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Post by LS on Feb 16, 2014 1:20:14 GMT
It's a slow day on the forums, so I thought it would be a good time to pass along an anecdote from a few years ago. I belonged to a Gym in the suburbs of Chicago for 7 years before moving to the city. Over that time I can think of only 2 or 3 occasions where they would play something other than modern POP music over the sound system. Not being a fan of POP music, I was pleasantly surprised to hear the song "Spirit In The Sky", by Norman Greenbaum, come over the sound system one Saturday afternoon. I thought to myself, "Man, I can't believe they're playing this song ... it's a great workout tune!" [This is probably a good time to link the lyrics to the song Spirit In The Sky Lyrics so the rest of the story will make sense.] So the song is playing and at around the 1:20 mark, "Prepare yourself, you know it's a must, gotta have a friend in Jesus" is played. Not 5 seconds later, silence ... and more silence for the next couple of minutes until a modern POP song began playing. I immediately knew what was going on; political correctness gone mad. I wasn't happy about what happened, yet not surprised either. I decided to write Mr Greenbaum and relay this story to him. It turns out he's a very nice gentleman and responded almost immediately, telling me that I wasn't the first person to tell him that his song was banned in the gym. He also said, "That's too bad because I think it's a great workout tune", which were my thoughts exactly. I read up a bit on Mr. Greenbaum and it turned out that he was not a Christian when he wrote the song and still isn't. He was (and presumably still is  a Jew and decided to use "Jesus" instead of "God" in the lyrics because he felt Jesus would be more marketable, as The Jesus Movement was gaining popularity at the time (1969) He was right, his one-hit-wonder sold 2 million copies between 1969-70. He's stated a number of times that while the residuals from the song haven't made him rich by today's standards, they've been enough to pay the bills and enabled him to enjoy his life. 1Samuel 2:30 |
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Post by morningstar on Feb 16, 2014 1:42:29 GMT
I remember that song when it came out in the 60"s, I liked it then. We should enjoy our Christian freedom while we still have it, because more and more it's being taken away from us until there is an all out ban on it. Liked your anecdote LS...Thanks for sharing that with us.
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Post by elizabeth on Feb 16, 2014 2:07:12 GMT
That's interesting LS. I remember that song, I used to like it. The name of Jesus is cursed in this horrible, evil world. People just don't realize they are lost.
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Post by LS on Feb 16, 2014 3:44:46 GMT
Just some random thoughts regarding your comments, Morningstar and Elizabeth ...
44 years ago a mainstream song proclaiming the name of Jesus was a hit, selling 2 million copies. The U.S. population at that time was 202 million and the world population was 3.6 billion. Today we have 313 million in the U.S. and 10.8 billion worldwide. We talk about diversity, social justice, inclusiveness, equity ... but what about Jesus? There was some crazy stuff going on in the late 60s and early 70s, but at least Jesus was still in the conversation. You had the Jesus people, the Jesus movement, Jesus freaks etc ... can you imagine that happening now? No way. Sad.
Edit: When I reread this post today I realized I never explained the population numbers I mentioned above. What I meant to say was that if, "Many are called, but few are chosen"(Matt. 22:14), then along with the increase in population comes an increase in the darkness that surrounds believers. Those of us who are older can see and feel the changes that have taken place over the years.
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Post by elizabeth on Feb 16, 2014 4:01:19 GMT
Christ is the enemy now. We are the enemy now, and that isn't going to change. It is so sad, and sometimes it's scarey to think about.
Edit to add: Sorry LS, I'm just so not good at staying on topic - because Christ is the enemy, they are not going to want to mention Him. That was what I was intending to say.
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Post by LS on Feb 16, 2014 21:10:59 GMT
How times have changed. I found the video below on the Chinese version of youtube (I think ... not sure if it will post here but I'll try). Bob Dylan only appeared on Saturday Night Live once, in 1979. He made the most of it though, by performing his gospel songs, "I Believe in You", "You Gotta Serve Somebody" and "When You Gonna Wake Up".v.youku.com/v_show/id_XMTY4ODI1MDY4.htmlIf it doesn't work, and you're interested in seeing it, here's the link: Dylan On SNL 1979When You Gonna Wake Up
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Post by Deleted on Feb 16, 2014 22:41:26 GMT
Oh, yeah, I've been in gyms that only played pop music, so I know what you're talking about. I remember "Spirit in the Sky" very well. I grew up as a teenager in the 60's. It was so weird, that song always bothered me, and these were the two things that bothered me about the song:
1. I thought the term, "spirit in the sky" was disrespectful. Jesus is not some "spirit in the sky", He is Lord and Savior, and worthy of the highest reverence. It reminded me of the term, "the man upstairs." That always bothered me, too.
