Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah

I've heard this secular "Hallelujah" song many times, but I don't know what to think about it. It is a very beautiful song. Any time I hear the word Hallelujah my heart rejoices at the idea. I FULLY understand the concept and situation of hallelujah even after having failed God, and that brokenness that God will not despise. As MANY OF US, I have come to that "thou art the man” moment that David came to, and experienced the Psalm 51 remorse and repentance begging God to take not His Spirit from me. THANK GOD for grace and forgiveness!

I also know that as Christ conquered sin and the grave, there is another HALLELUJAH that is experienced when we are forgiven and reconciled, and we don't continue in that defeat, but we are made overcomers through Him who is Lord of all. We will continue to inadvertently do things that displease Our Lord, because we will continually make mistakes and feel remorse for them, but the power of sin over our lives is BROKEN in Christ and through His power we are afterwards able to say NO to temptation.

"There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. ” I Cor. 10:13.

Although this song is beautiful, and I don’t know the real motives of the author, but in my thinking, it fails to tell the whole story. In my thinking it leaves the hearer with the "broken hallelujah” and fails to portray the hope of a "reconciled hallelujah”. We are called to the ministry of reconciliation. The "broken hallelujah” is step in the direction of the "reconciled and healed hallelujah”, but it is not there yet.

With the last verse of the song clearly stating: "Well, maybe there's a God above” it is obvious that the author doesn’t know God. The song is very popular, but in my thinking, it somewhat puts a religious Band-Aid on the gaping wounds that Christ is well capable of healing.

Maybe I’m too over analytical. I’m sorry. I just wondered what your thoughts were on the song.

There’s nothing Christian about it, in my opinion of course.

That being said, I do think it is possible for non- Christians to write/perform "sacred” songs(particularly instrumental music), I just don’t think this is one of them.

I agree :)
It is worthwhile listening to Joe Schimmels They sold there souls to the devil
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wnl7Rgwa08w

Jesus said these words I speak to you are spirit when we speak words they are spirit becasue we are Christian and the words we speak come from the holy spirit we are to speak blessing, but the Bible said there's another spirit that works in the children of disobedience the spirit of the Prince in the power of the air and when the children of wrath as Paul puts it, when they speak the spirit behind them comes out of their words. Jesus said the words that I speak are spirit and they bring life and the opposite is true The Prince and the power of the air the spirit that works in the children of disobedience does not bring life but brings death curses and sickness and bondage and music is just a vehicle through which words travel and instruments and melodies propel those words with greater force than normal, if the eyes are the lamp of the body what are the ears, be careful how you hear Jesus says. Paul says set your mind on the things above, how can things from beneath bless us how is that even possible when it comes from the spirit of the Prince in the power of the air Paul said in which you once walked but now you've been washed and you've been justified and you've been sanctified, where is there any biblical credence to listening to anything and watching anything that comes from the world spirit, what is really received through worldly secular music is unclean baggage and unclean spirits it's a form of sorcery and a form of control, music changes your life. Words bring in blessings or cursings and change your life. Many time music which contains words is a form of gossip and complaining and cursing, the words themselves are from people whinging and complaining about life and that is being dumped into our ears if we listen to it theres not a lot of neutral ground to stand on, maybe you can be blessed by the words of an unbeliever but arnt we meant to be blessing to the unbeliever rather than listening to their complaints and taking in their curses, we are meant to be the light of the world.
If we are the light and the salt of the Earth what are they what are they, whats shining out of their minds, are their eyes the lamp of the body and what if their eyes are the lamp of the body as Jesus said and the light that is in them is darkness is not there for the whole body full of darkness what can we get from an unbeliever whose separate from God, and who are not the light of the world I don't see how it's possible to actually be blessed the way we want to be blessed by listening to secular music and watching TV and Hollywood movies very dangerous for the Christian who wants to walk in sanctification and holiness we are to shine our light and we are to speak the truth we are to look for the light and listen to the truth. What comes out in secular music is just emotional baggage from an unsaved person who doesn't serve god, loading it upon other unsaved people bringing them into further bondage how is this meant to edify our spirit and exhort and encourage us how is it even possible I don't see any new testament verses that would allow for that at all, set your mind on the heavenly things not on the earthly things.

THANKS SINCERELY for all of your comments and the video. Paul tells us in Colossians 4:6  "Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man." I have almost always enjoyed the discussions on this forum. People who are interested in genuine revival are more interested in knowing The Truth on every issue. I was SO relieved that there weren't any worldly views defending the song.

So that you may know the reason for the question, perhaps I need to give a little background. I've been working for a very wealthy religious but lost man for almost 14 years who will soon be 80 years old. He is very educated but Biblically quite ignorant. He is quite strong willed and rarely allows an opening up to discuss eternal things, but yesterday, God allowed such a door to swing open whether he wanted it to come open or not! He has been urging me with many news articles and ardent discussions to get the COVID vaccine. He is a persuasive person, but my thoughts on the issue are just as strong as his, but totally in the other direction. Finally after what seemed to be an unending discussion yesterday morning, I finally told him that he is giving me a really good illustration for a sermon. He is trying his best to convince me that I need this vaccine. I stubbornly believe very little of the "facts" that he is presenting me. In his thinking I am doing a VERY foolish thing. In reality there is something MUCH worse than COVID. It is in every human being. It HAS A VERY REAL REMEDY that works every time. The blood of Jesus cleanses from all sin.....

