michael jackson

I don't know Michael Jackson. I only know his persona. From the outside he seemed like a tragic person. The conjectures about his trying to make up for a lost childhood seem to make sense. Celebrities have a hard life. They live in a self-made cage. They are trapped. Michael certainly had great talent. But his life appeared to be missing something important. I will not judge. God gives talents. God requires accounting.

Rabbi David Wolpe points out that the first verse of the Book of Kings reads: "Now King David was old." (1 Kings 1.1)
One chapter later, his condition has declined: "Now the days of David drew near that he should die." (1 Kings 2.1)
Approaching death, he is no longer King David, just David.
No one faces death as a king, a doctor, or a preacher.
Death strips away pretense.
There is no hiding behind titles and status.
Death levels the playing field.

I feel for Michael's children who will continue to be caught up in the chaos and instability of a dysfunctional family. Maybe celebrity is nothing to celebrate.

The first Christian theologian wrote: "We brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. If we have food and clothing, we will be content with that." (First Timothy 6.7)