2. The part that said, "Never been a sinner, never sinned" bothered me, too. As you know, the Bible says all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God."
I am so glad that you wrote and found out who actually wrote the song! Sounds like a nice man. Very interesting the he is a Jew and used Jesus name because it was the "in" thing back then because of the Jesus Movement back in the 60's. Honestly, I thought it was written by some hippie on acid or something, lol!!!
On a side note, I used to like "My Sweet Lord" by George Harrison until I understood what "Hare Krishna" meant in the song. Before that, I would be innocently singing, ""Hare, Hare", not knowing what the heck that was until I found out, YIKES!! That just ruined the song for me! Never sang that part again, that's for sure!
Thanks for sharing, Jim. Very interesting story.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 16, 2014 23:08:42 GMT
Those were really good songs by Bob Dylan. I never really listened to the lyrics of his songs. Actually, I never listened to his songs. I was into Motown in the 60's and Disco in the 70's. He was a great singer, and I wish I would have appreciated his music more back then. I'm glad that SNL received him well, and cheered his songs.
I used to watch SNL all the time, until I felt convicted by some of their risque comedy sketches, so I stopped watching. But I do have to say that the "Church Lady" was my favorite. I would really get a kick out of Dana Carvey. Wow, he played that role to the hilt. I read somewhere that when he went to church as a kid, he would witness some of the judgmental church ladies acting and talking like that, so he just reinvented that role as a sketch for SNL and it really took off.
Thanks for sharing those videos, Jim. It was an eye opener for me.
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Post by LS on Feb 17, 2014 0:46:31 GMT
Leeza, it's funny that we saw the lyrics to that song differently. I never really thought about them until I started reading scripture. I guess I had a little different take on his use of, "Spirit In The Sky", as I thought he was correct in saying that Jesus would introduce or "recommend" us to the Spirit In The Sky (which is why we needed a friend in Jesus). I was thinking of The Father as Spirit, as mentioned in John 4:24. Likewise, one could argue his lyrics of "never been a sinner, I never sin" could be correct when considering 1John 3:6. Now both of these are a bit of a stretch, but could be argued as being correct. Not bad for a Jewish, non-Christian just looking to make a hit song. Btw, as I recall, the lyrics were written very quickly, like in an afternoon or something like that.
OK, one more thing we hold in common, I too, used to listen to "My Sweet Lord" until I learned what he was singing about ... 
Glad you enjoyed the Dylan videos. Not many people are aware of Dylan's gospel period which consisted of 2 great albums, 1 so-so and lasted somewhere between 4-6 years. I thought his selection of songs for SNL was perfect. I really like "When You Gonna Wake Up", but unfortunately the camera director screwed up when Dylan was singing the most convicting line in the song (at around the 4 min. mark), which is, "Do you ever wonder just what God requires? You think He's just an errand boy to satisfy your wandering desires." The camera was on the organ player instead of Dylan. Anyway, glad you enjoyed them and thank you for the feedback
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Post by Deleted on Feb 17, 2014 2:51:07 GMT
Wow, I didn't see it like that, Jim! That was a good way of looking at it. I think it's pretty cool that two people can hear or see the same thing, but each has a different perspective. Kind of like "iron sharpening iron". That's how we learn. And you're right, that wasn't bad for a non-Christian! I'm so glad that someone else besides me didn't pick up on the lyrics of "My Sweet Lord" until later, lol!! I don't feel so bad, now.  About Bob Dylan, I thought I read something recently that he claimed to be a Christian during that time, but later turned his back against Christianity. Was that him, or somebody else? Wow, I hate to see that happen. They get so close to the Kingdom, like it says in 1 John 2:19, just to have the devil steal the seed that was sown. |
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Post by LS on Feb 17, 2014 3:10:22 GMT
That's a question many have asked over the past 25 years or so and I've given up wondering . I've heard others suggest what you have, but that would mean that he was never saved in the first place. If you read the lyrics of his gospel songs, you wonder how anyone without The Holy Spirit residing in them could write those songs, let alone take the abuse he oftentimes took while performing them.
Here's an interesting short video on his gospel music that I shared on the other site awhile back.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 17, 2014 4:16:18 GMT
Excellent point. The songs in the video gave me chills. So inspired. Hard to believe that a person who was never saved in the first place could write those; and like you said, put up with the abuse afterwards.
