Rescuing God from Praise Songs part 1

So...there is an idea I have had for quite some time that most praise songs have terrible theology.  To that end from time to time I am going to tear apart a worship song's theology.

Today's entry is on the song Above All, written by Paul Baloche and Lenny LeBlanc and popularized by Michael W. Smith.  It is a song which at first glance seems to have a great theology behind it.

Above all powers, above all kings

Above all nature and all created things

Above all wisdom and all the ways of man

You were here, before the world began

Above all kingdoms, above all thrones

Above all wonders the world has ever known

Above all wealth and treasures of the earth

There's no way to measure what you're worth

Crucified, laid behind a stone

You lived to die, rejected and alone

Like a rose, trampled on the ground

You took the fall and thought of me

Above all

Like I said at first glance you might not realize my big issue with this song.  I am a firm believer that God is above all of our man-made institutions, above whatever we consider to be worthy, and above whatever accolades that we conjure up for ourselves.  In addition I can totally get behind that Jesus died rejected and alone, and the line 'like a rose, trampled on the ground' is great poetically and visually.  But then the song takes a giant leap into absurdity and claims that Jesus, while hanging on a cross thought of 'me' above all.  This is simply not true.  What saying of Jesus can we point to that says that he holds any one of us in higher esteem than another?  Where in scripture can we find even one iota of the concept that the individual is greater than the community?

That is where I think that American Christianity has missed the boat, we tend to think that this faith is really all about me and God, all by ourselves, which couldn't be further from the truth.  Jesus didn't come for an individual he came for a body comprised of many parts.  Yet we do exactly what we are told not to and decide that the eye is more important than the body, or that the pinkie finger is more important than the body.  If we look at it from that perspective we understand the obviousness of its ridiculousness, but when we say things like 'even if I was the only sinner Jesus still would have died for me,' we see no problem with it at all.

To be honest I don't think that if I was the world's only sinner Jesus would have come to die for me, nor do I think that he would have even had to consider that option.  I am sure Jesus could have just come down, talked to me, and if I chose to follow him he could have simply said 'you are forgiven, go and sin no more,' which he did do from time to time before he was betrayed and hung on a cross to die.

As I said, I think that we have missed the boat in regards to the individual vs the community.  The Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, is a book of, by, and for the people.  God even went so far as to say that it was not good for man to be alone at the beginning of the book, which kinda implies that we only find our best when we are found with others.

I still find the song very meaningful, but when I sing it I change the last line in this way, 'you took the fall and thought of me and of all,' it is a simple change, but one that places me in the context of the larger body, not as an elbow all by itself.

Maybe I am being ridiculous, maybe I am venting, or maybe I am attempting to rescue God from the praise song.

Peace and Love,
Pastor K