Switchfoot makes me blog. (again)
Friday, February 9th, 2007, 7:24 pm
So Switchfoot came out with another CD, and my reaction is similar to their last one (which incidentally started me blogging): they may be musically talented, but I’m really sorry to see what they’ve become. Yes, you can make music that lots of people love, and yes, you can even get it distributed to Christians (who have this horrible habit of usually only consuming stuff that has the label “Christian” on it), but what do they say on judgement day?
“Gee, God, I know you gifted us really well, and so we made music that made a lot of people think. In fact, we purposely didn’t talk about Jesus because we knew it might offend some, and others might stop listening to our music. Bottom line is, offering hope just wouldn’t cut it with our target market, so we skipped that part. Talking about our faith kind of detracted from the music.”
Last I checked, Jesus Christ made lots of people think back in his day. Oh, yeah, he was pretty unpopular with some people, but that’s because he boldly offered truth, and challenged people’s thoughts, words, and actions, especially when they just wanted to be marginal.
God is love, and Jesus loved these people so much that he cared for them, spent time with them, and ultimately held out that oh-so-unpopular ultimatum: your sin requires payment by death. Accept me, or pay that penalty yourself.
I’m kind of glad that Jesus didn’t spend his time on earth sitting around moping about the doubts he had, the pain he was suffering as a result of leaving heaven to come and die, or any such mumbo-jumbo that seems to be quite popular in Switchfoot lyrics.
They call it “being honest with their thoughts/doubts/hurts”. I call it “being too wrapped up in your own problems to care about what God wants from you.”
David wrote a lot of Psalms about pain, hurt, doubt, sin, etc. He always ended praising God, or at the very least calling upon his name. Switchfoot: life isn’t always peachy, but you’ve forgotten the hope that Christ provides. Quit singing lyrics that provoke introspection and purposely avoid the only true answer.
February 12th, 2007 at 12:45 pm
a.) what’s wrong with introspection?
b.) I don’t think they avoid the only true answer. Do you think they point to some other answer?? if so, what?
c.) They have not forgotten the hope of Christ. If they had no hope beyond what this life offers, they wouldn’t be searching for something more.
d.) What’s so bad about doubting? Doubt leads to questioning, which can lead to discovery of Truth. I think God would rather have us doubt and come to our own acceptance of Him than to blindly accept force-fed answers
e.) “Last I checked, Jesus Christ made lots of people think back in his day. Oh, yeah, he was pretty unpopular with some people, but that’s because he boldly offered truth, and challenged people’s thoughts, words, and actions, especially when they just wanted to be marginal.”
Switchfoot does make a lot of people think by offering truth and challenging the norm - this makes them unpopular to the vast majority of people who would rather just listen to shallow music about bringing sexy back.
In support of my points, I encourage you to check out what Jon, the lead singer/songwriter, said about the meanings of the songs: http://www.yourmusiczone.com/go/ymz/news_more/oh_gravity_the_story_behind_the_songs/
he talks about spiritual rebirth, life beyond the grave, relying on God’s love, and not accepting the shallow answers this world offers.
I also encourage you to read more about Switchfoot and what they say about their music in relation to their faith. Just because they don’t sing typical worship tunes or mention Jesus in songs, that doesn’t make them unfaithful. A good place to look is here: http://forums1.columbiarecords.com/webx?50@619.ntVSa5bGi2L.2@.ef3fdfe
you can read the interviews in the first post there. This band really has a heart for God and His people, and I think that shows not only in their music (even if you have to think about it in order to see the Truth — GASP! did I just say THINK?! Yes, think about the lyrics), but also in their behavior & lifestyle on and offstage, and how they treat their fans.
Thanks for your thoughts
peace,
gellie
February 12th, 2007 at 3:52 pm
Gellie,
I appreciate your thoughts, but I guess I just keep coming back to the same thoughts. No, I do not question the personal faith that Switchfoot has, not do I have any right to. My main concern comes from their comment (from the second link you provided) that “We’ve always called ourselves a rock band and tried to stay away from anything that would limit our audience.”
It’s like they’re trying to take this light and hide it under a bowl so that only those who are really, really, really looking hard might find it. (see Matthew 5:13-16)
I read your link about the meanings behind the songs, and I encourage you to re-read them, only this time forget everything you know about God, Christ, salvation, “spiritual birth” (What’s that? Nirvana? Feng Shui? Good Kharma?) etc. His answers are non-answers–worded so that Christians on the inside will feel all warm and fuzzy that this great band is Christian, but vague enough to not offer any clear direction to someone looking, and certainly not ever mentioning Jesus Christ specifically, because that might turn some fans off of their music.
As far as your questions:
a) Introspection is good, if it leads you to find the answers. As Christians, we know this comes not from inside our sinful, depraved humanity, but from God through the Bible, prayer, and God revealing himself. Responsibly, Switchfoot could at least say “hey, we ask all these questions, and a good place to look for answers is the Bible.” …except then there goes the fan base.
b) Simply because they don’t point to some other (false) answer does not mean that they are not avoiding the only true answer. If they say nothing at all, they haven’t provided false answers, but they’ve avoided stating the true answer as well. (This is my claim: not that they preach falsehood, but that they avoid preaching the truth so they don’t offend anyone — see quote above)
c) If they hadn’t forgotten the hope of Christ, why would they still be searching? (Your statement–and their music–implies that they believe something greater exists, and they’re looking for it. But Christ is that hope, and obviously they’ve forgotten it or they wouldn’t still be looking.)
d) Doubting is human, but should not be encouraged. We do enough of that already. Need evidence? Look at “doubting Thomas”, read Hebrews 11, and try to count how many times Jesus is disappointed by a lack of faith in the New Testament. I think you’ll be suprised.
e) Again, Switchfoot does not offer truth. I could just as easily listen to their music and be convinced to become a Buddhist, or an anarchist, or a Witch Doctor, or a mathematician. You have to make decisive statements at some point if you’re going to offer truth, and they never do.
“How they treat their fans” is by raising a bunch of questions and skipping town before pointing anyone in the right direction for answers.
< sigh >
February 13th, 2007 at 11:59 pm
Some things to think about is labels. Some bands made up of Christian members don’t publish their music as Christian so that people will take their music seriously, or so that they may have a presence in the real world/music industry. They may also do this to be in the world to make a personal difference, or to influence the media/culture. There has been some groups doing the opposite. They go into Christian music because they think it will be easier to make it. If you call yourself a Christian band though I think your music should be overt. If you think that will hurt your ratings why are you in it???
February 14th, 2007 at 9:21 am
Kyle — well put.
My biggest gripe, I suppose, is not what they label themselves. It’s what we might call “The Great Omission”, and kind of falls under the category of that Francis of Assisi quote that a lot of Christians love to quote as a cop-out for sharing the gospel (not that I’m mr. evangelist by any means) — “Preach the gospel at all times. Use words if necessary.”
Shouldn’t that be “use words when necessary? At some point, regardless of everything else, we have to say the name of Jesus. As Acts 4:12 states, “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”
As Christians, who have made Christ our Lord, we MUST speak his Name in obedience to the great commission. To not do so is to disobey Him. To disobey Him is to sin.