BRUNO’S EXCHANGE FOR A LIE – May 3
May 3, 2014“Therefore, God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God, for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.” Romans 1:24-25
Occasionally, the audacity of pop culture directly confronts and confounds me.
I normally travel within a sanitized cocoon of musical lyrics emanating from a radio of pre-set Christian stations. Long ago, I ceased to care about those who were occupying the top of the music charts, attending the awards shows, or destined to define the current decade.
Since I only occasionally dip my toe into the pool of pop culture’s current offerings, I am usually astounded by the contrast of worship between these two worlds. This recently happened when I took a company car to a meeting. The radio was set to a local pop station and the melodies of Bruno Mars immediately grabbed my attention and got me bobbing to the rhythm. As I began to listen more closely to the lyrics, I found them ridiculous. I shook my head as he sang the following:
“Never had much faith in love or miracles
Never wanna put my heart on the line
But swimming in your water is something spiritual
I’m born again every time you spend the night
‘Cause your sex takes me to paradise
Yeah, your sex takes me to paradise
And it shows, yeah, yeah, yeah
‘Cause you make me feel like I’ve been locked out of heaven”
Bruno Mars, Locked Out of Heaven
Consider for a moment what these lyrics are communicating to the millions who have listened to this song (there are over 254 million views of this video on YouTude as of this date). He is willing to be barred from heaven because sex provides a suitable alternative. He does not need to be born again in Christ because he is born again in sex. I can only conclude that Bruno Mars has a stunningly low view of paradise if he truly thinks that sex is comparable.
The Christian’s understanding of paradise would be a poor hope for anyone if sex were an equitable exchange.
This song represents a culture with a shockingly low view of God. Bruno Mars is advocating a belief that the physical release of a sex caused neurological soup is equivalent to experiencing the majesty of the Divine Presence; an ordained voice in the choir of heavenly hosts is akin to the worship of created flesh; the momentary invigoration of sexual intimacy is equivalent to eternal rebirth into the family of the Creator.
This simple song represents the exchange by countless generations of Truth for the worship of the created. It is a capitulation to the inherent lie resulting from a low view of God. The sad reality is that this exchange of a low view of God is not limited to the world that does not know Him.
In today’s Christian culture, lofty exultations of God are often substituted for low, personal interpretations of a shallow god, unworthy of deep contemplation and worship.
How long is our silent adoration upon all the Biblical attributes of God?
How often are we awed by God’s absolute power and sovereignty?
How balances are devotions of “Jesus as friend” and “Jesus as Master”?
Our friendship with Christ is most amazing when viewed in the reality of Jesus as Lord. We will be tempted to make an inequitable exchange of knowing Christ Jesus for the worthless trinkets of this created world, when we lose our appreciation of the majesty of God. Paul said:
Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. (Romans 3:8a)
Paul’s high view of God enabled him to recognize the disparaging worth between the created and the Creator. It is only through the worship of Jesus as Lord that losing everything in exchange for knowing Christ Jesus becomes an equitable exchange.
Be still, and know that I am God.
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth!
(Psalms 46:10)
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We need to learn the practice of silent and humble worship before throne of the King of kings.
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We need to regularly experience the awe that inspires the laying down of crowns and scepters at the feet of our Redeemer.
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We need to contemplate upon our Savior, high and lifted up, at the right hand of His Father, sovereign over all the earth as often as we are comforted by His loving friendship.
- We need to strain through the fog of misplaced values and keep our eyes on the truth of God and the Paradise that awaits those who belong to Christ.
It is by keeping our eyes on the lofty personage of Jesus Christ that we will be kept from the horrid exchange of a lie for truth and consider it a bargain to lose everything for knowing Jesus Christ, who is blessed forever.
PRAYER: Father, I pray for Bruno Mars – open his eyes to your surpassing worth; show him the lie that he has exchanged for the truth about you. Forgive me for all the times that I have made a similar exchange. Forgive me for all the things of this world that I have refused to count as lost. Forgive me for taking such a low view of your majesty and surpassing worth. Open my eyes, O’ Lord. Change the loves of my heart. Give me new passions and desires and to treasure the truth about you. Help me to live in the reality of your Truth. I pray this in the precious name of your Son, Jesus Christ. Amen
RELATED POST: GOD IS (NOT) MY BUDDY
A DEVOTED LIFE 
Looking back over this during my “quiet time” with God, I saw something I missed before.
The song talks of his lady’s (I’m assuming it’s a woman, anyway) sex making him feel “locked out of Heaven” as though it were a positive thing. That doesn’t even make any sense…why would being locked out of an eternity with God feel good in any way?
I’ve felt that way, felt as though God had abandoned me, as though He hated me and “locked me out of heaven”. I’ve been treated for depression/bipolar and I can assure you, depression so bad you have to take medicine for it feels anything *but* good. I know God will never abandon me but I couldn’t see that. Why in the world would Bruno Mars or anyone else glorify that?
Thank you for, among other things, not being afraid to write the word “sex” or to deal with its place among spiritually and earthly minded people. I ask some questions that “theprozacqueen” asks. I also ask whether some Christian music might be mesmerizing us and influencing us differently — usually good, sure, but sometimes, songs comes along that subtly influences theology or thinking or living in a way that isn’t on track. I keep more to music with instruments only, having mostly left a poppish-Christian music heyday behind (with some wistfulness).
Great post, Brother! There are so many artist who spread this false sense of fulfillment via the world.
[…] BRUNO’S EXCHANGE FOR A LIE – Bruno Mars: trapped in a life of sin; shackled to a life of sorrow and grief. Though many Christians might believe the money, fame and fortune of this world are worth pursuing, a look at any of the famous singers of 2014 supplies proof otherwise. They live their lives in darkness and offer testimonies of their condition every time they open their mouths, either in song or speech. […]
Thank you for writing this–read this very carefully. It’s unfortunate that sometimes “Christian” can affirm a non-believer as if it’s all okay. Jaeson Ma, a false prophet and a music artist, has paired up with Bruno to make a music video that celebrates love that sadly is promoted by many Christians. Thank you for your analysis, I pray for his salvation.
Great prayer…We need to be careful that we don’t fall into the same trap that a lot of popular artists today do, and think that it is about what makes us feel good…God is concerned for the whole of creation, including the parts of creation that we might consider lost…Let us continue to pray for the salvation of the whole world!
Very powerful commentary. I, too, rarely listen to any music other than Christian. When I do, I am shocked by how shallow and self-serving popular music is.
If you want to know something that’s even *more* sad…I’d be willing to bet that whoever wrote that song (maybe it was Bruno, maybe it wasn’t) has no idea what message is coming across. They just wrote the words because they sound good. They don’t care *what* people take from it, if they take anything at all.
I know this sounds cynical but I can’t help but wonder about this, at least with some artists. Do they know what they’re saying and, if they did, would they care?
Good post J.D. Great questions to ask. Bruno is so lost in his sin that he cannot see the Father but the Father sees him and desires that he come into his presence. How blinded he is and unashamedly so. He needs Jesus before he leaves this earth to enter eternity. What will it take?