Is God famous?

Celebrity fills our American culture. We love our movie stars, singers, American Idols and others. Each industry has its’ celebrities. Business has its’ entrepreneurs, CEO’s and super investors. Sports has quarterbacks, home run hitters and slam dunk champions. Politics has its’ president, chairmen of committees and the up and comers. These are people that are known not only in their field, but known by the general pubic as well.

Famous people are looked up to, loved, hated and detested. Being a celebrity does not equal well liked. In fact the worst thing that can happen to a celebrity is that no one cares about them not that people hate them. In Brad Paisley’s hit song Celebrity the lyrics ring true…

“I’ll make the supermarket tabloids,

They’ll write some awful stuff,

But the more they run my name down,

the more my price goes up”

For a celebrity, almost any publicity is good. It is an indication that people are still paying attention to you. People are interested by the things that you do, enough to read them in a magazine or search you on the internet.

What is fame though?  It is simply being generally known by people. In our culture fame is not an indication that you are good or talented or funny or smart. It simply means that you are known. The Rolling Stones are famous for their music. Marilyn Manson is famous for being theatrical and causing a stir. Mother Teresa was famous for being compassionate. Billy Graham is famous for preaching the Bible. Jeffrey Dahmer was famous for murder.  All famous, without regards to morality or talent, just famous, well known people in our culture.

But how does one become famous?  You do something notable that  people talk about.

The Beatles sang a song that people liked. They told other people, called the radio stations to play the music, bought the (in those days) records… and before you know it, everyone knows the Beatles.

Tom Cruise got a role in a movie, people liked him, they liked the movie, he makes another movie, people go see it… and before you know it, he is a famous movie actor and lots of people know Tom Cruise.

There is a difference however in what you are known for. Julia Roberts is famous for making movies, for acting.  Her fame is tied to portraying someone she is not. Nothing wrong with that, it is her talent. She is not famous for being a great person.  I don’t know, maybe she is a great person, but it is not what she is known for.  Kenny Chesney is famous for singing songs, great songs. I like his music. But he is not famous for being a great person. That is not what gets his music played on the radio and sells out concerts everywhere, it is his talent for making music. Now he may be a great person, I don’t know, but it is not the reason he is known.

We love celebrity. Look at how many TV shows, and networks for that matter, that are dedicated to celebrity. Celebrities make the news– for having babies, for getting divorced, for saying strange things, for… well for stuff that if you and I did it, no one would really notice, except maybe your mom. We think we know celebrities. From the tabloids, books, TV interviews, articles or gossip columns, characters they play or the public persona they have,  we have put together a mental picture of who these people are, and we love or hate them for it.  But how well do we really know them?  Hardly at all.

Think of the people that really know you. Who are they? The people that live with you, share in your life, support you through the tough times, listen to your hurts, celebrate your joys, know both the mundane and the dramatic in your life… people that share the everyday of who your are. Very few people know celebrities that way. And frankly, if we did know them that way, we might feel a lot different about them.

Now let’s ask a question… is God famous?

I mean is he a well known throughout the world. And not just known in name, but known, famous, for being full of love, grace, help, hope and mercy.

Now don’t get all turned around and theological, I know that God has made Himself known to all the earth and that the whole earth is full of His glory… but is He famous with the people we encounter every day?  I am not trying to be irreverent, well maybe just a little, but I want us to think about the culture that we live in and the God who is great enough to be known for who He is.

Listen to the prayer of the prophet Habakkuk, and think about the world we live in today….

Habakkuk 3
¹ This prayer was sung by the prophet Habakkuk: ² I have heard all about you, Lord, and I am filled with awe by the amazing things you have done. In this time of our deep need, begin again to help us, as you did in years gone by. Show us your power to save us. And in your anger, remember your mercy. (NLT)

Habakkuk, in essence, says that “God you are famous for your awesome miracles that you have done in the past..”.  If you were to ask the average person on the street, “what has God done lately that has caught your attention?”  What do you think the answer would be?

I would imagine most of you are thinking the same thing I am– the man would shrug his shoulders and say, “I don’t know” or “nothing” or “I am not sure”.  So why, to this man, would God not be famous?

Because we, His people, have not made Him famous….

Habakkuk says that He stood in awe of God’s works, of His awesome deeds. How did He know them?  Someone, a “fan” of God, told Him, in such a way that caught Habakkuk’s attention. Let’s pause for a second and ask a question, “when was the last time that you were awed by God, that you were amazed at His power or love or forgiveness or patience…?”  Just like all the people that are famous, they had fans who talked about them to others, encouraged others to listen or watch, defended them when someone didn’t like them, they were more than casual onlookers… those fans became “evangelists” for their favorite movies stars or singing groups. Don’t believe me?  Try going onto www.wordpress.com and type in the name of a celebrity- see if there is not at least one blog that is dedicated to showering praise upon them.

The church is on earth to, in a sense, make God famous. To share His great love, power, and mercy with the rest of the world. If we don’t talk of His great works, who will make His power famous?  TV?  Radio?  If we don’t speak of Him in a positive way, talking about His sacrificial love, who will make His love famous? Twitter? Blogs?

You might be saying, “yea, but who would believe us?”  Does it matter that everyone  believes you or that  just one would believe you?  If we are waiting for the day that everyone will receive the work of God and believe our witness to His love and power… then we are waiting for a day that will never come. It didn’t happen for Noah, Elijah, John the Baptist or Jesus, but it never stopped them from sharing God’s greatness, to make Him famous among the people… and neither should we. Our culture will never 100% buy in to God’s greatness, but neither do they all agree that Peyton Manning is a great quarterback or that U2 is a great band or that Titanic was a great movie. So let’s not wait until all the reviews are in before we sing God’s praises out in the world.

Habakkuk says, “I have heard of your awesome deeds…now we need you to do some of those things you are famous for today, in our day come down in power.”  What an amazing prayer. He knew who God was well enough to believe that God was relevant and needed for today. God’s fame, from times past, drove Habakkuk to God in need of His power and His mercy today. Why?  So God can be famous in our day.  I would love that!

Would it not be an awesome thing if God’s latest work was on the lips of everyone in town- “did you hear what God did…”.  I join Habakkuk in praying that prayer for us, that God would work in such a way, and we would share His awesome deeds, that people everywhere would be aware of more than His name, but that He would be famous in the world over for His love, compassion and power.

I have no ax to grind with celebrities, but truly they don’t add deep meaning to our lives, except to entertain us for a while. Yet we talk of them all day. God has everything to add to our lives, including love, joy, peace and eternity. Yet we barely speak above a whisper in a world that desperately needs what God offers.

Lord,

In this time of our deep need, begin again to help us, as you did in years gone by. Show us your power to save us. And in your anger, remember your mercy.  And we Lord will increase your fame as we talk of your awesome deeds and share your great love.