THANK GOD for those moments when The Holy Ghost shows up and drops a bomb that communicates TRUTH to even the most rejecting and rebelling souls. Every time someone hits a home run in a discussion with my boss, he relentlessly diverts the discussion in another direction. He was quick to point out that it "didn't work" for even some of Jesus' own disciples... As usual, he started talking about all of the wars that had been fought in the name of Christianity, the "injustice" of Christ's claims to be the "ONLY" way to God ... and other fallacies that he has propped up his religious agnosticism with most all of his life. He goes to a very formal historic church (once in a while), but he wreaks with agnosticism toward the claims of Jesus Christ.

I keep praying for this elderly man hoping for a miracle before it is too late. With God all things are possible, and charity hopeth all things. This morning when I checked my work email, he had sent me an email with a video of a moon rise behind a light house with the "hallelujah" song playing. He wrote: "I thought you would appreciate." I didn't reply to his email. As I expressed in my post, the music, though beautiful to the emotions is such a failure because it doesn't go on through to what a redeemed HALLELUJAH would be. It is really (to me) almost depressing to listen to it. If he were to have asked me if I liked the video, I was wondering how I would reply. In a multitude of counsellors there is safety. That is why I brought it to this forum. I know that his religious but lost mind wouldn't have understood any explanation that I could have given him. He apparently really thought that he was sending me something that I as a devoted Christian would really like. To a religious person such songs are almost heavenly. To a truly born again person they are depressing misrepresentations.

Amen may god grant repentance to your boss and soften his heart, that he might humble himself, I been living with my father who is 84 who is even less religious,an agnostic,we have had many hours of discussion in the spirit, but to no avail, God resists the proud, but only gives his grace to the humble, that just the way it is.

BrotherGary, we must keep praying for them until they draw their last breath. I heard a testimony one time that was VERY encouraging. A man who was in a family that didn't know God was saved as a young person. Of course he suffered ridicule and rejection from his entire family at first. Little by little as he kept praying for them and trying to shine the light into their darkness, one by one his brothers, his mother, and others began to come to know God.

The HARDEST to reach was his dad. His dad felt like he was a good guy. All his life he had provided for them, and he had "done all the right things" and he didn't see any need for the salvation that his son was always telling him about. Finally the time came when he was in an assisted living place. One day the Christian son felt really burdened for his dad's soul. He went to visit him. He told him: "Dad I want to ask you a question, and I don't want you to answer me right now. I want you to just think about it for now. The question is: 'Is salvation a gift or a reward'." He left out of the building and went into the woods by a creek behind the assisted living building. He wept in desperation before God appealing before God for the soul of his very aged dad. Later, he went back into the building where his dad was. His dad greeted him smiling from ear to ear rejoicing. "Son, I am now born again. The more I thought about what you asked me, the more I began to realize that something as great as eternal salvation could not be earned. It would have to be a gift. I asked The Lord to give me that gift .... ".

I'm weeping right now just recounting the story as I heard it on Unshackled several years ago. He told about how that just a few weeks later his dad passed away rejoicing in his salvation.

If we keep letting God's love cause us to intercede before His throne for such lost souls in our lives, there is always that possibility that they may be transformed one day, just as we were miraculously transformed. Sometimes they are stubbornly rejecting for many years, but just at the right moment, the fish gets into the Gospel Net, and there is hope!

If god spirit is continually interceding through you for that man I would expect him to get saved I don't think the holy spirit would waste his time but he does require us to have faith and to believe in the not just a possibility but the outcome that's what John said this is the joy that we have that whatever we ask we received the petitions that we has asked because you are praying in the will of God because it's the spirit who prays with groanings and weepings just believe it and you'll see it you just think about how revival works spirit comes up on people and saves people you wouldn't expect because somebody has believed it and prayed it through till it comes to pass he's laid it on your heart to pray for him continually it will take place this is why our joy is full because we know he answers our prayers because we do pray in the will of God and keep his commandments if we don't keep his commandments we don't have a clear conscience and our prayers are hindered and we have no reason to think that he will answer our prayers and therefore we don't pray with faith we pray with doubt but you keep his commandments brother just take it by faith god spirit is not going to have you wasting your time weeping and groaning interceding through you like that and besides the Bible says we're not to be double minded and we must believe that he will answer our prayers with with no doubting James says as you know there's any anyone that lacks wisdom let him ask of God who gives liberally an upbraideth not but let him ask in faith not doubting for he who doubts is like a wave driven by the sea tossed to and fro with
the wind let him not think that he will receive anything from the Lord for a double minded man is unstable in all his ways, I honestly like to apply that mindset to all our prayers and especially when the spirit intercedes for us for we know not what we should pray for like we ought Paul said. Bless your brother in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ mahi spirit fill us with joy and confidence and the peace that passes all understanding.

THANKS, brothagary for the encouragement! My most intense prayers for him have been when he has acted the worst. God has a way of using those worst situations to make us more earnest in desire for their salvation. I started work there in 2007. My office manager who is a Christian as well told me one day that she thought that one of the main reasons that I'm there is because our boss needs a lot of prayer, and he can be such a difficult person at times that she felt that she had failed him in that area long ago. I hope that I'm not failing him along with many many more that I'm praying for who need it so desperately. I think of what Samuel said, even when God's people had rejected the plan of God:

1Sa 12:23  Moreover as for me, God forbid that I should sin against the LORD in ceasing to pray for you: but I will teach you the good and the right way: