons through Jesus Christ (Eph. 1:5). When we are adopted into the family of God we no longer have to go after things like approval, comfort, pleasure, power, status, or identity in any other created thing. We get a good Father who has blessed us “in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places.” (Eph. 1:3).

Therefore, we can resist idolatry - which is turning a good thing into a god thing. It is making something in our life more ultimate than God. Paul said, in his letter to the Galatian church, “Formerly, when you did not know God, you worshiped the things that by nature are not gods” (Gal. 4:8). Nothing that God has created in this world (spouse, boyfriend, girlfriend, athletics, career, etc.) can fulfill us like God can. If we have the God of the Universe as our personal Father, we have available every spiritual blessing that we could ever need – in this life and the next.

As we all know, when earthly parents pass away, it is customary for them to leave an inheritance to their kids. Similarly, Paul says, “in Christ we have obtained an inheritance” (Eph. 1:11). This means that our heavenly Father will leave us with an inheritance that will never perish. This is an inheritance that we can’t lose once we’ve been sealed with the Holy Spirit “who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory” (Eph. 1:13).

Lastly, what is implicit about adoption is that we have a Father who will never leave or forsake us. In our culture, where many people don’t have a father due to abandonment, abuse, or divorce, we can be assured that we will always have a heavenly Father that is always there for us. We should be extremely thankful to Jesus for reconciling us to God the Father since we were once his enemies due to our sin (Rom. 5:10). Because of his work of redemption, we now have "full rights as sons [and daughters]" and have his Spirit within us crying out "Abba Father" (Gal. 4:4-6). Next week, we will look at what it means that we have gained a Husband.

The Gospel and Sex

The Gospel confronts our views and practice of sex. If sex becomes our ultimate pursuit, then we will be severely disappointed. That is why those who are trusting in sex as life’s highest pleasure are often the most unhappy. When sex doesn’t come through for them, they have to have more, jumping from one relationship (or porn site) to the next.

Sex gets reduced to an appetite that we feed when we have urges. On the flip side, if sex is reduced to producing offspring, then we strip sex of its power to produce radical pleasure and oneness in the marriage bed. Both of these practices reduce sex to something far less than what it was intended to be.

The bible tells us very clearly that everyone who misuses the gift of sex will be judged. Those who engage in adultery, sex before marriage, pornography, rape, bestiality, voyeurism, incest, pedophilia, prostitution, and the like will not not inherit the Kingdom of God (Gal. 5:19-21). Included in this group are those who might not have acted out their sexual fantasies, but who have lusted in their heart (Matt. 5:27). Ephesians 5:3 reminds us that “...there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality.” Not even a hint.

But, listen very closely to the good news. Even though the way out of the Kingdom is sexual immorality, the way back in isn’t to clean up your sex life. In one of the most remarkable stories in all of the bible, the religious leaders drug a sexually immoral woman out in front of everyone to kill her as a punishment. Jesus stepped into the hostile situation, saved her from death, and told her that he didn’t condemn her (John 8). How did she get off the hook so easily? Because Jesus was on his way to die for her on the cross. Like the woman in the story, Jesus dies for us while we are in sexual sin, not after (Rom. 5:8).

Jesus was even bold enough to say that prostitutes who repent will enter the Kingdom of God before the hypocritical religious leaders (Matt. 21:28-32).

Even though sex is a great gift to the world, it is important to remember that Jesus lived a single life. This is something we shouldn’t overlook. As we look at the life of Jesus, we see that sex is not the highest end a person’s life. Sex is a signpost that points beyond itself. Psalm 16:11 says, “...in [God’s] presence there is fullness of joy; at [His] right hand are pleasures forevermore.”

Through Jesus we can receive unceasing pleasure from God. And those who do experience this kind of pleasure will be freed from using sex in all the wrong ways.

Sex is a visible sign of two people becoming one flesh forever. It is a vulnerable, self-sacrificial act that communicates a heart of commitment to the other.

The cross is our visible sign that God sent Jesus to die for us so that we might be one with him forever. On the cross, Jesus became vulnerable and self-sacrificial to prove his commitment to his unfaithful bride, the church.

This content was taken from a gospel-centered bible study series that I'm working on called Gifts of God. To download the Sex study and others go to: http://t-zach.com/giftsofgod/

The Gospel Confronts The Way We Use Beauty

The Gospel confronts the way we use beauty to get acceptance. We can spend hundreds of hours on a treadmill or in the tanning booth and spend thousands of dollars on beauty products and treatments and still have no guarantee that the world will accept us.

If you try to attract someone who cares more about your physical beauty, you’ll have to spend your whole life maintaining your body to hold onto them. If you try to win God with your inner beauty, you’ll have to spend your whole life morally outperforming everyone else to hold onto him - which doesn’t work anyway because the bible says that all of us are morally unclean despite our best efforts (Isa. 64:6).

Having a nice body may get you into a night club or fraternity party and having a nice moral record may get you into a certain spiritual community, but neither of these are enough to get you into the gates of heaven.

Tim Keller points out: “If we struggle to live up to others’ standard of beauty, how will we ever become beautiful enough for God’s standard?” In other words, in the end, is there any hope for us?

The answer lies in the person and work of Jesus.

Jesus had unimaginable beauty and acceptance in heaven, but he gave it all up when he came humbly as a plain man into a world that rejected him. Isaiah 53:2-3 says, “He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by men... like one from whom men hide their faces...” Jesus lost his beauty so that you could gain yours.

Ephesians 5:25-27 says, “...Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her... to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish...”

The good news is that the story line of the bible is not what people think - that the gospel is about following all the rules so that we can make ourselves look more beautiful. No, at the heart of the gospel, is Jesus coming down out of heaven to cleanse his bride (the church) so that we might stand acceptable and confident in his sight.

This free gift of beauty is offered to all who trust in The One who purchased it for us at great cost on the cross.

Only when you realize you’ve been cleansed of all your internal beauty flaws by God through the work of Jesus, and know that even your physical beauty will one day be renewed (Phil. 3:21), will you be free from using and pursuing beauty in all the wrong ways.

Deep down we all fear being physically and emotionally exposed for who we really are. Thankfully, we have a God who was stripped, mocked, and rejected in public for our imperfections (on the cross) so that we might be covered with his perfection and never experience shame again (Matt. 27, Ps. 22).

This content was taken from a gospel-centered bible study series that I'm working on called Gifts of God. To download the Beauty & Appearance study and others go to: http://t-zach.com/giftsofgod/