“What if God was one of us?/Just a slob like one of us?” Thus sang Joan Osbourne in the early 1990s. It’s a question again asked in song during a pivotal scene in “Bruce Almighty,” Hollywood’s latest offering of spirituality. With lounge-lizard intonations, a drunk-with-omnipotence Bruce Nolan (Jim Carrey) belts out a few lines as he enters the apartment he shares with his girlfriend, Grace (Jennifer Aniston).

"God" [Morgan Freeman] and Bruce [Jim Carrey] confer

            But his actions represent the recurring theme of the movie, and it is the antithesis of Osbourne’s question. “Bruce Almighty” asks not “What if God was one of us?” But rather, “What if we were God?”

            It’s a question all of us have entertained. And most of us wouldn’t handle the job of “being God” any better than Bruce. In the apartment scene, for instance, Bruce cannot resist showing off his new powers. He showers Grace with attention -- presenting her first with a bouquet of hybrid “tudaisies,” then lassoing the moon and brightening up the stars a bit before the scene reaches its, um, climax with a rousing display of telekinetic foreplay.

            If I were in Bruce’s shoes, I doubt I would do things differently.

            That’s one of the endearing qualities of this movie. As a Hollywood everyman, it’s hard to beat Jim Carrey. (With the exception of Tom Hanks, Carrey just might be the best everyman since Jimmy Stewart.) In the role of Bruce, Carrey is one of us -- the guy consumed with ambition one minute, full of self-loathing the next, convinced that he ruled the world, things would be better. But more than anything, Bruce represents prideful humanity at its worst -- both before and after his encounter with God -- and, in his descent into hubris, manages to accept the most important supernatural power of all: the redemptive power of God’s enduring love and grace.

            On the surface, “Bruce Almighty” is a modern retelling of Job, but with a twist. Bruce Nolan is a down-on-his-luck TV reporter who angrily confronts the Creator after losing a bid to become news anchor. God (played by Morgan Freeman) responds by giving Bruce the chance to out-Jehovah Jehovah. Rather than cut a deal with Satan, God cuts a deal with Bruce. He turns the reins over to this mere mortal, who relishes in using and abusing his fantastic powers (as we all would) but falls short on other aspects required of deities, such as answering prayers. He also fails to understand that his actions have consequences. (Bruce’s lassoing of the moon, for instance, results in tidal flooding and disasters half a world away, and his granting of every prayer request received results in hundreds of lottery winners.)

            While some Christian critics have panned this movie for its vulgarity and adult situations (it is not a “family” movie), and while Carrey’s hyperactive Ace Ventura shtick is getting old, the movie offers much theological food for thought. The movie raises issues on myriad spiritual issues, including:

            Free will. God’s deal with Bruce has a catch: Bruce cannot go against free will. He tries, though. After he and Grace have a falling out, an exasperated Bruce asks God, “How do you make someone love you without affecting free will?” God replies, “Welcome to my world, son.”

            Identity and purpose. Bruce’s talents as a broadcast journalist lie in his ability to make people laugh. But he wants to be more than that. He wants to be an anchor, a star. The struggle between Bruce’s ambitions and his true talents (and his reason for being) raise interesting questions on the nature of human identity and purpose.

            The power of Grace.  This, to me, is the most poignant message of “Bruce Almighty.” Near the end of the movie, Bruce’s girlfriend, Grace, begins to act as an agent of God’s “grace” in action. While Bruce pursues Grace, whom he thinks he has lost, he later discovers that Grace is at work behind the scenes, working on Bruce’s behalf. Grace is the force behind the curtain, the spiritual principle operating to draw Bruce to his knees. It is by Grace that Bruce is saved -- not through his own, godlike efforts.

            In the end, “Bruce Almighty” is a fun fantasy movie with a message worth contemplating.