Thursday, April 10, 2008

Jesus On American Idol

Anybody else notice how much Jesus has been mentioned on American Idol lately? Here are some lines from songs that have been sung on Idol in the past two weeks:
"We've all been crucified and they nailed Jesus to the tree
And when I'm born again you're going to see a change in me." --sung by Jason Castro
"I've got all I need. I've got Jesus and gravity." --sung by Dolly Parton
"He said He'd never forsake you or leave you alone. Trust Him.
Right here by my side. Carry me home. Jesus!" --sung by Mariah Carey
"Shout to the Lord all the earth, let us sing!
Power and majesty, praise to the King!" --sung by the top 8 finalists during the closing ceremony of Idol Gives Back.
Now, for sure, the folks at American Idol know that Christians are big "givers." So it's smart on their part to include some religious overtones into the show when they're trying to bring in donations for the Idol Gives Back program. But isn't it interesting that the name of Jesus--considered so "offensive" by many--is brazenly uttered on the most-watched television show in America so much lately?
Don't get me wrong. I think it's wonderful. Who cares what their motivation, if any, is? In Philippians, Paul says:
But what does it matter? The important thing
is that in every way, whether from false motives
or true,Christ is preached. And because of this, I rejoice.
-Philippians 1:18 (NIV)
Amen!

3 comments:

julia said...

Great point.

And you know what? I don't think "Jesus" is that offensive. A whole lot of other words sure are, like "Christian", and so forth. I'm in "Christian" radio, and have no problem being sensitive to immature or not-yet believers, and talking about Jesus all I want. They're drawn to it.

Weird thing: Some Christians don't care for it. Not kidding.

Brant

P.S. I'm not "Teapot Sue", but my daughter is. And yes, this is embarrasssing...

Tim Glenn said...

Isn't that interesting! Did you notice that last night they sang Shout to the Lord again...but this time sang "My Jesus..."

Thanks for reading...and for commenting, Brant...er, teapot Sue.

:?)

tim

Carolyn said...

Excellent post, Tim! I appreciated your angle! Thanks for visiting my blog!