We Denounce Vialism

Exodus 20:1-5
Then God spoke directly
to all the people:
“I am the Lord your God,
who rescued you
from the land of Egypt,
the place of your slavery.
You must have no other god
but me.
You must not make for yourself,
(as something to worship)
an idol of any kind
or an image of anything in the heavens
or on the earth or in the sea.
You must not bow down to them
or worship them, for I am God,
your God, and I am a jealous God.
I will not tolerate your affection
for any other gods.”

 

DISCOVERY BIBLE STUDY
1.  What does this verse say about who God is?

2.  What does it say about who God created you to be?

3.  Create an iWill Statement that turns your discovery into action.

 

TWENTY ONE PILOTS LYRIC
Levitate
Track 2 on Trench
We denounce Vialism
You will leave Dema and head true east
We are banditos
The Gospel According to Twenty One Pilots

 

SEVENAPPLES COMMENTARY
What Is Vialism?
My wife and I have been stuck on
the statue from Nico And The Niners
for weeks.  What’s it represent?
Why’s it looking up?
What’s it doing with its hands?

Early on I wondered if the statue
was meant to embody self-worship.
After all, the statue is the centerpiece
of the temple where Nico and the Niners
create and begin worshipping the false
light they manufactured in order to
hypnotize their followers.  But I wasn’t
sure. And then we went to the TØP
show in Houston last month and my
wife noticed something that’s been
right in front of us the whole time.
Picture yourself in the pit as Tyler
walks across the sky-bridge.  It was
at that moment when my wife said,
“Babe!  Look at the audience!
Look at how they’re holding their
phones!  The statue!  It’s us!”

Maybe you need more convincing?
Check out the hands of the statue
at minute 01:20 in the Nico And The
Niners music video.  That statue isn’t
looking up at interlocked fingers.
There’s something small and flat
between those two hands.
It’s a cell phone.

Unless I’m a fool (which I’m okay
with), I think Tyler & Josh are telling
us something deeply personal with this
representation of ourselves in their video.
And once again, I think the answer’s
right in front of us; right there in the
first three words of the song. “We
denounce vialism.”  Put that phrase
another way: “We reject the worship
of created things.”  And if that’s not
the Gospel according to Twenty Øne
Piløts, I don’t know what is.

Whether or not any of this rings true,
I would encourage you to ask yourself
something: Am I guilty of vialism?
Am I looking to created things to
rescue me? Am I letting social media
and my device define me?  Am I
worshipping Josh & Tyler for saving me
(when it was really the Good News
embedded in their lyrics that did
the work)?

Our devices can’t save us.  Likes
won’t satisfy us.  And as amazing as
they are, not even our two awesome
frens are worthy of our worship.  And
they know it.  And they want us to know it.
Which is why they’re asking us to do
something about it.

Leave Dema.  Head True East.

 

IMAGE DETAILS
Tyler Worship
Twenty One Pilots Gallery
Bandito Tour
Houston, Texas
Fall 2018

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