Alice Cooper – I Just Wanna Be God

Dragontown

The character of Alice Cooper is the villain of his show. You’re meant to cheer against him. He says things and does things that fly in the face of normalcy and decency. He is counter cultural and digs up those things we’d rather be left buried. And that’s a good thing. He challenges us to recognise the things in this world that we’d rather sweep under the carpet and ignore. And sometimes, whilst he’s delighting us with sick fantasies, he can reveal something about human nature that we’d rather he didn’t say. Because it’s true. I DO just wanna be God.

 I like to be in control. I like to decide what happens where and when. When everything has been thrown into chaos, when things are exploding left, right and centre, when everyone else is running and screaming, I like to be the guy standing in the middle of it all with a clear head and a plan. I don’t like to be told no. I like to be the final authority. I like to be able to tell everyone else that they are wrong and I am right. I like to be the guy people come to because they know I have all the answers. And I’d really like it if everyone else acknowledged this. Basically, I want to be God.

That’s why the song I Just Wanna Be God resonates with me. It speaks the things that are in my heart. The song puts to music what the voices in the back of my head have always been saying. The voices tell me that I’m important. That I’m the most important guy in the universe. That I am in control. That I determine my fate. And that any event that gets in the way of this is an affront. Why can’t I be God?

I’m in control
I got a bulletproof soul
And I’m full of self-esteem
I invented myself with no one’s help
I’m a prototype supreme
I sit on my private throne
And run my lifestyle all alone
Me, myself and I agree
We don’t need nobobdy else

I never learned to bow, bend or crawl
To any known authority
I really want to build my statue tall
That’s all

I’m just trying to be God
I only wanna be God
I just wanna be God
Why can’t I be God

I got no time to take advice
I want to gamble with my eternity
With loaded dice
I don’t need a preacher in my face
When I’m the omnipresent
ruler of the human race
Ain’t gonna
Spend my life being no one’s fool
I was born to rock and I
was born to rule
But if I’m wrong on judgement day
I’m royally screwed with hell to pay

I never learned to bow, bend or crawl
To any known authority
I really want to build my statue tall
That’s all

I’m just trying to be God
I only wanna be God
I just wanna be God
Why can’t I be God

I’m just trying to be God
I only wanna be God
I just wanna be God
Why can’t I be God

I’m just trying to be God
I only wanna be God
I just wanna be God
Why can’t I be God

Why can’t I be God? Why can’t I be in charge? Why can’t I be the one to decide what is best for me? Why can’t I be the one who determines right and wrong? It’s a question we all ask in some way, shape or form. And the question has a name. When we ask why can’t I be God, when we assert ourselves as the king of creation, that’s called Sin. When we hear the word Sin, we normally think of doing the wrong thing, of breaking the rules. But it’s more than that. Sin is telling God, the creator of the universe, that he is not the king of your life. That you know how to run your life better than he does. Romans 8:6-12 tells us The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace; the sinful mind  is hostile to God. It does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God. Whether we know it or not, whether we acknowledge it or not, whether we like it or not, when we deny the sovereignty of God over our lives we are being sinful.

And the consequence for this? But if I’m wrong on judgement day, I’m royally screwed with hell to pay. I know it isn’t pretty. I know it isn’t politically correct. But if God is real then so is hell. And if the penalty for sin is going to hell then it is stupid to ignore it. We need to wake up to the fact that sin isn’t just what “Bad” people do. Sin is something we do every second of our lives. And if we don’t deal with sin, then there’s going to be hell to pay. Literally. And the only way to be free from the penalty of sin is through the redemptive work of Jesus.

Why can’t I be God? Because there’s already a God and he knows what he’s doing better than me.