Larry Norman died the last Sunday of Feb 08

Mr. 'One Way to Heaven' sign, Mr. The Original Jesus Freak of the Jesus Movement, Mr. You've Been Left Behind and Wish We'd All Been Ready gets to see Jesus before the parousia.

I must admit I'm sad about this though heaven has another Live-Wire on its hands. Larry clearly had his spiritual ups and downs as we all do but he was a trophy of God's grace. In the midst of the ongoing 'bless me' music Larry wrote about VD/STDs, civil religion, racism, UFOs, the 2nd coming of Christ, false notions of Jesus, etc. and did so in a fresh style that was current with the dominant youth culture music of his day. Kind of the original CCM in a Christian culture that was monopolized by hymns-only (believe it or not! we could use a few more of those these days!). Larry wrote 'The Six O'Clock News' on media bias long before Coulter or Limbaugh!

Too few write music on such themes from a Christian worldview even today but when people speak a word of Scripture to a current brokenness it seems to me it is always something commendable. Larry did it with "Only Visiting this Planet" and other works. Keith Green did it with "So You Want to Go Back to Egypt" and other works. Others follow in the trail they blazed. Sure there are the songs on what the culture tells us is important like AIDs and environmental concerns but who is writing today about human cloning, harvesting human eggs, human trafficking, preventive war, discernment about Sharia, global terror etc? A lot of the Jesus Movement sadly has become its own subculture. There are noteworthy exceptions and I believe that revival has lasting, righteous, and even profound impact but it must be spiritually discerned when market forces seek to pedal it for pedaling sake.

Christians (like Larry Norman) in the arts are often aware that they are on enormously needy ground. The arts are full of super egos, super marketed, super prostituted (at times), fickle fads and fans and are intense contexts for inappropriate, performance-based self-esteem/human dignity, or the lack thereof, drivenness, perfectionisms... good night it is a mine field. To be there and take a stand for righteousness and not be molded by it is very tricky. Booking agents, the need for the next big gig or award, how to wow them one more time...it is easy to lose focus on glorifying God and having a clear witness for Him in character, community, and content.

But death is a reminder of an empty tomb, and of a glorious reunion, of new bodies, of a new earth and heaven, of the ultimate victory of King Jesus. And it puts time and fortune and relationships...well actually the resurrection of Jesus from the dead and the super-real prospect of His any-moment return puts EVERYTHING in perspective! Jesus Lordship, our finite, frail, fallible, fallen status comes into focus and His glorious salvation as well.

How can one view such things and not turn from the self-centered life? Or see these things and not rely fully and only on Christ's substitutionary death for forgiveness of sin with great gratitude? Or not receive Him into the core of our being for empowerment over sin and His abiding Presence with us? How can one speak of knowing Jesus as a religious or therapeutic savior and not as King and rightful Lord whose word is our manifesto and unquestionably authoritative and true.

Thanks Larry for being a wonderful even if imperfect example of being a Christ follower who often thought and served and worshiped outside the box of mere political and denominational tribalisms, and various other group-think, conformities. Some musicians get knighted here below by mere mortals but today I suspect we can thank you in a fuller reality, Sir Norman. Thank you kindly.