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.”   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