I guess I just don't understand how a born again Christian could utterly and completely turn away from Him after being so devoted to the Lord and writing such beautiful songs about Him. Speaking for myself, in my younger days when I was backslidden for a period of time, I was not living right and I knew it. But it would never occur to me, not even once, to deny Christ or renounce my Christianity. And, believe me, I am not patting myself on the back by saying that, either. It was the Lord's doing by not giving up on me that got me to repent and come back to Him. We really are like dumb sheep, lol! I went through a period of chastisement, and rightfully so. So it was through the Lord, by His grace and mercy, never giving up on me, that wooed and impelled me to return.
Believe me, there is nobody more miserable than a backslidden Christian. Since we have the Holy Spirit living inside of us, we can't go completely back into the world, but at the same time, it is so hard for us to go to church and be around other Christians (unless they are backslidden like us), because of the heavy conviction. So if the Lord's conviction doesn't make us return back to Him, then His chastisement sure does!!! Wow, talking about getting a licking...ouch! But I thank God so much for His chastisement, because it proves that we belong to Him and are not illegitimate children like it says in Hebrews 12:8.
Anyway, I do pray that Bob Dylan returns to the Lord. He was so devoted to Him, and I hate to see him turn away from his "First Love" like it says in Revelation 2:4.
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Post by shiloh on Feb 17, 2014 5:43:36 GMT
Hmmmmmmm, interesting thread, LS. I always thought of that song in the same way you did. I guess it all boils down to how a person perceives a certain song, witing, poem, etc. Different people have different views but I always had those same thoughts. We have a lot of late 60s that my husband made cds,etc out of and we have that song. I remember that one well, while growing up. Leeza, the late 60s and disco era were both my eras too, growing up.. You're correct! That made me laugh because we really ARE dumb like sheep. Maybe that's why Jesus used sheep as an example many times? I also loved the "church lady" on "Church Chat". Did you ever see the one with Danny Devito? That one is hilarious. Just type in "church lady with Danny Devito" It's on you tube but it reminds me of Catholic school except they were nuns who talked like that, instead. Well, isn't that special?!" |
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Post by Deleted on Feb 17, 2014 6:01:57 GMT
Oh my goodness, Shiloh, so you liked the church lady, too? Wasn't she a hoot? I would laugh so hard. Especially with that hokey dance at the end of the skit...hilarious!!
"Well, isn't that just special?" LOL!! I love the way that Dana Carvey just twisted up his mouth in that picture you just posted!
I'll look up at video right now over at Youtube. Depending on the contents, you think it would be okay to post it here?
Hummmm....maybe not! The church lady COULD get a little graphic with her descriptions, lol!!!
How about you, Jim? Did you like the Church Lady, too, or was that too over the top for you?
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Post by LS on Feb 17, 2014 6:07:39 GMT
Leeza, you said:
I agree, I don't understand how that could be possible either and I finally gave up trying to figure it out. With a high-profile person like Dylan, who btw, also likes to play around with interviewers, it's hard to know exactly what the truth is. I've read way too many conflicting stories over the past 20 years or so. One thing's for sure, time will tell.
Shiloh, again, so nice to have you back. I'm in full agreement with you and Leeza, I loved the Church Lady skit! Unfortunately, I jut tried finding the one with Danny DeVito and all the ones I've checked thus far have been blocked by NBC. All I saw was one 40 sec. piece with Carvey doing a drum solo as the Church Lady with DeVito ... I'm determined to find it though. Thanks for the heads-up!
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Post by Deleted on Feb 17, 2014 6:09:53 GMT
Well, Shiloh, the only one I got with the Church Lady and Danny De Vito was her playing the drums and the audio was so bad that I couldn't understand a word he said. Was that the one you were talking about, or was there another one?
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Post by Deleted on Feb 17, 2014 6:16:03 GMT
Jim, I can't believe you like the church lady, too, yeah!! That proves it, we definitely have the same kind of humor, lol! Like you, I couldn't find the right video, either.
About Bob Dylan, I didn't know about how he played around with the interviewers! Yeah, like you said, time will tell. Only God knows his heart. Hopefully we will see him in heaven!
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a Jew and decided to use "Jesus" instead of "God" in the lyrics because he felt Jesus would be more marketable, as The Jesus Movement was gaining popularity at the time (1969) He was right, his one-hit-wonder sold 2 million copies between 1969-70. He's stated a number of times that while the residuals from the song haven't made him rich by today's standards, they've been enough to pay the bills and enabled him to enjoy his life.
